AVCHD video editing PC suggestions.

[picosauce]

I am wanting to build a nice hd video editing PC. Budget $2500. Current Ideas include: 1. 960 i7 intel chip (thinking this is most important part of build right?) 2. Windows 7 home premium. 3. radeon 5850 video card. 4. 10,000rpm hdd for OS/sony vegas. 5. 10,000rpm hdd for data. 6. 6 gb trichannel dd3 RAM. Main questions include: 1. Should I bump the RAM to 12gb? or keep at 6gb cost increase only ($200). 2. Do I really need 10,000rpm for OS or would a 7200 seagate barracuda work fine? 3. Am I thinking correctly about using single 10,000 for data instead of raid 0 of 7200 drives? 4. what type of HD monitor is best. Currently using a 16x9 22" dell 1080p or should I get a higher end one? Thank you for the help!!!

 

[picosauce]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: (~ 1month) BUDGET: ($2500)

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: (AVCHD editing/rendering, light PC gaming like upcoming starcraft2)

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: (e.g.: keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers)

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: (cyberpowerpc.com or ibuypower.com)

PARTS PREFERENCES: by brand or type (i7 intel)

OVERCLOCKING: Maybe SLI OR CROSSFIRE:No

MONITOR RESOLUTION: (current 1920x1080)

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: (1. 6gb ddr RAM or 12gbRAM? 2. raptor drive for OS or just 7200 baracuda? 3. raptor drive for data or raid 0 of 7200 hdd? 4. Windows 7 home premium or professional? 5. capture card? or can I just use software that comes with my HD camcorder to import data? )

 

[MadAdmiral]

1.) 6 GB should be good enough. But you have the budget for 12, so it's not an issue. Start with 6 and if you need more, buy more.

2.) Neither. SSD for the boot. Probably need a 64 GB or 80 GB one. Data drive should be the Samsung Spinpoint F3, not the Seagate 7200.12.

3.) see #2

4.) No idea

5.) No idea

Here's what I'd build:

CPU: i7-920 $289

Mobo: Asus P6X58D Premium $310

RAM: OCZ Platinum 6GB (3 x 2GB) DDR3 1600 CAS Latency 7 $190.

HDD: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1 TB $85

SSD: No idea on a specific one $300-400

PSU: Corsair 750TX 750W $110 after rebate

Case: HAF 932 $140

Optical: Samsung 22x SATA DVD Burner $27

GPU: HD 5970 $650-700 (sold out) Not sure on this, might not be the best for video editing, but it destroys any game running...

Puts you at roughly $2,250. Room left for OS and/or more RAM.

 

[picosauce]

Hey Madadmiral thanks for the help and great suggestions.

In your opinion wouldnt I benefit more getting an i7-960 instead of upping RAM to 12gb?

I am leaning towards and intel x25 80 for boot drive and getting the samsung F3 for data too. Cyberpowerpc had the x25 as an option woot.

Your MOBO seems like overkill for me. What if I save a 150 and get basic Asus x58 mobo (wouldnt I only really lose usb 3.0).

Prolly keeping the cheaper radeon 5850 to keep costs down. I know the fps would kill having the fastest gpu ever! Anything better than my ghetto radeon 128 card circa 2005!

For HD video editing will the F3 do just fine compared to raptor? Well anyways $200 less is a big deal and getting 3x the storage (1T vs 300gb raptor). How about putting two F3 in raid 0? After project down unload to my hp mediasmart home server (8Tb storage).

 

[MadAdmiral]

No. The i7-920 should be the hgihest CPU you buy. I don't think the $200-300 is worth it for the 960.

The cheapest x58 mobo from Asus that I can find is $205 ($100 less). But, you're basically right about the USB/SATA ports being the difference. That said, new devices are starting to be released for these ports already. I'm not saying the ports are going to be mainstream soon, but it's an important future proofing option. And you're got a massive budget. You shouldn't worry about the $100, as you will be ensuring the computer has staying power.

Another GPU option is the HD 5870. It's $400ish. The main difference between the three is that the 5970and 5870 will play Crysis on high settings, while the 5850 will not.

