$4K for 4K Video Editing PC Build Suggestions

Report · Jun 24, 2013

Hello! I will be editing a small independent feature that will be shot on the RED Epic at 4K 2:1 with 8:1 compression. There will be some chroma keying and a little AE work. My challenge is to build a PC capable of handling this in the latest version of Premiere Pro with a budget of $4K. I don't want to go any higher than $4K, but I want to try and maximize the bang for my buck.

I've been doing a lot of research and looking at other people's builds. I put together a part list in PC Part Picker. It has the CPU, GPU, MOBO, etc. It has an SSD for the Windows boot drive, and an extra HDD for my gaming needs. Is this a good configuration? Anything I should change out for better parts?

The one thing I have not included are the editing HDDs. I have not been able to find any good advice that fits my situation. I've got $1,500 left for the HDDs, and I want to create an internal system that can give me the speeds I need for 4K video. How should I spend that remaining $1,500 in order to get the maximum speed out of an internal HDD setup?

I will have a separate external HDD for backup of the whole project, and I will need around 3-4TB for the project media on the internal HDD.

Here's my current parts list:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/19rR4

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/19rR4/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i7-3930K 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor ($499.99 @ Microcenter)

Motherboard: Asus P9X79 PRO ATX LGA2011 Motherboard ($288.98 @ Amazon)

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 64GB (8 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($509.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($129.99 @ Adorama)

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($85.99 @ NCIX US)

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($659.99 @ Amazon)

Power Supply: Corsair 860W 80 PLUS Platinum Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($175.50 @ Newegg)

Optical Drive: Asus BW-14D1XT Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($84.99 @ NCIX US)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($87.98 @ Outlet PC)

Total: $2523.40

(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

I want to buy the parts around Nov. to Dec. in order to take advantage of sales and price drops around that time period. I'm not worrying about case and cooling yet, because I might have that covered if all the components fit. I already have other accesories like the monitor, keyboard, and mouse.

Any advice would be much appreciated!

Report · Jun 24, 2013

Rumor has it ... Check your PM.

For the rest, it looks good. Remember a good CPU cooler.

Report · Jun 24, 2013

Case idea http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119225

Report · Jun 24, 2013

The list looks good so far other than the Media drive. I would suggest you get the 960GB of this series:

http://www.crucial.com/store/ProductMarketing_m500.aspx http://www.crucial.com/store/ssd.aspx

Eric

ADK

Report · Jun 26, 2013

If anyone is in a similar situation and wants to know what I'm currently going with. Here is my new part list:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1a2J2

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1a2J2/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i7-3930K 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor ($499.99 @ Microcenter)

Motherboard: Asus P9X79 PRO ATX LGA2011 Motherboard ($288.98 @ Amazon)

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 64GB (8 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($509.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($129.99 @ Adorama)

Storage: Seagate Constellation ES.3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($114.03 @ Amazon)

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($85.99 @ NCIX US)

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($659.99 @ Amazon)

Power Supply: SeaSonic Platinum 1000W 80 PLUS Platinum Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($220.98 @ SuperBiiz)

Optical Drive: Asus BW-14D1XT Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($84.99 @ NCIX US)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($88.98 @ Outlet PC)

Other: areca ARC-1882LP PCI-Express 2.0 x8 Low Profile SATA / SAS 8 Ports 6Gb/s SAS/SATA RAID Adapters ($690.00)

Other: Areca ARC6120BA-T121 BBU Module ($129.00)

Total: $3959.03

For my HDD solution, I will be using 5X Seagate Constellation ES.3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM in a RAID3 configuration. If the price for parts decreases or I can get some parts on sale, I will use the extra money to purchase more HDDs and throw them into the RAID until I hit the eight limit. I might need a new case, since the one I have is at its limit with this configuration. I don't mind spending a little over the 4K limit for a good case.

Report · Jun 26, 2013

Nice build!

You will need a good cpu cooler as RED is really taxing on the cpu cores! You will definitely want to overclock too - at least a little (4.0 Ghz) if you are opposed to overclocking and a lot (around 4.5 Ghz) if you are more comfortable pushing the envelope.

Regarding your Aceca choice, are you sure you want the 1882LP? (it has one internal 4x SAS connector and 1 external 4x SAS connector) Possibly you would prefer the ARC-1882i-MS variant that has two internal 4x SAS connectors and 4 4x SATA connector fan-out cables (for typical 8 internal drive workstation configurations).

Regards,

Jim

Report · Jun 26, 2013

Correct! Thanks for catching that! That's what I get for just copy and pasting a suggestion into NewEgg. I will be using the ARC-1882i-MS.

I'm still on the fence about how much I will overclock. Probably 4Ghz. It depends on how far I'm willing to go for a cooling solution.

I guess I'm cheating a little since the $4K does not include the case or cooling. Oh, well! Close enough for me.

