Videoguys' System Recommendations
for Video Editing (Jan 2012 Update)

We get asked all the time, "What computer system should I use for Video Editing?"
So, we created this page to give you some basic guidelines. Every month computers get more powerful and less expensive, so the recommendations on this page could become outdated very quickly. We will try our best to keep it up to date but if you see something that doesn’t look right or if you’re configuring a system that may be somewhat different please e-mail (videoguy@videoguys.com) or call the Videoguys at 800-323-2325 and we’d be happy to review your plans. We want to help you make sure you have everything you need to edit & produce great videos.

This page is broken into several sections:

• What kind of computer you need and why? Note: This article is currently for PC recommendations only.
• General system recommendations
• Videoguy's recommendations on new technologies (ie. multi-core, 64 bit)
• Potential compatibility Issues.

Videoguy's DTV Tech Support Hotline (516) 759-1615

The minimum recommended system myth
Many computer software and hardware vendors will list a minimum system spec that is often not adequate. While you will have enough horse power to make them run, you may not get the full advertised performance and you will be disappointed. This is why we have chosen to post our own minimum recommended system for the latest new NLEs. We are confident that if you follow our guidelines you will be very happy with your new NLE purchase.

For best results Make it a Workstation
If you are going to be editing long format videos over an hour long or you want to add lots of 3D effects, filters and have multiple layers of video flying all over the screen, you want a workstation class machine. This will insure you get the stability and performance you demand from your NLE system. You basically have 3 options here:

1. Get an HP (or Dell) workstation or a Mac Pro. An HP workstation will cost you more, but in the long run it will be worth it. They use only the best components, and these workstations come optimized for digital content creation. We also recommend Dell Workstations - with a warning. We have found that Dell can be inconsistent and even sloppy in their driver installation and system set-up. If you get a Dell workstation, make sure you install and update all the drivers and then follow our Vista 64 or XP tweaks before you install any video editing software/hardware.
   
2. Get a turnkey NLE solution from an expert NLE integrator. You can follow this link to a list of turnkey providers recommended by the Videoguys. All of the companies featured on this page make excellent NLE workstations, fully loaded and optimized for long format video editing.
   
   
3. You can certainly build your own computer. You can and should use our DIY articles as a guideline. Make sure you have adequate power supply (minimum 500 Watts, 750 Watts is better) and plenty of cooling and airflow inside the box. Click here for our DIY page with links to our most recent machines. Or check out our DIY9 sneak peak article. Keep in mind, we don’t sell these systems or many of the components but we’re happy to share the specs with you so you know what kind of machine the Videoguys build for themselves.
   
4. Get an iMac! One of the new i7 Quad-cores equipped with Thunderbolt.
   
5. Looking to do your video editing on a laptop? Check out Videoguys Recommended Laptops for Video Editing Guide

What brands we recommend and why
We've had good success with workstations and laptops from both Dell and HP. You may pay a little bit more to get a workstation from these vendors, but the advantage is that you also get outstanding service and support from them. Tech Note: While we love HP Workstations, we do not recommend HP desktop computers. They are not built to the same high standards as their workstation class machines.

With NLE, the more speed the better. Faster machines mean no dropped frames, smooth playback and shorter rendering times. These companies build machines that are used everyday, 24/7 in the broadcast video post-production facilities all over the world. Keep in mind that these broadcast-level machines are typically top of the line workstation models, running dual Xeon processors. You do not need to invest in that level of machine. Most video editors will get all the power they need with a single multi-core CPU machine, built with top end components on a high performance motherboard.

If you would rather get a computer from your local dealer, try to find out if they have any experience installing video editing systems. If so, make sure they understand what your main system requirement is: 9+ megs per second sustained throughput for real-time NLE systems!! For HD editing you will need even more! Your system builder can't be sloppy with BIOS version, drivers or memory resources and the system must be optimally configured. If they follow one of our DIY recipes along with our system recommendations and tweaks, you should end up with a solid video editing machine.

Videoguy's Do-It-Yourself NLE Computer Guides
Over 6 years ago, back in February of 2004 we posted our first DIY article as a guidebook for digital videographers who wanted to build their own NLE computer on a tight budget. Since then our guides have become the defacto standard for affordable NLE configurations. Out latest DIY9 sneak peak machine based on the new Intel Core i7 Sandy Bridge-E processor running Win7 64-bit is our best ever!!

