Budget Build for Adobe CS6

[CJ230K]

Hello Everyone!

This is my first post here, but I've been lurking for a while. I'm needing some help/feedback on the build I've put together. Please be gentle as I'm pretty much a n00b at this, and this is my first custom build. I'm on a budget of $1,000 or less if I can help it. I have a monitor (will eventually go dual monitors if I really get into video editing), keyboard, mouse, etc. I'm not worried about over clocking unless absolutely necessary (in that case I'll ask my bro Google to help me).

I'm mainly interested in running Adobe CS6 (Premier Pro, After Effects mainly) to mess around with video editing, and below is what I've come up with. I'm not worried about the prices quoted below, as I've found some better deals on Amazon/MicroCenter, so this is more a list for the components, and less about the price.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/ca/p/nQhM
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/ca/p/nQhM/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/ca/p/nQhM/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($195.90 @ Amazon Canada)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($119.99 @ Canada Computers)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($34.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($34.99 @ NCIX)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($159.79 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Crucial M4 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($196.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 570 1.25GB Video Card ($179.99 @ NCIX)
Case: Antec Three Hundred Two ATX Mid Tower Case ($44.99 @ Memory Express)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 600W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($49.99 @ Memory Express)
Total: $1017.62
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-23 15:22 EST-0500)

I'm not certain if I would need 256GB for the SSD, or if 128GB would be sufficient. I'd plan to boot Win 7, and maybe store Adobe CS6 there. Not sure what other programs I'd use frequently enough to merit storing there.

Additionally, I'm not sure between G.Skill or Corsair Memory (not sure if it really matters).

I'd appreciate any help/advise you all could give. Thanks in advance!

 

[butremor]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($289.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock H77 Pro4/MVP ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($87.55 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($35.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($87.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 830 Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($104.99 @ Adorama)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 570 1.25GB Video Card ($199.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Antec One ATX Mid Tower Case ($54.03 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($53.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-222BB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($25.28 @ CompUSA)
Total: $939.80
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-23 18:09 EST-0500)

Oh snap just noticed you have more memory.
But okay feel free to follow my link ^ , edit it and see for yourself how's it gonna look.

 

[nigalor]

I am essentially looking for a similar build with a few differences.

16 gb RAM
Dual HDMI Video Card

Memory Card Reader

2 TB HDD

Best cooling case possible, size doesn't matter.

What changes need to be made?

 

[CJ230K]

Thanks Butremor!

Here is what I ended up with, though I still don't know how I feel about the Zotac vs. EVGA GTX 570. Is there really a difference besides the name on the sticker on the GPU? Surely the difference in performance from one vendor to the other would be negligible, would it?? From what I've read through my Google searches, it seems like the only issue may be the level of customer service between EVGA and Zotac if I ever did have to have a warranty claim? I noticed on Zotacs website, they have a limited life time warranty upgrade so long as I register within 30 days of purchase. I'm just not quite 100% convinced on the Zotac Brand.

Additionally, MicroCenter was sold out of 256GB Crucial M4 and Samsung 830, so the guy that helped me talked me into the 840. Not sure how I feel about this either, as it's still so new, hard to tell if it will be as reliable as the M4 and 830.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($209.99 @ Amazon Canada)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($109.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($24.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($24.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($149.99 @ NCIX)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($184.35 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 570 1.25GB Video Card ($249.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Case: Antec Three Hundred Two ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 600W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($60.99 @ Computer Valley)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($69.98 @ NCIX)
Total: $1135.25
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-27 01:36 EST-0500)

One gripe I did have about this PCPartPicker, is the prices... most seem to be in Canadian $$. I was able to get the i5 for $169.99, and they had a special going on where you got an additional $40 off if you bought a compatible MoBo. So I basically got the ASRock Z77 and i5 for $265, which is a steal if you ask me!

Thanks again for your help!

 

[excella1221]

That's cause you're using the CA site. 😛

Also, get low profile RAM and 2 DIMMs. You'll want the extra room.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231609&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

840 has received mostly mixed reviews, I won't personally risk it. Ask the store guy if they have a Vertex 4.

