High-end video editing computer.

[Balooga Studios]

Finally, I'm going to get a computer that is capable of editing videos. (Shut up, all you Mac lovers. I want to play games, too :D)

Anyway, I don't really know what you guys find is important for video editing. I will be using Premiere (Full CS4 Master Collection) and here are the specs. (RAM is 6 gigs DDR3, but that will soon be 12)

Intel Core i7 920 processor
EVGA GTX 295 graphics card
6 gigabytes DDR3 RAM
Gigabyte ud-4p x58 motherboard
And I'll be buying a blu-ray burner

Here are the full specs: ( a bit big)
Gamer Xtreme XT (NO MONITOR)
$1,886.00


CAS: ($25 off Mail-in Rebate) Apevia X-Jupiter Full Tower Gaming Server w/ Temp Display and Fan Control 420 Watt Power [+40] (G Type Black Color with Side-Window)
CASUPGRADE: 12in COLD CATHODE NEON LIGHT [+10] (BLUE COLOR)
CS_FAN: Default case fans
POWERSUPPLY: 800 Watts Power Supplies (CyberPowerPC XF800S Performance ATX 2.0 Power - Quad SLI Ready)
CPU: Intel� Core� i7-920 2.66 GHz 8M L3 Cache LGA1366
FREEBIE_CU1: FREE! CyberPower Multi-Purpose Carrying Briefcase ($19.99 Value)
FREEBIE_CU2: FREE! Cyberpower Unleash The Power T-Shirt ($19 Value)
FAN: CoolerMaster V8 Gaming CPU Cooling Fan (Extreme Silent Operation at only 22dBA + Overclock Proof) [+4]
MOTHERBOARD: (3-Way SLI Support) GigaByte GA-EX58-UD4P Intel X58 Chipset SLI/CrossFireX Ultra Durable�3 Mainboard Triple-Channel DDR3/1600 SATA RAID w/ eSATA,Dual GbLAN,USB2.0,IEEE1394a,&7.1Audio [+14]
MEMORY: 6GB (2GBx3) PC1333 DDR3 PC3 10666 Triple Channel Memory [+59] (Corsair or Major Brand)
FREEBIE_RM: None
VIDEO: NVIDIA GeForce GTX295 X2 1.7GB 16X PCIe Video Card [+314] (EVGA Powered by NVIDIA [+5])
VIDEO2: NONE
VIDEO3: NONE
MULTIVIEW: Non-SLI/CrossFireX Mode Supports Multiple Monitors
MONITOR: NONE
MONITOR2: NONE
HDD: Single Hard Drive (1TB (1TBx1) SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM HDD)
HDD2: NONE
FA_HDD: None
USBHD: NONE
CD: (Special Price) LG 22X DVD�R/�RW + CD-R/RW DRIVE DUAL LAYER (Black Color)
CD2: LG 20X Double Layer DVD+-RW Super Allwrite + Lightscribe Technology [+11] (Black Color)
SOUND: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
SPEAKERS: Logitech (BLACK) X-540 70Watts 5.1 Configuration Speaker System [+83]
NETWORK: Intel Pro Gigabite 10/100/1000 Network Card [+34]
MODEM: NONE
KEYBOARD: Saitek Eclipse-II (PK02U) Gaming Keyboard [+45]
MOUSE: Razer DeathAdder 5 Button Mouse USB Optical 1800 dpi [+44]
TEMP: NONE
WNC: NONE
FLASHMEDIA: INTERNAL 12in1 Flash Media Reader/Writer [+10] (BLACK COLOR)
VIDEOCAMERA: NONE
PRINTER: None
PRINTER_CABLE: None
IEEE_CARD: NONE
USB: Built-in USB 2.0 Ports
FLOPPY: NONE
OS: Microsoft� Windows Vista� Home Premium w/ Service Pack 1 (64-bit Edition)
FREEBIE_OS: FREE! (Microsoft� Flight Simulator X Deluxe) Game
TVRC: None
CARE1: Ultra Enhanced Packaging Solution [+19]
CARE2: Professional Wiring for All WIRING Inside The System Chasis with High Perormance Thermal Compound [+19]
SERVICE: STANDARD WARRANTY: 3-YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY PLUS LIFE-TIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT
RUSH: NO; READY TO SHIP IN 5~10 BUSINESS DAYSSorry, that's unedited. Mods, if it's too long, go ahead and delete it.

