Need Help w/ First-Time Build HD Video Editing Rig (No Gaming) <$1,200

attrition4u

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APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Immediately

BUDGET RANGE: <1,200 (after rebates)

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: HD Video Editing (Sony Vegas), Audio Editing (Sony Sound Forge), Image Editing (Adobe Photoshop), Multimedia (movies, television, & Music), Internet Browsing....

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Keyboard, Mouse, Monitors, Speakers, OS

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: newegg.com, tigerdirect, fry's.

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States

OVERCLOCKING: Maybe

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Maybe (in the future)

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1680x1050 or higher

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: I do not game. I would like to have the option (should I ever choose to) but, currently, I can't imagine ever using my computer for gaming.

I'd like to run Windows 7 (64-bit)

I am a filmmaker and videographer. Ideally, I would like a powerhouse that I can keep and add onto for years to come. Mostly, I need something that will allow for speedy renders of HD video and can serve as a respectable editing suite/multimedia machine/general use PC.

Ideally, I would like to stay under 1,000 but would be willing to go over that by a two or three hundred bucks if it meant more bang for the buck.

I have all but decided on either AMD's 1055t or 1090t. At this point, I'm leaning toward the 1055t, overclocked, to save a bit of money.

CURRENT CONSIDERED PARTS:

AMD Phenom II X6 1055T Thuban 2.8GHz 6 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Six-Core Desktop Processor
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103851

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-G1 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long life sleeve CPU Cooler
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065&Tpk=COOLER%20MASTER%20Hyper%20212%20Plus%20Intel%20Core%20i5%20%26%20Intel

ASRock 880G EXTREME3 AM3 AMD 880G HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157191&cm_re=asrock_880g-_-13-157-191-_-Product

CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006&Tpk=CORSAIR%20CMPSU-750TX%20750W%20ATX12V%20%2f%20EPS12V%20SLI%20Ready

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277

COOLER MASTER HAF 932 RC-932-KKN1-GP Black Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119160&Tpk=haf%20932%20rc-932-kkn1-gp%20black%20steel%20atx%20full%20tower

ASUS EAH4870/2DI/1GD5 Radeon HD 4870 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121376&cm_re=ATI_4870_1gb-_-14-121-376-_-Product

Western Digital Caviar Black WD1501FASS 1.5TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136592

Any help would be appreciated, guys. Like I said, I'd desperately like to bring this in under 1,000 and, this being my first time build, I'm having trouble. My head hurts because all I've been doing is reading reviews and studying up on components. Thanks again...

Chris
 

attrition4u

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The case thing was definitely something I was curious about. On the HDD, I totally trust your judgment. But, isn't there some speed benefit to the 64mb cache? I'm still trying to work it all out in my head.

Also, you said I would benefit from the RAM with Cas7...could you explain? I'm not sure I really follow you.

Sorry for being a noob. I guess we all start somewhere. I've tinkered for a long time but never built so I'm a little overwhelmed...
 

banthracis

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HD cache size has almost no correlation to performance, as each companies controller utilizes cache differently. It's like comparing apples to oranges based on the size of their seeds.

CAS latency refers to the timings on the RAM, the W-X-Y-Z number you see in specifications. I'll forgo the technical explanation, but basically the lower the number the better. AMD architecture in particular benefits more from tighter timings than higher speed.

Still, for you needs you'd be much better off with an i7-930. The AMD hexacores are good, but not nehalem level.

You also should probably have put this in new build as opposed to general. Not a big deal now though.

I'll post a full build in a bit.

edit: also, correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't half the stuff you list there benefit from CUDA?

Also, blue ray burner or reader? (huge price diff)
 

tecmo34

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After reviewing some more, actually the WD 1.5TB drive doesn't look bad. My initial thought was they weren't based of 500GB platters, which gives the Samsung the speed advantage. The drive is very new, so it should be based off of the new 500GB platters like the 2TB. Samsung Spinpoint F3 and Seagate 7200.12 drives. I change my vote to keep the same drive you have listed.

