Building a video editing computer

[curtismk]

I've decided it's time to make some upgrades to my current computer to better handle video editing.

Here is what I currently have:

AMD 2200+
512 MB Ram 333 Mhz
Integrated graphics
Integrated sound
80 gb ide hard drive
300 gb sata hard drive
Emprex DVD burner
XP Home

Video editing is the most demanding thing the computer will deal with. I have three young girls (under 10) that play the Barbie games on the computer and we use it to surf the web. We also play Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 from time to time.

My budget for the upgrades is probably $700 or so.

Am I better off going with an Intel or AMD cpu? Which is better at dealing with video editing? Would a dual core processor provide any additional benefit?

If I went the AMD route, I thought I would go with a Nforce 4 motherboard.

How much ram do you recommend and what speed of ram?

Any recommendations on a video card would be appreciated.

Thanks for your help.

 

[Howard]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819103562 - overclocked
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145579
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813123236

As for the video card, you sure you won't be doing any gaming?

Which is better at dealing with video editing? Would a dual core processor provide any additional benefit?

With your budget, I'd go with the X2 3800+ over the Pentium D CPUs due to its superior performance (at stock speeds and probably when overclocked, too).

However, if you plan on reusing old parts through the next upgrade, it may be a better idea to go with the [cheaper] Pentium D 805 which uses DDR2 memory, which'll be around for a long time. Current AMD systems use DDR memory will not be used by any future platforms. But since you have 3 daughters, you might be getting a separate system later on in which case upgradability isn't as great a concern - the X2 3800+ will last your daughters for a long time.

Multiple cores significantly increase the speed of video encoding.

 

[curtismk]

Thanks for the information.

As far as game playing goes, I will play Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 and my girls will play their Barbie/Disney games.

 

[Howard]

Originally posted by: curtismk
Thanks for the information.

As far as game playing goes, I will play Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 and my girls will play their Barbie/Disney games.

I meant more graphically-intensive games.

Anyway, since those games aren't too demanding, you'd be well off with pretty much any newer video card. I'd take a look at this one, just in case you or your children take up FPS games:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814125014 - HDTV output, whatever that means. Maybe component-out? It can also assist in HD video decoding.

 

[bamacre]

Originally posted by: curtismk
Thanks for the information.

As far as game playing goes, I will play Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 and my girls will play their Barbie/Disney games.

Howard's advice is right on the money. May want to consider a Radeon X300 or similar card, that should make sure any games will run ok. Also should give you a DVI output for an LCD if desired.

Edit: NVM, that 7300 GS Howard recommended will be great for the cost.

 

[curtismk]

I know there are more graphically intensive games out there, but I don't see me playing them.

Thanks again for the information

 

[johnnyMon]

If you get the dual core CPU (AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+), you will be able to do other things on the computer while a time-consuming video processing step is going. I think this is worth the increased price if you'll want to use the computer while you're in the middle of a video project.

 

[gsellis]

The first question should be, "which video editor?"

In general, all editors release 4Q05-now will benefit from dual cores. BUT, dual cores will NOT make it twice as fast. Some tasks you will do as an editor will be up to 30% faster. Others will actually be slower than a faster clocked single core. And the benefit varies from editor to editor.

1GB of memory is good enough. If you are doing HDV (1 or 2 = 720p or 1080i), 2GB may benefit. 4GB is not really necessary. My advanced editor is running a SD project right now on a 512MB system with PowerPoint open and still has 100MB of physical available. Editors are designed to run in sparse memory as no system was easily available when the software was created to load the video files into mem (13GB/hr files for DV or HDV1/HDV2).

New editors want ASIO2, and onboard will not hack it. That includes needing a audio processor or you may get video and audio out of sync during capture or render. Consider a Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS (and you can get the one with a Firewire port - which works very well).

Video can seriously matter. Pinnacle Studio and Avid Liquid want an ATI card more than they want nVidia or other. 256MB of memory if you do 1080i. Fast processor. Other advanced editors may specify a Quadro.

Like I said, to finish this off, which editor?

 

[curtismk]

I am currently using Pinnacle Studio Plus 9.4, but I am also considering a change in video editing software. My editing is home movies from VHS tapes, VHS-C tapes and now DV tapes.

A couple of nights ago, I started to render and burn a one hour dvd from a recent trip to disneyland. Figuring this would take a while to complete, I started it at about 10:30 and I went to bed for the night. When I checked it in the morning, the computer was locked up with a screensaver image on the screen. I turned the monitor off before going to bed.

I don't know if the lock up is a software issue or a hardware issue.

 

[gsellis]

Originally posted by: curtismk
I am currently using Pinnacle Studio Plus 9.4, but I am also considering a change in video editing software. My editing is home movies from VHS tapes, VHS-C tapes and now DV tapes.

A couple of nights ago, I started to render and burn a one hour dvd from a recent trip to disneyland. Figuring this would take a while to complete, I started it at about 10:30 and I went to bed for the night. When I checked it in the morning, the computer was locked up with a screensaver image on the screen. I turned the monitor off before going to bed.

I don't know if the lock up is a software issue or a hardware issue.

The render to DVD (DV-AVI conversion to MPEG) is pure CPU power here. My dual takes about 5-6 hrs to do a Tsunami encoder high motion tracking dual pass conversion.

As for the lockup, that sounds like power management, which could be software settings in Power in Control Panel or in hardware in BIOS, or even a combination. Stop Hard Drive is probably the prime suspect.

Studio 10 will like a dual CPU with an ATI X1xxx card and an Audigy 2. You can check Ulead's, Adobe's, and Sony's sites for recommendations if that is the path you take as each has differences in their preferred platforms.

 

[pkme2]

You may want to check into this realtime editor.
Edius Pro

To use this, you need to upscale your video editing system, but if you need the speed, consider this.

For me doing smaller jobs, Sony Vegas 6 is AOK.

 

[piasabird]

I wonder how you edit video. They make cards for hardware encoding which might be faster.

 

[Snakexor]

is a 7300gs faster than a fx5500?

 

[gsellis]

Originally posted by: pkme2
You may want to check into this realtime editor.
Edius Pro

To use this, you need to upscale your video editing system, but if you need the speed, consider this.

For me doing smaller jobs, Sony Vegas 6 is AOK.

You missed this

My budget for the upgrades is probably $700 or so.

Considering Edius software without the hardware is about that price...