computer for video capture/edit- which one ???

[sinjin 0]

i am no computer geek and need some input.. i am going to be doing some basic video capture and editing for myself. want average quality on a meduim budget.. i have read the some of the threads on here.. One recomending a build your own computer so i found a custom one and one new/refurb one.. if you have other ideas or suggestions i am open.. i am looking to spend 600 roughly...it seems like the minimums for video capture are 1.5 ghz, 512 ram, 800mhz, and 80gb storage.. is that right ? below are two computers that i found....

Custom Built Pentium dual core 3.4 Ghz PC with Monitor
Hardware:
CPU Type: Intel Pentium D processor 945
Frequency: 3.40 GHz
FSB: 800 MHz
Cache: 4 MB (2x2)
Socket: Socket 775
Memory: 1Gb (2x512) - DDR3200 - 400Mhz
MB: ASUS P5P800-VM with Intel 865G
Video card: NVidia Gforce2 MX400.
HD: 80Gb (2 Hard drives)
DVD-RW: Sony 16x DVD-RW double layer.
USB: 6 ports, 2 on the front and 4 in the back.
Mike and headphone jacks on the front.
Keyboard and mouse included.
Monitor:
Sony SDM-S53 - 15"
Software:
Windows XP Pro.
MS Office 2003
Nero 7
PowerDVD
$550

or

2.2 GHz Athlon 64 3500+ Pavilion Desktop PC HP Refurbished - a1130n (Open Box)
2.2 GHz Athlon 64 3500+, 1 GB PC3200 DDR System Memory (2 Dimm), 250GB SATA HD 7200 rpm, 16x DVD(+/-)R/RW DL LightScribe drive, Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005, Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 2 (Open Box)
$ 350 shipped no monitor

dont let life pass you by

[LukeH 0]

Quote

it seems like the minimums for video capture are 1.5 ghz, 512 ram, 800mhz, and 80gb storage..

1.5Ghz - depends on the type of processor... I'd advise going for 2.0Ghz Core 2 Duo or more.

512MB RAM - This is cetainly bare minimum. I'd advise anyone buying a computer these days to buy 2GB if at all possible or else buy 1GB with room to add a further 1GB in the future.

80GB Storage
- A Hard Drive advertised as 80GB will actually only have 74GB. They advertise 1,000KB as 1GB.
-Each hour of DV footage you capture will take up about 13GB.
-When you render your project and want to create a DVD you will need additional space for this too.
-You should reserve 20GB of space for your OS and Applications.
-HD's operate best when there is 40%-20% free space.

HDs are cheap, I'd recommend at least 160GB, but you really should go for 250GB+.

There are lots of other considerations too. I think your budget it a bit low for a reasonable editing machine. If you want a monitor too, expect to pay $1,000 - $1,200 for the complete PC (something not too fancy). It's hard to beat Dell for Price/Performance ratio.

Buy a decent PC now, and you can expect it to serve you well for 4-5 years. If you buy the bare minimum now, you can expect to be frustrated with it in 12-18months


C-ya

[phoenixlpr 0]

Quote

HDs are cheap, I'd recommend at least 160GB, but you really should go for 250GB+.

The $/Gbyte is the lowest in the 200-250Gbyte range nowadays.

[ptwob267 0]

Also a big consideration for editing is having a dedicated project drive seperate from the hard drive that you have the operating system on, it makes processing much smoother.

[jimoke 0]

iMac

The ground always, remembers where you are!

[justinb138 0]

Quote

Quote

HDs are cheap, I'd recommend at least 160GB, but you really should go for 250GB+.

The $/Gbyte is the lowest in the 200-250Gbyte range nowadays.

Yep.

You can pick up a 250GB SATA II Seagate 7200.10 for $85 or one of the 320GB versions for $95.

Personally, if you're looking to put together a budget video PC, I'd go with the E6300 Core 2 Duo Processor, no less than 1GB of RAM, and two 250GB SATA drives in a RAID setup (the new boards with the Intel 965 and 975 chipset usually include onboard Intel Matrix RAID).

Beware of the Pentium D chips, as they have a tendency to run very hot, and the 3GHZ+ versions of the chip are actually a little less powerful than the low-end Core2's.

[MB38 0]

Quote

iMac

I really don't know what I'm talking about.