Report · Jun 26, 2013

You will want an excellent CPU cooler for RED irregardless of how high you choose to clock. PPro will be using all cores + all hyperthreads together with does heat things up. Additionally, the more effective your cooling solution the slower you can crank your fans which keeps the sound level down. Most of the web sites that discuss high-performance cooling are more gamer focused and they don't really tax all cpu cores like Premiere does.

Jim

Report · Jun 29, 2013

While it would cost you a little more....water cooling is so much quieter than any air cooler you could get...and much more effective. I can run Prime95 at 4.8 Ghz for hours and never have my cores get above 59c. It idles at 31c. You can't even tell it's on when you are in the same room its so quiet. Link to latest pictures:

http://www.overclock.net/t/1266202/build-log-the-big-budget-boomer-box-aka-the-bbbb/3380_20#post_202...

Report · Jul 05, 2013

hello, i just created a 4k editing rig thread a minute ago and would like to keep track of this one,

especially because of the water cooling of cpachris (wow...pics at overclock)

do you mind me asking how much water cooling like that costs?

and how difficult is it to install and/or have it professionally done?

i like the specs on the the machine specs @Michael...

thanks for letting me listen in...cheers, j

Report · Jul 07, 2013

Thanks tfi! Water cooling is much like other areas of building a computer....you can spend as much, or as little, as you want to. There are some closed loop systems that come with pump, radiator, tubing and waterblock that are pretty darn cheap. Or you can go all out like I have and build a custom loop for thousands of dollars. It's really not difficult at all...but you have to be careful and meticulous when tightening up the connections that hold your tubing or fittings. The last thing you would want is a leak while your system is up and running. I always fill and test my loop for leaks while the power to the system is completely unplugged.

Since a lof folks over in this forum like/use the Areca RAID cards, the link below shows how I fit a generic waterblock on my Areca 1882-IX card so that I could get rid of the horrible little fan that it comes with. Mine is now watercooled, temps are good, and the card is silent.

http://www.overclock.net/t/1266202/build-log-the-big-budget-boomer-box-aka-the-bbbb/3220_20#post_199...

Report · Jul 07, 2013

hello,

@ cpachris: can you post back what gpu you're using and/or what pages it's at at overclock...

i love the idea of a chill machine that is silent so i'd like to start reading up on watercooling...

cheers, j

Report · Jul 07, 2013

tfi,

I'm using two EVGA GTX 690's....so it has 4 GPU's working in SLI. I decided to go with two 690's because I knew I wanted as many GPU's as possible at 16x speeds, but still wanted to be able to use a RAID card and possbily a sound card at some point. The 690's just made sense for me. If I was not going to need a slot for a raid card, I would have gone with 4 680's (or Titan's at this point...but they were not out when I bought these).

Link to cards on air coolers: http://www.overclock.net/t/1266202/build-log-the-big-budget-boomer-box-aka-the-bbbb/1000_20#post_178...

A two minute video installing the waterblocks on the graphics cards: http://www.overclock.net/t/1266202/build-log-the-big-budget-boomer-box-aka-the-bbbb/2720_20#post_188...

Pictures of motherboard with graphics cards and waterblocks: http://www.overclock.net/t/1266202/build-log-the-big-budget-boomer-box-aka-the-bbbb/2740_20#post_188...

Report · Jul 07, 2013

hello, @ cpachris: yeahboy! and i just found the table of contents for your bbbb on page 1 (should've looked there first, huh)

thanks for providing the info

the build is truly amazing like everyone states at the overclock forum...it's like the ninth wonder of the world

i'm really liking the motherboard, too...

1.) may be a dumb question but do you trust the onboard raid controller / are you using it as a raid controller?

i see myself getting the mb and using all the sata connectors and delaying getting the raid controller until the money well fills back up...

cheers, j

Report · Jul 07, 2013

I need to update that table of contents. It's pretty out of date at this point and doesn't contain any of my updates over the last couple of months. But thank you for the kind comments! I'm almost done with the build....just a few more nits to fix. I've got a stable overclock at 4.9Ghz now...not sure I'll be able to reach 5.0....but I'm going to give it a try.

The LSI chip that is built into the motherboard is more than adequate for any non-parity RAID. I'm using my Areca 1882-IX-16 for my main RAID5 storage array with 10 SSD's. I'm using the built-in LSI 2308 chip on the motherboard to control a 4 SSD RAID0 array that will be primarily for scratch drives and exports. The LSI chip doesn't have near as many options as the Areca card does....but should be more htan adequate for RAID 0, 1 and 10 array's with up to 8 disks.

Report · Aug 26, 2013

you might want to think about the new Thunderbolt 2 support.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/7049/intel-thunderbolt-2-everything-you-need-to-know

Asus just anounced the first motherboard to support Thunderbolt 2,

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/haswell-thunderbolt-2-asus-z87-deluxe-quad-motherboard,23937.html

only 32gb of ram

i'm sure other will follow that support 64gb of ram may be even 128GB by November.

I'm in a similar situation but would like to biuld one earlier than November.

