Absolute Newb asking for computer advice.

[John Rofrano]

[Todd Werner] “I’ve seen lots of threads about some graphics cards not working with Vegas 12, or systems being slow. Are there any issues with the GT640 or Windows 8.1? And does this seem like a good value?”

I’m not a big fan of “consumer” computers. They usually aren’t built as well as their workstation counterparts. It is refurbished so of course it looks like a good deal. If you like HP, for a little more money get an HP Workstation Z series.

The GT640 card will not perform as well as an older GTX570 would so it’s not a great deal for a Vegas Pro editor if you tare looking for GPU assistance. Personally, I would get something with an ATI/AMD GPU for Vegas Pro editing.

~jr

http://www.johnrofrano.com
http://www.vasst.com

[Todd Werner]

I also found this, which has a better warranty:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/271500293950?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
but I thought it would be a much slower computer.
Todd

[John Rofrano]

[Todd Werner] “but I thought it would be a much slower computer.”

Well, the ENVY does have a much faster CPU and having a fast CPU is probably the most important thing when working with Vegas Pro. I agree with you, given those two computers, the ENVY will probably perform better with Vegas Pro although the Z420 is probably built better.

~jr

http://www.johnrofrano.com
http://www.vasst.com

[Todd Werner]

Thank you. I’ll check my budget and look a bit more if the CPU is the most important piece of this puzzle. There are some close-out z420’s with the 3.5 GHz 6 core xeon around, but they are pretty stripped down in my price range. No GPU, only 8mb memory, and only 500gb drives. I don’t know if a 6 core CPU means I won’t need a GPU, but I guess I could add an inexpensive GPU if it’s mandatory. One nice thing about the z420’s is the 3 year waranty!

[John Rofrano]

[Todd Werner] “I don’t know if a 6 core CPU means I won’t need a GPU, but I guess I could add an inexpensive GPU if it’s mandatory.”

6 cores will certainly make a GPU less important. You can always upgrade the GPU later.

[Todd Werner] “One nice thing about the z420’s is the 3 year waranty!”

This is what I mean about buying a workstation class machine. It has a better warranty because it’s built better. Look, you can buy a $50 motherboard or a $200 motherboard… which one do you think is in the ENVY as opposed to the z420? That’s why I would always pick a workstation over a consumer PC for demanding workloads like video editing and all night rendering.

~jr

http://www.johnrofrano.com
http://www.vasst.com

[Todd Werner]

I decided to go with a 6 z420 workstation. Found one new for 47% off with that 6 core 3.5GHz processor and not much else. 8MB ram, 500GB drive.

I’ll add a 250Gb SSD drive, a wi-fi card, and maybe 8Mb more RAM (if you guys say I need more RAM). I’ll render without the GPU so I guess the question is do I need a GPU for previewing, or is a fast CPU enough?

Thanks again for the guidance!

[John Rofrano]

[Todd Werner] “Thanks again for the guidance!”

You’re welcome. Glad I could help.

~jr

http://www.johnrofrano.com
http://www.vasst.com