Hi,
I'm looking to buy a new desktop computer. I was wondering what kind of processing power, RAM, and memory (plus other components), I would need in this computer to edit HD video with ease.

Also, do you recommend a Mac or PC?

What editing program do you like best?

Thanks!

My old editing rig had a 1.8ghz cpu and 2 gigs of ram. No fancy video card, or the like.

That was good enough to edit HD using Adobe CS3, though things would get bogged down if you had footage loaded into both Premiere & AfterFX at the same time.

Running either programme, by itself, was no issue at all. I'd consider that to be a minimum, though.

Obviously, the more cpu & ram the merrier. Faster rendering times, for starters.

My newest desktop (haven't loaded the Adobe yet) is a monster, compared to the old one. It also only cost $450, right off the shelf. Good luck tryin' to bag a comparable Apple for a similar price.

As far as editing software - I've always used the Adobe suites... though I gotta say, while it's a great bundled package, Adobe always seems to be bringin' up the rear when it comes to keeping competitive. They'd rather release an entire new suite (requiring paid upgrades) than patch existing software to keep current.

Heck, there's even some no-brainer stuff (like lack of OMF audio support) that looks like it will never get implemented. That's really important for someone like me, who is cursed with crappy sound and relies on outsourcing to audio experts to fix.

Actually, I'll be taking a step back from Adobe before automatically upgrading again. I haven't really looked at Vegas, but if they have OMF exports that would seal a deal for me, tbh.

At any rate - I'm rambling now. First things first, mind you. Before plunking down a lot of bucks on expensive editing suites (or even their bare-bones basic versions) play around with the basic editing software that comes with the OS for your computer. (ie: Movie Maker for Windows). The essentials are the same... and if you decide that editing actually sucks (not everyone is an editor, tbh) you'll be able to put that money where it makes the most sense.

Gah! Rambling again! :blush:

I use both PC and Mac for editing.

My Mac is a 2.0ghz single core, with 2G of ram. Runs Final cut pretty nice and don't have much trouble with HD footage unless i overload it or run multiple programs.

My PC I used to edit with was a 2.3 Dual core with 2G of ram, and I ran Vegas Pro pretty well on it. Not surehow much HD I did on it.

My new PC is a $1,200 custom built computer, and so it should run HD easy peasy :)

I personally hate to suport Apple, but Mac is dominate in the Film world, so that's why I have one. But I'm going to sell my Mac, cause I don't edit much anymore.

I like FCP, but I just prefer the easy peasyness of PC and its cheaper.

I just bought my new monster and after a lot of reading it seems like the most important things these days are processor, ram and getting a modern 64-bit OS. So that it actually uses the ram/processor.

After reading I grabbed an i7 system, brand new socket and really fast processor that seems like I'll be able to happily upgrade for years to come, also support tri-channel ram, so over time you can upgrade to ridiculous amounts like 32gb without much cost, etc.

Hope that helps.

was your 1.8 ghz cpu a dual core or just single core?
I've been using Windows movie maker for about a 3 or 4 years now, and have just started experimenting with free trials of the more advanced editing softwares. One of the main reasons i'm interested in getting a better editing program is because the XP of windows movie maker doesn't recognize HD video formats, (but also I find a need for more options).
Thanks for the advice! :)

Amen to that! Apple's products are way overpriced!
Thanks for the advice.