Please Critique- HD Video Rendering Desktop

[kbailey]

Before I purchase the components for my desktop I would like to get a second opinion. All thoughts and input are welcome. I need to know where I can save money, better alternatives, where I am over compensating, parts not compatible etc.

This desktop will be used mainly used for hd video rendering, autocad and solid works. Budget is under $850 but not including monitors, keyboard and a mouse. I am a little flexible on the budget for a subtantial gain in performance. Here's what I got:

Computer Case- Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower- $70
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811129021

Mobo- GIGABYTE GA-990XA-UD3 AM3+ AMD 990X SATA 6Gb/s- $140
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813128510

Graphics Card- SAPPHIRE 100314-3L Radeon HD 6870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP- $155
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102948

Power Supply- COOLER MASTER Silent Pro M600 RS-600-AMBA-D3 600W ATX12V V2.3- $70
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817171036

CPU- AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb 3.4GHz- $130
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103727

RAM- CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1866 (PC3 15000)- $65
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820233170

HDD (Boot Drive)- Western Digital Caviar Blue WD3200AAKX 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB- 320GB- $42
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822136770

HDD (Storage)- SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB- $60
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822152185

Optical- ASUS 24X DVD Burner- $22
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827135204

Total (before tax)= $840 - $103(MIRs)= $737

Thanks

 

[sadams04]

Good build overall.

HD (Boot Drive) - Scratch the WD Blue. Move the Samsung F3 1TB to this role.

HD (Storage) - Samsung F4 2TB

PSU - Antec, Corsair, XFX or Seasonic...

**********************

If you are interested in an Intel build check out the one below...

CPU: Intel Core i5-2500k - $220

Motherboard: ASUS P8P67 Pro (REV 3.1) - $170

RAM: GSkill 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 1.5v 7-8-7-24 - $55

Graphics Card: XFX HD 6870 - $160 after MIR

Hard Drive: SAMSUNG F3 1TB - $60

Storage Drive: SAMSUNG F4 2TB - $80

Case: Antec 900 - $70 after MIR

Power Supply: CORSAIR Builder Series 600w - $60 after MIR

DVD Burner: Samsung 22X DVD Burner - $23

$898

 

[COLGeek]

What program will you be using for your HD video rendering? While I am an AMD/ATI fan, for some applications Nvidia provides a better rendering solution (for those apps that can use the GPU to off-load processing form the CPU).

Otherwise, your proposed rig is well balanced with no major flaws. You could shave a few bucks off your plan by using a less expensive mobo. Still, you are fine as is with decent future growth potential.

 

[kbailey]

sadams04- Thanks for the different options. I'll look into the different HDDs and PSU. As for the CPU, I really want to build around an AMD processor unless the comparable to its class Intel processor blows it out of the water.

COLGeek- I'll be using Sony Vegas Pro 10 and Action Essentials 2. Any particular GeForce series and number of stream processor cores you recommend?

 

[COLGeek]

Check this link regarding GPU-accelerated AVC rendering:

https://www.custcenter.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/4972/kw/vegas%20pro%2010/session/L3RpbWUvMTMxNDAzMDM0Mi9zaWQvYkp4MjRiQ2s%3D

You want to get as much GPU as you can afford. I would recommend you adjust your build, based on the suggestions given earlier and then look at how much you have left for a GPU, then buy the most you can afford within your budget.

 

[kbailey]

Thanks for the link. Will research right now.

Btw, will a SSD for a boot drive be a substantial difference in performance compared to the HDD I have specified?

 

[COLGeek]

SSD will boot much faster, but will limit both your budget and storage. Remember, video files can get quite large!

 

[kbailey]

I was considering using the SSD as a boot drive and having a secondary HDD as storage. Does having a HDD dedicated to the OS and programs and having a secondary drive as stroage make a significant difference? I know a SSD will make a difference but what about two bare internal drives in one desktop? I can afford a 64gb SDD but anything bigger than that is too expensive.

I came across EVGA 01G-P3-1372-TR GeForce GTX 460

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130571

for the same price as the grpahics card I originally specified. I'm going to go with it as it is CUDA-enabled as recommended by Sony Vegas Pro 10. Thanks for the find on that article! Luckily I don't have to adjust the build.

Also, is there a performance difference between these two mobos?

Original:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128510&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-RSSDailyDeals-_-na-_-na&AID=10521304&PID=4169961&SID=6vp62ry68a3x

Alternative:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157262

If so I can save $30 and apply it towards a SSD.

 

[COLGeek]

I would go with the Gigabyte board. They make great products and it is a newer tech with greater capabilities than the Asrock. Having 2 HDDs, not in a RAID won't yield any meaningful performance increases. With the applications you are using, I would pass on the SSD.

 

[kbailey]

thanks for all of your help, especially with the find on the graphics card recommendation. I feel more confident about the setup now.

 

[kbailey]

Best answer selected by kbailey.