Which i7 for 3d video editing?

[syotr]

Hello,
I am planning to build a system for editing 3D HD video using Sony Vegas Pro. Which processor would be recommended and why? Thanks

 

[jaguarskx]

Generally speaking the recommended i7 CPU is the i7-2600k. The "k" versions allows for better overclocking than non-"k" versions. You will also need to have a motherboard using the P67 or Z68 chipset to take full advantage of overclocking. It is also recommended you buy a 3rd party CPU heatsink when overclocking.

If you are not going to overclock then the i7-2600 will do for about $10 - $20 less.

Non-"k" Intel CPUs has the Intel HD 2000 graphics core instead of the Intel HD 3000 graphics core. Not a big deal for most people since they would add a discreet graphics card anyway. Additionally, non-"k" CPUs have added securities features to protect certain data on the hard drive and an in RAM from being stolen, however, this feature is more for business and IT departments than it is for the average person.

 

[IntelEnthusiast]

With the exception of the Intel® Core™ i7-980X and i7-990X Extreme Editions if I were focusing on a processor for 3D HD video I would look at the Intel Core i7-2600K as a reasonable processor. If your budget is unlimited then the Intel Core i7-980X or i7-990X Extreme Editions with their 6 core/12 threads for most video editing software are the best processors but after that I would go with the Intel Core i7-2600K.

Christian Wood
Intel Enthusiast Team

 

[edgaraslt]

I haven't used that software ,and I don't know how it works. But wouldn't PII X6 be better?

 

[mdd1963]

Most folks would be hard pressed these days to find a single game or application that would be faster on an X4 or X6 over a 2500k/2600k, even when the X4 is OC'd to near 4 GHz...

Loading down/multitasking a system with simultaneous gaming, 4 instances of Prime95 or SuperPi, Folding, encoding, burning, ripping, etc., might tilt the advantage to the X6 and possibly the even the forthcoming FX 81xx series of cpus....

 

[Wisecracker]

I haven't used that software ,and I don't know how it works. But wouldn't PII X6 be better?

Most folks would be hard pressed these days to find a single game or application that would be faster on an X4 or X6 over a 2500k/2600k, even when the X4 is OC'd to near 4 GHz...

Loading down/multitasking a system with simultaneous gaming, 4 instances of Prime95 or SuperPi, Folding, encoding, burning, ripping, etc., might tilt the advantage to the X6 and possibly the even the forthcoming FX 81xx series of cpus....

Here's the deal ... brain power beats cpu power.

In video editing in Vegas any modern CPU with good RAMs and disk I/O will work dandy. The motion graphics are integrated, and quite good, though without all the bells and whistles of Premiere/After Effects. What is also 'neat' about Vegas is that timeline media updates are automatic from outside software without rendering or refreshing. IIRC, Vegas will even 'adjust' stereoscopic 3D for correct alignment.

The key to video conversion, or re-compression, in your work flow is to avoid it whenever possible. If your project input file formats, setup, bit rate and resolution are consistent through output it does not have to be 'converted' and the processor only works on your titles, effects and transitions, greatly improving the speed of the 'process'.

The best thing for the OP to do is compare his proposed "3D HD video" to the options available in the Vegas 'smart render technology' ...

Smart render technology provides faster encoding for cuts-only projects or projects with minimal changes while providing no generation loss because video frames pass through the engine unaltered. When you render video to any of the following formats, unedited video frames are passed through without recompression (smart rendering):

DV AVI, DV MXF, IMX MXF (IMX 24p MXF is not supported for no-recompress rendering), HD MXF, MPEG-2 (for files such as those from HDV and DVD camcorders), and XDCAM EX

So ... you can see where this seriously reduces the need for processing power if you follow the recommended work flow. An AMD x4/x6 will be just dandy, as will an Intel product.

 

[wonder44]

I7 950 extreme 3.00ghz.

 

[techsearcher]

What if you do have to transcode the video? Would you see a major difference between the processors in terms of time to complete the task?

Here's the deal ... brain power beats cpu power.

In video editing in Vegas any modern CPU with good RAMs and disk I/O will work dandy. The motion graphics are integrated, and quite good, though without all the bells and whistles of Premiere/After Effects. What is also 'neat' about Vegas is that timeline media updates are automatic from outside software without rendering or refreshing. IIRC, Vegas will even 'adjust' stereoscopic 3D for correct alignment.

The key to video conversion, or re-compression, in your work flow is to avoid it whenever possible. If your project input file formats, setup, bit rate and resolution are consistent through output it does not have to be 'converted' and the processor only works on your titles, effects and transitions, greatly improving the speed of the 'process'.

The best thing for the OP to do is compare his proposed "3D HD video" to the options available in the Vegas 'smart render technology' ...

Smart render technology provides faster encoding for cuts-only projects or projects with minimal changes while providing no generation loss because video frames pass through the engine unaltered. When you render video to any of the following formats, unedited video frames are passed through without recompression (smart rendering):

DV AVI, DV MXF, IMX MXF (IMX 24p MXF is not supported for no-recompress rendering), HD MXF, MPEG-2 (for files such as those from HDV and DVD camcorders), and XDCAM EX

So ... you can see where this seriously reduces the need for processing power if you follow the recommended work flow. An AMD x4/x6 will be just dandy, as will an Intel product.

 

[oby20]

video editing needs more core, more memory.
clockspeed is not that important that is why overclocking is not needed in video editing.
you can go for any i7 processor, just support it with a huge memory.

 

[syotr]

I am leaning toward the i7 2600k. I want to have a system that has room to grow and be somewhat future-proof. Do I need to buy all of the RAM at once or can I buy 8GB now and add another 8 later if needed?
I am not planning to overclock initially but want to have that option later. I will be using only one video card. I am thinking the GTX 570. I will be using a single 3d capable monitor with 1920 x 1080 resolution and Nvidia glasses. I expect to get one 10,000 rpm HDD for OS and programs and one or two large 7200 rpm drives for temp files and data storage. I won't be using SDD or RAID to begin with.
Any recommendations for case and PSU? I am somewhat limited for space.