$2500 post production/video editing PC

[EMC Productions]

Hi everyone, I have finally looked into building a PC. I am handling high resolution video and possibly 4k video. I am very new to the PC building world haha and I was wondering if you guys could help give me parts to build a solid and fast PC for my video editing. I don't really know about parts and video cards and all that. My budget is $2500, thanks.

 

[nsafreak]

Well, you've given us some of the information we need but we'll need a bit more to put together a complete build for you. If you could answer the questions in this post we should be able to start making recommendations. One question I'll ask that's not in that post is what will you be using to do the video editing? Not all editing solutions take full advantage of a GPU and some like Adobe Premier only use it for certain effects and transitions. So we may not need to use a high end GPU unless you're also doing things that would benefit from it.

 

[EMC Productions]

Hi thank you for replying and yes I will be using premiere pro.

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.
Post Production, video editing

2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread
$2500

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.
USA

4. IF you're buying parts OUTSIDE the US, please post a link to the vendor you'll be buying from.
We can't be expected to scour the internet on your behalf, chasing down deals in your specific country... Again, help us, help YOU.

5. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc.
I don't really care, preferably nvidia

6. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
I do not have any

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
Don't know what overclocking is

8. What resolution, not monitor size, will you be using?
27-30 inch monitor

9. WHEN do you plan to build it?
Note that it is usually not cost or time effective to choose your build more than a month before you actually plan to be using it.
in a couple of weeks

10. Do you need to purchase any software to go with the system, such as Windows or Blu Ray playback software?
Preferably windows 8 or 10

 

[EMC Productions]

Well, you've given us some of the information we need but we'll need a bit more to put together a complete build for you. If you could answer the questions in this post we should be able to start making recommendations. One question I'll ask that's not in that post is what will you be using to do the video editing? Not all editing solutions take full advantage of a GPU and some like Adobe Premier only use it for certain effects and transitions. So we may not need to use a high end GPU unless you're also doing things that would benefit from it.

Hi thanks for replying, I have another message down there just ignore it. Now with the gpu just give me a high end one anyways haha, but could you just sort of give me a list of parts just to see where I'm at sort of?

 

[nsafreak]

Sorry for taking a bit to get back to you, have been busy today. In any case here's a proposed build for you:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($351.98 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock X99 Extreme4 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($174.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 Pro Series 512GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($217.97 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Red 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($149.00 @ B&H)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($317.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 w/Window (Titanium) ATX Mid Tower Case ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($87.95 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Dell U3415W 60Hz 34.0" Monitor ($779.85 @ Amazon)
Total: $2424.58
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-21 00:31 EDT-0400

To briefly summarize why I chose what parts I did:

CPU - Premier will use all of the cores that it can take so having a 6 core system makes sense. This will help keep your render times within reason.

Motherboard - Solid choice with a good feature set

Cooler - Just need one since the 5820K does not come with one, this one shall suffice just fine.

RAM- Premier also loves having RAM and 32 GB isn't terribly expensive

SSD - This helps improve overall performance and helps the system feel more responsive

HDD - 4K video files are obviously going to take up a fair enough space so you'll need someplace to store the finished product once you've done the work needed on the SSD

GPU - While not top of the line (with the budget you have in mind) it should suffice just fine unless you decide to play games in 4K, then we'd have an issue

Case - Really a personal choice but I really like how clean the S5 is especially if you exercise good cable management which really isn't hard with this case

PSU - Solid gold rated PSU that should handle all of the components without an issue

OS - No reason not to go with Windows 10 at this point in time

Monitor - I'm presuming that you don't already have a monitor which is why I included one in this build. It sounds almost like you intend to do this professionally and Dell is close to the gold standard when it comes to monitors being used professionally in video editing. There are some better ones out there but they're way outside of your budget. This monitor, once calibrated, should suit your needs just fine

 

[bononos]

Hi thanks for replying, I have another message down there just ignore it. Now with the gpu just give me a high end one anyways haha, but could you just sort of give me a list of parts just to see where I'm at sort of?

Knowing whether your video application will make full use of the gpu would be helpful. A professional gpu could cost more than your entire pc budget. But AFAIK Premierepro doesn't need a pro card or even a high end gaming card for good performance.

 

[DigDog]

5820k is the right choice.

he doesnt need a overclocking motherboard; the gigabyte is cheaper by 30 bucks and near identical.

he can use the stock cpu cooler since he will not be overclocking.

can't fault the rest of the build, however he could do with a cheaper GPU - it really depends on whether or not the software he is using uses hardware acceleration, in which case he might want to go higher, to a 980.

better to get the R5 without window - it's quieter and cheaper.

 

[Viper GTS]

Knowing whether your video application will make full use of the gpu would be helpful. A professional gpu could cost more than your entire pc budget. But AFAIK Premierepro doesn't need a pro card or even a high end gaming card for good performance.

Premiere can definitely make use of a high end video card, the 980 is a great choice. It may not be necessary depending on the complexity if your effects (and whether the individual effects you are using support GPU acceleration) but as a whole yes Premiere can make use of a 980.

