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1. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Bill Hunt Sep 4, 2009 4:21 PM (in response to Luke Flegg)The MODs will probably move this post to the Equipment/Hardware sub-forum, so do not be surprised if it seems to disappear from here. It will be HERE.
Now, Harm Millaard has three very good articles on the main gear, including case recs., another on HDD's and what you will benefit from the most, and a thrid on setting up a 64-bit OS for NLE work. I think that this ARTICLE still links to Harm's posts. They make great reading.
Good luck,
Hunt
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2. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Luke Flegg Sep 4, 2009 4:27 PM (in response to Bill Hunt)Sorry for posting in the wrong place in my first time!
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3. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Harm Millaard Sep 4, 2009 4:53 PM (in response to Luke Flegg)This will be moved to the hardware forum, where it belongs (you should have posted it there in the first place),
ASUS P6T Deluxe V2
Do you need the IDE connector or would a SAS connector make more sense? In the latter case the WS may be a better choice.
6GB Corsair Dominator TR3X6G1600C8D
I would definitely opt for 12 GB, but not for DDR3-1600 memory. If you want to overclock up to 3.6 GHz, DDR-1333 is more than enough. You can use DDR3-1600 if you use a lower multiplier for the CPU. Otherwise it would require heavy overclocking to 4.0 GHz to use that memory speed or you lose the advantage of speed stepping to save on your energy bill.
Creative X-Fi Xtreme Gamer
You are right, I'm not a fan of Creative. Bloated software, often causing problems while the mobo has perfectly decent sound on-board. Save your money.
(System Drive)
SSD currently is IMO too expensive. I would prefer a Velociraptor currently. Once both the TRIM function has been shown to work and the prices have come down significantly, they are really worth investigating, but at this moment, no.
Should I be looking at SSDs for my video drive too?
If you can afford an OCZ Z-drive... (500 GB for around euros 2300)
I'm very keen to have 3 or preferably 4 logical drives.
Partitioning is a bad idea. Get four physical drives.
Enermax Revolution 85+ 1,050w
This may be more than you need. Probably you can easily get by with 650-750 W . Check the link I gave in the PC Buying Guide about PSU's
Cases: Just look at some reviews on the internet. This is very personal. My favorite is Lian-Li, but they are in another price league as well. CoolerMaster HAF 922 seems affordable and may be an alternative, but I admit I did not search for the specs on your intended case.
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4. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Bill Hunt Sep 4, 2009 5:12 PM (in response to Luke Flegg)Luke,
Don't worry. The Hardware sub-forum is relatively new. It was once around, but then there were some recent changes. I just wanted to point out that if you suddenly could not find it, not to worry, as it was most likely moved to the right spot. Hey, we have to give those MOD's something to do besides drink all the Rolling Rock (US beer of questionable repute - I perfer a Thomas Hardy's Ale, or a Samuel Smith's Taddy Porter) and eat all the yoodles in the Lounge.
I see that Harm is on the case, so you WILL get your answers. Maybe he can verify that my links still work, as I did not test them individually.
Good luck,
Hunt
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5. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Harm Millaard Sep 4, 2009 5:20 PM (in response to Bill Hunt)They do Bill, but you arrive somewhere in the middle of the thread, not at the top, where it all starts.
This is the link I usually point to: How to get the best from a PC? Some guides...
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6. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Luke Flegg Sep 4, 2009 5:33 PM (in response to Harm Millaard)Thanks guys
Yes.. I'm going to buy the system drive last, if I bargain hunt these items over the coming days/weeks, and see if anything develops in the SSD world. Some people seem to swear by them for system drives because it benefits you 100% of the time.
I'm convinced on the PSU.
I was inticed by either
-Corsair HX850W (£127)
-Be Quiet! Dark Power Pro 650W (£104)
Brilliant tip on the mobo - I'm sure you're right. SAS makes IDE redundant no? It's all modern optical drives (which I forgot) will use?...
I guess they're pretty generic. I imagine I'll get a DVD-RW as I already have an ext BD burner..
Ah I wasn't suggesting partitioning, I am as against it as you, Harm! I mean logical as in including the RAID I would want as many as 3 other physical drives (including system drive) or would having a total of 5 disks be impossible/stupid?
