Which chipset to choose for video editing

[effiecgu]

I need to build a PC for serious video editing.
It will not be used for gaming.
Two monitors need to be connected.

I will probably take the Core i7 2600.
I'm looking mainly at Gigabyte motherboards, but will consider Asus (or Intel) if they prove to be a better choice.

I understand from reviews, that the Intel HD3000 built in graphics card will give me a big advantage in rendering videos. Is that correct?

I was looking at the Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD3-iSSD, but it only has 1 HDMI connector, and no VGA/DVI connectors.
If I install an additional graphics card for the monitors, will the Intel HD3000 advantage still be effective?

If I go for lower end motherboards, such as the GA-H67A-USB3-B3 would I still get the same performance, while being able to use the onboard graphics?

Thanks in advance

 

[blazorthon]

The HD 3000 is several times slower than a $40 discrete card. I suggest a Radeon 5670 because it's are cheap and outperforms the HD 3000 by several hundred percent. I don't know an equivalent Nvidia because I never had one (not by choice but I don't care to much) so I can't give you an alternative from them but what ever you do I suggest a Z68 chipset because it will let you use both the integrated and the discrete at once.

If you plan to overclock (I highly sugest it) then get the core i-72600K. The regular 2600 can't overclock much (probably less than 300MHz) whilst the K version can go as high as your cooling allows. Even a $30 cooler like the Hyper 212+ can get it a good clock speed.

 

[effiecgu]

Thanks for your reply.
Unless I misunderstand, these benchmarks clearly show that the Intel HD3000 is superior to High End ATI/Nvidia cards when it comes to encoding video content:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/sandy-bridge-core-i7-2600k-core-i5-2500k,2833-17.html

You maybe referring to playing games, which this machine is not intended to do.

Also, since a business will rely on the machine, it has to be as steady as possible. ie no overclocking or any funny business.

 

[madchemist83]

yes there is such thing as quick sync which will let u switch between onboard and discrete gpu. Try Asrock they r pretty good like the http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157271

 

[effiecgu]

I don't live in the US, and we don't have a steady supply of Asrock over here. The best service I can get (which is very important when thinking of business stability), is for Gigabyte/Asus/Intel mobos.
Another thing, why would I want to switch between GPU's? all I need is to connect two monitors, and work on both at the same time. The machine isn't meant for gaming or any other activities other than video editing.

So, my question remains: will an H67 chipset give me the same (video editing) performance with the onboard graphics as the Z68 will with a discrete one?

 

[IntelEnthusiast]

The answer to your question on the H67 with Intel® Quick Sync vs. Z68 using the Intel Quick Sync would be about the same unless you were using other features on the Z68, like the Intel SRT (Smart Response Technology). On applications that can take advantage of the Intel Quick Sync the best performance would be from that over a dedicated video card. Most of the time the best performance for the software that you are using would come from the dedicated video card.

The IGP (Intergraded Graphics on Processor) will support dual display just off from the ports on the board. With the Z68 you can reach up to at least 3 displays (when using the IGP and the dedicated video card).

Christian Wood
Intel Enthusiast Team

 

[jaquith]

Don't confuse Video Editing with Quick Sync {MPEG-2/4} encoding there are many, many codecs and MPEG-2/4 is fine for your iPhone/iPad, and editing on the iGPU Intel HD Graphics 3000 will be slow. Next, quality there are too many arguments over quality to list; most will argue 'CPU encoding' is the best, but no one will say the iGPU offers the best quality instead the net gets flooded with Quick Sync benchmarks rather than 'what's the best quality method.'

Before anyone can answer your question, I stongly suggest you decide on: Format, CODEC, Rendering Method, Use, etc. Here's a good place to start - http://www.video2brain.com/en/videos-4001.htm

'Serious Video Editing' is done almost exclusively on a Xeon Workstation with typically multiple CPUs and Pro GPU's e.g. Quadro with large RAID arrays...so you need to define "serious video editing. "

Simple Xeon Workstation:
Type Price Description Link
CPU 350 Intel Xeon E3-1275 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115085
MOBO 230 ASUS P8B WS http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131725
RAM 99 Crucial UDIMM 2x4GB DDR3 1333 ECC CT2KIT51272BA1339 http://www.crucial.com/store/listparts.aspx?model=P8B%20WS&Cat=RAM
SSD 240 OCZ Vertex 3 Series – MAX IOPS VTX3MI-25SAT3-120G 120GB http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227706
HDD 60 SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185
HDD 60 SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185
PSU 116 CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX650M http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139031
CASE 88 CM RC-692-KKN2 CM690 II Advanced http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119216
OS 140 Windows 7 Pro SP1 64-bit - OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116992
ODD 22 ASUS 24X DVDR - Model DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS - OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204
GPU 310 EVGA 012-P3-1570-AR GeForce GTX 570 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130593 ; or best on a Quadro/Tesla expensive.
Adobe Premiere Pro CS5.5 GPU http://www.adobe.com/products/premiere/tech-specs.html
Total 1715

 

[madchemist83]

^ this guy is right .. I thought ur video editing was just like converting for professional u do need Quadro Geforce

 

[effiecgu]

Thank you IntelEnthusiast & jaquith for your responses.

The system will be used by a freelance video editor, working on Canopus Edius and After Effects, editing 3-4hr movies of social events. So, yes, this will be a serious editing machine, but no deep pockets like a big company would have. Therefore, I don't want to take him down the path of Xeon workstations, also from the reasons stated below:

As I said, I don't live in the US, and after checking with local companies, they will special order a Xeon E3 and a matching mobo only if I commit to buy 5 units minimum. So that's not a possibility.
I could order a ready built server system with an E3-1240, and a Supermicro X9SCM mobo, but these benchmarks show that it doesn't have any advantage over the Core i7 2600:
http://www.servethehome.com/intel-xeon-e31240-sandy-bridge-benchmarks-review/

The other issue refers to the graphics card. Everyone says that if you're going pro, you should go with Quadro GPU's. But, again, this only seems correct when you do CAD/CAM (Autodesk, Maya, Max etc.) I couldn't find any recommendation (or supporting benchmark) for Quadro when it comes to video editing.

 

[jaquith]

The last thing I want to do is to argue about something that you can easily Google. Actually Autodesk no longer uses OpenGL acceleration. In the fewest words possible, the Xeon/ECC/Pro GPU are all combined to reduce transcoding errors including unwanted artifacts plus in many cases accelerating both the Apps and outputs. I am not a Video Professional, I am an enterprise data SQL/PHP professional, I build a nice PC, and I only make home DVDs with Adobe Premiere.

At the very least stick to the listed Accelerated GPU's list by Adobe, assuming you're using Adobe Premiere; see http://www.adobe.com/products/premiere/tech-specs.html

This might be helpful - http://tv.adobe.com/watch/learn-premiere-pro-cs5/gpuaccelerated-effect-performance-enhancements/

From the build above, substitute the following:

MOBO 200 ASUS P8Z68-V PRO http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131730
CPU 315 Intel Core i7-2600K http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070
RAM 105 CORSAIR Vengeance 16GB CMZ16GX3M4A1600C9 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226184 ; or CMZ16GX3M4A1600C9B

IF you plan to OC then look at a Corsair 750W PSU.