Suggestions for a PC Configuration at DVinfo.net

Rajesh Puttaswamaiah · February 22nd, 2003, 12:17 AM

Hi experts,
I am an amatuer wildlife filmmaker and want to edit the footages myself. So i was planning to get an upgraded PC. But bit confused about hardware. After reading a lot in this forum I feel I should opt for a higher processor and ram but not sure about capture card and graphics card.
My question is should I opt for a ATI Radeon 8500DV which has firewire port in it or an Nvidia card + some firewire card. Or any other from Pinnacle, ADS, Adaptec,etc.
Is there any quality lossage in using a cheaper capture card(Firewire) and cables?
What is the minimum speed of processor, ram, CD Writer and Hard disk required to capture, edit and transfer a good quality footage?

Regards
Rajesh BP

Christopher Go · February 22nd, 2003, 01:01 PM

Hello Rajesh, which NLE will you be using? I think a lot of your questions can be answered once this has been determined. Are you already comfortable working with one or are you choosing an NLE too? In terms of minimum requirements almost anything new right now should be good, but I would definitely check the hardware compatiblity list of the NLE you would like to go with. In terms of basic firewire cards like the ADS, it is on Avid's recommended hardware list so a simple card like that has no peformance problems to speak of. If you want to go Premiere you could look at a dedicated card from Canopus for example. In summary, look at the available NLEs and their hardware requirements then upgrade/choose from there. I wouldn't skimp on a cheap firewire cable though in any case. A lot of people like Matrox + any firewire card combo for editing. Vegas Video is pretty popular as an NLE.

Rajesh Puttaswamaiah · February 23rd, 2003, 10:47 PM

Hi Christopher
Thanx for ur reply, I have just tried few times capturing and editing in Premeire 6.0 but not any other softwares. I captured it from unknown firewire card from a photo studio. It was not a specific video capture card. I found lot of loss in quality of captured to that of original DV footage.
I plan to use Premeire itself, but not sure as i do not know much.
Cards like Pinnacle Pro One or Studio Dv costs nearly 800-1000$ here in India. Where as a simple firewire card costs 50$ and an Nvidia TNT 64MB graphics Card about 60$. So I was wondering what would be the main difference if i have to choose between these two options.

Thanks for any suggestions.
Rajesh BP

K. Forman · February 24th, 2003, 07:21 AM

The main problem would be compatability. If Premiere doesn't like something, it doesn't work well. I have used Premiere myself for years, and wouldn't change. Look into a higher end card, such as Canopus, or at least Pyro. I started with a WinTV/Go TV card. It was cool for watching TV, but was really lame for capture.

As far as HD, I believe it should be 7400 RPM. Processor should be at least a P3, or the AMD equivelent. Use as much Ram as you can afford, at least 256 meg. I use 512.

Your OS is important too. If you will be working with large files, like video, you will need to use NTFS. Otherwise, you will have a 3 gig file that windows can't read. Win 2000, and I believe Win XP, use this file structure.
Hope this helps.

Edward Seid · February 24th, 2003, 10:04 AM

I'm also looking for a capture card. A little research has led me to the ATI Radeon All-in-Wonder 8500DV. It runs in the $170-200 range, but if one is a lucky eBayer, it can be had for sub-$150. Otherwise, I might just save myself the trouble and buy it at amazon.com for $175.38 and free shipping (see link below).

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...waiichesspr-20

David Mintzer · February 24th, 2003, 03:42 PM

I don't know what you will be shooting in--DV I assume. If so, consider a software only solution like Vegas Video---For DV it can't be beat and you will save yourself some money. You could also go with AvidDVXpress but it is much more expensive and I think that Vegas equals it. So all you will need is a firewire card (under a hundred dollars) and the software.