The choices we make...
Whether you’re shopping for a pre-configured machine or having on built for you there are several choices to make along the way and here are some more recommendations to help:

• We highly recommend Intel Core i7 processors.
  In the past we would recommend Intel over AMD for compatibility reasons. Then when Dual Core processors first came out we gave the upper hand to AMD. With the Core 2 Duo processors Intel re-took the top spot for video editing and with Core i7 Intel’s lead has only gotten stronger. While AMD machines will work, we think Intel is definitely the way to go for video editing. Those on a tight budget can go with a Core i5 for basic video editing.
  
  
• Chipsets are as important as the CPUs.
  This is often overlooked, but in reality it is the single most important factor in the success of your computer for NLE. Picking the correct motherboard is critical. Any bottlenecks in the chipset can be a huge problem for NLEs. While you may not be able to find the specific motherboard you see referenced in one of our articles, choosing the latest version based on the same chipset is usually a safe bet.
  
  We recommend and using ASUS motherboards in our DIY machines because we have found that ASUS motherboards work great with our video editing hardware and software. We can also recommend Tyan, MSI & Gigabyte. The chipset used on the motherboard is actually more important then the brand. For more specific motherboard information check out our DIY articles.
  
  
• Specific NLE solutions may require specific motherboards
  We can't stress this enough. The guidelines on this page are GENERAL guidelines. Many times our vendors will recommend specific motherboards or chipsets for integrating their NLE solutions. If you have any specific questions about hardware and/or software you plan on purchasing from us, we urge you to give us a call at 800-323-2325 and review your planned configuration. This is especially important if you intend to edit HD footage.
  
  
• Picking the right graphics card for your NLE workstation
  One of the most often asked questions on our tech support and sales lines (as well as in emails, online forums and user groups) is "What is the best graphics card for NLE?" The answer is actually pretty simple, once you understand why. It all depends on the NLE software you plan on running, what kind of video work you do and if you are also going to be using any additional hardware in your system.
  • For Adobe Premiere CS5 Mercury Playback engine we recommend the nVidia GTX470/570+ or a Quadro 2000/4000 card.
  • For Avid Media Composer we recommend a minimum of a QuadroFX1800 or Quadro2000.
  • Sony Vegas does not benefit from GPU while editing, but Vegas 10 does offer some GPU accelerated rendering. So for Vegas 9 any good ATI or nVidia card with  768+ megs RAM will do. Vegas Pro 11 will support GPU and CUDA acceleration, so get a  GTX470/570 or higher.
  • For consumer video editing apps like Pinnacle Studio we recommend an ATI or nVidia card with 768+ megs ram
  • Download the latest Quadro & nVIDIA drivers

• General system recommendations (Jan 2012):
  If you are starting from scratch, follow our DIY8 budget or Sandy-Bridge system shopping list: Intel Core i7 processor, 8+ GBs of RAM, a 500+GB SATA drive and a 1GB nVidia based graphics card with at least 196 CUDA cores. Add in a 1TB SATA drive for your storage - even better, set up a 4TB RAID 0 striped set (2x2000GB).

FREE Super Saver Shipping with coupon DIY2011
Thank you for visiting Videoguys.com. We are the video editing and production experts! If you liked this article - then please purchase your video editing software, hardware and storage from Videoguys.com! As an added bonus use coupon code DIY2011 when you place your order on-line or over the phone 800 323-2325 and get FREE Super Saver Shipping!

Memory Recommendations
You need Minimum 2GB of RAM just to run Windows XP efficiently, 4GB for Win 7 or Vista 64. For today's video editing software you want to be running Win7 or Vista 64-bit with at least 6GB of RAM, 8GB is better and for best results we recommend 12GB! Memory is still very cheap, and this is a great performance booster. One of the biggest benefits of 64-bit computing is the ability to access tons of RAM, the more RAM you give your Win7 system, the better your performance will be - even if you are not running a native 64-bit NLE.

While you can run with less, you will have a much more stable & better running system with more memory. Also, with the new chipsets, the new faster RAM is one of the biggest contributors to improved performance. By running less then 4GB you are actually throttling down your overall system's performance.

