What's neccessary for Video Editing

TravisT

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Aug 19, 2009
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I am planning to build a new workstation to get into video editing. I've based much of my hardware decisions based off the article below. The one problem I have is spending more on a video card than my processor/mobo combined. Is this really necessary? I looked at the resolutions supported on this card and they are way higher than any monitor I will probably ever connect to it. Any suggestions as to what I should look for to enable editing of AVCHD video?

http://www.videoguys.com/Guide/E/Videoguys+DIY7+Intel+Core+i7+with+Vista+64/0xe07f65920351fbf3ed8f9892355dfda0.aspx
 
BTW, I'm not a gamer at all, so a "gaming" card really unimportant to me unless it is just overkill to go with a workstation class card. Maybe just a less expensive workstation card would be more suitable. Don't want to skimp, but don't want to waste money on something unnecessary. Thanks for any help!
 
Is this for work or a hobby?
For work it would be false economy not to get a full blown workstation class card: The drivers are better suited to the task and the cards have far superior customer support, all of which should far outweigh the initial cost penalty.
For a hobby machine then, as the article says, the GTX260/275/280 or HD4870/4890 (in both cases in ascending performance and price) would be fine.
One other point I feel worth mentioning: Noise, workstation cards tend to be quiet, the gaming cards can be quite noisy under load, even if you do not live in the US get onto the Newegg site and read the customer reviews there so you can see the ones to avoid.
 
as said the workstation cards are worth it for workstations, but not for a hobby. Also you don't have to get that specific card you can get a low end workstation card. That build is an excellent build for editing but is overkill for most users.