I first heard this quote from my dad a long time ago. I can’t remember the exact scenario but it is something that has stuck with me ever since. I recently used it to help make a decision on buying a new computer.

When I got my first Mac and edited my first video on FCP, I thought I’d never go back to a PC. Adobe CS6 changed all of that. On the 29th day of my 30 day trial I bought Creative Cloud and I was soon shopping for an upgrade to a slow MacBook Pro. I put together what I wanted out of a iMac and that was pretty expensive. I hate how the iMac doesn’t allow you to upgrade down the road it makes the price not worth it. The MacPros are awesome but crazy expensive and with Adobe CS6, Mac OS wasn’t mandatory. Is it just me or is Mac going 100% consumer and 0% professional? That’s another blog post!

So I did the unthinkable, I searched PCs. After looking at all those I couldn’t find what I wanted. I needed a fast computer that would be only used for editing. I needed a great NVidia graphics card, Intel i5 or better processor, 8GB ram to start, 1TB internal drive, DVD burner, esata and USB3 ports. That start costing as much as the Macs and there wasn’t a lot of ability for add ons do to the cases.

I didn’t like how everyone else was doing it, so I did it myself. I picked out each piece I wanted and built it myself. ***Disclaimer*** I am not telling you to go out and build a computer if you have no knowledge (or skill) in this department. It is very easy to mess up and ruin the parts you just bought. With that said here’s how the build went down.

Shopped online for a week and built a few different computers. Then I went to MicroCenter to talk with a salesman (someone that knew a lot more about PCs than I did) and walked into a huge 4th of July sale. Something told me I wasn’t leaving empty handed.

After hand picking each piece that would make this an editing machine, I then picked out a computer case. This may have been the most fun. Different colors, LED lights, fans/airflow, and expandability options. For a gear head, a cart full of computer parts was pretty awesome and I really enjoyed putting it all together.

With some help from forums and online videos I put together a machine that rips through all my editing needs. Key components include Intel Quad Core i5 Processor (3.4GHZ), 8GB ram, 1 TB hard drive, nvidia graphics card, DVD burner, wireless internet and all the needed ports (USB, USB3, ESATA). Have the option to add firewire, multi card reader, and 4 more hard drives. Any questions on the build let me know!

Anyone interested in having a custom PC built for your editing suite please contact me.