Viper GTS

 

[ronbo613]

You might consider budgeting a couple more hard drives. 5900rpm is OK for backup storage, but 7200rpm is preferable for anything else. I won't say dual monitors is a must, but you'll be miserable without them. Make 'em big.

 

[nsafreak]

You might consider budgeting a couple more hard drives. 5900rpm is OK for backup storage, but 7200rpm is preferable for anything else. I won't say dual monitors is a must, but you'll be miserable without them. Make 'em big.

There is no way he's going to fit dual 4K monitors into this budget.

 

[mnewsham]

There is no way he's going to fit dual 4K monitors into this budget.

The monitor you linked earlier isn't 4k anyway, for that you need to look at the Dell UP3216Q ($1,400)

 

[nsafreak]

The monitor you linked earlier isn't 4k anyway, for that you need to look at the Dell UP3216Q ($1,400)

Ah crap, accidentally checked the wrong resolution when searching through pcpartpickr. The UP3216Q is a very nice monitor indeed but I think outside the op's budget, instead I would probably go with the Dell P2715Q for $578.

 

[ronbo613]

There is no way he's going to fit dual 4K monitors into this budget.

Then he better get used to clicking between video editor windows, folders and any other resources he might be using in the editing process. That kills a lot of time. I don't think I've seen a single monitor editing workstation in about ten years. Using the latest computer hardware saves the computer's working time, how about the editor?

 

[lehtv]

Then he better get used to clicking between video editor windows, folders and any other resources he might be using in the editing process.

Clicking? Just use ALT+TAB and multiple virtual desktops (in Windows 10, Win+TAB, new desktop, move between using CTRL+Win+left/right). Moving between desktops hardly takes any more time than moving between actual monitors

 

[DSF]

Is this your first time building a computer, and is your business relying on this machine? If so, I think this is a risky proposition. Are you going to be losing money as a result of downtime while you try to troubleshoot a build that isn't coming together properly? What happens if the machine fails during the first few years of operation before you replace it? Are you confident enough to handle that problem on your own quickly?

I never want to discourage anyone from this hobby. In fact, I love it when new people get into building their own machines. I just wouldn't want this to end up being a poor business decision if this is your livelihood rather than a hobby or side job.

 

[EMC Productions]

Sorry for taking a bit to get back to you, have been busy today. In any case here's a proposed build for you:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($351.98 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock X99 Extreme4 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($174.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 Pro Series 512GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($217.97 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Red 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($149.00 @ B&H)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($317.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 w/Window (Titanium) ATX Mid Tower Case ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($87.95 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Dell U3415W 60Hz 34.0" Monitor ($779.85 @ Amazon)
Total: $2424.58
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-21 00:31 EDT-0400

To briefly summarize why I chose what parts I did:

CPU - Premier will use all of the cores that it can take so having a 6 core system makes sense. This will help keep your render times within reason.

Motherboard - Solid choice with a good feature set

Cooler - Just need one since the 5820K does not come with one, this one shall suffice just fine.

RAM- Premier also loves having RAM and 32 GB isn't terribly expensive

SSD - This helps improve overall performance and helps the system feel more responsive

HDD - 4K video files are obviously going to take up a fair enough space so you'll need someplace to store the finished product once you've done the work needed on the SSD

GPU - While not top of the line (with the budget you have in mind) it should suffice just fine unless you decide to play games in 4K, then we'd have an issue

Case - Really a personal choice but I really like how clean the S5 is especially if you exercise good cable management which really isn't hard with this case

PSU - Solid gold rated PSU that should handle all of the components without an issue

OS - No reason not to go with Windows 10 at this point in time

Monitor - I'm presuming that you don't already have a monitor which is why I included one in this build. It sounds almost like you intend to do this professionally and Dell is close to the gold standard when it comes to monitors being used professionally in video editing. There are some better ones out there but they're way outside of your budget. This monitor, once calibrated, should suit your needs just fine

No worries and thanks for including the monitor in it, I think this will be the perfect build for me, thank you!

 

[EMC Productions]

Is this your first time building a computer, and is your business relying on this machine? If so, I think this is a risky proposition. Are you going to be losing money as a result of downtime while you try to troubleshoot a build that isn't coming together properly? What happens if the machine fails during the first few years of operation before you replace it? Are you confident enough to handle that problem on your own quickly?

I never want to discourage anyone from this hobby. In fact, I love it when new people get into building their own machines. I just wouldn't want this to end up being a poor business decision if this is your livelihood rather than a hobby or side job.

Ok here is the thing, yes this is my first computer build and I am only 16.

 

[DigDog]

woha DSF, you are making it sound WAY worse than it is;

it's unusual for a modern PC to fail dramatically, and self-building is a far more common thing than you'd imagine, nowadays (imgur is full of kids who build their own "first build").

