I have $1500. What HD Camcorder & Computer is Recommended?

[AA888]

I have $1500. I want an HD camcorder and I want to build my own computer.

What HD camcorder would you recommend and what computer components would you recommend I use to edit the HD video?

Note: I don't want to overclock anything and I'd like the computer and components to be upgradeable if needed for the future.

 

[Roguestar]

What kind of money are you willing to commit to the computer? Fill in the sticky with the amount you'll spend on PC parts and your other needs and such. Also check out the "Attention system builders" thread for some good suggestions.

 

[Blain]

Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30
Canon Vixia HV30

Q9300 (because you don't want to OC)

 

[AA888]

Originally posted by: Roguestar
What kind of money are you willing to commit to the computer? Fill in the sticky with the amount you'll spend on PC parts and your other needs and such. Also check out the "Attention system builders" thread for some good suggestions.

Lets just say I'm more interested in the quality of the HD camcorder than the quality of the computer, but the computer must be able to handle editing HD video.

For the camcorder I'd like to spend $600-$900.

I have a monitor, keyboard and mouse. I just would need the tower and components.

 

[Blain]

Originally posted by: AA888

Lets just say I'm more interested in the quality of the HD camcorder than the quality of the computer

Canon HV30 :thumbsup::laugh::thumbsup: With Panasonic AY-DVM63AMQ tapes!

 

[heyheybooboo]

Originally posted by: AA888

Originally posted by: Roguestar
What kind of money are you willing to commit to the computer? Fill in the sticky with the amount you'll spend on PC parts and your other needs and such. Also check out the "Attention system builders" thread for some good suggestions.

Lets just say I'm more interested in the quality of the HD camcorder than the quality of the computer, but the computer must be able to handle editing HD video.

For the camcorder I'd like to spend $600-$900.

I have a monitor, keyboard and mouse. I just would need the tower and components.

Sony HDR-SR11

Looks like a good price here: $800
might want to consider Camcorder Accessory Bundle # 1 for $109
(yah always have to ackcessorize it!)

Ulead VideoStudio 11.5 Plus $100
A notch above 'noob' but you can pick it up pretty fast. They partnered up with MainConcept on encoders for high-definition H.264 content in AVCHD, HD DVD & Blu-ray - AMD or Intel will work equally well.

I would have suggested going with Premiere Elements but they have YET to get their AVCHD act together.

 

[AA888]

I was looking into things and I like flash media HD camcorders, cause there is no chance of humming in the audio from a tape motor (read there was tape noise with the HV20's and 30's)

I was looking into computer components and I have some questions:

1. The motherboard I was looking at didn't have a firewire port. Should I look for one with firewire port(s) or just get a card? If a card is fine then is there a specific one I should get when transfering HD video?

2. I have a 19" Samsung Syncmaster 930a. At the moment it connects to the old blue port on my old computers video card. The new video cards have 2 white monitor ports. Would my Samsung be fine with an adapter connected to one of the white monitor ports on the new video cards?

Here is a videocard with the blue and white monitor ports I was talking about (not the card I'm getting, just an example) -> http://www.tigerdirect.com/ima...tails/faqvideocard.gif

3. I'm going to get Vista for my new video editing computer. Should I go 32bit or 64bit for it and why?

4.. I would like to get this computer before school starts, but am willing to wait a month or two if it's cheaper to do so. When is a good time to buy computer parts? Say the components for a computer are worth $1000 right now, how much will they be worth in 2-4 months?

Thanks

 

[heyheybooboo]

Firewire depends upon the HDV cam you decide upon - some models output HD vid / 5.1 audio over USB2 these days.

The decision on your computer hardware is best decided by the HDV cam and software you select.

You may not need a video card. THG ran 2 monitors on the AMD 780g integrated graphics (IGP) which has a D-Sub (the blue thingy), DVI (the white thingy) and HDMI (slot thingy) onboard as video-out options. Video editing is not overly intensive on your graphics subsystem.

Prices tend to bump up a little a few weeks before school starts (or there are less discounts and deals). I would be less concerned about that because the 'pros @ AT' will always find the best deals for you once you make a decision on how you wish to proceed.

I would suggest an initial look at the AMD's new 790GX IGP with SB750 rolling out (hopefully) in the next few weeks. Disregard the CrossFire-X models and look for a single PCIe 2.0 x16 slot (for when you want to add a video card in the future).

It's a major update to the 780g IGP and sb700.