How to Build a Video Editing Computer

The advancement in technology has made it possible for people who own a digital camcorder, digital camera and DVD player to create and edit their own home movies. A common issue for those who are now just getting into video editing is finding that their computer is not capable of handling multiple video feeds or complex video editing. Here is how to meet the minimum requirements so that your computer will be able to handle the amount of work involved in video editing.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

1. Purchase a workstation-type of computer for faster processing. Workstations, as opposed to regular PCs, are more robust in nature and can handle the tasks needed for video editing. Most workstations come with best components and are optimized for digital content creation. Some samples of the brands to choose from are HP, Dell and Aspire.

2. Choose a computer system with a turnkey video editing system or a nonlinear editing (NLE) package. Some manufacturers can offer choices for a fully configured NLE, or they can recommend the integration systems to use. Some of the companies that offer a fully integrated system are Core Microsystems, ProMax and NLE Systems. These companies offer complete NLE turnkey computer systems that have been tested and approved for video editing, DVD authoring and Web video streaming applications.

3. Add a power supply; a minimum of 400 watts is recommended.

4. Build your own computer system. Get the fastest CPU that you can get your hands on. Obtain a CPU and motherboard with a 533-plus bus speed.

5. Add a CPU fan. Since people tend to use the computer for video editing for long hours, buying a CPU fan will help prevent your computer 's CPU from overheating, which can cause breakdown.

6. Add a motherboard. It is highly recommended to get a motherboard with an Intel chip set for P4 systems. An example is an ASUS motherboard since it is highly reliable. Get 1 gigabyte or higher.

7. Get a video card with a fast on-board memory. Try using an NVIDIA video card that can support up to three simultaneous video outputs.

8. Add hard drives; SCSI drives are preferred over IDE raid. It is highly recommended for video editing to use one drive solely for downloading or recording videos. A dedicated 7,200-plus rpm hard drive is very suitable.

9. Add a monitor. CRT is preferred over LCD monitors for video editing becauase of its ability to resize different resolutions better than the LCDs, providing you with true 32-bit color as opposed to just 24 bit with LCDs. CRTs also refresh faster than LCDs.

10. Add a video capture card.

11. Add a sound card. Do not just rely on the on-board sound that came with your computer. Adding a high-quality sound card will give you high performance. A good example is Sound Blaster.

12. Add DVD writers. Since you will be recording videos a lot, get those that hold 4.7 gigabytes per disc. Pick combo drives that can write "+" or "-" DVDs.

13. Pick a hard case for protection.

14. Load your operating system--for example, Windows XP.

15. Load your video editing software--for example, Power Editor or Pinnacle Studios.

Tips & Warnings

• To save time, just buy the workstation as suggested in Steps 1 and 2, and then just load your video editing software.
• Make sure to get components that are compatible with each other to avoid conflicts.