System Requirements

[1-wacko-]

I want upgrade my pc to do home video editting. I currently have a HP 366mhz Intel Celeron with 64mb ram, a 4.3 and 2.1 scsi hard drive, Iomega Buz and Adobe Premiere. What should be minimum hardware requirements and the next step from that? I would like to get another mother board and keep whatever I can from the pc I have.
Thanks

[fluggo99]

Sounds fine to me! I started on a Pentium 150 with 16 MB RAM! 'Course, I used a Marvel G200-TV. The Buz didn't impress me when I tried it. It might work just fine for you, but if it's not too late, you might think about switching to a combo graphics & video card.

Other than that, I seriously suggest you get a much larger hard drive. You could also stand another 64MB RAM, but I don't think it's entirely necessary. (There was a topic about that recently...I think it's <a href="http://forums.murc.ws/ubb/Forum2/HTML/002302.html">here</a>)

fluggo99

[1-wacko-]

Thanks Fluggo99
Now I am getting excited about do pc video editting. I've done linear before and know that non-linear is a lot quicker and forgiving.
Do you know much about the Matrox Marvel G400-TV ??

[DrMordrid]

I've got two of 'em.

The Marvel G400's are a really nice product and a bit of an overachiever. It also has excellent video output and the TV tuner is very nice.

Premiere is at its best if the 5.1C update is installed. This makes it more stable and faster to work with.

Dr. Mordrid

[1-wacko-]

Will the Marvel G400 replace my current video card, or does it run concurrent with it and need an extra PCI slot? Also, does the video in/out box connect to the card or does it connect to a USB, Parallel, or Serial port. The reason I'm asking so many questions, is that the Marvel G400 seems to be a good buy and I'm on a limitted buget. I bought the Iomega Buz and am disapointed with it.
Thanks
Wacko

[Walrus]

1-wacko: The Marvel will replace your existing video card (unless you have a PCI video card and want to run them both for dual monitor support). The Marvel also only uses an AGP slot, so you don't need to free up any other slots. The connection to the break-out box is on the AGP card itself, so you don't need to mess with serial, USB or other connections (which don't have enough bandwidth to handle all the data coming to and from the break-out box anyway)
As for Marvel vs Buz, I've never used a Buz, but I've been very satisfied with my Marvel G200 and it's abilities (though I'm annoyed at how long I've been waiting for a non-Beta set of NT drivers..)

[1-wacko-]

Walrus,
I also have NT. Does 98 or NT run video faster/better? I always thought that NT was slower because it takes a long time to boot up. Does the Marvel G200 capture video? I am not familiar with AGP. Is it on the mother board?
Thanks
Wacko

[Walrus]

1-wacko: The advantages of NT over 98 can mostly be summed up in a single word: stability. (there's hundreds of other advantages, but that's the critical one you're going to be intersted in) Yes, it loads a lot of extra stuff and may run a little slower on equivilent hardware, but it's also much less prone to crash. As for capturing, if you have NT configured properly there's no real difference capturing or viewing video. (though the fact that there are still tons of quirks and bugs in the beta NT video capture drivers for Matrox cards, Win98 is the better choice.. for the time being) As for the Marvel G200 (or G400), it is a fully functional video card/3d accelerator/video capture/tv tuner/etc board. It does it all and only uses a single AGP slot. AGP is a type of computer interface built onto pretty much all motherboards built in the last 2-3 years. It's used as an interface between the video cards and the rest of the computer, and it generally has more bandwidth available than your average PCI slot which makes it especially good for video cards. (there are other differences between AGP slots and PCI slots, but that's the main one) Considering you have a Celeron 366, you probably have AGP support.. the real question is can you replace the video card on your computer. Many motherboards (unfortunatly) build the video card onto the motherboard, which makes it impossible to replace the video card with a new AGP-based video card. (though you can in theory put a PCI-Video card in that kind of system and tell the computer to ignore the built on one)

Anyways, hope this clears up some questions.

[1-wacko-]

I just got done looking up the video specs for my pc and they are: Video graphics=PCI Local Bus, Controller=ATI Rage IIC, Video memory=4 MB SDRAM, AGP upgradable. It also says that I have an AGP slot available. It looks like I can add the Marvel G200 or G400. I use to work with someone who knows how to boot to different hardware configurations. I don't think it's too hard.
Thanks for all the info. It has helped me a lot. If you have any more suggestions or advise that will help me, I would appreciate it.

[Bixler]

1Wacko:

Love the name. If you've got a preconfiged HP with a Celeron, the chances are VERY high that you have onboard (or built in) video. I'm not particularly knowlegeable about HP's but there have been some compatibility issues with some HP boards and some Matrox equipment. Check this out: www.matrox.com/mga/tech_supp/faq/zoran.htm look at question 7 particularly.

You may want to check all of the other FAQ's as well. Bottom line is, you may want to look at motherboard upgrade, or at least be prepared for one. You will also need more Hard drive capacity if you are talking about any real running time.

I've got a Marvel G200TV and have done well with a slower processor than you have (and UDMA 33 Hard drives,) so you should be in pretty good shape speed-wise. If you do upgrade your MB--be sure to ask others here about which ones work best with AGP.


[This message has been edited by Bixler (edited 21 December 1999).]

[1-wacko-]

Thanks Idiot.
I should have been more clear. My question was particular to video on either OS. I'll probably stay with W98.

[1-wacko-]

I have thought about upgrading my mother board. I want to be able use as much hardware as I can from my current pc. Any suggestions?