Dell Workstation Owners Club

[Count von Schwalbe]

Hi, I need to buy a new PC for video editing

Would you be comfortable assembling your own?

Also, the parts you have specified are by no means bad, but they tend to be overpriced for their performance. For a similar-priced DIY workstation/desktop, you could have a much higher-performing computer. Much of what I am about to tell you also applies to prebuilt desktops as well, if you inspect the specifications and ensure they are the same.

I also noted you selected the following:

Memoryi 64 GB, 8 x 8 GB, DDR4, 2933 MHz, ECC

For strictly video editing, ECC is not necessary. Your CPU is also 6-channel, which could cause an upset by populating multiple DIMMs per channel on 1/3 of your channels, or you lose some memory bandwidth by only populating 4 channels.

So I hopped onto Dell's website and approximated your customized build, and gained a budget you are looking at of around $4000. Using that as a baseline, we can create the following build:

Spoiler: Recommended Parts:

Important parts:
CPU - 7950X - This has a multicore performance ~4x of the one you specified.
GPU - RTX 4080 - Again, looking at around 4x the performance specified.
RAM - 2x32GB DDR5-6000 CL30. This has around the same RAM bandwidth as what you specified, and much better latency
Storage - List of storage devices below:

OS/Boot drive: Samsung 980 Pro 500GB - Nice fast storage to boot from and install your programs. You don't really need more than 500GB as your space-hogging video files will be stored on one of the following:
Project files drive: Crucial P2 1TB - Still pretty fast, plenty enough for storing the files you are actively working with. Any other files will be stored on:
Long-term storage drive: 2x WD Blue 6TB 5400RPM HDD. Big enough for lots of videos, and backups of those videos.

Also important parts, if building yourself:
Motherboard - ASUS TUF X670E Plus - it is a decent board with PCIe 5.0 on the GPU slot, for further upgrades.
PSU - Corsair RM1000x - The one part you should NEVER cheap out on.
OS - You pretty much chose one already, it sounds like you know what you are doing there.
CPU Cooler - Just find a nice AIO with good reviews, there are dozens on the market.
Case - Corsair 4000D Airflow - lots of choice, but you shouldn't have any issues with this one.

If you are not comfortable with building it yourself, there are some prebuilt options on the gaming market. However, these are mostly from smaller manufacturers such as iBUYPOWER. These may not have the same level of support as a larger company such as Dell. Conversely, you could look at a workstation manufacturer such as Puget Systems, which usually have better support than the large manufacturers, but you will pay an even greater premium over DIY. For example, a system configured similar to the one above will cost around $3500 to build, but is around $5000 for a similar one from a workstation manufacturer (in this case, Puget Systems).

 

[frankr2994]

Also worth noting that Dell workstations flood ebay. You can buy a 7920 optioned much better for half the price. I to was on Dell and was looking at a 4300 dollar price tag. For what it was that hurts. I do like what Count von Schwalbe posted as a build but I'm still bias as it's still too rich for my blood. However that system is badass enough to be good for years. And if using it for profit the last thing you want to is re do your whole workstation. Longer between that the better.

 

[lexluthermiester]

what's a "binning" thing?

do i need to bin the CPU?

No it's something Intel does at the factory. You might have two of the same model but that doesn't mean they are binned in the same voltage rank. CPU are binned by speed and voltage. You might have one CPU with one voltage and another CPU of the same model with a higher voltage. As a result one will run hotter than the other. This is not uncommon. Though with the temp differences you showed earlier it could also be a problem with your thermal paste application or heatsink mounting or even something causing airflow problems.

Hi, I need to buy a new PC for video editing. Just made 300k followers so going to splurge a little lol. Not real hi end, no 3D 4k, just cutting vids for Twitter. Still I want to go a little above a normal PC for 2 reasons. 1st I am stressing the machine and it's a higher end PC. 2nd the bloatware, and God does it slow the machine down. I've managed to get rid of a lot of it but lots of crap is still there slowing me up.

