New Editing Set-up

[lilrichie]

Hey Guys/Gals

I have been working with ImovieHD for some time now importing video into in direct from the camera and slicing it up that way but things are getting a bit more serious in my position and i want to upgrade some items in my set-up.

I am working freelance for a Promotion group who organizes band nights and such events, we film each event onto minidv tapes and then import it directly to Imovie while this is not ideal it has been an adequate solution till now, we now want to make dvd's or each event and sell them online via the web-site.

Below is a specification of my current set-up.

Current Setup

Powermac 1.8ghz, 2GB Ram, 250GB Hard Drive
20" Generic Monitor (Non-Widescreen)
JBL Creature Speakers
For editing i use ImovieHD.

Proposed Upgrades - Budget £3,600

* Two 2.66GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon
* 1GB (2 x 512MB) - Upgrade with non-apple after purchase
* 2 x NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB - Could i get some advice on this See below for more information**
* 250GB 7200-rpm Serial ATA 3Gb/s - I want to add my own drives in after, i am actually looking into a Raid system
* Two 16x SuperDrives - Is this overkill or would it work nice with burning down dvd's
* Both Bluetooth 2.0+EDR and AirPort Extreme
* Apple Keyboard & Mighty Mouse - I already have wireless versions but it seems you have to have some form of keyboard & mouse
* Mac OS X
* Apple Cinema HD Display (23" flat panel) - This or a dell 24" some advice here would be nice also
* AppleCare Protection Plan for Mac Pro - Auto-enroll - I have heard a bit about this and think it would be good to get or on the other hand maybe a waste of capital
* Final Cut Studio

Total Cost: £3,796 - A little over budget but this could be sorted with a different monitor, or one superdrive.

**I need a graphics card set-up that is going to allow me to use a dual monitor configuration and also hook up a LCD and studio monitor, the LCD for client based watching of the project and a studio monitor so i can check the video over before finalizing the project. Would the card i have selected do this or would i need something better.

I hope that the information provided will give you enough to help me work out a new set-up.

Richard

 

[trudd]

Assuming that the graphics card setup is correct, I would probably lose the superdrive. Unless a large chunk of your work is simply burning DVDs, is it absolutely necessary?

 

[lilrichie]

Assuming that the graphics card setup is correct, I would probably lose the superdrive. Unless a large chunk of your work is simply burning DVDs, is it absolutely necessary?

I suppose you are right their, they are overkill in this instance i think.

 

[Erendiox]

Not sure about the issue with the graphics card, but bluetooth seems unneccessary unless you think you need it. Same with Airport.

That's a solid configuration you've got going there otherwise. Definitely load as much ram in as you can. The more the better.

 

[techster85]

I wouldn't (and don't) use my video card to externally view my edits. My studio monitor (and you could route an LCD from this too) all come out of the A/V jack in my miniDV deck. But, that being said, i'm sure that you could figure it out...

 

[Davowade]

You could save a bit of money on the monitor and go with something like the viewsonic VX922. They are a 2MS 19" monitor and are great for video at a very reasonable price.

http://www.viewsonic.com/products/desktopdisplays/lcddisplays/xseries/vx922/

The plus side of having a dual monitor setup is that you have the option of using one as a playback monitor if necessary.

Otherwise lose the second SDrive as previously stated and the BTooth and Airport.

EDIT: Here are the VX922s that I have.

 

[fivetoadsloth]

You could save a bit of money on the monitor and go with something like the viewsonic VX922. They are a 2MS 19" monitor and are great for video at a very reasonable price.

http://www.viewsonic.com/products/desktopdisplays/lcddisplays/xseries/vx922/

The plus side of having a dual monitor setup is that you have the option of using one as a playback monitor if necessary.

Otherwise lose the second SDrive as previously stated and the BTooth and Airport.

I agree, get a slightly smaller, or less expensive monitor, (The Dell is ok, Searc the forums they are tons and tons of threads on it) and up the ram two 2 gig + RAM makes a very very large difference in preformance on task like yours. Otherwise that is a really solid set up. (I would attempt to keep the 2 superdrives if possible)

 

[bloogersnigen]

More RAM. If you're going to do occasional (like a birthday or a vacation) 1gb is fine but if you're going to do more then that lose the superdrive and get more RAM (2-4 GB should work great).
(edit - read it again and saw you're going to upgrade RAM later, sorry.)
Ben