New PC

PalKat wrote on 6/16/2011, 8:24 AM
Hi, I am thinking about buying a new PC because mine is old and really slow.
Would this be a good computer so it works good with VMS HD Platinum
10? If not what changes would I have to make?
I will be using AVCHD for all my videos.
Also, it says AMD Athlon II x2, does the "x2" mean it is a dual core?
Thanks for your help!!!!

Dell Inspiron Zino HD Desktop with 18.5" Monitor:
Key Features and Benefits:

•AMD Athlon II x2 P340 processor
2.2GHz, 1MB Cache

•3GB DDR3 SDRAM system memory (expandable to 16GB)
Gives you the comfort for multimedia videos and images, video conferencing, basic gaming and all the other simple duties

•320GB SATA hard drive
Store 213,000 photos, 91,000 songs or 168 hours of HD video and more

•8x dual-layer DVD+/-RW drive
Watch movies, and read and write CDs and DVDs in multiple formats

•Integrated Ethernet
Connect to a broadband modem with a wired broadband router

•18.5" widescreen, digital flat-panel monitor
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4250
Additional Inspiron Zino HD Home Computer Features:
•4-in-1 memory card reader
•4 x USB 2.0 ports, 1 HDMI port, 2 x eSATA ports, 1 x headphone jack, 1 x microphone jack, 1 x RJ-45 Ethernet port, 1 x VGA port, 1 x line-out, 1 x S/PDIF port
Software:
•Genuine Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit Edition (To learn more about the features of Windows 7, click here)

Comments

Steve Grisetti wrote on 6/16/2011, 8:54 AM
Well, it all depends on what you plan to edit and how much money you have to spend, Kat. This is a relatively minimal machine. (An 18.5" monitor?) If you can afford it, a few hundred dollars more will get you a much better machine that will be state of the art for a bit longer than this one.

That 320 gig hard drive is pretty small by today's standards. A 500 gig C drive is pretty standard these days -- but you may also want to include a second hard drive with 1 terrabyte for your video editing files. Video files are big and drives fill up pretty quickly!

I prefer Intel to AMD chips. There's no reason AMD chips shouldn't work just as well -- it's just that Intel is industry standard for both Macs and PCs. And, when you're working at as high level as you will be when you're editing video, being with the industry standard is always to your advantage. But that's just a judgment call on my part.

In fact, a quad core processor would be a much better investment -- particularly if the video you're editing is coming from an AVCHD or other hard drive or memory card camcorder.

Finally -- no FireWire port? That's a sure sign this computer wasn't built for video editing. You definitely want a computer with at least one IEEE-1394 port if you plan to edit video.

My not-so-humble opinion anyway...

EGS wrote on 6/17/2011, 9:17 AM
Why not consider building your own PC? The link below contains my build list. While this PC is specifically optimised for Pro-Tools (audio DAW), I'm having great results editing AVCHD with VMS10 too !!! The multi-card reader is for loading from my Canon Vixia HFS100's SDHC cards.

http://duc.avid.com/showthread.php?t=279758