So I'm thinking a lower end workstation running 11 pro small business should do the trick on both accts. I know, never underestimate the power of MS slipping in spam but not a guru at this so kinda stuck with it. So I do a little research thinking video card is going to be the biggest need so should start there and came up with this.

NVIDIA® RTX™ A4000, 16 GB GDDR6, 4 DP [490-BHFV] / G6U2RZ0

It's touted as targeted towards video editing so seems a natural. But what to put with it? Last thing I want to do is find out after the fact that video card is doing me little good as the processor, mother board or what have you can't keep up. I can afford this but I can't afford it twice lol. Sooooooooo I build a system that fits my budget for reference and go the friendly and knowledgeable people at Dell at their business chat and ask him if this all makes sense, see any red flags? Well to make it short this guy has to go ask someone for answers to basic questions that even I know. So I don't put much of any faith in him, which is why I'm here.

So anyone have a couple minutes to help out a knob? Here's the complete workup. See anything I'm going to be sorry about later? Thank you in advance, I really do appreciate it.


Processor Intel® Xeon® Silver 4210R (13.75 MB cache, 10 cores, 20 threads, 2.40 GHz to 3.20 GHz Turbo, 100 W) [338-BWTB][575-BBPB] / GCMPZR3 1
Operating System Windows 11 Pro for Workstations (6 cores plus), English, French, Spanish [619-AQLO] / GIX8RS3 1
Chassis Options Precision 7920 Tower Chassis (BC_PCIe) CL FMX [321-BGVK] / GE2R5JQ 1
Graphics Card NVIDIA® RTX™ A4000, 16 GB GDDR6, 4 DP [490-BHFV] / G6U2RZ0 1
Memoryi 64 GB, 8 x 8 GB, DDR4, 2933 MHz, ECC [370-AESI] / G7WF3Q8 1
Thermal Cooling Single Processor Air Heatpipe [412-AALD] / SHEATSK 1
Systems Management No Out-of-Band Systems Management [631-ABML] / NOVPRO 1
Operating System (Boot) Drive Intel NVMe PCIe SSD (Front PCIe FlexBay) [414-BBBV] / FFPCIE 1
Storage Drive Controllers Intel Integrated controller (RST-e) with 1-2 Front FlexBay NVMe Drives [321-BDFD][321-BDFE] / I12NVME 1
Hard Drive 1 TB, M.2, PCIe NVMe, SSD, Class 40 [400-AVDDR][401-ABJR] / 1TC40ME 1
2nd Storage Drive No Hard Drive [400-AKZR] / NOHDD 1
3rd Storage Drive No Hard Drive [400-AKZR] / NOHDD 1
4th Storage Drive No Hard Drive [400-AKZR] / NOHDD 1
Additional Storage No Additional Storage [400-AVDX] / NOADSTO 1
5th Storage Drive No Hard Drive [400-AKZR] / NOHDD 1
6th Storage Drive No Hard Drive [400-AKZR] / NOHDD 1
7th Storage Drive No Hard Drive [400-AKZR] / NOHDD 1
8th Storage Drive No Hard Drive [400-AKZR] / NOHDD 1
Optical Drive No Optical [429-ABER] / NOODD 1
Slimline Bay Options Slim filler panel (no opt.) [429-ABEL] / NOSLODD 1
Optical Software No Optical Software [817-BBBC] / NOSWODD 1
9th Storage Drive No Hard Drive [400-AKZR] / NOHDD 1
10th Storage Drive No Hard Drive [400-AKZR] / NOHDD 1
RAID for HDD/SSD & Front PCIe NVMe SSDs No RAID [780-BBCJ] / NORAID 1
Dell Ultra-Speed Drives (PCIe SSDs) None
2nd Dell Ultra-Speed Drive None
RAID Configurations for Dell Ultra-Speed Drives None
Lockable HDD/SSD Sleds None
Storage Volume Boot drive or boot volume is greater than 2 TB (select when 3TB/4TB HDD is ordered) [411-XXYB] / GPT3TB 1
Keyboard No Keyboard [580-ABIS] / NKB 1
Mouse No Mouse [570-AADK] / NMSE 1
Teradici Remote Workstation Access Host Card No Remote Access Host Card [340-ADBJ] / NHSTCRD 1
Network Cards No Add-In Network Card (Integrated NIC only) [555-BBJO] / NONIC 1
Wirelessi Intel® Dual Band Wireless AC 8265 (802.11ac) 2x2 + Bluetooth module [555-BEVZ][555-BEWB] / GKV5JT8 1
PCIe I/O Cards Not Selected in this Configuration [817-BBBC] / NOTHB 1
Serial Port/PS2 Adapter None
Power Cords US Power Cord [470-AATC] / PCUS 1
Resource DVD Resource DVD not Included [430-XXYU] / NORDVD 1
ENERGY STAR Not ENERGY STAR Qualified [387-BBBE] / NOESTAR 1
Optimizer Dell Optimizer for Precision with AI [640-BBSC] / GFZ02NK 1
Driver Firmware and Driver for Intel 8265 Wi-Fi + Bluetooth module [555-BEVY] / GS6J92E 1
Canada Ship Options Non-Canada orders only [332-1286] / USNONE 1
TPM Security TPM [329-BBJL] / TPM 1
Windows AutoPilot No AutoPilot [340-CKSZ] / GYEO2AP 1
Warranty And Services
Option Selection SKU / Product Code Quantity
Protect your purchasei - View Support offers below 5 Years ProSupport Plus with Next Business Day Onsite Service [997-5852][997-5903][997-5930][997-5956][997-5967] / PPN5 1
Accidental Damage Service None
Client Installation Services None
Security Month Offer
Option Selection SKU / Product Code Quantity
Microsoft Office No Microsoft Office License Included - 30 day Trial Offer Only [658-BCSB] / 16MUI 1
Security Software McAfee® Small Business Security 36-month subscription [525-0015] / MSBC36M 1
PDF Solutions None
Software
Option Selection SKU / Product Code Quantity
Dell Endpoint Security None
Teradici Remote Access Solutions None