The F3 outperforms the VRs. Don't let the limited specs sway you. Check out the benchmarks in the charts section. The F3 is destroying everything that isn't a SSD. Right now, the VRs are the worst deal in HDDs. A RAID setup will just make the drives faster.

 

[snowgoer1998]

#5. Capture card - since you're talking AVCHD, you've probably got a relatively new camcorder...and those usually have some type of USB connection. And in this case, all you will need to do is load the software that came with your camcorder and dump the files via USB.


i7-920 all the way...along with the F3's

Monitor should be fine...given that it supports 1080p already, no need to spend $$$ on a new monitor that will display the same resolution


Windows 7 Home vs Pro - best bet would be to go to Microsoft's website and compare features...IF you like to sit in your bedroom with a laptop and hook into the main rig, you'll need to go Pro - the Home version does not allow remote desktop connection



MadAdmiral - Any reason for the Platinum OCZ rather than the Gold???

Each 6 Gb pack can save ~$60

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227365

 

[MadAdmiral]

Platinum has better timings. I'll be honest, I didn't even look for at the Gold. The way I generally search for RAM is to set the CL at 7 and go from there. For the price, it's probably better to get the Gold.

And that rebate only counts once, FYI. If you're going to buy 2 sets, split them up over 2 promo periods to get the full rebate, assuming it's renewed.

 

[picosauce]

Okay probably will build this and post another reply with the build price from cyberpowerpc.com and ibuypower.com

CPU i7-920
RAM (3x2)Gb OCZ GOLD 6GB (3 x 2GB) DDR3 1600 CAS
OS Windows Pro for $30 dollars more gets you XP mode for legacy software
HDD Intel x-25 80Gb For OS and then F3 Spinpoint for data.
GPU Radeon 5870
MOBO Basic x58 (I can live without usb 3.0)
PSU Corsair 850

If OCZ gold not available you think Dominator okay?

 

[picosauce]

CYBERPOWERPC.COM BUILD

Thermaltake Element-T Mid-Tower Case
12in (Red Color) Cold Cathode Neon Light
Thermaltake ToughPower 750W
Asetek LCLC 120 Liquid Cooling System 120MM Radiator & Fan
Asus P6T SE Intel X58
6GB (2GBx3) DDR3/1600MHz Corsair Dominator
ATI Radeon HD 5870 PCI-E 16X
80 GB Intel X25-M 2.5
Lite-On IHOS 104 4X Blu-Ray Player
LG 22X DVD±R/±RW
Thermal Temperature Color LCD Display
INTERNAL 12in1 Flash Media Reader/Writer
Microsoft® Windows® 7 Professional 64bit
Professional Wiring for All WIRING Inside The System Chassis
3 Year warranty

$2109.00

Add F3 drive from newegg for another $90 for toal of $2200 build woot!

 

[picosauce]

IBUYPOWER.COM BUILD

CoolerMaster HAF 922 Mid Tower Gaming Case
Cold Cathode Neon Light Red
Intel® Core™ i7 920 Processor
Asetek Liquid CPU Cooling System w/ 240mm Radiator [SOCKET-1366]
6GB (2GBx3) DDR3/1600MHz Corsair Dominator
ATI Radeon HD 5870
ASUS P6T SE -- Intel X58
750 Watt -- Corsair CMPSU-750TX
80 GB Intel X25-M 2.5
22X Dual Format/Double Layer DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW Drive
[8X Blu-Ray] LG BLU-RAY Reader, DVD±R/±RW Burner Combo Drive Black
12-In-1 Internal Flash Media Card Reader/Writer
NZXT Sentry 2 LCD Touch Screen Fan Controller /w Temperatures Display Black
Microsoft Windows 7 Professional
Standard Warranty Service Standard 3-Year Limited Warranty

$2081

Add F3 data HDD from newegg and total around $2200 woot! Better case and better liquid cooling on this build!

I'm ready to pull the trigger now, but wife says we buying the minivan first! Once I get my tax refund I will get the PC.

What do you guys think about basic video editing software and also DVD burning software?

I though about getting Sony Vegas $120 or Pinnacle $120. Also getting either Canon of Sony mid tier HD Camera $850-$1000. Do these editing programs also have DVD encoding and burning suites in them or do I need seperate burning/encoding program?