EMC, don't be scared by the bad man. Your PC will be fine, more so with the various warranties that come from both brand and supplier (speaking of which, Amazon has a great returns policy), so do not worry.

to have a part that shows up at your door and it's faulty, happens - but it's not a problem; you send it back, you get a new one that works. Worst that can happen is you need to wait a few days more to fire up the new build.

 

[ronbo613]

Clicking? Just use ALT+TAB and multiple virtual desktops (in Windows 10, Win+TAB, new desktop, move between using CTRL+Win+left/right). Moving between desktops hardly takes any more time than moving between actual monitors

Reckon all those professional video and television editors are pretty much clueless.

 

[mnewsham]

Reckon all those professional video and television editors are pretty much clueless.

They aren't using 4k either

 

[lehtv]

Reckon all those professional video and television editors are pretty much clueless.

You reckon all those editors click on windows instead of alt+tabbing? Yep, you're right they are clueless...

 

[NAC]

Sorry for taking a bit to get back to you, have been busy today. In any case here's a proposed build for you:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($351.98 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock X99 Extreme4 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($174.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 Pro Series 512GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($217.97 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Red 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($149.00 @ B&H)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($317.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 w/Window (Titanium) ATX Mid Tower Case ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($87.95 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Dell U3415W 60Hz 34.0" Monitor ($779.85 @ Amazon)
Total: $2424.58
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-21 00:31 EDT-0400

To briefly summarize why I chose what parts I did:

CPU - Premier will use all of the cores that it can take so having a 6 core system makes sense. This will help keep your render times within reason.

Motherboard - Solid choice with a good feature set

Cooler - Just need one since the 5820K does not come with one, this one shall suffice just fine.

RAM- Premier also loves having RAM and 32 GB isn't terribly expensive

SSD - This helps improve overall performance and helps the system feel more responsive

HDD - 4K video files are obviously going to take up a fair enough space so you'll need someplace to store the finished product once you've done the work needed on the SSD

GPU - While not top of the line (with the budget you have in mind) it should suffice just fine unless you decide to play games in 4K, then we'd have an issue

Case - Really a personal choice but I really like how clean the S5 is especially if you exercise good cable management which really isn't hard with this case

PSU - Solid gold rated PSU that should handle all of the components without an issue

OS - No reason not to go with Windows 10 at this point in time

Monitor - I'm presuming that you don't already have a monitor which is why I included one in this build. It sounds almost like you intend to do this professionally and Dell is close to the gold standard when it comes to monitors being used professionally in video editing. There are some better ones out there but they're way outside of your budget. This monitor, once calibrated, should suit your needs just fine

That is a solid build. I would recommend changes to storage:
Save money on the windows/programs SSD and absolutely buy a backup HD. Before you do anything, ensure you have a backup hard drive. The three drives below would cost about what you were going to spend on two. Setup some backup software to copy the internal 5tb drive to external one nightly. 240 gigs should be enough to install software software and use as a scratchpad / Render folder as long as you copy finished renders off of it regularly. And I would want a 7200 rpm drive as the main storage drive instead of a 5900 rpm


PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/jMnBsY
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/jMnBsY/by_merchant/

Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($64.00 @ Amazon)
Storage: Toshiba X300 5TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($139.99 @ Micro Center)
External Storage: Seagate Backup Plus 5TB External Hard Drive ($133.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $337.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-23 20:52 EDT-0400

 

[Blackjack200]

Then he better get used to clicking between video editor windows, folders and any other resources he might be using in the editing process. That kills a lot of time. I don't think I've seen a single monitor editing workstation in about ten years. Using the latest computer hardware saves the computer's working time, how about the editor?

A 34" monitor should work pretty well here as I believe they have split desktop modes to take advantage of the wide format. So like having dual monitors with no bezels. In fact, I saw a few 34" monitor reviews that said they would be excellent for video editing.

 

[EMC Productions]

That is a solid build. I would recommend changes to storage:
Save money on the windows/programs SSD and absolutely buy a backup HD. Before you do anything, ensure you have a backup hard drive. The three drives below would cost about what you were going to spend on two. Setup some backup software to copy the internal 5tb drive to external one nightly. 240 gigs should be enough to install software software and use as a scratchpad / Render folder as long as you copy finished renders off of it regularly. And I would want a 7200 rpm drive as the main storage drive instead of a 5900 rpm


PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/jMnBsY
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/jMnBsY/by_merchant/

Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($64.00 @ Amazon)
Storage: Toshiba X300 5TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($139.99 @ Micro Center)
External Storage: Seagate Backup Plus 5TB External Hard Drive ($133.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $337.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-23 20:52 EDT-0400

I also saw this thing called a sound card? Do I need that because I will be using both speakers and headphones

 

[mnewsham]

I also saw this thing called a sound card? Do I need that because I will be using both speakers and headphones

No you dont need a sound card unless you have good headphones/speakers (several hundred dollars + good, not $50 or whatever average crap most people have)

And if you DO have speakers/headphones that good, you really dont want a sound card either and want an external DAC with a headphone amp/speaker amp.