We recommend you get a motherboard that supports dual or triple channel memory.  With a motherboard that supports triple channel memory you need to add RAM in sets of three identical sticks. (6x2GB = 12GB total memory).  For best results make sure you use 2GB of RAM for each physical CPU core. So with a Quad-core processor we would want at least 4x2GB=8GB of memory (with a Hex-Core you will want at least 12GB).  If you are planning on building an i7 machine, we recommend 3GB per core for optimal results! We also recommend getting the fastest memory possible DDR3 from top vendors like Corsair, Crucial or Kingston. Do not use cheap memory in your video editing workstation, the potential stability issues far outweigh the few dollars you could save.

Why we recommend a dual head graphics cards
It's all about real-estate. With two monitors you can stretch your timeline across the bottom of both screens and you can have more windows open at the same time. This means you spend less time opening and closing windows or scrolling through the timeline. As a result, you are more productive. Adobe, Avid & Sony all have optimized preset screen layouts for dual monitors.

We recommend nVidia Quadro based graphics cards for video editing because of their superb CUDA and Open GL support. Adobe Premiere Pro, Photoshop & After FX, Avid Media Composer, Red Giant Magic Bullet & Boris FX all take advantage of Open GL. You will see more and more video editing software take advantage of Open GL GPU power as new versions of NLEs get released. This is the key the reason why we recommend Quadro cards over less expensive 3D gaming cards. While you can do fine with a 3D gaming card, Quadro cards are designed and engineered for this kind of work - and the NLE engineers are optimizing their applications to take advantage of this GPU Open GL power. Below is a short list of our top GPU recommendations by NLE:

• Avid Media Composer 5.0+: Quadro FX1800/3800+ or Quadro2000/4000+
• Adobe Premiere CS5+ Mercury Playback Engine: GTX470/570 or Quadro 2000/4000+
• Adobe Premiere CS5+ Mercury Playback Engine (Mac): Quadro4000 Mac
• Sony Vegas Pro 10/11: GTX470/570
• Grass Valley Edius: GTX470/570 or Quadro 2000/4000+
• Pinnacle Studio / Avid Studio: GTX470/570

Always download and install the latest drivers from your graphics card vendor
This is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT! Many of our current tech issues are graphics card related, but it's not the graphics card that is the issue. The problem is running it with the wrong drivers. The drivers that ship with your Windows OS will get your system to run, but they will not allow your graphics card to function to its full capabilities. We can't stress this one enough - before you install your NLE or DVD gear, go to the graphics card manufacturer’s website to download and install the latest drivers.

Get a big, fast system drive
We recommend that you have a system/boot drive that is a minimum 500GB. If the system comes with a 750 or 1TB drive, get it. You will use up the space. While we do not recommend putting your video, media or projects on your system drive, over time you'll still end up filling it up.

Most of today's NLEs are actually suites, and they install a bunch of software, media, images, templates, documentation and interactive help. The last thing you want is an overcrowded system drive. As the drive fills up, it will get slower.  We also recommend getting a 7200RPM or faster drive for your boot disk. It will defintily have a positive impact on your systems overall performance and programs will open faster.

We've also found that you can speed up your encoding by having the file written from your video drive or RAID to a 2nd drive. A seperate dedicated 7200RPM drive is best for this, but we've had good results using our system drive. We'll set up a folder on our C: drive called EXPORTS and have our encoding software write the files there. This does result in improved render times. Just make sure to move the files off your system drive when you are done.

Video Storage recommendations
With today's powerful processors, lightening fast memory, super 3D graphics cards and huge ATA hard drives you can capture, edit & playback single stream DV video with your system drive. That said, we still urge you to get a dedicated hard drive (7200 RPM or faster) for all your video clips. This will produce the best results - especially for video projects over 1 hour in length. If you are going to be using one of our Real-Time NLE solutions then we still recommend a dedicated SATA Raid or SCSI for best results.

We recommend Serial ATA (SATA) drives for NLE
While these drives do have a cost premium, the improved sustained data throughput is worth it. We also like the new cables which allow for better air flow inside your computer case. We have not yet had the chance to test any SATA Raid controllers, but we're confident that they will work great with our software based NLE solutions. RAIDs are great! For the best results set up a dedicated RAID 0 stripe for your video & media files. This will give you a huge capacity with the fastest possible sustained throughput for your editing.

RAID Warning!
We do NOT recommend setting up your computer with a single RAID 0 array as your boot drive and video storage. This will actually give you poor performance for video editing. The constant reading and writing of small bits of data to the boot drive works against the need to read & write large continuous video files. Add in the overhead of the RAID controller and you get potential bottlenecks. For video editing you always want to have a dedicated drive or RAID array for your video files.

