What computer parts should I upgrade for editing?

Hansol wrote on 3/4/2015, 6:48 PM

When I edit and try to playback videos, it usually lags and is very choppy. I've been editing this way for over 2 years now and it's still do-able, but for bigger projects it can be very time consuming to wait, refresh, and shift+B constantly.

I have a huge project I'm about to work on, and I'd like to upgrade the necessary computer parts I need to make the editing process a lot more comfortable but I have no clue what I need to upgrade exactly. What is it that I need to have to have a smoother playback and also quicker rendering? Is it the motherboard? RAM? Also if you have any good recommendations, I would appreciate that as well. Thanks!

Operating System
Windows 8.1 64-bit
CPU
Intel Core i7 3770 @ 3.40GHz 58 °C
Ivy Bridge 22nm Technology
RAM
12.0GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 797MHz (11-11-11-28)
Motherboard
PEGATRON CORPORATION 2AD5
Graphics
VE248 (1920x1080@60Hz)
HP 2311x (1920x1080@60Hz)
SONY TV (1920x1080@60Hz)
2047MB NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 Ti (ASUStek Computer Inc)
Hard Drives
112GB Samsung SSD 840 EVO 120GB (SSD)
1863GB Seagate ST2000DL003-9VT166 (SATA)
1863GB Seagate BUP Slim BK SCSI Disk Device (SATA)

Comments

OldSmoke wrote on 3/4/2015, 7:14 PM

It depends on what kind of source footage you usually work on, 4K, HD, HDV and so on and at what frame rate. Have you tried proxies? A 3770 isn't a bad CPU and I would try first a better GPU like a R9 290 or 290X.

TheHappyFriar wrote on 3/4/2015, 8:08 PM

I have a much older system then that and edit HDV easily. Like asked, what format?

astar wrote on 3/4/2015, 8:53 PM

Likewise...what codecs are you working in and what is your intended output.

I would download Speccy, then save a snapshot, and share a copy on dropbox or something. Then we could see what you are really working with and maybe provide some suggestions. Also provide "Winsat mem" score and GPU-z results.

You also try and edit in Preview quarter or half and see if that if that makes things smoother. Then render to best full. Shift-B with preview quarter and half will be very quick.

Steve Mann wrote on 3/4/2015, 11:05 PM

You system is similar to mine, but I have a Gigabyte motherboard and 32Gb of RAM and two GPUs.

Vegas thrives on CPU power. You will get the most bang for the buck from a faster processor, but yours is already close to the top.

I edit HDV all the time and I don't get any choppy preview until I start adding F/X, transitions and generated text graphics - all at the same time.

What are you editing and do you see the choppy preview all the time?

wjauch wrote on 3/5/2015, 9:10 PM

I have edited Red 4K on my 3 year old HP laptop, i7 2670QM 8GB RAM. After some months my laptop slows down, and I reset to factory new status and reinstall Vegas and other programs. Perhaps a fresh windows and the vegas install would help?

riredale wrote on 3/6/2015, 11:15 AM

Wjauch, I'd suggest building a clean system, then doing an image using something like Macrium. Then in the future all you'd need to do is re-install that image (takes 30 minutes) and you're back in business. But it might make sense to figure out what is slowing down your system. I am STILL running XPpro and have since 2002, with never a need to go back to the original install disk. Runs great and is on 24/7. Edits HDV fine, and if I were to work with 4K I guess I'd first use something like GearShift to build a proxy, then shift back to 4K or whatever at the very end.

Hansol, as for system workload, DV is trivial, HDV is easy, AVCHD is somewhat challenging, and 4K would be very taxing, based on what I read on this forum. For playback, if you use a smallish preview window set for "preview" quality then I can't imagine much stress on your system.

So I think practically any system can be made to work with practically any kind of video. The only issue is that a very slow system will require the use of proxies in some situations.

rraud wrote on 3/7/2015, 10:32 AM

I agree with 'riredale'. Proxies, plenty of RAM and separate (efficient) drives for OS / application and media files. Disable non-essential BG applications.. antivirus and such.