Report · Nov 16, 2013

I'm working on a build and have come to much the same collection of parts.

I see you specify Windows 8. Keep in mind there are several Adobe applications that don't run on it. For example, Camera Raw. Here's a link to the compatibility page: http://www.adobe.com/support/OScompatibility.html

What made you choose a dedicated RAID controller over a software/OS based solution? What RAID level are/will you use?

Keep us posted on how your build turned out. I'm just about to order parts.

Good luck and warmest regards,

Rob:-]

Report · Nov 18, 2013

Keep in mind 8.1 changes things and Adobe does not update these quickly.

Eric

ADK

Report · Nov 21, 2013

Thanks for all the responses and feedback! Unfortunately, I won't be actually building the computer until Feb., but I will be purchasing the parts this month and next. I'll keep this thread updated with the final purchase list and then let people know how the build goes once that happens.

To address a few questions:

I am really interested in thunderbolt, but going down to z87 isn't acceptable. I have seen some talk about thunderbolt pci expansion cards, and I'm guessing they will start appearing as thunderbolt catches on with everyone.

I'll have to look more into the Windows 8 compatibility situation. Many of the programs listed as incompatible are not ones that will be necessary for my project. I'll keep an eye on it, though. The OS will be the last thing I buy.

As for a RAID, I will be using RAID3 with up to 8 HDDs. I'll be doing a lot of compositing and layering, so I need as much speed as I can squeeze out of my HDDs. Software RAID would be too slow and take processing power away from the CPU, which will already be at %100 usage with RED footage.

And just to round things out. Here is an updated list of my parts based on all the research I have been doing over the past couple of months:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/25pDW

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/25pDW/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i7-4930K 3.4GHz 6-Core Processor ($576.98 @ SuperBiiz)

CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 SE2011 CPU Cooler ($74.99 @ Mwave)

Thermal Compound: Prolimatech PK-1 5g Thermal Paste ($8.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Motherboard: Asus X79 DELUXE ATX LGA2011 Motherboard ($345.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 64GB (8 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($599.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($212.99 @ Amazon)

Storage: Seagate Constellation ES.3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($99.94 @ SuperBiiz)

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($82.99 @ NCIX US)

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card ($509.99 @ NCIX US)

Case: Cooler Master Storm Stryker (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($139.99 @ Microcenter)

Case Fan: Cooler Master R4-L2R-20AC-GP 69.0 CFM 120mm Fan ($9.99)

Power Supply: LEPA G Series 1600W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($294.98 @ SuperBiiz)

Optical Drive: Asus BW-14D1XT Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($94.98 @ Newegg)

Other: areca ARC-1882I-MS PCI-Express 2.0 x8 Low Profile SATA / SAS RAID Controller Card ($640.00)

Total: $4402.36

Report · Nov 21, 2013

I suggest getting a board that can handle Xeon V2 chips such as the Asus WS boards or Asrock Extreme 9. Red performances far better on the 12 Core 2697 V2 than a 4930K at 4.5GHz. At some point you may want to make that change and it will be far easier to upgrade with the correct board.

Eric
ADK

Report · Nov 21, 2013

I'm not too worried about upgrading. By the time I can, we will be in x99 and beyond, and I would upgrade to those. No matter what I do at this point, I will be buying a new mobo as part of my future upgrade. Since that is the case, I'm more interested in the x79 Deluxe that's newer and specifically built for Ivy-e. Unless there is something beyond upgrade headroom that I am missing about those other boards.

Report · Nov 21, 2013

Actually this board is newer and has more PCI-E slot's channels. The Asrock Extreme 9 is the best board from Asrock at this point for the price. The Bios updates set the Ivy-E compatibility. Not the board physical manufacturing since the chipset didnt change.

https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/P9X79E_WS/

Eric

ADK

Report · Nov 22, 2013

Just to follow up on this. I did a little more research, and according to ASUS themselves, the X79 Deluxe is compatible with the Xeon v2 CPUs.

http://support.asus.com/cpusupport/list.aspx?SLanguage=en&p=1&s=42&m=X79-DELUXE&os=&hashedid=RnNg8sy...

So then, my question becomes: Is it worth the extra $150 for the "workstation" designation? Does it have any advantages over the Deluxe board other than more PCIe lanes?

Report · Nov 22, 2013

The E-WS has more 6Gbs ports and a better warranty than the Deluxe unless Asus changed the warranty on the WS boards. Asus offers advance replacement on their WS boards.

Eric

ADK

Report · Sep 22, 2020

The HDDs (or M.2 SSDs you need) are really the key ... everything always gets bottlenecked getting the frames off the storage media ... I just went through this nightmare trying to figure out the "perfect" editing rig ... spicifically for premiere pro ... and fortunately (with blood, sweat and spreadsheets) I cracked the code: https://cineclast.com/2020/09/15/the-best-pc-for-editing-video-on-premiere-pro-period-and-under-2000...

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$4K for 4K Video Editing PC Build Suggestions