Dream Machine

brogers wrote on 8/24/2006, 12:16 PM

We're moving into HDV to produce a low budget feature film this Fall for a client and I'm going to purchase a brand new system. I've done lots of research but am not extermely technical. I've got to get this right and we're willing to spend the necessary money.

Does anyone out there have specs for a smokin hot HD system for Vegas?

Thanks in advance.

Comments

MohammeD T wrote on 8/24/2006, 5:51 PM

Hi brogers, ""I've done lots of research but am not extermely technicalI"" I've also went threw this and wanted to build my own, but at the end i went with an Alienware machine and am happy with my decision since then, there are many things you should consider and you might run into compatability issues, i know its cheaper to build your own , but i would pay the extra $$ and live in a peace of mind. Unless your really willing to spend a good amount of time for the new rig, every peace of hardware comes with a manual that explains the assembly process, you could check the VideoGuys.com latests builds and use thier configration as your guide.

good luck

randy-stewart wrote on 8/24/2006, 8:07 PM

Here's a system we are going to build with parts coming from NewEgg. Prices are listed and current as of tonight. You'd have to pick out a monitor or two and add a keyboard, mouse, etc. The cost is less than $1400 and it's a screamer. I built a similar system (first time build by the way) from Johnny Roy's example a few months ago and it's incredibly fast at renders. These AMD dual core processors rock! Hope this helps.
Randy

Antec LifeStyle SONATA II Piano Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 450Watt SmartPower 2.0 ATX 12V V2.0 for AMD & Intel systems Power Supply - #: SONATA II Item #: N82E16811129155 $109.99 -$20.00 Instant Rebate = $89.99

ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce 590 SLI MCP ATX AMD Motherboard - Model #: M2N32-SLI DLX WIFI
Item #: N82E16813131011 $199.99

Update SAPPHIRE 100154L Radeon X1800XT 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card - Model #: 100154L Item #: N82E16814102698 $232.99

AMD Athlon 64 X2 4600+ Windsor 2000MHz HT Socket AM2 Dual Core Processor Model ADA4600CUBOX - Model #: ADA4600CUBOX Item #: N82E16819103751$266.00

OCZ Platinum Revision 2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory Model CZ2P800R22GK - Model #: OCZ2P800R22GK Item #: N82E16820227139
$225.99

Western Digital Raptor WD740ADFD 74GB 10,000 RPM Serial ATA150 Hard Drive - OEM Model #: WD740ADFD Item #: N82E16822136033 $169.99

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS (Perpendicular Recording Technology) 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM Model #: ST3320620AS Item #: N82E16822148140 $99.99

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250820AS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM Model #: ST3250820AS Item #: 82E16822148142
$79.99

LITE-ON 16X DVD±R DVD Burner W/LightScribe and 5X DVD-RAM Write Black ATAPI/E-IDE Model SHM-165H6S - Model #: SHM-165H6S Item #: N82E16827106015

DrLumen wrote on 8/24/2006, 10:25 PM

If money is no object (odd phrase as it is always an object)...

IMHO, as above except use an intel core2 extreme on a 975BX motherboard.

2, or more, 300GB, U320 SCSI, 15K RPM Seagate drives striped Raid 0 in with an Adaptec Ultra 320 controller card.

2 video cards for multiple displays.

Plextor drive instead of the lite-on DVD burner.

You could probably get a CTO (configured to order) workstation from IBM, HP, Dell, etc., if you wanted to pay extra for the support and warranty - as opposed to building one.

Not cheap but definitely fast.

David Arbogast wrote on 8/25/2006, 8:15 AM

I just moved into a new Intel Core Duo based system and I am simply amazed by the power of it. The most impressive fact about the Core Duos that I've been enjoying is the multi-tasking muscle. Now I can render a complex 3d file in the background and surf the net and watch videos simultaneously. My "high power" system at work (based on dual 3.6 ghz xeon pentium processors) is nice, but once I start rendering something in 3ds max all other multi-tasking processes are vastly curtailed. So, all that to say I agree entirely with DrLumen's excellent suggestions and if you can't afford the "extreme core duo", then get the next Core Duo down, which is no slouch either.

Coursedesign wrote on 8/25/2006, 9:04 AM

This may sound slightly odd to some, but the new Mac Pro Intel Quad Core Xeon workstation is a really high performance PC for $2,499 full retail. For the price, I don't think it can be beat right now (in factory built).

It has two Dual-Core Woodcrest Xeons (the latest generation), room for 4 SATA drives inside (each of which can be up to 750GB), up to 16GB of RAM (all of which is useable for WinXP x64 or Mac OS X), it's really quiet, and it does run Vegas great.

If you want to pay more, Boxxtech makes great workstations also.

brogers wrote on 8/25/2006, 9:37 AM

Thanks everyone for your thoughts. Extremely helpful. I've got some quotes from ProMax for a Boxx system that includes the Blackmagic DeckLink HD Pro, AJA HD10AVA . Thinking about external SATA drive.

Any feedback on Boxx or ProMax?

rextilleon wrote on 9/5/2006, 10:16 AM

Both are excellent and overpriced. However, if you want a video editing machine with excellent components and service, then pay the premium. By the way, why do you want the Decklink HD Pro card?

farss wrote on 9/5/2006, 2:43 PM

Best machines for serious grunt and damage to the hip pocket, SuperMicro. Pretty much the standard for render farms etc.
Boxx seem to use the Tynan mobos which are a bit slower than the Supermicro mobos. Also the Supermicro cases are designed for ease of working on, no screws, even the fan units plug in with no trailing leads. But you do pay a premium price.

GlennChan wrote on 9/5/2006, 7:39 PM

In the motherboard benchmarks I've seen, most performance differences can be explained to various and subtle forms of overclocking. This increases performance at the cost of less stability... and isn't that much of a real performance increase anyways, since most motherboards can be overclocked similarly.

Also, the performance difference is rarely more than a few percent... which is insignificant.

2- The overclocking in these cases would be:
The Front Side Bus clock being a little higher than normal.
Certain motherboards like Asus can automatically lower the memory latencies to close to their optimal values.
On certain chipsets, the motherboards can unlock performance-boosting features. PAT on the 865 chipsets versus the 875.