HD Capture with G5

[lastmile]

I've got a dual core 2.0 GHz G5 that I'm trying to find a use for. It's in perfect shape cosmetically with the original box so I hate to sell it for the little G5s go for now. It's got 4GB of RAM (2x 2GB ECC) and a flashed Quadro FX4500. It cost me about $150 after adding the Quadro.

I know G5s used to be used for HD video work.

Lets assume I have a source of HD video (I assume MPEG2 or MPEG4 compressed) that I can get to output at 1080p via component. I can't just transfer the files. Length would be 1-2 hours with editing just being cutting out sections.

The output could be captured uncompressed using an Aja or Blackmagic card which can be had pretty cheaply these days. But a RAID is needed to get the disk write speed needed. Whats out there that is not totally ridiculous compared to the price of the G5?

Video will need to be compressed but obviously not using the G5! I'm thinking Handbrake over a gigabit network using a PC that doesn't have PCIe slots or disks that will handle an HD capture card.

I suppose there are PC USB capture boxes out there that will do hardware MPEG4 encoding but this is somewhat of an exercise in thinking of how it might be done with a G5.

 

[Hrududu]

Any chance you send the video out through FireWire?

 

[lastmile]

No I don't think so. Investigating raid cards

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

I've got a dual core 2.0 GHz G5 that I'm trying to find a use for. It's in perfect shape cosmetically with the original box so I hate to sell it for the little G5s go for now. It's got 4GB of RAM (2x 2GB ECC) and a flashed Quadro FX4500. It cost me about $150 after adding the Quadro.

I know G5s used to be used for HD video work.

Lets assume I have a source of HD video (I assume MPEG2 or MPEG4 compressed) that I can get to output at 1080p via component. I can't just transfer the files. Length would be 1-2 hours with editing just being cutting out sections.

The output could be captured uncompressed using an Aja or Blackmagic card which can be had pretty cheaply these days. But a RAID is needed to get the disk write speed needed. Whats out there that is not totally ridiculous compared to the price of the G5?

Video will need to be compressed but obviously not using the G5! I'm thinking Handbrake over a gigabit network using a PC that doesn't have PCIe slots or disks that will handle an HD capture card.

I suppose there are PC USB capture boxes out there that will do hardware MPEG4 encoding but this is somewhat of an exercise in thinking of how it might be done with a G5.

If I am not mistaken, you also want a disk set-up with a fast read/write speed? I know this is only part of the answer, but have you considered getting an SSD for the machine? You could get a, say, 120GB SSD as your boot-up and main storage disk, with a large HDD accompanying it as a back-up/extra space drive. I myself don't have an SSD in my G5, but I want to buy an SSD or two once they get a little lower in price. Still, you can pick up a 120GB SSD for around $60-65, as the prices are only getting lower. This set-up could possibly be easier to deal with than striping the HDs.