Best processor for a video editing/gaming system?

[SpokeLee]

I am 90% sure I am going the opteron route. I am just wondering why every site so heavily favors intel for video editing. If amd beats them in encoding, why favor intel? The opteron vs xeon review at game pc talked about platform longevity, do they mean how slow ddr and pci e is coming out for amd? and if its program support or more programs are optimized for hyperthreading, and if thats the case, cant i match performance of intel or exceed it if I just use differenct codecs to encode?

And I only mentioned the motherboard because I saw this :

http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=2164

 

[SpokeLee]

I was also wondering because it says here at toms hardware that amd will start phasing out socket 940, or did they mean just for amd 64 and fx?

http://www6.tomshardware.com/cpu/20040318/athlon-fx53-31.html

Edit: Are there any opteron boards that use non ecc memory? I heard non ecc is faster, and if there is a board, is it wise to go non ecc?

 

[Mik3y]

so many people favor intel for video editing because they were better at it then amd before socket 939 came out. also, registered ecc memory is required for the opterons and for socket 940. its true that the new xeons on socket 604 have better longevity. it's new and uses a new socket, memory, and pci-e, which will last a while, while the opterons are on old socket 940, agp, and pci. with the new xeons, they are very much identical to the opteron 250 in overall performance, so if you get the xeons, its not a bad idea either. still, i prefer amd. amd will still use socket 940 until next yr and then start implementing socket 900 then, but until then, expect new and better motherboards to come out for the opterons which include pci-e and ddr 2.

 

[SpokeLee]

Will the opterons being socket 940 put me at a disadvantage?

 

[Mik3y]

no it wont. socket 940 is pretty old and still performs as well as, if not better, then intel's newest of everything. currently, pci-e and ddr2 are no better then agp and ddr. and it will take a while to make a full transition between them for pci-e and ddr2 to be mainstream, and until then, the dually opterons will be fine. note that socket 940 is amd's highest performer, while socket 939 is amd's mid-high end performer.

 

[SpokeLee]

I guess the only question I have left is about the ecc ram. If there is a board that supports unbuffered non ecc ram, should I get it? If not I am gonna go with your suggestion but with dual 250 opterons. Also, if I can, should I get corsair xms ecc ram instead of the pqi?

And thanks a lot for the suggestions and info.

 

[Mik3y]

there isnt a socket 940 board taht doesnt support registered ecc, so you'll be super lucky just to even find one. as for the memory, i dont find it worth spending nearly double for the ram on corsair since you wont get any better performance out of it. normally, i wouldnt get generic memory, but i've never had a problem with generic ram, even on overclocking my athlon xp's. if you want to shell out an extra $350 for the name of corsair, go ahead, but you wont find any increase in performance. as for latency timings, they dont really matter too much at all. if you dont go socket 940 and decide to stick with the athlon fx, then just get normal ram.

 

[SpokeLee]

I just looked at the prices again, and nevermind lol. Pqi it is, thanks a lot man, was so unsure but now I am confident in my decision.

 

[Mik3y]

you are about to buy my dream computer! i can only one day wish to get a comp like that.

 

[SpokeLee]

Word to the wise, don't opt for the professional installation on a Xoxide XUFO case. A retarded chimpanzee could put one together better then them. The fans are in ok but two of the wheels werent screwed on and their screws vanished, the cold cathodes fell off the inside, and the wires are more tangled than Ron Jeremy's pubic hair. Huge case though.

 

[Mik3y]

haha, ouch. that sux. post pics and benchies when its all done!

 

[SpokeLee]

Will do, thanks again.

 

[SpokeLee]

I am about to order everything but then I noticed this on the item page for the motherboard:

- For Single AMD® Athlon-64 FX 51 series, it will support Registered Memory up to DDR 400
- For Single or Dual AMD® Opteron Series , it will support Registered Memory up to DDR 333

Does this mean I can't use the pqi memory?

 

[Mik3y]

no, the opterons taht are 246 and above all support ddr 400. in fact, it runs off a bus of 200, so it's fine. ddr 400 is actually recommended for the 246's and above.

 

[SpokeLee]

Ok, cool, thanks again.

 

[mjuarez]

Wow, did you really go with the dual-Opteron?!? That's my dream machine too! Do post some pics when you got it up and running. That system will last you for a LONG TIME. Also, that 6800 is awesome. Wouldn't be surprised if you were able to run Halo2 on this rig with zero problems in the future. Heck, you could probably install Longhorn on it, in 2007!

Marcos
(envious)

 

[SpokeLee]

Well I got the Opteron 250's, heatsinks, and 6800 Ultra in the mail today, and I may get the rest tomorrow. The only thing that didn't ship yet was the pc power and cooling supply (figured Id be safer than with the aspire that came with the case) and sound dampening matts.

