Budget Video Editing (Oxymoron...)

[StreetPharmacy]

Hello all,

Recently I've been planning out a new rig for basic video editing/encoding, as well as a multimedia center. Unfortunately, my budget is limited. Here's what I have so far:

CPU:
AMD Athlon 64 2800+ Integrated into Chip FSB Socket 754 Processor - Retail
$120.00
HDD:
36GB 10,000k raptor $123.00
160 GB 7200k WD Caviar $105.00

Motherboard:
Biostar K8VGAM Micro ATX AMD Motherboard $60.00

RAM:
OCZ Value Series 1GB (2 x 512MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM Dual Channel Kit
System Memory - Retail
$81.95

GPU:
ATI ALL-IN-WONDER 9600XT $189.00

Case:
Aspire X-QPack Case $89.00

DVD-R:
Samsung Black DVD Burner $50.99

Floppy:
Sony Black Floppy $10.00

WiFi:
LINKSYS WMP54G PCI Wireless Adapter - Retail $49.99

(sorry about format, I'm in a hurry)

The total is around $880. I'm trying to get this as cheap as possible. I need a video card with composite inputs as well as coaxial, a TV tuner, the 9600XT being the cheapest card with these options. It also needs to be portable hence the SFF case.

Any ideas on how I can cut corners with prices? I'm trying to order it all from newegg if possible. Any commentary is welcome.

Thanks.

 

[Scott9027]

If you want to lower the price, the first thing that I would lose is the Raptor. I would get another 7200 RPM drive and either put them in RAID 0 (if you want speed) or RAID 1 (if you want redundancy). Not to say that the Raptor is a bad choice, just that it would make it somewhat cheaper, and have more storage. (both depending on what size 7200 RPM drives you choose)

 

[BrutalDrew]

I would get this board.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=13-128-259&depa=0

Definitely lose the Raptor too. You should also know the 36GB one is slower then the newer generation 74GB. I would get a Maxtor Maxxline III/DiamondMax 10 or Seagate Barracuda. Samsung drives are nice too.

You could get cheaper RAM too. Neegg has PQI RAM that costs $33 for a 512MB stick. Also socket 754 doesn't support Dual channel so you could get a 1GB stick and then buy another one later for a total of 2GB rather then running 4x512MB.

 

[StreetPharmacy]

That board is standard ATX. For SFF systems micro ATX (mATX) is the standard.

Thanks though.
If I were to use two 7200 rpm drives in RAID 0, what's the chance of a drive failing? I personally have never had a HDD fail, but if I were to back all of my data up on an external, I suppose this would work.

 

[TalRW]

Would a dualie (dual athlon mp's) or a single 64 bit processor be faster for this? I think it depends if your video editing software is multi-threaded. You should check. Cause if you want you may wanna follow this guide.

http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=221503

You could build yourself a nice dualie system since your looking for a video editing machine.

 

[Scott9027]

I could be wrong, but I don't think there are SFF (mATX) dual processor boards with overclocking capability. If they exist, I would encourage you to get a dual Athlon MP setup.

 

[laynlow]

That board is standard ATX. For SFF systems micro ATX (mATX) is the standard.

Thanks though.
If I were to use two 7200 rpm drives in RAID 0, what's the chance of a drive failing? I personally have never had a HDD fail, but if I were to back all of my data up on an external, I suppose this would work.

For video editing three drives is best, but I would at least go with two and forget raid. I have a 74gig Raptor for OS and programs and a 250 gig Caviar for storage and footage. I am going to need a second storage drive before long. I edit footage from firearms schools and the space requirements can get out of hand.

A three drive setup would be like this: OS and programs, raw footage, rendered video. Two drives are OS and programs, rendered and raw footage. In your case, I would just go with a couple 7200 rpm drives for both, but the Raptor is nice if you can swing it.

 

[StreetPharmacy]

Keep in mind I'm on a tight budget, I've gotten it down to $800, I'd like to keep it around that amount. I switched to two 120 Gb drives at 7200 rpm, and cheaper (slightly) RAM.

Is there any video card with the composite inputs and coax in/out other than a 9600 XT? Perhaps I'll check on the other AIW's...

