Video Editing System

[lid73]

We just built a pretty bad ass system to do video editing for work. The system included the following hardware:

Core i7 930 processor
Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R Motherboard
12GB RAM 1600 mHz
SSD

We are using Adobe Premiere Pro, and as Adobe is a resource hog, we tried to find the best components on a budget. The computer works great and is super fast in comparison to what we were using before. What I would like to do is upgrade the computer that I use for work on a daily basis such that if I need to do any video editing in a crunch, it would be serviceable. Ideally, I would like to have a reasonably fast machine and get a processor, MB, and RAM for about $500. Given that Premiere Pro will likely be the most intensive program used. Can y'all recommend a combo for me? I am thinking an i5 processor with an 1156 MB and about 6GB RAM might do it, but would love feedback from someone running the same or similar software.

 

[Blain]

Core i5 is a good option given your situation, but the 1156 MB's only support single and dual channel memory, not triple channel.
Go with 4 or 8GB of memory.

 

[lid73]

Good point. I guess I would use 8GBs with 2 4GB DIMMs. Would like to be able to expand to 16 if possible on MB.

 

[mfenn]

i7 870 + P7P55 LX $380 (cheaper if you have a Microcenter nearby)
G.Skill DDR3 1333 8GB $135
Total: $515

That'll be as quick or quicker than your 930-based system for video work (minus the SSD of course).

 

[bendixG15]

Video editing boxes need at least 2 hard drives, 3 is even better.
1 drive for OS
1 drive to read files
1 drive to write files

 

[muskie32]

Use the code GSKILLTEN on the ram mfenn suggested to get $10 off.

 

[lid73]

Mfenn:
Definitely spend LOTS of time at microcenter. Why do you think the 870 will be faster than the 930? It was my understanding that the x58 board would be superior, and therefore we went with the 930 over the 875k.

Bendix, I already have 3 drives in my machine and will separate the files accordingly. I was just wanting it to suffice in a pinch if the other comp is occupied. Thanks for the input.

 

[lid73]

What do you guys think of the i5 760 processor? It is considerably cheaper (Microcenter $170), but still quad core and pretty fast clock.

 

[muskie32]

The only real differences i believe is that is does not have HT (hyper threading) and has a higher turbo.

 

[lid73]

Correct me if I am wrong, but performance of no hyper threading and 4 cores = performance of 2 cores with hyper threading?

So I guess if I want to run more than 4 processes at once, this would slow me down.

Does video editing software make use of more than 4 threads at once?

 

[muskie32]

From Wikipedia:

Hyper-threading is an Intel-proprietary technology used to improve parallelization of computations (doing multiple tasks at once) performed on PC microprocessors. For each processor core that is physically present, the operating system addresses two virtual processors, and shares the workload between them when possible. Hyper-threading requires not only that the operating system support multiple processors, but also that it be specifically optimised for HTT, and Intel recommends disabling HTT when using operating systems that have not been so optimized.[1]

 

[fffblackmage]

Correct me if I am wrong, but performance of no hyper threading and 4 cores > performance of 2 cores with hyper threading?

Fixed.

A physical core is always better than a logical core.

 

[piasabird]

If you are using an 1156 board then get one with 4 RAM slots if you want expansion. However, you might be better getting the RAM now. I hate to open up computers.

The I5 quads can access 4 threads and the I7 quads can access 8 threads.

Of course if you were insanely rich you could build a Gulftown core system with an Intel EE Processor with like 12 megs of cache. The processor is around $1,000 or so.
(Example)
http://www.directron.com/bx80613i7980x.html

*Free Ground Shipping* Intel Core i7 980X Extreme Edition Gulftown 3.33 GHz 6.4 GT/s LGA1366 Six-Core 32nm Processor, Model: BX80613I7980X, Retail
Regular price:$1,099.99

Of course you would also need an expensive motherboard to run something like this 6 core processor. Maybe by next year a non-Extreme version of this 6 core processor will come out.

 

[lid73]

Unfortunately, I am not yet insanely rich, nor will I be for the foreseeable future. I am coming to be of the opinion that an 1156 board, 8GB RAM, and the 760 will be a nice compromise for the system. any Premiere Pro users out there that can comment?

 

[betasub]

I hate to open up computers.

Are you sure you are on the right forums?

 

[mfenn]

Mfenn:
Definitely spend LOTS of time at microcenter. Why do you think the 870 will be faster than the 930? It was my understanding that the x58 board would be superior, and therefore we went with the 930 over the 875k.

The 870 is faster than the 930 because of the higher base clock speed and (much) higher max turbo.

Correct me if I am wrong, but performance of no hyper threading and 4 cores = performance of 2 cores with hyper threading?

So I guess if I want to run more than 4 processes at once, this would slow me down.

Does video editing software make use of more than 4 threads at once?

You're wrong. :awe:

The performance benefit of Hyperthreading really depends on the task, and in a task that does benefit you'd be looking at 10-15% better performance from a quad with HT than a quad without.

Video can pretty much handle as many cores as you can throw at it, and does benefit from HT, which is why I suggested the 870.

 

[lid73]

Mfenn:

OK cool. I wonder if the benefits of 3 channel memory over 2 channel can make up for the difference in clock speeds betw/ 870 and 930? Eventually, we will overclock the 930 only for the rendering times and then set it back to default for all other uses.

Not to do a complete 180, but I am currently running an AMD phenom 9500 at 2.2 gHz with 8 GB memory. Would simply buying a nice CUDA video card give me much more performance improvement than the MB, CPU, and Mem? The only drawback here is that I was going to use the old MB setup to build a home comp for the kiddos to use.

 

[mfenn]

Mfenn:

OK cool. I wonder if the benefits of 3 channel memory over 2 channel can make up for the difference in clock speeds betw/ 870 and 930? Eventually, we will overclock the 930 only for the rendering times and then set it back to default for all other uses.

The triple-channel memory support does help video rendering a bit, but doesn't come close to making up for the 266Mhz clock speed difference (fully turboed with all 4 cores going).

Not to do a complete 180, but I am currently running an AMD phenom 9500 at 2.2 gHz with 8 GB memory. Would simply buying a nice CUDA video card give me much more performance improvement than the MB, CPU, and Mem? The only drawback here is that I was going to use the old MB setup to build a home comp for the kiddos to use.

CUDA only helps in very specific situations. Considering that the original Phenom was one of the worst CPUs that AMD has ever made, no I would not suggest keeping it.

 

[lid73]

Hard to believe, but I built that system when I knew even less than I know now!!! It's still a reasonably fast machine for the stuff I use it for, but I have been itching to upgrade for a while now.