New Video Editing Build for 1st time Builder for under 1,600

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FledglingFilms

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Jul 14, 2013
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Approximate Purchase Date: This week

Budget Range: $1,800 max total shipped and everything

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Video Editing computer for Adobe CS6 Premiere and After Effects for a aspiring video business (a few weddings a year, etc.)

Are you buying a monitor: Probably not unless very affordable. Using an Insignia TV right now.



Parts to Upgrade: I need everything

Do you need to buy OS: Yes. Windows 7 or 8? Most people have told me to stick with 7 but I am open to your opinions.

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: newegg.com, amazon.com... open to others if reputable and cheaper.

Location: City, State/Region, Country - WA State, USA

Parts Preferences: Would like an Intel CPU

Overclocking: Maybe. This is my first time building so probably not from the get go but maybe later??

SLI or Crossfire: Don't really know anything about this.

Your Monitor Resolution: Not sure.

Additional Comments: Need a stable computer that won't crash when using Adobe CS6 Premiere and After Effect for entry level videography. I just shot my first wedding and need to edit it all now. I have been using an old computer with an AMD Phenom 9500 Quad-Core 2.2GHz with Adobe Elements 10 for years and is crashes all the time with my new Canon T4i footage. I need a system that won't get in the way of my work. I would like to start making some money off of my video projects.

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: I have been video editing as a fun hobby for about 15 years. I am really hoping to take the next step and maybe even start a very entry level videography business and do a few weddings, local business promo's etc. to bring in some extra money for my family. Also, please give me your feedback on the best, cheapest, and easiest way to back up all important video files I would be working with. I was talking to someone who made me think that configuring a RAID system on my first build might be above my head.

Include a list of any parts you have already selected with descriptively labeled links.

CPU Intel Core i7-3770K
Motherboard Gigabyte Z77X-UP4-TH
Memory 16GB Corsair Vengeance 1600MHz DDR3 Low Profile 1.5v
GPU EVGA GeForce GT 640 2GB
Case Fractal Design Define XL R2 FD-CA-DEF-XL-R2-BL Black Pearl Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case

SSD Samsung 840 Pro
Hard Drive 2x Seagate Barracuda 1TB 7200RPM
Optical Drive OEM DVD Drive or OEM Blu Ray Drive $23
PSU Antec VP-450
CPU Cooler Corsair H100
OS Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit
Total Pricing via Amazon, so no tax and free shipping for most USA Residents $1413
*I am using all these parts as suggested on custompcreview.com as a starting point: http://www.custompcreview.com/computer-builds/best-photo-video-editing-pc-under-1400-january-2013/17122/

Thank you SO much for any help you can give me. I am so excited to learn from you all and build a computer THIS WEEK so I can start editing all of the wedding footage I just shot. Blessings to you for your time on this and any advice you can give.
 
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Hi FledglingFilms,

good start with the parts list, although I would make some alterations to it, seeing as you have a pretty good budget.
Intel have launched new i7 processors, so I would recommend the i7-4470k instead of the 3770k.
This means new motherboard with new Intel chipset.
RAM you've chosen is good. The more RAM you can get for video editing - THE BETTER. RAM is responsible for how quick things render in premiere etc, so if you would even consider 32GB, you'll be building a system that will serve you well for a very long time. Keep in mind though, if you want to stick with 16GB, that you can always put more in later.
I would definitely be getting a better GPU than the one you've selected. That is an old card, and won't help...
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antoni7

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Mar 24, 2013
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Hi FledglingFilms,

good start with the parts list, although I would make some alterations to it, seeing as you have a pretty good budget.
Intel have launched new i7 processors, so I would recommend the i7-4470k instead of the 3770k.
This means new motherboard with new Intel chipset.
RAM you've chosen is good. The more RAM you can get for video editing - THE BETTER. RAM is responsible for how quick things render in premiere etc, so if you would even consider 32GB, you'll be building a system that will serve you well for a very long time. Keep in mind though, if you want to stick with 16GB, that you can always put more in later.
I would definitely be getting a better GPU than the one you've selected. That is an old card, and won't help with video editing. You need the newest possible components to stay ahead of the game here :)
Case is nice, and will support a top mounted H100i CPU cooler, that will be AWESOME for your cooling. And I would suggest a higher-watted PSU to power it all.

