Build a System From Scratch with an AMD Phenom x6 1090T Processor?

[Kyle Root]

Last week, I got the crazy idea to try and build my own editing computer... instead of buying a Dell or HP like I've always done.

I picked up the 2010 PC Builders Bible by PC Gamer Magazine Friday to get some insight into all the necessary components. (Side Note - note sure exactly how much difference there is between building a high performance gaming machine and a video editing system...)

As mentioned in another thread about the Video Guys DIY 7.7 build, it is 6 months old and a lot of new developments have taken place (hex core processors, USB 3.0, and CS5 to be exact). I love the new i7 980x... but can't shell out that kind of cash, which led me to conside the AMD 6-core chips.

Based on my initial thoughts, and research my component list is:

- Phenom II 1090T Black Edition Six Core Processor - $300
- Gigabyte 890FXA-UD7 Motherboard - $250
- Corsair TX750W 750-Watt Power Supply $ 100
- EVGA 015-P3-1482-AR GeForce GTX 480 SuperClocked Video Card - $550
- Creative Labs SB X-FI Titanium PCIe Sound Card - $90
- Corsair Dual Channel 4096MB PC10600 DDR3 1333MHz Memory (8GB) - $266
- Pioneer BDR-205 Internal Blu-ray Disc/DVD/CD Writer $200
- Western Digital WD1002FAEX 1TB x 3 (7200 RPM, SATA III 6G, 64MB) - $315

Has anyone built a system with AMD ... or the new AMD 6-core?

In the end I want the system to be able to handle AVCHD, HDV, and whatever the new Canon XF300 series camcorder will throw at it... using CS5 Production Premium.

Thoughts? Comments? Experiences?

Thanks!

[Randall Leong]

Unfortunately, Adobe applications still favor Intel processors at this time. And given that even the fastest Phenom II X4 processor (the 965BE) only performs on a par with a bottom-of-the-line Intel Core 2 Quad (the Q6600) in PP CS4 or CS5 and that the architecture of the Phenom II X6 remains unchanged from the X4, don't expect the X6 to perform any better than a very low-end i7 processor-based system.

In other words, you get what you pay for.

[Sareesh Sudhakaran]

for CS5 you would do with at least 12GB of RAM to handle things smoothly. Editing applications didn't really care for graphic cards until CS5 - and CS5 also is only required if you're going to have many layers and effects. If your editing is simple - you could get by with a quad core - at least for HDV.

What you need are fast hard drives - the best ones you could get. Check with Adobe on the GTX card to make sure it's supported (I'm not sure about that one). Stick to Intel i7 - can't go wrong there. Get an extra monitor if need be - what's the point in spending so much if you're never going to see the result in HD realtime? IMHO.

[Randall Leong]

Originally Posted by Sareesh Sudhakaran

for CS5 you would do with at least 12GB of RAM to handle things smoothly. Editing applications didn't really care for graphic cards until CS5 - and CS5 also is only required if you're going to have many layers and effects. If your editing is simple - you could get by with a quad core - at least for HDV.

What you need are fast hard drives - the best ones you could get. Check with Adobe on the GTX card to make sure it's supported (I'm not sure about that one). Stick to Intel i7 - can't go wrong there. Get an extra monitor if need be - what's the point in spending so much if you're never going to see the result in HD realtime? IMHO.

In my experience I could get by with 4 to 6 GB of RAM for CS5 if I don't try to do too many layers. But 12GB or more is recommended if one is trying to do more than about three layers even with a Quadro card.

CS4, on the other hand, is (relatively speaking) so buggy that editing has never been at all smooth regardless of the system.