Need HELP building 4k Editing PC

[JJ Rok]

I am looking to build a new editing station to edit 4k. My budget is only $3k so I've been playing around with a lot of options. Here are the specs I've been considering.

Intel i7 3930k (maybe overclocked)

ASUS P9X79 PRO

32GB RAM 1600MHz

120GB SSD - boot drive

2 - 2TB WD Black - set up in RAID 0 or 1

1 - 2TB WD Black - storage drive

NVIDIA 570 2.5GB or 580 3GB

Liquid cooling


I've noticed a lot of people posting about editing 4k with the i7 2600. So here are my questions:

Is the 3930k worth it? I know it will be better in the long run, but if I can edit 4k with a cheaper processor I could spend the difference in other areas.

Which NVIDIA card? I read that the 570 is really close in CUDA cores to the 580, but the 580 offers more RAM. Is the difference between the570 2.5GBand 580 3GB that noticeable?

What about cooling/case fans? Heat spreaders? Hard drive coolers? How many do I need even with a liquid cooling system?


I know $3k is a low budget but it is all I have to work with. The biggest needs in that $3k are a processor/gpu that will handle 4k well and a RAID setup with a lot of storage space. I know that I will eventually get an external RAID as backup.

Any help or recommendations are greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[Petri Teittinen]

Do not overclock. You'll end up with a less stable platform with little gain in actual performance.

I had an Asus P9X79 PRO mobo at first but it ran out of usable PCIe slots as I was trying to fit in two GPUs, a RED Rocket and a SAS adapter. Went with Asus Rampage IV Extreme instead and have been quite happy with it. Haven't tested GTX570, have been very happy with GTX580/3GB for CUDA and GTX460 for GUI. I use liquid cooling for CPU (3930K) only + one large fan at the top of the chassis to expell hot air + one small fan in chassis door pushing cool air on the cards. A 120GB boot SSD + a couple of internal SSD drives (OCZ Agility4 512GB is semi-affordable) for small projects and an external 16TB RAID-6 SAS array for larger ones. Haven't needed the SAS array yet, to be honest.

[JJ Rok]

Thanks Petri, I won't be using two GPU's or a RR so do you think the Asus P9X79 PRO is sufficient? I want to go with the GTX580/3GB but to fit it in the budget I can't afford a much more expensive mobo. I hadn't considered using internal SSDs but it sounds great. I will mostly be working on smaller projects, and will buy a RAID array in the coming months. So that sounds better than WD's but again its more in the budget. Do you use the 512GBs in RAID 0 or 1?

[Scott Shropshire]

Do you know how to overclock? If you do then yes you can get a rendering stable platform with huge gains in performance... you will need a high end cooling setup on the processors you'll be over clocking though. What liquid cooling blocks, radiators, pumps, hosing, fittings were you looking at getting my friend? You can build a nice rig for 3k so don't worry! :)

[JJ Rok]

Thanks for all the help guys. I don't know much about overclocking but I read that the chips are actually designed for it and that its pretty stable. But I don't know how to set it up and would probably purchase the PC through a company that would do that for me.

you will need a high end cooling setup on the processors you'll be over clocking though. What liquid cooling blocks, radiators, pumps, hosing, fittings were you looking at getting my friend? You can build a nice rig for 3k so don't worry! :)

Scott, I have no clue what is required for overclock cooling. I am planning on getting liquid cooling but not sure what else I would need. SSDs instead of a RAID sounds pretty good. Petri, have you had any issues with the OCZ SSDs? I've read some negative reviews. Thanks again!

[Petri Teittinen]

Petri, have you had any issues with the OCZ SSDs?

Once, more than a year ago. It was nothing serious, no data loss involved. I wanted to update the drive firmware but no matter what I did, it wouldn't happen. A friend had an old 60GB OCZ die on him without warning after 6 months of almost constant use. That's all the personal anecdotes (i.e. not actionable data) I have :)

[Petri Teittinen]

Thanks Petri, I won't be using two GPU's or a RR so do you think the Asus P9X79 PRO is sufficient?

Sure. I had no problems with it before running out of PCIe slots.

Do you use the 512GBs in RAID 0 or 1?

SSDs are so fast these days no RAID array is needed. Even the slower-than-average Agility4 gives me 300MB/sec reads and writes in SATA6.0 bus. As for overclocking, my opinion as someone who's been working with PCs for 25+ years is that it's not worth the hassle and headache involved in building a properly stable rig.

[Richard Tran]

.... and if you sift around, you'll see where you can compromise and what not.

http://ppbm6.com/Planning.html

[Andy Kolb]

I'm currently working on almost the same system.

- Intel i7 3930K with Noctua NH-D14
- ASUS P9X79 WS
- 32GB RAM
- GTX 570
- SSD for OS
- RAID 0 for media

I haven't had any problems so far. Temperatures are very low.

[Gary Paul Walker]

I'm currently working on almost the same system.

- Intel i7 3930K with Noctua NH-D14
- ASUS P9X79 WS
- 32GB RAM
- GTX 570
- SSD for OS
- RAID 0 for media

I haven't had any problems so far. Temperatures are very low.

How does your system perform on playback? This is pretty much the same as I'm building next month (but I'm swapping the 570 for the 690), I'd be interested to hear your thoughts