Cas is the speed in which the RAM processes data (timings). The tighter the timings, the faster the RAM, so for your activities, lower timings would be benefical. Check out the Motherboard/Memory forum, there are a few good post going into more details on the timings of RAM.


TV Tuner: Hauppauge WinTV-HVR 1850 (updated version of 1800) MCE Kit 1128 PCI-Express x1 Interface

Blu-Ray Drive: SAMSUNG Black 8X BD-ROM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM SATA Internal Blu-ray Combo Drive - Bulk Model SH-B083L/BSBP LightScribe Support - OEM



 

4745454b

Titan
Moderator
PS is more or less equal on the i5 750 and the 1090, so the 1055 will be slower. You said OC, but the 750 OCs as well. Handbrake is faster, but I'm not sure about vegas. You might want to consider the 750, more so if it ends up being cheaper.

I wouldn't bother with the 4870 either. Way to much overkill. I'd actually consider an Nvidia card for the CUDA technology. CS5 is supposed to be able to use CUDA to speed up applying filters. If so, I'd look at getting the GTS250. Will be faster using it then the CPU.

Timings are opposite. Each number is the number of clock cycles the ram will wait before reading the next value. This means CAS9 will wait 9 clock ticks before reading the next value, while CAS7 only waits 7. This means the CAS 7 is faster then the CAS 9 because it spends less time waiting. If it fits in the budget then go for it, but with the IMC found on modern CPUs this matters less then it used to. Getting the good CPU matters.

Finally, are you sure about the HDD? If you have only 4GBs of ram, will you need to use the drive? Is the single drive fast enough? This is something I don't know about. You might want either more ram, or perhaps a small 40GB SSD if you need the speed. If your editing fits in 4GBs then your drive is fine.
 

4745454b

Titan
Moderator
I'm not sure the programs he uses now support CUDA. But with the direction its taking they will soon. And it appears to provide a good boost. I like AMD cards for their gaming and power abilities, but if you can use CUDA to speed up your filters or conversions, then you should.
 

attrition4u

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Well, truth be told, I use Sony Vegas Suite a lot more than Adobe products. I do use Adobe. But, not near as much. Mostly, I use Sony Vegas Pro 9 & Sound Forge.

I don't really know anything about CUDA, guys...sorry. So, I'm listening...but it's the first I've heard of it.

I would like to eventually up the RAM to 8gb. I just said that I would start with four because of budgetary constraints.

And, as far as the Blu-Ray, it's not something that I need at all. But, I would eventually like to have a Blu-Ray burner snug in one of my bays. I shoot HD video so it just makes sense. Eventually, someone will want a full-rez HD output from me and it would be nice to be able to offer that as an add-on, should I need to.

Overkill I can live with...to a certain extent. Like I said, I'd like a system that will carry me into the future and allow for upgrades down the road. I looked at the 1055t and 1090t because the price point seems to be magnificent for the level of performance. But, again, I'm a total noob. I'm starting from scratch here, so I am more than happy to listen to any suggestions...

Thanks for the help...

Chris
 

banthracis

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Ok Full build. This is using all quality components, so it's right at the budget limit.

Case
Antec 902 $97 free ship promo code EMCYSNV23
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129058
~$20 cheaper than HAF 922 ATM thanks to free ship and promo code.

Tuner
Hauppauge WinTV-HVR-1600 $99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815116010

This is one recommend a lot here on the forums, but the HTPC guys may be able to recommend a cheaper one.

GPU
9800 GTX $135 w/ $30 MIR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130339

RAM
G SKill PI DDR3 7-8-7-24 $190
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231335

Optical $70
Samsung
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151199

HD/PSU
Spinpoint F3 1TB and Corsair 650TX $150 w/ $20 MIR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.403875

CPU/MOBO
i7-930 and Gigabyte UD3 $484
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.415617

Total $1249 before $50 MIR and shipping ($9.56)

Slightly over budget if you include shipping.