Anyway, what's important to have that I don't have?

[stikyfingas]

I'd get the 2.93 i7 and get rid of the cathode my old rig had like 6 of them and 14 lighted fans and I HATED it. Try to do overnight render with all those damn lights. You dont need the network card either the on board is better.

[Balooga Studios]

I'll overclock the i7 to about 3, 3.5 Ghz
but thanks. :)

[Westcroft]

Nice system, but you're still bottlenecking yourself... For editing I'd suggest getting two HDD at least. Your C: drive is the brain and it needs to process the operating system as well as the programs... If you put your captured footage into the drive and begin editing, it's too much for a single HDD to try and handle all of that processing.

I would suggest getting three drives:

Your main C: drive, which I would suggest getting something around 100gb with at least 10,000rpm... you don't need much more than 100gb if it only holds programs and the OS... I use a 70gb one and I have Adobe Master collection, Maya, Microsoft Office, etc, etc, etc.

A File Drive or Data Drive to hold all of your captured footage and basically everythign else (music, photos, etc)... I use two drives in a Raid array.

Then a third drive that is around the same as your C: drive to use soley as the scratch disk... Everything is going down in price and lots of people are bulking up on RAM (heck I have 8gb in my comp) and such, but one of the main bottlenecks nowadays is HDDs. They're so cheap nowadays that there isn't much of an excuse... but yeah, I'd look into buying some drives one of these days and upgrading if you notice poor performance.


Also just so you know "overclocking" is also known as "a way to make your hardware die quicker".

[OllieJames]

Sounds good!

I just got a quadcore computer too! Pretty similar specs also. It really makes a difference from a dual core :)

[stikyfingas]

I'll overclock the i7 to about 3, 3.5 Ghz
but thanks. :)

That's pretty hopefully I have a 2.93 i7 and I haven't been able to take it farther than 3.3.

[Balooga Studios]

I've heard from people I trust that you can overclock the 920 to nearly 4 GHz if you have the necessary cooling.
Yeah, I won't be storing video data on that hard drive, so should I downgrade it?

[stikyfingas]

Those people are high. you cant overclock 2.6 to 4 on air!?!?
I have a noctua with a 120 pushing on one side a 120 pulling on the other ducted to a third 120 pushing out. You cant even clock up memory that far.

[KMProductions]

Don't try to overclock too much. It can really jack your system up.

[Balooga Studios]

I won't be overclocking.
What I was trying to say is that I won't pay another $300 for the i7 940.
Thanks for the advice though.

[Balooga Studios]

Ollie, what specs does your computer have?

[Westcroft]

Yeah, I won't be storing video data on that hard drive, so should I downgrade it?

I would say 100gb would be a good amount for the C: drive, if you want to play safe try between 200gb - 320gb.

Definately look into getting a second drive and perhaps partition it for your work files (video) and the scratch disk.

[Balooga Studios]

OK. New specs.
I'll go with RAID-0 1 TB (500 GB x 2) for my programs and general files
and then a 1 TB drive dedicated solely to video footage.

[stikyfingas]

balooga -one thing that helps on my comp is having partitions on my OS drive so that my editing OS only has vid editing progs. Then I have another OS partition that have office/web/firewall; and yet another OS that has gaming progs. That way they dont slow down each other its like having 3 dedicated computers.

[Westcroft]

OK. New specs.
I'll go with RAID-0 1 TB (500 GB x 2) for my programs and general files
and then a 1 TB drive dedicated solely to video footage.

I would go a different route... a high rpm HDD for your Operating System and Programs (editing and what not)... and then the RAID 0 drive for files.

A RAID 0 array is a little unstable so it's not worth risking your OS and programs. Also your files are demanding, thus keeping them on a RAID array would benefit... using programs on a RAID array isn't as beneficial. (I use 2 500gb 7200rpm drives for files as well).