Hi John! Welcome to TPU! Everything you've shown looks good. I can't see any serious problems for what you'd want to do. What Dell workstation model is this? Kinda curious.

For strictly video editing, ECC is not necessary.

I can not disagree more! For ANY workstation or mission-critical usage, ECC is absolutely essential. ECC keeps small errors from becoming big problems with program crashes. ECC should be fricken industry standard by now. It's 2022 for hell's sake.

@John Stewart
Stay with the ECC, you'll thank yourself later. Trust me on that one. I went ECC a decade ago for all of my mission critical systems and 90% of the crashes and system instabilities one would normally experience disappeared. Currently, I run Registered ECC on several of my systems at home. RAM reliability is critical to stable computing, I can not stress this enough.

 

[Count von Schwalbe]

For ANY workstation or mission-critical usage, ECC is absolutely essential.

I fully agree - but video editing doesn't really fall into this category.

Any modern NLE is surprisingly resistant to crashes.

Anyways, Ryzen supports CPU/bus side ECC and DDR5 has on-die ECC built in, so any Zen 4 build should have him covered. The reason I stated ECC wasn't necessary was that the parts that support it are either way more expensive or way less performant.

 

[lexluthermiester]

but video editing doesn't really fall into this category.

Not true. I do a fair amount of video editing and trust me, it matters. Single bit errors in a video stream might not seem like a problem but they add up and it can become a serious issue.

The reason I stated ECC wasn't necessary was that the parts that support it are either way more expensive or way less performant.

Fair point, however, John was showing what I believe is a system config list for a Dell Precision system if I'm not mistaken, and selecting non-ECC RAM for that system is likely not an option. Dell rarely sells their workstation lineup without ECC. It's a reliance thing.

 

[frigider]

guys, found this:

Free Download HWiNFO Sofware | Installer & Portable for Windows, DOS

Start to analyze your hardware right now! HWiNFO has available as an Installer and Portable version for Windows (32/64-bit) and Portable version for DOS.

www.hwinfo.com

you can control each of the 3 fans, you can even have a look up table that says RPM / temperature.


