System Rebuild to Boost Speed for Photo Editing

[b]I want to modify my system to reduce processing time for photo edits. I have a goal of 25% reduction in the time to convert a set of RAW format files to TIFF. Currently, it can take longer than one hour to process 60 photos. The problem has become worse as I have moved from shooting in jpeg format to RAW format, and as I have moved up from a 6 MP camera to a 12 MP camera.

I currently have an Asus P5B with an Intel E6600 and 4 GB of Corsair XMS-6400, all at stock conditions. I am using Vista 64.

This time, I would like to overclock moderately -- enough to boost speed but not enough to effect stability or reduce life below 3 years.

I would like your input on the following choices, are based upon my investigation to-date, and upon a desire to find a good price-performance balance. I need support for SATA, RAID, Firewire, and easy over-clock. SLI is not necessary. I would like to keep under $600, but am willing to spend a bit more for added performance.

CPU: Intel E8500 ($250)
Asus P5K Pro ($105)
4 x 2Gb Corsair Twin 2X4096-8500 ($192)

I also plan to update my GPU, so that I can run two monitors:
Asus EN 8600 GTS

I plan to retain my other components. Your input is greatly appreciated. Thanks!!!

The bottleneck for batch processing is the hard drive. The fastest option would be to RAID 0 two SSD drives, with the velociRaptor close behind.

A quad core will NOT help. Photoshop needs speed, not 4 cores.

Current Versions of PhotoShop only use 2 Cores but the next version is supposed to be able to take advantage of many more. Have you used Task Manager to watch your CPU load while converting these files. You didn't say what HDD you have and you may need to feed the CPU with a RAID 0+1 Array to get enough thoughput and keep a reliable backup (I am assuming that these pictures are very import, perhaps you livelyhood if you are taking that many).

You should easily be able to get a 25 - 50% boost in performance by overclocking your E6600. All you need is a good aftermarket heatsink. The best is the TRUE120. You should be able to reach 3.4-3.6ghz with it. IMO, unless you are upgrading to a quad core, it's not worth it. And since Photoshop doesn't currently fully utilize a quad, it's not worth it. So, just overclock the E6600 and you should be happy with the results.

You have a point -- 25% OC's on E6600 seems relatively common and easy to achieve. Wouldn't my Big Typhoon be adequate for cooling? I don't often check my temps, but they have never been much above 45.

Let's say I want to get more than 25%. What is a reasonable OC on an E8500?

Thx all for your feedback. With some additional research, here is what I have concluded:

- I will install the E8500 with an overclock targeting for 3.8 Mhz. This should roughly give me a 50% improvement in performance. I have the money for the upgrade, and the greater improvement is compelling.

- I will do some testing on my HD R/W performance on my current system, in order to evaluate the need to go with RAID stripping and/or a faster HDD. I had not considered this factor, and indeed it may be a bottleneck in my system.

- I will add the Noctuna NH-U 12 to my kit. This seems to be a fairly well rated cooler, and it will give my peace of mind when overclocking the E8500.

- I will do a bit more checking on the MoBo and the DDR2 1066 RAM. I want something that will give me the full value for the computing power of the E8500, but I really don't want to pay for extra features that I won't use (like SLI). And, I am concerned about compatibility of the 1066 RAM.

Thanks to all for your input!

In that case a 8600GT should be fine. The 8800GS isn't a dual slot cooling. Also the 8800GS has 2 DVI ports so you can run 2 LCDs.