 

[OpteronNewbie]

Hello SpokeLee,

I just discovered this website and your post. I too am looking to build a dual Opteron System that uses a good Video Capture card. I notice you may have choosen the MSI K8T Master2 as your motherboard. I am not sure if you are aware but this motherboard uses the K8T800 chipset. This chipset is incompatible with the Matrox RT.X card (www.matrox.com/video/support/rtx100xtremepro/rec/chipsets.cfm) Anyway I wasn't sure if you had a chance to review the Matrox Card compatibility list.

I am very interested to know what type of parts you are using in your system I hope when you have time you will share your parts list.

OpteronNewbie

 

[fsstrike]

I use my system for heavy video editing, I use Premiere, Photoshop, After Effects, Encore and my system handles it very nicely. Ive never edited on a 3.4 so i cant tell you how much better it is than mine, but my system is the fastest system I have edited on. I get a good gaming PC, and good editing PC so i cannot complain. What I can tell you, is that my render times are much faster than my schools 2.4C if that means anything

If you get a 3400+ you will NOT be dissapointed

 

[Aries64]

SpokeLee,

That will be one screaming MFin' system! (Sorry for the profanity but I'm excited for you!) I just built my first AMD system using Socket 939 FX-53 and an MSI K8N Neo2, migrating my Ultra320 SCSI stuff over to my new system.

I mention that my new system is my first AMD system because years ago Intel truly had command in the performance and COMPATABILITY areas. However, over the last five years AMD has proven itself in terms of technological prowess. IMHO, even surpassing Intel. Very impressive for a smaller company with a MUCH smaller operating and marketing budget who was once an upstart.

AMD is still the underdog, but Intel must be a little worried by AMD's processor advances and gain in marketshare. Enjoy your new system!

BTW, you made a great decision to get a PC Power & Cooling PS. I assume you got one of the 510 Server Series units. IMHO PC P & C makes the BEST PS' on the market. I'm sure that you looked at the specs and and know that PC P & C TESTS AT REALISTIC OPERATING TEMPS UNDER LOAD while lots of other manufacturers' use "cold" specs which "look good on paper" but in the real world won't provide their power as cleanly or in as consistant a fashion.

 

[Lyfer]

Best CPU for gaming/video editing? Thats an easy one silly! Any Socket 939 cpu will fit the bill. With DC ram the A64 is very competitive with the P4 in video encoding and when it comes to gaming it just plain dominates with the capital D.

 

[jefbak]

I hate to say it, but since I have been using video editing PCs for the last 4 years I really have to reccomend an intel platform if at all possible, if you plan to use a 3rd party professional capture card. I do run all my PPro 1.5 and AE6.5 on the same machine so that is no problem, but with Premiere having the increased 2mb cache on an ee intel cpu makes a HUGE difference. Now the opterons may work out just fine, but just use the built in ochi 1394 port and keeps tab on the quality of all renders (especially mpeg2 for DVD) renders as they are often optimized of intel. Anyway, the 3.2ee works great for me and I push it pretty hard.

 

[Mik3y]

Originally posted by: jefbak
I hate to say it, but since I have been using video editing PCs for the last 4 years I really have to reccomend an intel platform if at all possible, if you plan to use a 3rd party professional capture card. I do run all my PPro 1.5 and AE6.5 on the same machine so that is no problem, but with Premiere having the increased 2mb cache on an ee intel cpu makes a HUGE difference. Now the opterons may work out just fine, but just use the built in ochi 1394 port and keeps tab on the quality of all renders (especially mpeg2 for DVD) renders as they are often optimized of intel. Anyway, the 3.2ee works great for me and I push it pretty hard.

too bad amd's socket 939 platform still beat intel's latest and greatest in video editing.

 

[Vette73]

Originally posted by: Lyfer
Best CPU for gaming/video editing? Thats an easy one silly! Any Socket 939 cpu will fit the bill. With DC ram the A64 is very competitive with the P4 in video encoding and when it comes to gaming it just plain dominates with the capital D.

I agree. The Diff. between the Athlon64 and P4 in Video editing is very minor now, almost a tie as one will win here and the other over there. BUT the Athlon64 RULES at gaming.

So get a Socket939 Athlon64. You will be ready for 64bit software and also there is a good chance the dual Core Athlons will run on a 939 socket.

 

[jefbak]

Hmm, my bet is that by the time a real 64-bit application or game comes out, the Athlon64 and even the G5's will be old school. Has anyone seen an app that takes advantage of the 64-bit world yet? If I see adobe premiere or avid for 64-bit I will be the first in line to upgrade, but not until. But then, I'm not a gamer, so I am looking at it from a encoding and rendering point of view. So give me more fast cache on my cpu please, for now at least.