Final Cut Pro offers the most advanced organizing tools of any professional video editing system. Easily tag entire clips or clip ranges with metadata for searching, and create Smart Collections that automatically collect content according to a set of custom criteria. Why is the Mac Pro designed as it is, and how does it help video editors and post production professionals? Why should you get excited (or not)? Does the new Mac Pro deliver on its video editing promises? Is the new Mac Pro expensive, or can you build a PC for cheaper? Which model should you buy for best bang for your buck?
Videoguys’ System Recommendations for Video Editing (March 2014 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 Every month computers get more powerful and less expensive, so the recommendations on this page could become outdated very quickly.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 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:. 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. The new HP z820 is the power users choice, and the best dual Xeon solution on the market. We like the z420 single Xeon machines for professionals who don’t require as much horsepower, but demand the same level of reliability and stability. When it comes to stability, reliability and performance HP workstations set the bar by which all others are judged.
They are more expensive then a DIY build, but you get what you pay for. If you’re building a professiona post facility, HP z series workstations are the way to go. The new Dell workstations are very good also, and it’s great to see that Dell has bounced back and is once again making top notch, solid, high performaing workstations. If you’re a serious Apple editor get a new Mac Pro. They are sleek, sexy and incredibly powerful. If you plan on editing with FCPX, you will find that it is optimized for the new Mac Pro and delivers pefromance that is nothing short of amazing. Adobe Premiere Pro CC will take advantage of the dual GPUs as well. Avid has just released a that supports the new Mac Pros as well.We think that the base $2,999 model is a little light in the configuration specs, we recommend the step up $3,999 model because it offers you so much more for performance for your dollar.
You get a hex-core Xeon processor, 16GB or RAM and much better dual GPUs. In fact, we think the $3,999 model is so strong, that most of our customers will not need to spend $5K or up to $10K for the fully suped up models. For $4K the step-up 6-core Mac Pro is a killer NLE workstation. Get a turnkey NLE solution from an expert NLE integrator.
You can 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. 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 650 Watts, 850 Watts is better) and plenty of cooling and airflow inside the box.
Click here for our with links to our most recent machines. Or check out our 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. One of the new 27 inch i7 Quad-cores equipped with Thunderbolt, USB3 and NVIDIA Graphics!. Looking to do your video editing on a laptop?
Our first and top recommendation is the display and NVIDIA GPUs. This is by far and away our favorite. Next up are the new HP zBooks with Thunderbolt.
The new is another solid choice, especially now that it’s available with USB3 and an NVIDIA Quadro GPU. (Unfortunately Lenovo no longer makes any laptops with Thunderbolt). Both of these laptops include NVIDIA mobile GPUs, which is critical for optimal NLE performance. You can also check out Guide.
It’s a little dated, but has some great advice and we still recommend the listed vendors. 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 sneak peak machines based on the new Intel Core i7 Haswell processor with Thunderbolt equipped motherboards running Win7 64-bit are 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, but you must get a Quad core if you plan on editing AVCHD, DSLR or GoPro footage. Without at least 4 physical cores editing these HD formats will not work well at all. 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. 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 & Symphony, Red Giant Magic Bullet, Tiffen DFX, NewBlue FX & Boris FX all take advantage of NVIDIA GPUs.
This is why we do not recommend ATI cards. 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.