Bryan Roberts · February 24th, 2003, 04:45 PM

I just recently purchased a dell about 2 months ago for primary use as a DV editing machine. I also run Premiere 6.5. My pc is a p4 at 2.4 gigahertz and a gig of RD ram. My video card is an ATI radeon 9700 TX and I have just some cheapo firewire card. Premiere runs very well and I've only had it crash maybe twice and it was with the new titler open with a lot of activity in other programs as well. I have had zero quality loss when I capture from my camcorder. Just remember that when you see the capture in premiere it's not the same as when you export it and view it as a seperate file. That's when I've noticed the quality really shine through (when I use zero compression for HUGE files). If you're editing DV and focus on wildlife, that means that you'll probobaly have alot of raw footage so I'd recommend as much HD as you can get your hands on. I've got 150 gigs, and it's holding up well so far....... best of luck!

Christopher Go · February 24th, 2003, 09:15 PM

This is the one I have, which I purchased directly from ADS:

http://www.adstech.com/products/API3...asp?pid=API300

It is $49 US before shipping and handling fees. There should be no quality or performance issues to speak of with this card. Windows recognized it without any problems as well.

Rajesh Puttaswamaiah · February 24th, 2003, 09:23 PM

Thank u all guys for great reply's. I think i'll go with P4 2.2 or a 2.4gigahertz as 3.0 ghz is almost double the cost of 2.2ghz and invest more on bigger HD. I have just downloaded a trial version of Vegas Video 4.0 and will give a try.
I have one more doubt about previewing.
1. Is it possible to preview on a TV set after colour correction and doing bit of editing before saving the whole project?

2. If possible What is the difference in quality while previewing in a LCD monitor or an CRT monitor or on a TV?

3. Is it possible to connect a monitor and a TV set both to Radeon 8500DV simultaneously?

February 22nd, 2003, 12:17 AM	#1
Rajesh Puttaswamaiah New Boot Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Bangalore,India Posts: 7	Suggestions for a PC Configuration Hi experts, I am an amatuer wildlife filmmaker and want to edit the footages myself. So i was planning to get an upgraded PC. But bit confused about hardware. After reading a lot in this forum I feel I should opt for a higher processor and ram but not sure about capture card and graphics card. My question is should I opt for a ATI Radeon 8500DV which has firewire port in it or an Nvidia card + some firewire card. Or any other from Pinnacle, ADS, Adaptec,etc. Is there any quality lossage in using a cheaper capture card(Firewire) and cables? What is the minimum speed of processor, ram, CD Writer and Hard disk required to capture, edit and transfer a good quality footage? Regards Rajesh BP __________________ Rajesh BP ----------------------------------------- "Explore the wonders of Nature"

February 23rd, 2003, 10:47 PM	#3
Rajesh Puttaswamaiah New Boot Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Bangalore,India Posts: 7	Hi Christopher Thanx for ur reply, I have just tried few times capturing and editing in Premeire 6.0 but not any other softwares. I captured it from unknown firewire card from a photo studio. It was not a specific video capture card. I found lot of loss in quality of captured to that of original DV footage. I plan to use Premeire itself, but not sure as i do not know much. Cards like Pinnacle Pro One or Studio Dv costs nearly 800-1000$ here in India. Where as a simple firewire card costs 50$ and an Nvidia TNT 64MB graphics Card about 60$. So I was wondering what would be the main difference if i have to choose between these two options. Thanks for any suggestions. Rajesh BP __________________ Rajesh BP ----------------------------------------- "Explore the wonders of Nature"

February 24th, 2003, 03:42 PM	#6
David Mintzer Rextilleon Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Pleasantville, NY Posts: 520	Go for a Software Solution if Possible I don't know what you will be shooting in--DV I assume. If so, consider a software only solution like Vegas Video---For DV it can't be beat and you will save yourself some money. You could also go with AvidDVXpress but it is much more expensive and I think that Vegas equals it. So all you will need is a firewire card (under a hundred dollars) and the software.

