What to get for an editing station

M

Mike_E

Well-known member
Hey guys,

I'm going to be getting a new computer soon (to coincide with me starting film school) and I was hoping you all could give me some ideas on what I should get in it.

I'm going to get a PC, because it's not just for editing and I've weighed up PC & Mac already, and I want to stick with PC for now (at least till I get a computer solely for editing).

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Some of the specs I'm thinking of are:

P4 3.4Ghz
120G 7200rpm HDD (for editing if that isn't obvious)
80G 7200rpm HDD
EDIT: I guess I'll have like 1024mb RAM too

Either 1 LCD or Dual CRT's (which should I get?)
128 or 256mb Video Card (suggestions?)
Firewire Card, obviously  :)

Pioneer 108 16x Dual Layer DVD Burner
LG CD-RW 52x32x52
5.1 Surround Sound Speakers
Microsoft Standard Wireless Optical Desktop Kit

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That's all I'd written down so far. At the moment I'm not after anything big like I saw in some of you guys' setups. Just to get me going, meaning, not like extensive sound mixing equiptment.

Any tips, suggestions or changes will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Mike
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

Well, to start with, you're going to need more hard drive space. I would say, save the 80 gig for your OS, use the 160 for rendered material, and get a 250 for storage, minimum....The CPU and ram sound good. Dual monitors are a must (at least for me) for editing. They make the process alot easier. so, if you have to go dual CRT, do that, it will be alot more convenient. Another handy item would be a digital to analog converter (and vice versa). This will alow you to do full screen preview on say, a television through the firewire out on your computer, while using your NLE program. Just some suggestions....
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

Thanks very much PDX, I had been considering getting a Digital to Analogue converter, and I think I might now. And that's ALOT for the hard drive tip, I'm glad I asked now
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

I've heard getting a Western Digital Raptor 36gb or 74gb 10,000 RPM drive as your system (OS) drive is the best solution. Speeds things up! Not sure.

Make sure you have an external tv monitor for previewing. I have 1 LCD and 1 tv monitor for previewing and as a 2nd workspace.

Good luck!
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

Pookie: I was probably just going to get 17" ones, maybe a 19".

P.K: Oh ok, I haven't heard anything about those Raptors (not even sure if we have them in Australia, although I'm not that up with the PC times). I'll also think about just getting the LCD and using a tv monitor.

Thanks guys
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

G'day mate, give these guys a ring. they are in Melbourne, but build computers for the industry & no dearer than your local computer shop.
http://www.videoguys.com.au/Scripts/default.asp
Michael or George, really know their stuff. I personally think you are pretty close to the mark, I agree that more HDD space is necessary, I got over this by having my second (editing) drive mounted in a Mobile Rack, I can pull it out & slip another into its place. Great if you are working on more than one project at the same time.
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

Thanks Nirimba, I've been to the videoguys site. I'm probably going to get my DVX from them when I can afford it (if I don't get it 2nd Hand). I'll probably find out some more from them, however my Dad works above a computer place that does all their office's computers so I think we could get a good price from their.

Thanks for the tips nonetheless.

EDIT:

rtx100xtremepro_user.5_jpeg.jpg

That is quite a nice setup they have there
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

Just something to keep in mind if you are building this system yourself. All hard drive manufacturers have recently lowered their warranty to 1 year, except Seagate which has raised theirs to 5 years.

Also, the raptors are a great choice for your OS drive as they run much faster. Also, you may want to consider SATA drives for your editing/storage drives and in particular you should consider SATA Raid 0 which will improve the performance of the editing.

Just my $0.01 9/10
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

I remember when we used to do paper edits in film school, when the g4 had 40gb drives (tops) for up to 10 projects. In a way, I still think it's better than having to go through your source material time and again. But I to enjoy having all the footage at the tip of my fingers.

My gforce card has s-video out which can run as a second monitor through that( won't work with my ATI Card). so I use two ctr's ( one video card for each) and then out to a 27in tv next to my desk for preview.
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

Thanks guys for the help.

Larry, thanks very much for the HDD help. I was thinking of getting Seagate drives, now I most certainly will. I'll also look at getting a raptor for OS, but it depends how expensive it is.

SATA drives, I saw them on a site when I was finding what I wanted and estimate prices, but I just know Hard Drives as Hard Drives, may I ask the differences that make SATAs better than IDEs?

Thanks everyone for the links, I'm checking them out now and will probably look at what their computers specs to get some more ideas. LuzCruz, those cases are INSANE! I think I'll stick to conventional boring cases ;D

Thanks again
Mike
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

ahaha yea they are.. you can modify each option and get a case that doesnt look like insanity :)
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

Yea, I would get the raptor drive for the OS, things will boot WAY faster, you should run your NLE program from that too. I think they even make 15,000rpm drives now, but I doubt that would make much difference really, overkill if you ask me on the 15,000's. Deffinetly get the analog to DV, it can also help if you need to digitize VHS material, or any other analog source. Another thing to consider that is sometimes overlooked is an uninteruptable power supply. You may already have one, but they are something that is REALLY good to have, so if the power goes out you have time to save and shut down your computer before you lose and/or corrupt data. Its basically a big battery, they are relatively cheap, but a very good investment. Another thing you want, is to make sure you have a big enough power supply. For that system, I would go with a 480watt supply, someone may want to back me up on this, but I believe a 480 watt supply would do you just fine.
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

Thanks AGAIN PDX, I will definately look into getting a raptor and I've decided I AM going to get an Analogue to DV box. That uninteruptable power supply does sound like a very good idea so I'll look into that as well. I'll also go for 480 watt supply unless someone else suggests it I need more
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

Actually, I think you'll be fine with the 480 watt supply, I just don't want you to buy more than you'll need, but going a little overkill on the power supply won't hurt, I would get the 480. I use one on my computer, with a very similar system. It works fine and I run 3 hard drives, 2 cd/dvd burners, and my mother board (p4 3.2ghz 1024 RAM). I think you'll be fine. That UPS will save you hours of regret when the power goes out and you've been working on a huge project. You might consider getting a firewire 800 card too. They are a little more spendy, but if you ever get a firewire 800 external hard drive, the speed boost over firewire 400 is considerable (twice as fast...) The firewire 800 card will still work with your firewire 400 devices too btw.
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

Why to buy an analog to digital? Does my Sony DSR-11 can do the same job or even my DVX?
 
Re: What to get for an editing station

Your DSR-11 will do the same thing. All you have to do is connect your preview monitor to the RCA outs on the DSR-11, and while it is hooked up through firewire, choose "preview on DV device and desktop" (in premiere) to do full screen preview. The DVX will do the same thing. Why you ask is a seperate unit needed to do this? For me, the reason would be (I dont have such a unit yet) because hooking my DVX up every time I want to edit with full screen preview is a hassle, and I would rather not leave the camera running for hours at a time while editing. Also, some of the analog to dv devices can help with keeping audio in sync when digitizing. Your DSR-11 is nice, in that you could go straight to tape with your analog content, you could do the same with the DVX, however I think most of us would rather save our precious heads for actual recording of digital content. Ronik, I wish I had a DSR-11, how much was it and where did you buy it from? Is it nice?
 
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