There's little point in getting a GTX570 now, both the Radeon 7870 and the GTX660 outperform it at the same price(if not cheaper) - both are also newer generation and consume relatively less power.

Corsair CX is fairly mediocre, you're better off getting an XFX 550w.

You also don't need a Caviar Black nor a 7200RPM HDD anymore since you have quite a large SSD. The HDD will only serve as a storage drive now and RPM won't matter. All this of course can be disregarded if you are after tha Caviar Black's 5-year warranty.

 

[CJ230K]

lol I guess I didn't notice the .ca. I retract my gripe and will shame myself for 5 full minutes.

As for the low profile RAM, I've already ordered (and it's been shipped) the 4 DIMM non low profile. I think I'll have plenty of room, as I've already begun to put this thing together. The Case is HUGE for a mid tower.

I still haven't opened the 840 just yet, due to my concerns of long term reliability. I did have a thought, and would like to know your (or anyone else out there's) opinion. If I switched the SSD to 128GB (Crucial M4 was in stock, as was I believe the Samsung 830), do you think I'd have enough room to keep Win7, Adobe CS6, and then a little extra room for future apps I may throw on there? I don't know how much space either of those take up, so I may be going over kill on the SSD size. I'm basically getting the SSD for my boot drive for the added speed, efficiency.

My head is spinning with regards to the GPU. I had done a ton of research and it sounded like the best bang for the buck GPU was still the gtx 570 because it's on a list of Adobe Certified GPUs. My main concern here was the bus width. The 570 is 320 bit, where the 660 is only 192 bit. I don't know what the real world performance difference would be, and I don't know that I'd notice any difference personally. The other difference is the total RAM 2GB vs 1.25GB, so maybe this would make up for less bus width? The last thing is the warranty. The Zotac has a limited life time warranty as long as I register within 30 days, the 660 only has a 3 year warranty. GAAAAHHHH I dunno what to do here.

I'm sold on the Caviar Black due partially to the warranty, and the other part due to Adobe's site recommending 7,200 RPM drives for source material (I'll be doing video editing as a hobby).

Thanks a ton for your added input. Hopefully I hear back regarding my follow up issues!

 

[excella1221]

I actually meant "room" by two things - space and upgrade, though you probably won't need more than 16gb of RAM. :lol:
Low Profile, I recommended, so you wouldn't have a hard time installing a CPU cooler.

128gb should be fine for OS and your favorite apps/programs. It should last for the duration of the system's life unless you put in every game your heart desires. 😛 128gb is actually the general consensus of a sweet spot here as far as capacity goes.

These benchmarks should make things easier for you.

As you can see, the 660 wins on 3 out of the 4 benchmarks. This isn't including other factors such as power consumption and noise, and other uses.

 

[CJ230K]

Thank you again so much! I'm sold on the 660 now! Looks like I've got a couple components to swap out this morning!

 

[CJ230K]

Ok, one more question. I bought Windows 7 64 bit system builder license last year and put it on our current PC which was a pre-built boxed POS from a big box store. Said PC keeps crashing (BSOD's etc) so that's basically why I'm building a whole new system.

Is it possible that I could re-use this same Win 7 for the new build, if I "decommissioned" the old PC (either format it all, and run Linux, or maybe just re-install the original Vista)?

I've heard of some people being able to call Microsoft and requesting that their existing key be "reset" to be used on a new build. Just curious if I should even waste my time, or if I should just shell out the extra $$ for a new license.

 

[excella1221]

I believe your OS was an OEM version, so it's supposedly motherboard-bound. Though I've seen some people claim that they successfully reinstalled the OEM OS on another motherboard.

Most of the time though, you can't.

I suggest you try calling Microsoft first. It won't hurt to try.

 

[CJ230K]

Just an FYI, I tried contacting Microsoft via chat, but the rep said they didn't have the answer. The more I looked around online it just didn't seem like it would work, so I bit the bullet and bought another OEM copy. Should be here today, can't wait to get this thing up and running. Thanks a million for your help excella!

 

[CJ230K]

Best answer selected by CJ230K.

 

[excella1221]

Good luck and happy building!