RAID controllers-
How shall I RAID with this setup? Will the mobo do a good job?
I really want those F1s slicing through HD...
I will forget the sound card if you don't think I'll need it for Audition / the occasional game (shhh)
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7. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Bill Hunt Sep 4, 2009 5:37 PM (in response to Harm Millaard)Harm,
Thanks for that. I also knew that you had a combined link, but could not find it for this post. Now, I have that one bookmarked for easy retreival.
Appreciated,
Hunt
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8. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Harm Millaard Sep 4, 2009 5:48 PM (in response to Luke Flegg)Luke,
If you go for the WS mobo, you will have two options for Raid. Either use the Marvell chip or the on-board Intel chip. I personally have the BR burners on the SATA connectors and 2 SATA disks in raid0 on the SAS connectors.
If you really want to
slicing through HD...
you may need to look at more disks and a dedicated controller. With a 2 disk F1 raid0 array on the Marvell you are looking at around 170 MB/s read transfer, on a dedicated controller with 12 disks in raid30 I achieve slightly more than 850 MB/s average read. For comparison, a single F1 achieves around 100 MB/s.
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9. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Luke Flegg Sep 5, 2009 3:15 PM (in response to Harm Millaard)So what do you suggest for RAID considering my budget/needs and that I don't care too much about redundancy (considering I copy source footage from ext hdd)? [And how do Marvel and Intel RAID compare?]
I think I'm going with you on everything, with the possible exception of the SSD for system disk.. I'm really hoping that if there isn't something sensible on the shelf now, it'll come along in a week or two. I bet support is only going to imrpove for SSD in the near future.
I so apreciate your patience, but if you can find a moment to give me your thoughts on those 2 cases, it would be so immensely useful as I am such a n00b with cases..
Thanks!
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10. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Harm Millaard Sep 6, 2009 1:10 AM (in response to Luke Flegg)Luke,
I took the time to look at the Aerocool case and it is great. I know that case under another name here, but it is absolutely the same. The huge side fan makes it a very good mid tower with very good cooling. I have been trying to find that side fan, so I can mod the side panel of my Lian Li case for improved air flow and have not been succesful yet. Maybe I can just order the side panel from this Aerocool case and take the fan for installation on my case. Anyway, this is a very good case.
One thing to keep in mind, due to the front LCD panel with all its wires, there is probably no more room for a 120 mm Scythe S-Flex fan in front of the 3.5" bays, so it is advisable to mount your disks as far apart as possible, to maximize the airflow from the side panel fan over your disks.
I don't have data to compare the efficiency of the Intel or Marvell raids. On my own system, which is pretty loaded, I have all 6 SATA connectors in use, 3 HDD's, 2 BR burners and one connector to the top eSATA port, so I did not have much choice than to use the Marvell SAS ports.
I suggest you use the following disk setup:
C: OS & Programs, possibly SSD. Look here for an interesting article on current SSD technology: http://www.anandtech.com/storage/showdoc.aspx?i=3631
D: Media and scratch, 2 x F1 in Raid0
E: Projects and exports, 1 x F1
If you go for 12 GB RAM, you need not worry too much about the pagefile. I would set it to a fixed size of 8 GB on E:.
Maybe this drive cage is attractive if you decide to go with SSD: http://www.webconnexxion.com/raid/product_info.php?cPath=63&products_id=652&osCsid=7599daf db7d7f41e12563db5736adee0
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11. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Luke Flegg Sep 7, 2009 11:23 AM (in response to Luke Flegg)I was emailed by Harm with some fantastic information.. I hope he doesn't mind me posting it... (While I'm not sure why he'd email instead of post in forum, I can't see why it'd be a problem to share it here)
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Luke,
I took the time to look at the Aerocool case and it is great. I know that case under another name here, but it is absolutely the same. The huge side fan makes it a very good mid tower with very good cooling. I have been trying to find that side fan, so I can mod the side panel of my Lian Li case for improved air flow and have not been succesful yet. Maybe I can just order the side panel from this Aerocool case and take the fan for installation on my case. *Anyway, this is a very good case.*
One thing to keep in mind, due to the front LCD panel with all its wires, there is probably no more room for a 120 mm Scythe S-Flex fan in front of the 3.5" bays, so it is advisable to mount your disks as far apart as possible, to maximize the airflow from the side panel fan over your disks.