Thanks.

 

[aeiou]

try to go with a s939 system, if possible. I would also recomend getting rid of the raptor. You can use that extra money to eith get a smaller drive that will work fine for less, or spend the same on a much bigger drive that will also work fine. The Raptors are great, but if you are on any type of budget I wouldn't consider them.

 

[BrutalDrew]

That board is standard ATX. For SFF systems micro ATX (mATX) is the standard.

Thanks though.
If I were to use two 7200 rpm drives in RAID 0, what's the chance of a drive failing? I personally have never had a HDD fail, but if I were to back all of my data up on an external, I suppose this would work.

I wouldn't even bother with RAID.

 

[aeiou]

I wouldn't even bother with RAID.

agreed

 

[jnev_89]

if you're video editing, get rid of the amd cpu. amd's are better for most "normal tasks" more most people, but in video editing, pentiums still reign supreme. get a lga775 2.8ghz p4 with a fairly nice mobo so you can oc it. then instead of getting a raptop, get 2 160gb hd's and put them in a raid0. if you have the money get 4 of them and put them in a raid0+1. raid makes sense since most mobo's come with a built-in raid controller, so you won't have to pay any extra for it. get as much ram as possible, 1gb being the bare minimum.

look at my system, i have fairly close spec to what you should get, just not as much hd space as a video editor would need, and you don't need a 6600gt.


EDIT
didn't read carefully enough. since you need a sff case, that'll complicate things. i think shuttle makes a case called the g5 or something that's for lga77 p4's. it probably won't have many ocing options, so you can just get some cheap value ram.

 

[fuzzba11]

Nice choice of case, just read Anandtech's review yesterday. I'd be inclined to tell you to stick with the raptor, but HDD space is extremely important in video editing and if you only have 2 hard drive slots then you don't want to 'waste' one of them. That said, I'd switch out the motherboard and get a different brand socket 939, just so you have the option of upgrading to one of the sweet AMD chips when you have some more cash(my hope, too). The 9600XT AIW is a good card, get the Asus version if you want every kind of input/output.

 

[Amarkarian]

have you considered getting a bigger case, it seems that the case is limiting you oc'ing options

 

[StreetPharmacy]

No can do, I need this system to be as portable as possible, I realize the A64 isn't the best chip for video editing, but I want to make this thing worth it for a good long time, i.e. 64-bit applications/OS.
This socket is also cheaper, as I am on a budget (and a tight one at that.)

 

[jnev_89]

then get a emt64 pentium. i think a 3ghz is around $200, and it would be MUCH better for any video editing apps.

 

[aeiou]

Or you could just get a nice socket 939 chip in your budget now and later on get a dual core athlon 64 x2, which have efectively bridged the video editing gap.

 

[BrutalDrew]

if you're video editing, get rid of the amd cpu. amd's are better for most "normal tasks" more most people, but in video editing, pentiums still reign supreme. get a lga775 2.8ghz p4 with a fairly nice mobo so you can oc it. then instead of getting a raptop, get 2 160gb hd's and put them in a raid0. if you have the money get 4 of them and put them in a raid0+1. raid makes sense since most mobo's come with a built-in raid controller, so you won't have to pay any extra for it. get as much ram as possible, 1gb being the bare minimum.

look at my system, i have fairly close spec to what you should get, just not as much hd space as a video editor would need, and you don't need a 6600gt.


EDIT
didn't read carefully enough. since you need a sff case, that'll complicate things. i think shuttle makes a case called the g5 or something that's for lga77 p4's. it probably won't have many ocing options, so you can just get some cheap value ram.

Actually AMD is better for video editing. Intel is better for video encoding. There is a difference

 

[Sjaak]

Why spend 90$ on a case? You can get a nice cheap Midi-ATX case for less then 35.

Also lose the raptor or the raid. It's not worth the effort or money and since the system overall isn't exactly high end, you will barely notice the HDD a bottleneck. Get a single 200 or 250GB drive.

 

[werdz]

But if you buy one of them cheap 35 dollar cases, they mostlikely will bring a cheap psu, that will blow, just like it did on mines, i suggest you buy a separate ps, then the one that come with those cheap 35 dollar cases.