Thanks you guys ROCK!!!

 

[picosauce]

Just For Giggles here is dell/Alienwares comparable

CHASSIS COLOR Cosmic Black ALX - 875 Watt Power Supply edit
PROCESSOR Intel® Core™ i7 920 (2.66GHz, 8MB Cache) edit
OPERATING SYSTEM Genuine Windows® 7 Professional, 64bit, English edit
WARRANTY AND SERVICE 3 Yr Ltd Hardware Warranty
VIDEO CARD Single 2GB GDDR5 ATI Radeon™ HD 5970
MEMORY 6GB Triple Channel 1333Mhz DDR3 edit
HARD DRIVE 1.2TB RAID 0 (2x 640GB SATA-II, 7,200 RPM, 16MB Cache HDDs)
OPTICAL DRIVE Dual Drives: Blu-ray Disc (BD) Combo (BD-ROM; DVD/CD Burner)

$3278 It does have 5890 card and could not tweak the HDD for SSD. Man how does dell stay in business with those prices. Okay add $400 dollars for for the vid card upgrade from my builds and you at $2600. $600 extra for Alienware name no thanks!!!

 

[MadAdmiral]

They make their money in the cheap PC market. Instead of selling 100 $3,000 computers, they sell 100,000 $300 computers with a higher margin.

Dell is a great deal if you're not shelling out more than $600-700 for the tower.

 

[caseychaos]

What would be suggested to add a couple gigs of RAM to this or a similar build?

 

[picosauce]

What would be suggested to add a couple gigs of RAM to this or a similar build?

After doing more research most say get the basic i7 chip and best single video card. Faster RAM is nice, but anything over 6gig in 3x2gig tri channel is over kill. Also having OS and software on one hard drive and data on another is a must too. I will probably build something like this soon.

Intel 920 i7
6 Gb RAM
windows 7 professional
Intel 80Gb SSD for os and software
1Gb Samsung F3 drive for data
blue ray ROM
24x dvd burner
Radeon 5870 Video Card
back and forth on motherboard whether to get one that has usb 3.0 or not.

Thinking about it RAM is relatively cheap so bump up to 9 Gb would be fine.

 

[Guest]

After doing more research most say get the basic i7 chip and best single video card. Faster RAM is nice, but anything over 6gig in 3x2gig tri channel is over kill. Also having OS and software on one hard drive and data on another is a must too. I will probably build something like this soon.

Intel 920 i7
6 Gb RAM
windows 7 professional
Intel 80Gb SSD for os and software
1Gb Samsung F3 drive for data
blue ray ROM
24x dvd burner
Radeon 5870 Video Card
back and forth on motherboard whether to get one that has usb 3.0 or not.

Thinking about it RAM is relatively cheap so bump up to 9 Gb would be fine.

Picosauce-

I would be EXTREMELY wary of buying a system from ibuypower or cyberpowerpc. Do a google search.. heck, even search the cyperpowerpc online forum and you will see what I am talking about. There is a reason they are cheaper than other places.

For example: http://forums.pcworld.com/index.php?/topic/23428-cyberpowerpc-com-reviews/

Just keep in mind that if you have a problem with your new system, you get the joy of boxing the system back up, praying you can get ahold of someone to get a RMA number, paying to ship the defective system back to the company, waiting to see if the system can be fixed, and then waiting for the system to be shipped back to you... all the while sweating the 30 day money back deadline that starts the day the system arrives at your house.

Some people have had great experiences with these companies, but just be sure you realize the potential trade-off you are making (cheaper price vs. shady customer service) before you click the "purchase" button.

Just my two cents...

Phil

 

[bootmonkey]

Hello all,
I am also getting ready to build a PC for editing AVCHD. I will also need to record and edit audio, but any machine can do that, I just need a good sound card with TOSLINK in. However, my budget is only $1200. I am not interested in gaming on the machine. I just need one that will burn through encoding and decoding as quickly as possible for my budget. Also, I don't care about aesthetics. I'm going to dual boot Ubuntu and Win7. Any suggestions are appreciated!