*sounds kinda dangerous but hey.

for CONTROL FREAKS

 

[frankr2994]

guys, found this:

Free Download HWiNFO Sofware | Installer & Portable for Windows, DOS

Start to analyze your hardware right now! HWiNFO has available as an Installer and Portable version for Windows (32/64-bit) and Portable version for DOS.

www.hwinfo.com

you can control each of the 3 fans, you can even have a look up table that says RPM / temperature.


*sounds kinda dangerous but hey.

for CONTROL FREAKS

You can try it out for the hell of it. I've used any software fan control I could find before. On a Dell it gets made into like a fan switch vs a fan curve so I gave up on them.

 

[frigider]

You can try it out for the hell of it. I've used any software fan control I could find before. On a Dell it gets made into like a fan switch vs a fan curve so I gave up on them.

will give it a go for sure.

it had that look up table with RPM for certain degrees.

there was a slider there too for the fans, but they had like 3 steps, low, med and maxXxed out.
i am putting my faith in the look up table.

really curious if you can set what RPM you want or there are just 3 speed steps...

 

[lexluthermiester]

guys, found this:

Free Download HWiNFO Sofware | Installer & Portable for Windows, DOS

Start to analyze your hardware right now! HWiNFO has available as an Installer and Portable version for Windows (32/64-bit) and Portable version for DOS.

www.hwinfo.com

you can control each of the 3 fans, you can even have a look up table that says RPM / temperature.


*sounds kinda dangerous but hey.

for CONTROL FREAKS

I love this software! Excellent utility for find raw and detailed info about system parts. The monitoring software is very useful as well.

View attachment 270323

You Windows 7 hold-out you.
(Not dissing, I love Windows 7, my personal fav OS)

 

[frankr2994]

will give it a go for sure.

it had that look up table with RPM for certain degrees.

there was a slider there too for the fans, but they had like 3 steps, low, med and maxXxed out.
i am putting my faith in the look up table.

View attachment 270323

really curious if you can set what RPM you want or there are just 3 speed steps...

I don't remember anything working except for maxxed out same day I found out that it doesn't matter how crazy those server fans are in our system you can't pull the heat out of a xeon fast enough at a certain point. With my cooler right now it makes no difference in temp control once I'm past like 40 percent fan speed.(I have a large CPU cooler with a big fan) my temps stay good but if I rip it up to 100 in the bios and just let it roar boot and stress I hit the exact same temps. I can hit high 70s and feel the air getting pushed through my cooler and not feel any heat. The two systems I have here are both overclocked 1 6 core 1 8 core. 6 core on stock cooler with mild overclock 30 percent stays there all day long bumping the fans up any doesn't help me get any more speed out of the CPU heat just runs away. My 8 core runs a high clock with my big cooler. It also runs 30 percent but I found that up to 40 helps just not past. What I'm getting at is unless you can use that fan control to bump the fans just a little bit....it's pointless.

 

[frigider]

You Windows 7 hold-out you.
(Not dissing, I love Windows 7, my personal fav OS)

oh, it's just a pic from the interwebs

I don't remember anything working except for maxxed out same day I found out that it doesn't matter how crazy those server fans are in our system you can't pull the heat out of a xeon fast enough at a certain point.

damn, well at least when i change from bios like you said to 30% it did make a diff and it was ok for all core maxxed out, so at least i have that, no matter what.

 

[John Stewart]

Thanks to all particularly Frankr for replying. I can't tell you how much I appreciate your time. I'm almost terrified I'm going to botch this and end up with a 5k machine that's not much better than a 1200 number I could have bought off the shelf. You asked about price and this is what they are quoting.

Estimated Value - $7,593.00
Savings - $2,890.97
Dell Price - $4,702.03

Might be able to see the complete workup off this link. At least it worked for me pasting it into a new window. https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/wor...9383-432b-88bc-27ca219781ce#techspecs_section

A couple guys said the ram wasn't totally compatible with the rest. Any recommendations on what else I could use?

