[Solved] PC Specs. for HD video editing - not just fast rendering.

Hello,
Have been searching forums for a while to get some idea of basic system requirements for video editing - I don't really mind if I have to wait an extra 5 minutes for a final render but just want smooth previewing of HD on a second monitor using Sony Vegas with a few effects transitions etc. applied. Am I better off with the fastest clock speed I can get or will a quad core at lower speeds actually be better - again not after lightning render times and don't care if it final renders 11.523% faster or not.

not sure about Vegas, but for premier more cores FTW. Just depends on how well multi-threaded the program is.

Thanks Guys

Would an i7 really be necessary just for smooth editing/previewing - not fast rendering - I understand would be the best (although I'm not too sure a slow quad of just any type/brand would necessarily be better than a clocked up multithreaded 2 core - once again just from an editing not rendering perspective) but is it really required for occasional editing of HD footage out of say a DSLR or prosumer video camera (which is usually quite heavily compressed to some form of mpeg4).

Back when I started editing all the forums were constantly on about making sure you are using the latest Pentium 4's with hyperthreading yet my stripped down XP OS with a crappy Celeron processor has handled virtually all the standard definition stuff I have thrown at it - renders very slowly but who cares - that's coffee and cigs time after a few hours watching the preview monitor - but I have never really edited heavily compressed footage like today HD formats.

I suppose what I'm really asking - is an i7 really necessary to decompress HD video and run smoothly in Sony Vegas on a PC. Have had a few goes on a basic IMac with 3.06 Core 2 Duo and seems to play, basic edit etc. OK. I also suppose for me it's about price point - can get a decent Core 2 Duo with 4g good quality ram, motherboard, video card etc for under a grand yet a similar i7 double this. I know I'd be future proofing and all that but just at this point in time is an i7 really necessary for those of us who just need to do a project every few weeks.

Yes - your 100% right - just did a bit of a search and the i7's really aren't that much more for what you get either.

Question answered - an i7 I will get.

Thanks All

Thanks very much for the info - it's one of the other things I was contemplating - spend a little less on processor power and spend extra on quality motherboard, ram, card etc.

But now I've looked closer at some pricing it's really not much more to get an i7 and quality gear. A few hundred now should save any hair tearing later.

Thanks

Yep - was looking at a 930 - thanks for video advice.