Follow this link for our Videoguy's NLE Video Storage FAQ

Get a Blu-ray DVD burner!!
Blu-ray Burners are now very affordable. They are a must for HD. At 25GB pr disc they are also great for backing up and archiving. If you plan on copying and ripping, get both a Blu-ray Burner and a DVD-ROM drive.

Multimedia Peripherals
We recommend a step up audio system. While most of our cards come with audio capture built on, most digital videographers eventually find themselves doing some soundtrack manipulation and basic audio editing. Having a step up sound card will let you do a better job and as an added bonus, many of these cards come with some kind of audio recording utility and even basic audio mixing/editing tools. If you plan on making DVDs, you'll want a sound card and speakers for surround sound. That way you can listen to your video and DVD in full audio quality while you work.

Get a mid size or full tower
Trust me, you'll thank me for this one. Not only will the added space come in handy for adding in stuff, but the bigger case makes running cables and actually doing the install easier. Another big advantage of a tower is better air circulation, which keeps your system cooler.

Apple iMacs on Intel i5/i7 processors = AWESOME!!
The latest generation of Apple computers are built on Intel i5 &i7 Quad core processors, and they work great! Macbook Pros and iMacs are now very viable NLE platforms.  With the addition of the new Thunderbolt hi-speed connectivity port, these machines will give you the ability to add professional I/O and video storage. Best of all Mac users now have several great choices in Video Editing software they can choose from: Apple Final Cut Studio, Adobe Production Premium with Premiere Pro and Avid Media Composer.

The latest iMacs are an excellent choice for HD video editing. They support the new Thunderbolt super-high speed inteface. That makes attaching Thunderbolt enabled storage and I/O cards a breeze. We recommend a 27 inch iMac with Intel Core i7 processor and 16GB of RAM. This will cost you under $3,000 and it will run the latest Apple, Adobe and Avid software fantastic. You'll get outstanding performance and be able to handle AVCHD and DSLR footage with some pretty complex timelines with ease. If you are on a tight budget you could go with 8GB of RAM or an i5 processor, but you will sacrifice some performance as a result. You'll still will be able to edit most flavors of HD footage, but the editing will be a bit more sluggish and you may run into issues with multiple layers of HD footage and graphics. iMacs are not easily upgraded, so you may find yourself regretting not getting an i7 and 16GB of RAM - especially with FCPX or Premiere Pro CS5.5.

You can also choose one of the new Mac Mini, Mac Book Pro or Mac Book Air. They also have Thunderbolt! Just make sure you select an i7 processor and as much RAM as possible.

Even cooler - Did you know you can use "Boot Camp" to run both Mac OSX and Win7 on the same computer? Thereby enabling Mac customers to finally be able to take advantage of software that is Windows only.

NEW TECHNOLOGY NEWS! (Oct 2011)

Sandy Bridge - Getting closer:
I'm still not ready to recommend Sandy Bridge or the Asus P8Z68-V Pro motherboard yet for our more advanced editors. If you think you are going to be using one of our advanced NLEs such as Avid or Adobe or Edius or Vegas with hardware I/O and /or a RAID, stick with our Core i7 Hex core.

Intel i7 is the way to go!
Back in the end of 2005 we realized that our first two DIY projects had gotten pretty long in the tooth. While they were pretty cutting edge at the time, we were seeing some very new and exciting technologies breaking out. The most exciting was dual core processors. With the Core i7 Intel unleashed Quad core processors that deliver amazing performance at under $500, making them our #1 recommendation for all our NLEs.

The advantages of Quad  Core processors for video editing are significant, HEX cores are even better!
The biggest is price / performance. The latst video editing applications are now 64-bit and written to take advantage of multiple processing cores. Now with a single affordable Hex chip, for around $500 you can unleash 12 processing cores and fully maximize the 64-bit, multi-threaded capabilities.

AMD vs. Intel
In our DIY4 dual-core article we actually had a face off between AMD & Intel, which AMD won as the best choice. Then Intel launched its Core 2 Duo processor, and regained the lead as the best choice for video editing. That lead has only grown bigger over the past couple for years. Videoguy's recommends Intel processors for NLE workstations.