Going with a new Dell is great for stuff like having support and warranty. You didn't post a price but I know that a 7920 optioned...at all is expensive. You can save alot and maybe get some more upgrading a used system or building it yourself. Ultimately a 10 core xeon that big GPU and 64gb of ram would work great for editing videos. I put together a Dell for a photographer a couple of years ago. What I did for that was separate boot and editing drives. They both can be nvme or boot can be sata SSD and editing on nvme. For the price difference I'd do nvme both. 64gb is plenty of memory. I also did 2 big hdds in a mirrored windows storage space to save finished files. What I found in all this was that the video editing software was the bottleneck not PC. I struggled to get his software use the CPU cores and GPU to their full potential. I'd suggest looking at your software and how it's using your current configuration as is. Make sure you find a hardware bottleneck. If your not crushing something in your PC trying to edit then you need to investigate different software before spending thousands on a new PC setup.

If at all curious I like to have a separate boot drive for any build of importance. Windows can tank any time and with a fast system you can do a fresh install in no time without losing files on another drive. Nvme for editing for fast as possible storage to load sd card files onto and edit. Finished files onto a mirrored array to keep them safe until you do what you need to do with them. I use storage spaces for mirrored setups because the drives can be put into any windows machine and the mirrored array shows up and works just fine unlike some different software and hardware raid designs. Hope this helps.

In serious love with the idea of hd just for boot bc this is why I'm at this state. All the sudden it crashed and couldn't even get it to start in safe mode. Was hell getting my files back. So I changed it to this.
1st hd - 512 GB, M.2, PCIe NVMe, SSD, Class 40
2nd hd - 1 TB, M.2, PCIe NVMe, SSD, Class 40
I'll add a couple later for long term storage, pushing 5k now as it is.

Should I load all my other apps on the boot drive or place them on the 2nd?

Agree totally on the software being the bottleneck. Using an older machine as a bridge right now and the fresh install of the video editing software seems to run almost as fast. I'll probably un-reinstall it every 6 months or so. Seems but build up lots of junk in it's cache.

fications and ensure they are the same.

Being your thing I'm sure you guys are cringing big time about me laying out 5k for this when you could diy it for half or even less. It's just so hard to be a Renaissance man these days. When I first started (2000) I was building machines and even tried to set up a server. What I found out was it left me no time to do my real work lol. So for my situation going with a premade w/warranty and onsite repair is going to be the best way.

Totally off topic but saw this when choosing memory
6 TB Intel® Optane™ + 12 x 128 GB, DDR4, 2666 MHz cache
+ $191,890.40
My God, what would you use this thing for? Protein folding? Nuclear fusion simulations?

 

[frankr2994]

Should I load all my other apps on the boot drive or place them on the 2nd?

Agree totally on the software being the bottleneck. Using an older machine as a bridge right now and the fresh install of the video editing software seems to run almost as fast. I'll probably un-reinstall it every 6 months or so. Seems but build up lots of junk in it's cache.

I place apps on the boot drive as long as it's an nvme. If I use a nvme as a scratch drive I put them there. Apps always have to be re installed on a fresh install so there is no "saving" them. It's nice to have the install files stored off on another drive for that situation.

And like I said see how the software is actually using your hardware. Does it max out CPU , GPU, or memory usage? If it isn't see if you can change some settings with it or contact the software vendor and ask if or how it can be used better. If it can't then look into new software. The fastest setup in the world doesn't mean much if the software is single threaded and consumes 2gb of memory.

 

[Count von Schwalbe]

for my situation going with a premade w/warranty and onsite repair is going to be the best way.

Fair enough. I would recommend getting a later-gen CPU especially.

What software are you using in particular? There is a few things I would suggest depending on the software.

Anyways, I would Strongly suggest changing your RSM configuration to a multiple of 6 DIMMs, with the 6-channel memory CPU.