I don't have data to compare the efficiency of the Intel or Marvell raids. On my own system, which is pretty loaded, I have all 6 SATA connectors in use, 3 HDD's, 2 BR burners and one connector to the top eSATA port, so I did not have much choice than to use the Marvell SAS ports.
I suggest you use the following disk setup:
C: OS & Programs, possibly SSD. Look here for an interesting article on current SSD technology: http://www.anandtech.com/storage/showdoc.aspx?i=3631
D: Media and scratch, 2 x F1 in Raid0
E: Projects and exports, 1 x F1
If you go for 12 GB RAM, you need not worry too much about the pagefile. I would set it to a fixed size of 8 GB on E:.
Maybe this drive cage is attractive if you decide to go with SSD: http://www.webconnexxion.com/raid/product_info.php?cPath=63&products_id=652&osCsid=7599daf db7d7f41e12563db5736adee0
Hope this helps. http://www.millcon.nl/Harm/icons/beerchug.gif -
12. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Harm Millaard Sep 7, 2009 11:39 AM (in response to Luke Flegg)Luke, that is strange, since I posted this in post #10 and I can easily read it and did not send it to you in a PM.
It must be some strange anomaly in the forum software, that is giving us the jives.
PS. Don't forget the points please!
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13. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Luke Flegg Sep 7, 2009 11:59 AM (in response to Luke Flegg)My only remaning nagging question is SATA vs SAS:
From Harm's posts, it seems I have the option to run my hard drives on either SATA or SAS, but I know nothing about SAS.
If I am paying more for the WS version of the P6T just to have SAS, I need to know it'll be compatible with my SpinPoints and (probable) SSD system drive, and actually offer a performance boost.
Is it a worthy upgrade?
Then if anyone should have experience of how Mervell and Intel RAID0 compare that'd be very handy! Is it the P6T that has both the controllers onboard? Howcome it has 2 to choose from?..
Also, taking Harm's advice, I'm thinking I'll not get a soundcard, though I'd love anyone's opinions on this in an edit suite!
And I'll just go for the Palit video card if it's only really going to make a difference in games...(?)
So nearly there!
Cheers!
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14. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Harm Millaard Sep 7, 2009 12:32 PM (in response to Luke Flegg)For SATA disks there is no difference between SATA or SAS connectors, apart from the fact that the SAS connector includes the power connector as well. I don't think there is any discernable performance difference between the two on board raid controllers. SAS connectors have been designed with swappable bays in mind, for the rest, they are just like SATA.
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15. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Luke Flegg Sep 7, 2009 12:48 PM (in response to Harm Millaard)I see it too now! I think I'm going mad..
(Or Jive is haunted...)
What software/realtime hardware do you edit with Harm? (Is video production your line of work? or computing..?) I know enough about you to know you aren't friends with Matrox..
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16. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Harm Millaard Sep 7, 2009 1:31 PM (in response to Luke Flegg)I'm a management consultant, specialized in HR. Computers/Video are a hobby, although I am currently busy making a promotional video for (one of) the largest crude oil terminal in the world (throughput of 250+ million barrels per year).
This is my setup:
Apart from CS4 MC, I use a couple of plug-ins, Magic Bullet Looks, Minnetonka Surcode, Color Finesse, Pixelan SpiceMaster, Freedom FX, and the like.
Cameras that I most frequently use are PD150/170 for SD, Z1 for HDV, EX1 or EX3 for XDCAM and occasionally a PDW510
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17. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
Luke Flegg Sep 12, 2009 11:49 AM (in response to Harm Millaard)I just can't work out which mobo to get, or which system SSD...
Do I need SAS? probably not.. so is there much point getting a board above the P6T SE?...
I'm thinking the Intel X25-M.. I don't need more than ~60GB though.. anything more recent that's exciting?
: )
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18. Re: Core i7 suite for CS4 please! Done some research...
JSS1138 Sep 12, 2009 1:42 PM (in response to Luke Flegg)Both choices should do fine. (I use the SE myself.)



