Going from I5 2300 to I7 2600 for video encoding, need advice

[nintygaming]

Hey guys, I've been searching alot on the net and cannot seem to find a solid objective answer to my questions, so allow me to ask them here please.

I currently do frequent video encoding using tools like Freemake, DVDStyler, ConvertXtoDVD, etc, and I was wanting to know (percentage wise) how much of a performance increase I would get if I swap out my stock I5 2300 for a I7 2600 (no overclocking here, using a Gateway motherboard, according to CPU-Z).

For example, I currently can encode a H.264, 3 Hour long video of roughly 1500kps at about 280 FPS using DVDStyler, and it takes about 20 minutes to finish.

So, using the same video, how much faster would a I7 2600 with Hyperthreading turned on convert the video? 10 minutes? 15 minutes?

 

[Guest]

this is about as close to a comparison i could find in a few minutes:

now to believe it would be ~55% (12 minutes in the case of a 20 minute encode) i would not be entirely sure. and i know a VOB to MP4 is quite different than .264 (that an MP4 format too?) to VOB.

 

[popatim]

Its not clear if your reencoding video or not with dvd styler but if you are you'd probably see a 20-25% improvement - so about 4-5 minutes savings. Hows your disk setup? Your not reading and writing to the same drive I hope. If the source drive is the dvd drive then you're probably bottlenecked by the dvd drive read speed and might not see any increase in speed.

 

[nintygaming]

Its not clear if your reencoding video or not with dvd styler but if you are you'd probably see a 20-25% improvement - so about 4-5 minutes savings. Hows your disk setup? Your not reading and writing to the same drive I hope. If the source drive is the dvd drive then you're probably bottlenecked by the dvd drive read speed and might not see any increase in speed.

I'm reading from the HDD and writing to the HDD, then burning to a disc later when I feel like it. (1TB Western Digital Caviar Green)

 

[nintygaming]

I would like to mention also, that I'm going to be getting this i7 2600 used off eBay, as they typically can be won for a $200-225 bid, and then I'll sell my old i5 2300 for close to $150, so in the end, I'll wind up spending $50-75 for the upgrade. So that "should" make it worth it, providing that going from 2.8 Ghz to 3.4 Ghz + Hyperthreading is worth the extra $50-75.

More opinions are welcome

 

[inzone]

It's your decision to buy the cpu on e-bay but for a used item at $225 when the brand new can be had for $294 and because of a strange quirk in pricing the 2600K on Newegg is $289. I think I would be buying the 2600K for $289 and then selling the 2300 on e-bay and have a brand new cpu vs a used one , but that's my preference and yours can be different.
I don't have any experience with encoding but I do know computer parts and the i7 is a much stronger and faster cpu then the i5 , so your encodeing times can only be faster. How much faster I don't know but they will be faster and I believe it is worth the cost to do the upgrade.

 

[nintygaming]

It's your decision to buy the cpu on e-bay but for a used item at $225 when the brand new can be had for $294 and because of a strange quirk in pricing the 2600K on Newegg is $289. I think I would be buying the 2600K for $289 and then selling the 2300 on e-bay and have a brand new cpu vs a used one , but that's my preference and yours can be different.
I don't have any experience with encoding but I do know computer parts and the i7 is a much stronger and faster cpu then the i5 , so your encodeing times can only be faster. How much faster I don't know but they will be faster and I believe it is worth the cost to do the upgrade.

There's also new one's ("K" series) on eBay for $264 or best offer. But the problem is that I don't think that my Gateway DX4850 motherboard (American Microtrends Bios) will support the 2600k, and if it did, what's the point if I can't overclock it?

Maybe I'm completely wrong here, perhaps you can help. (unlock the bios possible? I wouldn't know. The stock Gateway fan/heatsink "looks" like a beast compared to the stock Intel fan/heatsink, but looks can be deceiving. It sure is quiet however, whisper quiet)

 

[inzone]

When an unlocked multiplier cpu is installed in a motherboard the bios will recognize what that cpu i and will then show the options for overclocking. Untill you do that the bios will not show the options for adjusting the cpu because the current cpu does not have those features. If you have the owners manual for the motherboard that's in your computer then it can show you what cpus are supported by that motherboard. If you don't have any documentation then you can try calling customer service/tech support and asking or if they have anything online you can look at.

I found a Gateway support page that lists the cpus that the motherboard wwill support and from what I see of the list there are no K series cpus listed.

http://support.gateway.com/s/desktop/2011/gateway/dx4850/DX4850sp5.shtml

This is what I dislike about the prebuilt computers and that is that your stuck with thier design and use of certian parts. These big computer makers can order parts to use in thier computers that are unique to thier brand and they don't tell you what your getting and what you can't do with the computer. You don't see a motherboard for sale that doesn't allow overclocking or will accept certian cpus and not others of the same socket type. So I guess your stuck with the i7-2600 option and no K series.

 

[nikorr]

There's also new one's ("K" series) on eBay for $264 or best offer. But the problem is that I don't think that my Gateway DX4850 motherboard (American Microtrends Bios) will support the 2600k, and if it did, what's the point if I can't overclock it?

Maybe I'm completely wrong here, perhaps you can help. (unlock the bios possible? I wouldn't know. The stock Gateway fan/heatsink "looks" like a beast compared to the stock Intel fan/heatsink, but looks can be deceiving. It sure is quiet however, whisper quiet)

Get the "K" or forget about that.

The K u can OC and get the extra advantage and that makes it worth.

I use the 2600K to edit, encode everyday.

Plus use the RAM disk and that way u max out the speed.

2600 no, but 26ooK Yes.

 

[popatim]

I'm reading from the HDD and writing to the HDD, then burning to a disc later when I feel like it. (1TB Western Digital Caviar Green)

Ok.
if you know anyone with a spare HDD that you can borrow (not a usb drive) add it to your system as a test and then use your program to read the file from one drive, convert it, and write it to the other and see if there is an improvement.

Whats currently happening is
Drive reads data into your program
opps program needs to write data now
<pause while heads reposition themselves>
Drive writes data
<pause>
Drive reads data
<Pause>
Drive writes data
etc...

Now sometimes your drive setup is fast enough to handle this but I doubt that a green drive is up to the task, esp if you upgrade to an I7.

 

[nintygaming]

Hey you guys, I appreciate all your help

However, I just found out that my Sandybridge Chipset (H67) cannot be overclocked even with the 2600k. So I just purchased a excellent shape 2600 on eBay for $220 free shipping.

After selling my i5 2300 for $150 or so, I'll come out with with an upgrade that was well worth it.

Thanks to all you guys for your support. Thanks to looniam for that chart, which was what really helped convince me.

 

[nintygaming]

Ok.
if you know anyone with a spare HDD that you can borrow (not a usb drive) add it to your system as a test and then use your program to read the file from one drive, convert it, and write it to the other and see if there is an improvement.

Whats currently happening is
Drive reads data into your program
opps program needs to write data now
<pause while heads reposition themselves>
Drive writes data
<pause>
Drive reads data
<Pause>
Drive writes data
etc...

Now sometimes your drive setup is fast enough to handle this but I doubt that a green drive is up to the task, esp if you upgrade to an I7.

You know, what you just said makes alot of sense.........

So I purchased 2 Samsung 830 SSD's. One to read from, and one to write from, at the same time. Thanks!

 

[nintygaming]

Best answer selected by nintygaming.