 

[John Stewart]

Fair enough. I would recommend getting a later-gen CPU especially.

What software are you using in particular? There is a few things I would suggest depending on the software.

Anyways, I would Strongly suggest changing your RSM configuration to a multiple of 6 DIMMs, with the 6-channel memory CPU.

Thank you Count. Using this,

Video Editing Software for Everyone. Download Free, Windows & Mac. Easy Movie Editor.

Download award-winning VideoPad Video Editing Software. Edit your videos, add effects, create a movie. Crop, trim, split, add effects & more on the fastest & easiest video editor for Windows PC & Mac.

www.nchsoftware.com

not very high end but the setup lends itself to what I do. I have to make them fast. We're talking 10-20 sec clips. Other than that I generally run 6 instances of Chrome (hogs everything but let's me run 6 different Twitter accts at once.) And Opera, another hog, plus smaller stuff.

 

[frankr2994]

Thank you Count. Using this,

Video Editing Software for Everyone. Download Free, Windows & Mac. Easy Movie Editor.

Download award-winning VideoPad Video Editing Software. Edit your videos, add effects, create a movie. Crop, trim, split, add effects & more on the fastest & easiest video editor for Windows PC & Mac.

www.nchsoftware.com

not very high end but the setup lends itself to what I do. I have to make them fast. We're talking 10-20 sec clips. Other than that I generally run 6 instances of Chrome (hogs everything but let's me run 6 different Twitter accts at once.) And Opera, another hog, plus smaller stuff.

I don't see anything on that site that talks about resource utilization. Other than it says it's fast.....I'd love to see a screenshot of task manager while running the finalization process after edits to see what it's pulling. But right now I'm guessing a fast quad core CPU and enough memory to run web browsers. Please run an edit and show us a screenshot of task manager. Obviously no personal info visible.

 

[John Stewart]

I don't see anything on that site that talks about resource utilization. Other than it says it's fast.....I'd love to see a screenshot of task manager while running the finalization process after edits to see what it's pulling. But right now I'm guessing a fast quad core CPU and enough memory to run web browsers. Please run an edit and show us a screenshot of task manager. Obviously no personal info visible.

Sorry for the late reply, had to reinstall some software to make this happen. Please keep in mind this is a bridge machine not quite as powerful as the one that crashed but close. However this is pretty indicative of what happens. This is during a load of a larger video project.

 

[lexluthermiester]

Might be able to see the complete workup off this link. At least it worked for me pasting it into a new window. https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/wor...9383-432b-88bc-27ca219781ce#techspecs_section

This is was what I was thinking you were doing. Solid system for what you want to do with it. I do have a suggestion;

Precision 7920 Workstation Desktop Tower with Xeon Processor

The Precision 7920 Tower workstation provides ultimate performance and scalability to grow alongside your vision.

www.dell.com

Choosing the 4215R will give better overall performance. While it may have 2 fewer cores(8 vs 10), those 8 cores are running 800mhz faster each(that a 1/3 increase per core) and has a much high boost clock(4ghz vs 3.2ghz). For the video editing software you've stated, you will have a MUCH better experience. It'll be worth the extra $493. Other than that, I think you're golden!

 

[frankr2994]

Sorry for the late reply, had to reinstall some software to make this happen. Please keep in mind this is a bridge machine not quite as powerful as the one that crashed but close. However this is pretty indicative of what happens. This is during a load of a larger video project. View attachment 270491

Ok couple things. First it's not using your PC hardly at all. What we need to look at is doing the same edit and look at the performance tab. Let's see if it is maxing out 1 CPU core or maxing out the vram on your gpu or something else. See if there is a bottle neck somewhere in there. If you can do a batch run of edits at the same time it's possible you can use more. There may be settings in the software to use more. My gut feeling tells me this is it for this software. If your in love with it and don't want to switch I'd go on the route and say a system with some overclockable i5 running single core speeds 5ghz plus. If you really want a Dell workstation for the reliability, warranty, support then we should look at a 5820 with a xeon that has really high single core speeds. But let's see the performance tab showing CPU displaying all logical cores and show the GPU tab that can show us all the different actions of the GPU. Hopefully we can see a bottleneck somewhere and point you in a better direction. Right now a 7920 is just a waste.