February 24th, 2003, 09:23 PM	#9
Rajesh Puttaswamaiah New Boot Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Bangalore,India Posts: 7	Thank u all guys for great reply's. I think i'll go with P4 2.2 or a 2.4gigahertz as 3.0 ghz is almost double the cost of 2.2ghz and invest more on bigger HD. I have just downloaded a trial version of Vegas Video 4.0 and will give a try. I have one more doubt about previewing. 1. Is it possible to preview on a TV set after colour correction and doing bit of editing before saving the whole project? 2. If possible What is the difference in quality while previewing in a LCD monitor or an CRT monitor or on a TV? 3. Is it possible to connect a monitor and a TV set both to Radeon 8500DV simultaneously? __________________ Rajesh BP ----------------------------------------- "Explore the wonders of Nature"

February 22nd, 2003, 01:01 PM	#2
Christopher Go Major Player Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 429	Hello Rajesh, which NLE will you be using? I think a lot of your questions can be answered once this has been determined. Are you already comfortable working with one or are you choosing an NLE too? In terms of minimum requirements almost anything new right now should be good, but I would definitely check the hardware compatiblity list of the NLE you would like to go with. In terms of basic firewire cards like the ADS, it is on Avid's recommended hardware list so a simple card like that has no peformance problems to speak of. If you want to go Premiere you could look at a dedicated card from Canopus for example. In summary, look at the available NLEs and their hardware requirements then upgrade/choose from there. I wouldn't skimp on a cheap firewire cable though in any case. A lot of people like Matrox + any firewire card combo for editing. Vegas Video is pretty popular as an NLE.

February 24th, 2003, 07:21 AM	#4
K. Forman Capt. Quirk Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Middle of the woods in Georgia Posts: 3,596	The main problem would be compatability. If Premiere doesn't like something, it doesn't work well. I have used Premiere myself for years, and wouldn't change. Look into a higher end card, such as Canopus, or at least Pyro. I started with a WinTV/Go TV card. It was cool for watching TV, but was really lame for capture. As far as HD, I believe it should be 7400 RPM. Processor should be at least a P3, or the AMD equivelent. Use as much Ram as you can afford, at least 256 meg. I use 512. Your OS is important too. If you will be working with large files, like video, you will need to use NTFS. Otherwise, you will have a 3 gig file that windows can't read. Win 2000, and I believe Win XP, use this file structure. Hope this helps.

February 24th, 2003, 10:04 AM	#5
Edward Seid Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 30	I'm also looking for a capture card. A little research has led me to the ATI Radeon All-in-Wonder 8500DV. It runs in the $170-200 range, but if one is a lucky eBayer, it can be had for sub-$150. Otherwise, I might just save myself the trouble and buy it at amazon.com for $175.38 and free shipping (see link below). http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...waiichesspr-20

February 24th, 2003, 04:45 PM	#7
Bryan Roberts Major Player Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 436	I just recently purchased a dell about 2 months ago for primary use as a DV editing machine. I also run Premiere 6.5. My pc is a p4 at 2.4 gigahertz and a gig of RD ram. My video card is an ATI radeon 9700 TX and I have just some cheapo firewire card. Premiere runs very well and I've only had it crash maybe twice and it was with the new titler open with a lot of activity in other programs as well. I have had zero quality loss when I capture from my camcorder. Just remember that when you see the capture in premiere it's not the same as when you export it and view it as a seperate file. That's when I've noticed the quality really shine through (when I use zero compression for HUGE files). If you're editing DV and focus on wildlife, that means that you'll probobaly have alot of raw footage so I'd recommend as much HD as you can get your hands on. I've got 150 gigs, and it's holding up well so far....... best of luck!

February 24th, 2003, 09:15 PM	#8
Christopher Go Major Player Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 429	This is the one I have, which I purchased directly from ADS: http://www.adstech.com/products/API3...asp?pid=API300 It is $49 US before shipping and handling fees. There should be no quality or performance issues to speak of with this card. Windows recognized it without any problems as well.