Looking for a CPU and system for video editing for a beginner

Kaapstad · 23 Sep 2019 at 04:36

As in the title I have a friend who is looking to do some video editing please could you suggest a system which would be suitable. Secondhand is also some he would be interested in.

Thanks.

Rroff · 23 Sep 2019 at 05:35

How much of a beginner? - any idea what software they will be using and if it benefits from GPU acceleration?

Most of my builds for people like this lately have been Ryzen 2600, X370 motherboard (usually Gigabyte) and whatever 3000MHz DDR4 with reasonable timings is cheap coupled with a 250GB SSD usually Kingston and a 3TB Seagate or WD HDD. GPU and case depending on the user's budget and usage. Might be a bit overkill if someone was only doing it really casual though.

CAT-THE-FIFTH · 23 Sep 2019 at 07:49

The Ryzen 7 2700X is now under £200,so might be worth looking at IMHO.

Kaapstad · 23 Sep 2019 at 07:58

Rroff said:
How much of a beginner? - any idea what software they will be using and if it benefits from GPU acceleration?

Total beginner

The plan is to start small but eventually he plans to do quite a bit of editing.

Is there any video editing software you can recommend please.

TrM · 23 Sep 2019 at 08:10

Sorry but I recommend a 2012 Mac book pro laptop myself. Not the most powerful machine but Final Cut Pro x software is proberly one of the best editing software and easiest to learn of the big name ones

Used market the mid 2012 MacBook Pro are pretty cheap now

tommoT.Striker · 23 Sep 2019 at 12:04

Try DaVinci Resolve, there is a free version in terms of software. In general I would recommend an 8 Core PC like a 3700x, if not and that's a bit pricey a 2700x 2nd hand would be good. I'm sure even a 8700k or a 3600 could do a decent job. You could get away with 16gb Ram, but the more the better.

Orange Nexus · 23 Sep 2019 at 14:13

Win10's Video Editor is friendly to starters, then slowly progress to Resolve.

Find a cheap R5 1600. It is very capable cpu for video editing.

Rroff · 23 Sep 2019 at 14:29

Another option is Blender's video editor. I'm not a huge fan of any of the cheaper/free editors in terms of learning curve and the stuff I find better has prohibitive upfront cost. Though Resolve is hard to beat in terms of feature set for free it isn't the friendliest in terms of learning curve.

humbug · 23 Sep 2019 at 15:17

tommoT.Striker said:
Try DaVinci Resolve, there is a free version in terms of software. In general I would recommend an 8 Core PC like a 3700x, if not and that's a bit pricey a 2700x 2nd hand would be good. I'm sure even a 8700k or a 3600 could do a decent job. You could get away with 16gb Ram, but the more the better.

This DaVinci Resolve is very good. also use an SSD to make caching the project much faster for smooth scanning. a 2700X will blast through encoding.

CAT-THE-FIFTH · 24 Sep 2019 at 10:08

The Ryzen 7 2700X Gold Edition is on offer at some places for less than a Ryzen 5 3600. For a video editing rig it is fantastic value.

sandys · 24 Sep 2019 at 11:34

I use Vegas it has some quite cool features but I am no pro, it was cheap, works well with many cores and it supports both AMD and Nvidia GPU offload too.

Ross Thomson · 24 Sep 2019 at 19:03

davinci resolve assuming they are going to be using windows 10. any 8 core AMD will be great. should be able to get a great deal on a second hand 1700 (what is use for video editing OC to 3.9).

theforce · 25 Sep 2019 at 02:07

He better start learning using a proper video editor. A good free option is Davinci Resolve; it has some limitations in the free version but nothing your friend with be interested in like the ability to use multiple GPU's. Sony Vegas is another good program that is cheap compared to Adobe Premiere that will require your friend to pay a monthly fee to be able to use the program.

As for the CPU, there are some good deals on the 2700x now so for the price it's quite a potent all-around processor.

subbytna · 25 Sep 2019 at 09:47

Orange Nexus said:
Win10's Video Editor is friendly to starters, then slowly progress to Resolve.

Find a cheap R5 1600. It is very capable cpu for video editing.

Good call on the 1600. Get a good modern motherboard (x470, can't justify a x570. The B550s are enroute too now though)) and later swap out the 1600 for something like a 3700 or more.

Kaapstad · 27 Sep 2019 at 09:56

Thanks for the replies.

CAT-THE-FIFTH said:
The Ryzen 7 2700X Gold Edition is on offer at some places for less than a Ryzen 5 3600. For a video editing rig it is fantastic value.

If my friend were to go for a 2700X based system what sort of specs and parts would he be looking at.

Ross Thomson · 27 Sep 2019 at 10:32

b450 tomahawk 16gb corsair vengeance 3200 cl16 ram

CAT-THE-FIFTH · 27 Sep 2019 at 16:47

Kaapstad said:
Thanks for the replies.

If my friend were to go for a 2700X based system what sort of specs and parts would he be looking at.

16GB of 3000MHZ~3200MHZ RAM at a minimum. Micron E-die should do the trick. If you are not overclocking the B450 Tomahawk Max or B450 Gaming AC Max would be worth considering. If you are looking at an entry level X570 motherboard the Gigabyte X570 Gaming X or MSI X570-A PRO at £150 to £170 look decentish value but I am not so well versed with the X570 motherboards so it mightbe worth confirming with some others on here too.

sidthesexist · 27 Sep 2019 at 20:44

If he's only a beginner at this does he even need an eight core cpu? (Although it would undoubtedly be nice) he could for instance get a 2600 for around £117 which would save a few quid?

Panos · 27 Sep 2019 at 21:04

Kaapstad said:
As in the title I have a friend who is looking to do some video editing please could you suggest a system which would be suitable. Secondhand is also some he would be interested in.

Thanks.

Kaapstad said:
Thanks for the replies.

If my friend were to go for a 2700X based system what sort of specs and parts would he be looking at.

I wasn't involved in this discussion but here is my thoughts.

A good M.2 drive is great for video editing as it wont slow down the system like a slower SSD or HDD.
A Ryzen 8 core CPU either 2000 or 3000 series would be ideal. If can wait a month might be better to buy the new B550 board otherwise one B450 or X470 that can accept overclocked ram.
Ram wise a 3600C16 rated ram, or any Samsung B-die one of 3200C14. 16-32GB dual stick.

Thats more than enough and if needs more horsepower tomorrow can always upgrade to 12 or 16 core CPU, thats why a good 450/470 is preferable given budget (or 570).
Intel is no go as is dead platform with 8 core tops, and no path to upgrade. Would need to go to more expensive HEDT platform for that.

These are my thoughts. I use my 3900X with Fusion360 and various others programs like that, and won't change it back to 8 core let alone 6 core had before. (8600K @ 5Ghz)
And that applies even on gaming, since I can play a game and still having rendering working on the background. (except X4 Foundation which needs 10 cores on it's own).

Rroff · 28 Sep 2019 at 03:51

sidthesexist said:
If he's only a beginner at this does he even need an eight core cpu? (Although it would undoubtedly be nice) he could for instance get a 2600 for around £117 which would save a few quid?

Yeah depends how serious they are going to take it - 2600 is more than adequate for hobbyist kind of media creation, etc. and I've built several systems for that - but if you take it more seriously and have multiple packages on the go doing a variety of 2D and 3D editing for effects, advanced sound editing, etc. then 8 cores or even higher would be a good investment.