Ways to save money are in order of least to most performance loss:

1. Drop the case down to a Antec 300 illusion
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129066&cm_re=antec_300-_-11-129-066-_-Product

2. Get a cheaper Tuner (gotta ask someone else for that)

3. Drop CUDA and get a 5450 ~$70

4. Drop back to AMD build.

 

banthracis

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Re: CUDA
Adobe Premier benefits quite a lot from it in decoding and editing of h.264 video files.

Cyberlink PowerDirector 7 also utilizes it quite well. Not sure about Vegas. As mentioned above though, Nvidia is actively increasing the utilization of CUDA in different programs (and unlike normal Nvidia propaganda, the benefits of it are actually astounding if properly implemented).

Basically CUDA in a nutshell is using the GPU to do calculations that can be done in parallel, so basically, in programs that utilize it, it's like having a CPU with hundreds of cores.
 

attrition4u

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Well, after doing a little bit of research, it does appear that Vegas has no intentions of CUDA support in the near future. There does however seem to be some type of 3rd party plug-in but I don't know anything about it at all...

Just out of curiosity, how significant would the speed differences be between the AMD and i7-930 build be?
 

banthracis

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i7 930 stock vs x6 1055t stock, i7-930 is better in all bench's cept 1.

The real difference though is in OC headroom. the AMD hexacores are 6 cores on a 45nm wafer and really hit a brick wall at around 4ghz, 3.8 is more closer to the stable max for most 1055t's.

Given the stock of 2.8, it's basically 1ghz of OC.

On the other hand, i7-920/930's, have no issue hitting 4ghz in most chips, and are stable up to 4.2 on air. Brick wall around 4.4ghz.

This gives you an OC of 1.6ghz for the 920, 1.4ghz for the 930.

These numbers are based on average from reviews and forums, so obviously they may vary from chip to chip. In general though, the Intel chips offer a lot more OC headroom since they can go higher, and start at a lower stock speed.

Also, you'd probably actually benefit from more RAM and tri channel memory.
 

attrition4u

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And, I guess, last but not least... I'm still really unsure what the difference is in the RAM. I am reading and trying to comprehend the difference...

G SKill PI DDR3 7-8-7-24 $190

vs.

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL7D-4GBRM?

 

banthracis

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One is a 6gb kit, the other is a 4gb kit.

For the x58 platform, you'll want tri channel, which means either 3gb (3x1gb sticks) or 6 gb (3x2gb stick). Most people go with the latter. Course you can keep going up to 12 and 24 gb.
 

attrition4u

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Banthracis, is the heatsink/fan that is included with the i7 930 okay in and of itself? I know when I was researching the 1055t, everyone said the one that came with it was extremely loud. I don't know anything about this CPU but I'm assuming that you would know...
 

4745454b

Titan
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If your going to be OCing either one, you don't want to use the stock sink. Its ok for minor overclocks, but if you want to hit over 3.4 or so you're going to want something better. I would get the good cooler now, its a lot easier to install when the board is out of the case.

If your looking to save some $$$ now I'd also drop down to a regular burner. An optical drive is easy to add so you can add it later. Also, while Vegas doesn't support it now, it might later? Or you might start using a program next year that does. Either way CUDA in the transcoding world is here to stay so you might as well start learning. Unlike with gaming it does provide real benefit. Unless you like waiting....
 

attrition4u

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Fair enough, so...with that current configuration above, what's a reasonable overclock on that CPU? Any recommendations on CPU cooling...? Bare in mind, I'm fascinated and really want to learn this stuff, but I have never overclocked a computer before in my life. Realistically, is this going to be impossible for me to pull off without destroying something?
 

4745454b

Titan
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I personally would argue that as a work computer I wouldn't OC at all. Maybe a little, but nothing that would require using more then the stock Vcore. Its a work computer, you can't afford for it to be down.

Are you considering the 1055 or 930 build?
 

attrition4u

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Well, honestly, I hadn't thought at all about an Intel CPU until you guys recommended it. I've only spent time researching the AMD setup. But, I have been looking at the recommended components all night and thinking about it. Trying to figure out what to do...

If I were going to go with the AMD, would it be better to bump it up to the 1090t and just not overclock then? Does that make sense? Or, does the i7930 build still win out...?