If video editing is 'your thing', you should go for the fastest
processor you can afford....you will also be 'future proofing' yourself
- as far as possible - against the inevitable advance of technology.
I used to edit on a PII 400 MHz, but having moved to a faster machine,
there is no doubt in my mind as to its advantages.
I guess the main players today, in the processor world, are AMD and
Intel. Don't be misled by the big GHz Intel numbers....an AMD XP1900+
has been shown to outperform an Intel 2GHz in certain benchmarks.
Both camps have their fans, but currently, for me, the clincher is that
AMD are way cheaper than Intel. Mind you, I'm talking about if you were
building your own machine....if you go to a shop, I guess you could find
a competitive Intel system...what with volume discounts and all. But if
you go to a shop, whilst you can make sure you get the processor you
want....you probably wont get a choice of motherboard....if that is also
important to you.
You don't say whether you are editing analogue or digital...if analogue,
and your current video card doesn't have suitable inputs, the cheapest
way to capture is to fit one the many,cheap, TV cards available, like
Pinnacle Studio PVTVrave.
If you're digital, go FireWire. You can get cheap FireWire cards, if
your machine has no ports fitted, but make sure it is OHCI compliant.
If money is no object, you'll be looking for an RT (real time) card.
For hard disks, SCSI is not vital...a modern ATA100 drive running at
7200 rpm is fine.
David, if you're looking to buy a complete system through the Web, there
are a zillion offers out there...I suggest you surf and enjoy...but
remember, I don't think it would be clever to buy a system from Texas -
or England, where this is being written - if you live in New
York....just to save a few bucks.
To paraphrase....keep your friends close, but your computer retailer,
closer....
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