Here's what I think you should buy: (all links to newegg.com)

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770k - $339.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116901
Motherboard: Gigabyte Z87X-UD4H - $189.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.1386758

At the moment newegg are running a promotion where if you bundle the two products above you receive $100 off!! :)

RAM: G.Skill Ares 1866 MHz DDR3 16GB (2x8GB) - $129.99 (+$10 off using promo code - ENDS 15TH JULY)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231560

GPU: EVGA GeForce GTX 770 Superclocked w/ACX Cooler 2GB - $419.99 (+receive a $10 rebate card by mail from EVGA)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130921

Case: Fractal Design Define XL R2 FD-CA-DEF-XL-R2-BL - $129.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811352029

Solid State Drive: Samsung 840 Pro 120GB - $139.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147192

Hard Disk Drives: 2 x Western Digital Caviar Black 1 TB - $89.99 each - $179.98
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136533

Optical Drive: Pioneer Blu-Ray Burner - $59.99 (+ receive $15 off when bundled with one of the Western Digital Hard Drives!)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827129074

Power Supply - Corsair AX760i 760W Platinum - $189.99 (+receive $20 rebate card by mail from Corsair)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139043

CPU Cooler - Corsair H100i Liquid CPU Cooler - $103.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835181032

OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit OEM (cannot re-install onto another PC) - $99.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986

You do need to pay $13.59 to ship the case, but if you sign up for a free 30 day membership on newegg.com, you'll get the rest shipped for free :).

So total cost with that free shipping, minus any mailed rebates: $1842.47.
If that's slightly over your max budget, let me know and I'll change some things.
But this will be an amazing build that will last ages! All top quality, top performance, perfect for your video editing business... if you're going to build a PC, in my opinion you may as well spend a few extra dollars here and there to save from upgrading in the long run.

As far as RAID, it is dead easy to set up, let me know if you want me to post a guide for you about that. It means that the two 1 TB drives always are cloned, so that if one fails you always have one with everything backed up.

I hope this has helped you, and please let me know if you want me to elaborate on any of my component choices for you.
Happy building!!
-Antoni :)
 
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FledglingFilms

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Jul 14, 2013
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This is fantastic! Thank you for your time on this. I am pretty excited to make this PC now. Can you tell me more about the RAID. I wasn't planning on doing it but if you say it is super easy I will consider it. Do you think it is a good idea and better than just backing up to an external hard drive? Don't you have to have some RAID controller card or something?

Thanks for any info.
 
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antoni7

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Mar 24, 2013
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OK, well to start off, most motherboards these days have RAID controllers built in, so you don't need an external controller.

Here's a quick explanation of RAID:

Raid 1 (Mirrored RAID) - You have two drives of the same size and model (Like the two 1TB drives on my pick list),
and the computer now sees only a 1TB volume. Everything is always being backed up to the second drive though, whatever you edit/save on the first one. There are, of course, some pros and cons to this.

Pros:
You always have a complete duplicate of your data on two drives
An increase in read performance, as the computer can read the same file from two places.
If a drive does fail, it's not too hard to get the other one back out of RAID and running again.

But the cons:
Your write speeds will be slower, as the computer is always writing to two places.
If your PC case suffers physical damage / power surges, both drives may also be damaged
You can't recover a file you've accidentally deleted, as the second drive in the RAID also deletes it.
Any viruses your computer has been exposed to has exposed both drives, whereas an external backup drive wouldn't be plugged in all the time.
In my opinion, using RAID 1 might not be a good idea as a backup solution, as it is merely there to protect you from a drive failure.

Raid 0 (Striped RAID) - Your two 1TB drives combine to create a 2TB volume, with theoretically double the speed and performance of the single drive. All files are saved with half on the first drive, half on the second, allowing the computer to read and write from two places at once. BUT if one of these drives fails, and you do not have them backed up, you lose all information on both drives.

In your situation, and if it were me, I would put the two 1TB internal drives in RAID 0, and then buy a 2TB external hard drive to back them up. This way, you have double the speed of these drives (perfect for moving around large video files!!), and none of the drawbacks from using RAID 1. If one of the drives fails and all info is lost, you then have your external drive to retrieve all your data.

Setting up a RAID 0 is as simple as setting the Onboard SATA mode as "RAID" in your computer's BIOS in the "Integrated Peripherals" menu, save and exit.
Hold down Control+L at boot and you can then create a new striped RAID and select your two drives.

I hope I've made sense, and not just rambled. Theres plenty of good backup software out there, I use Time Machine for Mac so I haven't really needed to use any others. I can look some up for you though?
Let me know if any more clarification is needed.
Antoni :)
 
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FledglingFilms

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Jul 14, 2013
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Why do you suggest Home Premium instead of Professional version of Windows 7 ? If I don't do the RAID, what should I do instead? A 1TB drive for storage and another 500GB for a scratch drive and then a 2 TB external for a backup??
 
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antoni7

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Mar 24, 2013
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Click here and read this article. There's not a big difference between them, but home premium is $40 cheaper, so professional may be an unnecessary spend.
If you don't want to do RAID, that configuration you've suggested should work nicely. I do know scratch drives increase performance for premiere and photoshop etc, but I think a RAID 0 configuration may be even faster. But then again... you do have to buy two drives, and that may be unnecessary in your opinion.
 
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