 

[lexluthermiester]

Right now a 7920 is just a waste.

That is not an opinion I would agree with. First, a single screenshot does not make for a complete view of utilization. Second, I have seen and used that very same video editor and it is something that can be very CPU heavy OR GPU heavy, depending on the task. Powerful parts in each area will make for snappy workloads. Finally, the system is question would make an excellent platform for what they want to do as well as anything else they want to do, especially for a professional doing professional work.

 

[frankr2994]

That is not an opinion I would agree with. First, a single screenshot does not make for a complete view of utilization. Second, I have seen and used that very same video editor and it is something that can be very CPU heavy OR GPU heavy, depending on the task. Powerful parts in each area will make for snappy workloads. Finally, the system is question would make an excellent platform for what they want to do as well as anything else they want to do, especially for a professional doing professional work.

If that is a typical workload for him excluding open browsers then those aren't the workloads that a tearing up usage. A brand new dual CPU capable system still seems wasteful. I did ask for more info to help steering. Maybe these are some questions the "experts" at Dell should be asking before pushing high priced system. I love Dell, but I love the people that buy it and re sell it a year later better

 

[lexluthermiester]

If that is a typical workload for him excluding open browsers then those aren't the workloads that a tearing up usage.

But that's that point, we're not seeing full workloads as that has not been disclosed. I personally don't care to know either. What someone does and their usage model is their business. What we're here to help with is a selection of config that will maximize any potential workload that the user will invoke. Put another way, I'm not going to try to tell them how to do their work, only suggest the best hardware that will help them get the most for what they do. The question of value is up to them, not us.

A brand new dual CPU capable system still seems wasteful.

That's not what they're buying. If you follow the links above you will see that they are selecting a single CPU configuration. There is nothing wasteful in having the option to expand later. A lot of people do. That might be where you misunderstood.

 

[Count von Schwalbe]

I just find it hard to recommend a 10-core low-clocked Skylake even if it has 6-channel ECC support. You would be much better served with any Threadripper (or PRO) or even Ryzen with 12-16 Zen 2/3 cores. (the reason I am only talking AMD is because they all support ECC.) Even this Precision 7865 would perform much much better than what you linked or what Lex posted - and for less money.

Lex suggested an 8-core CPU fairly similar to the 11900K, with an inferior cache hierarchy and 6-channel RAM. Comparing the 11900K to a 5900X is easy, and the 5900X with 8-channel RAM is a 5945WX.

According to Puget Systems, 5900X scores 7.5% better in Davinci Resolve overall, and 15.9% better in Premiere Pro - two programs that work in a similar manner to your program. Now reduce the clock speed of the 11900K by 20% and imagine how well that would fare against the 5900X. Need ECC support and 4x the RAM bandwidth? Switch to a Threadripper Pro 5945WX. Then pocket the extra $100-500 you saved and rejoice that you have a much better system.

 

[lexluthermiester]

Even this Precision 7865 would perform much much better than what you linked or what Lex posted - and for less money.

Good point, that system is the better deal by far. You did leave out one thing, 64GB of RAM. Very important.

Precision 7865 Tower Workstation : Dell Workstations | Dell USA

Shop the Dell Precision Tower Workstation (7865) featuring Precision optimizer & powerful CPU with AMD Ryzen Threadripper Pro or see all Precision Workstations at Dell.com.

www.dell.com

 

[Count von Schwalbe]

Good point, that system is the batter deal by far. You did leave out one thing, 64GB of RAM. Very important.

Precision 7865 Tower Workstation : Dell Workstations | Dell USA

Shop the Dell Precision Tower Workstation (7865) featuring Precision optimizer & powerful CPU with AMD Ryzen Threadripper Pro or see all Precision Workstations at Dell.com.

www.dell.com

My bad, thought I had 8x8 selected.