New User needs advice for hardware needs

WaltG wrote on 12/17/2004, 2:35 PM
Hi
As a new Vegas5+DVD owner I need the advise of you long time users as to what hardware I should get for the most bang for my buck.

1. Thniking of going laptop for portability with an external USB HD for media. Is this a good Idea or does it reduce speed etc? I bought the program after a lesion at DV Expo on a Vaio Which seemed excellent. Anyone have any suggestions re this or other laptops?

2. If I go desktop what recomendations beyond the minimums are recomended?

3. What media storage is the most dependable? I have a SUSI system on my old P1 system from the last editor program.

I am shooting MiniDV (Canon GL-2) shooting mostly 30 minute projects, travel, narritive, DIY which I will master to MiniDV and distribute on VHS and DVD/.

All suggestions greatfully accepted.

Thanks

WaltG
Burbank

Comments

Spot|DSE wrote on 12/17/2004, 4:39 PM
Hey Walt! Welcome to Vegas, and glad you enjoyed the laptop sessions at DV Expo!
I just bought a new VIAO K37, and am loving it. It's my 13th or 14th VAIO in 7 years, and I love them. I go through about 1.5 laptops a year in travel, and between the airlines and tradeshows, they get pretty banged up.

As far as storage, I recommend i.Link/1394 over USB, simply because USB storage isn't always reliable for speed.
Storing to HD is always best/fastest, but you can back up avi's onto DVD if you must.

scissorfighter wrote on 12/17/2004, 5:01 PM
Walt,
You'd be surprised how well vegas runs on a laptop. I often edit on a lightweight HP laptop (Pentium 4m 2ghz, 768mb ram, 60GB internal HD) that runs like a charm. Of course the big advantage to the laptop is portability. Being able to edit wherever you want (or capture straight to a laptop in the field) is pretty handy. If you want to use an external USB 2.0 HD that should be fine, but Spot is right in that Firewire is more solid in terms of performance. If your laptop doesn't have firewire built in, you can get a PCMCIA adapter. Either way, you'll have plenty of room for several hours of raw footage. Myself, I would opt for a larger, 7200 RPM internal HD just for convenience. With just one drive sometimes performance is not as great as it could be, but I'm willing to make that sacrifice in the name of convenience. Many laptops can support 2 internal HDs, but often you have to give up a battery to do it. If you've got the budget, check out an Alienware laptop. Built with hardcore gamers in mind, these pricey babes are packed with high-end graphics and fast components.

If you have no need for a portable solution, then a desktop system may be the way to go. Desktops are cheaper, and their expandability is greater. You may find yourself developing an editing station with dual monitors and an external NTSC preview monitor (very handy.) You can do that with a laptop, but it tends to be more cumbersome just due to the nature of connectivity.

In either case, my recommendations would be the standard: large hard drive (multiple for sure if you're going desktop,) fast processor, and lots of RAM. For a desktop minimum, oh, let's see... 80GB system drive, 200GB data drive, 2.8 GHZ processor, 1GB ram. That's probably more than you'll need NOW, but for longevity sake I'd go as high as you can afford. Plus, by today's standards, that's a pretty low-end system. My current elderly desktop runs with: 80GB system drive, 180GB data drive, 1.8 GHZ proc, 512 MB RAM. Small potatoes, but I edit 30 minute pieces with it all the time and it's rock solid. She chuggs a little if I try to render multiple streams when previewing real time, but I don't do that very often. On the other hand, I do have a piggy bank that I'm about to break open and buy a whole new rig loaded with the meanest components I can get my hands on. But not because I need the power for Vegas.

Final comment: invest in a dual monitor setup. Or a single large (23") LCD panel. The screen real estate is invaluable.

Good luck!
FuTz wrote on 12/18/2004, 6:31 AM
Here's the features I 'd look for if I had to buy a second laptop.
Be sure that on the second screen you get (if the graphic card permits it) , you indeed have a **second*** screen, NOT a replica of the same screen you have on the actual laptop.
A *big* hard drive. As big as you can find.

I got a laptop that's got a "second monitor" feature but , you guessed it, it will display the same screen I already got.
Useless unless you want to watch movies on a TV set. And, still, not the best quality.
I got a 30Go drive: too small, wayyyyy too small.

And these widescreens now, wow, they rock! I don't have this.

Otherwise, I'm very satisfied with this P4 2.66 vaio laptop.

If you plan to travel, maybe built-in WiFi would be nice? I know, you can find an ext. card but, still, the less you have to carry, the better, IMO.