Intel Core i7 970 = 12 cores of processing power
How do you make a Quad-Core CPU into 8-cores? Easy, sometimes you have to go back to the future. In this case it’s an old technology called Hyper-Threading. Hyper-Threading is when the processor splits itself into two virtual processors in order to share the workload it’s being asked to run. With the i7 you get 4 cores, each one Hyper-Threaded into 2 virtual CPUs. The result is 8-cores of unprecedented computer power for a phenomenal price! If you are going to be building or buying a new computer for video editing – Intel i7 970 HEX core is our top recommendation - giving you 12 cores of processing power!

It's official –  Windows 7 is Videoguys' top recommendation for your video editing workstation!

We've been warning our customers to stay away from Vista for quite some time, and we still do not recommend the 32-bit version because the operating system requires a lot of RAM for reliable operation and that's one of the greatest advantages of Vista 64.

Based on the fantastic results we are able to achieve with our DIY7 Intel Core i7 based NLE workstation, we discovered that Vista 64 SP1 is very stable and provided us with excellent performance for our favorite video editing applications and hardware. Just follow the tips and tweaks below and you to can start taking advantage of Vista 64!!

VIDEOGUYS TIPS FOR USING WINDOWS VISTA 64 FOR VIDEO EDITING:

• For best results, put it on brand new system like the Videoguys' DIY7 with an Intel i7 processor and 6GB RAM or more. If not, a Quad-core or faster with at least 4GB of RAM would make an excellent machine.
  
  
• If you're going to try it on an older dual-core machine, then feed it more RAM (8GB) to make up for the less powerful processor.
  
  
• We do not recommend running Vista 64 on a single core processor or with less then 3GB of RAM. If your machine is that old, stick with Windows XP 32.
  
  
• Make sure all of your hardware and software supports Vista 64. Trying to run software and especially hardware without Vista 64 support will create lots of problems including but not limited to: instability, sluggish performance, crashing, lock-ups, and even failure to boot.

Tech Note: While the Videoguys now recommends Vista 64, we do not recommend the 32-bit version of Vista for video editing. To run Vista right you need the extra RAM, and that is the primary benefit right now of Vista 64. If you can't go 64-bit, stick with good old reliable Windows XP Professional 32-bit operating system.

Click here for Videoguy's Vista 64 Tips & Tweaks

Windows XP Professional is still a good choice for video editing on an older system.
We still run Windows XP Pro in some of our older machines, running older versions of NLE software. We do not recommned running the latest versions of any of our NLE software on XP anymore. If you want to run Adobe CS5, Avid MC5 or Vegas 9 or later, get a new computer and run Win 7. We do NOT recommend upgrading your existing XP based NLE system to Win7, if XP is getting the job done – stick with it! We do recommend you take a look at our in depth Win XP tips and tweaks. You can definitely increase the performance of you system with just a few simple tips, or go all the way and tweak out every last drop of performance. Videoguys' Windows XP Tips & Tricks for Video Editing

Videoguys Top Computer "Gotchas"  for Video Editing (Oct 2010 update)
Right now we do not have any specific brands that we do not recommend. What is very important is that you make sure any machine you buy does NOT have any of the following "Gotchas":

• Integrated graphics on the motherboard - still our #1 tech support problem. We NEVER recommend computers with integrated graphics.
• Cheap RAM - Always use premium quality memory - we like Corsair, Kingston and Crucial. And add as much as you can. For Win7 that means a bare minimum of 3GB.
• Not using Double or triple channel RAM properly. If your motherboard uses double channel RAM you MUST add RAM in identical pairs. (triple channelr equires 3 identical sticks). Failing to use identical pairs or putting RAM in the wrong slots can have a dramatic negative impact on system performance.
• 5400 RPM drives (or even slower) - video editing requires 7200RPM drives for video storage. We also recommend a 7200RPM or faster boot drive. Don't let your storage be the bottleneck in your systems performance.
• Poor cooling. Make sure you've got adequate airflow inside the box and fans to cool your computer. Heat is the enemy of any computer, and when you are editing video, you're pushing all of the components. If your NLE workstation starts acting funny, check the airflow. If your system continues to run hot, not only will performance suffer, you will severly shorten the life and reliability of components inside your computer.

 Call our FREE DTV tech support line (516) 759-1615 for the best possible compatibility recommendation
Our techs will gladly take the time to make sure you get the video editing hardware and software that will best match your system. We offer our 30 day Money-back guarantee on every product we sell, so it is in our best interest to make sure you get the best match between our products and your computer. We look forward to talking to you and helping you get the best possible system for your needs and budget!!

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