HELP! VEGA VIDEO 4.0 or 4.0 + DVD...desktop upgrade...I'M CLUELESS....PLEASE SOMEONE HELP!!!!!!!!

CraigEverettEarl wrote on 3/21/2003, 8:30 PM
Okay here goes. I've decided that Vegas Video looks amazing and I want to get the new Vegas Video 4.0 or Vegas + DVD, but I am braindead when it comes to computer talk. I know nothing. I know that Vegas comes with a DVD for the computer. Here's the story in short. I have a crapy Pentium processor and 500mhz I belive and only 2 Gigs of ram. I know that the Vegas said it takes 40Gigs and someone told me I would need at least 20G for every hour of my movie, I am making, which will only be a short film, half hour thing. Still, I have so many questions. What kind of computer would I need to get. How many Gigs would I need, how many MHZs, what processor, do I need a celeron or anathon? I'm clueless. I've been looking at Dell computers, but I don't want to get the wrong one. I was thinking about going ahead and getting the Vegas + DVD, because Vegas 4.0 is included, but I didn't know if the DVD that comes with it holds enough ram, or do you have to buy another hard drive strictly for that. I work at an electronic store and could get a huge discount on a dvd drive if the one that comes with Vegas + DVD is nothing special. If that's the only difference between Vegas 4.0 and Vegas + Dvd I guess I should get the Vegas 4.0. I don't know, help!

Comments

BillyBoy wrote on 3/21/2003, 9:35 PM
You're pretty mixed up alright. Lets see if we can unconfuse you.

First there is a difference between RAM (ramdom access memory) and the size (capacity) of your hard drive. You can get by with 512MB of RAM (memory). As far as the hard drive for video editing you really need two. One should be dedicated to video work. How big? The first or root drive (C) is where your operating system (Windows) goes and where most people put their applications. This drive doesn't have to be too large. Today, that would be anywhere from 20-80 GB is plenty for most people. The 2nd drive for video editing should be as big as your budget can afford IF you're going to do a lot of videos. Somewhere in the 50GB to 120GB range should be good.

Vegas does NOT come with a DVD drive. Which seems to be what you're thinking. The title is a little confusing. It refers to being able to BURN a DVD disc so that you can play it on your set top DVD player connected to your TV if you have one. If you plan on making DVD's, then an additional piece of hardware you'll need is a DVD burner. Be careful. There are DVD burners (to make DVD's) and DVD drives which simply play DVD's. If you don't want either, you need a CD drive. If you plan on doing DVD's, then you can skip the CD drive and/or burner, because the DVD burner can take care of all that.

As far as horsepower (CPU speed) the faster the better. You 500Mhz computer is very slow by today's standards and while Vegas will work on it, it will crawl along and you really won't be able to take advantage of things like preview on an external monitor very well. So at least a 1.5 Ghz (1500Mhz) computer is probably the minimum I would consider if you're in the market for a new one. Once you're at that speed or higher the only real advantage to getting a more powerful computer would be to reduce rendering times. That is the part of video editing that takes a very long time. Very roughtly expect something in the area of 8 to 1 ratio for a 1.5 Ghz computer. That means a 30 minute video will take at least 4 hours to 'render', if you use a lot of filters, change frame rate, are transcoding, lots of transations, it take take MUCH longer.

willphil wrote on 3/21/2003, 9:53 PM
I'm sure you will get a better answer from lots of people, but since I also run Vegas on a PIII 500 (256mb ram) let me relate my experience.

First Vegas + DVD does not come with a DVD drive. The +DVD is a dvd authoring program (DVD Architect and AC3 - Dolby - sound encoder). To produce DVD's you will need to purchase a DVD burning drive.

Vegas runs well on a 500mhz machine. You will have much longer render times and the realtime preview will not show all of your movies frames compared to faster machines. Render time is the time needed to take all the instructions and clips you have put into Vegas (or any NLE) and convert those instructions into a file format that is viewable on DV tape, as mpeg1 or mpeg2, or a more compressed format for web distribution.

As for hard drive space. Drives now are relatively cheap. It is best to have at least two drives. One for your system files and programs and one for video only. I have a 40gig system drive and a 60gig video only drive. Keep them defragged and you can capture DV without dropped frames. Keep in mind also, that you need space on your drive for not only your source clips, but also any rendered files you produce. If you make DVD's you need space on the drive for your DVD's mpeg2 and audio files plus some overhead for temp file creation. The point of this ramble is to get a large, fast hard drive for video only. You can't get one too large, but you could get one too small.

Personally, I love DVD's. I purchased Vegas + DVD to use with my Pioneer 104 drive. The quality and convenience of DVD is unbeatable. You will have long render times with a 500mhz machine. Often, I will render overnight or while I am gone for the day. For me Vegas + DVD is just what I need.

I hope this helps. Now all you guys who really know something help out here.

bill
surfnturk wrote on 3/21/2003, 10:12 PM
To add further to the un-confusion, see http://www.dvdrhelp.com for tons of info regarding DVD burners/set top boxes.
DGrob wrote on 3/21/2003, 10:19 PM
You haven't mentioned your camera (miniDV is great for those of us who are just playing) and the firewire IEEE1394 ports, etc., needed to capture your video into the computer system for editing, rendering, and burning your DVDs.

Do you have access to a local college that might offer classes -- most community colleges will have a basic, one semester intro to computers -- you might even luck into a film class or two featuring digital video editing.

Good luck, Vegas is great fun, and my daughter's distant grandparents are in seventh heaven with their quarterly, 30-minute VHS epic!

Grob

ps: don't expect a lick of help from Dell once they have your money. Been there, done that.
wcoxe1 wrote on 3/21/2003, 10:33 PM
Consider going to Amazon.com or other bookstore and checking out a Vegas 4 workbook by Douglas Spotted Eagle, a very widely known and respected Vegas expert. Price just dropped to about $37.00. It is "not yet available," meaning that it is VERY new. You will have to order one and wait until publication. Shouldn't be too long.