Upgrading my PC looking for advice on components

[Fortkentdad]

It is time for a new build, my current system is running OK but getting a little long in the tooth.
I've been an AMD user for a long time, all my previous builds have been AMD. And the new Ryzen chip has got me lusting for a new machine.

I'm probably going for the Ryzen 7 even though I could save about $100 with an Ryzen 5 and not really notice the difference, but I'll get the 7 anyway.

Not sure about RAM - I overdid my current build with 32 GB RAM - don't think I'll do that again - 16GB should be enough - anyone saying that 32 GB is worth the extra $150+ it takes to get there?

Motherboard / Chipset, I've been an ASUS user for longest time, have a nice i7 ROG Laptop and looking at the ROG Strix X370 . . . although might give Gigabyte a try. But probably just stick with what I know and upgrade to ROG.

Graphic Card? This one I have more questions than answers.
First how much V-RAM do I need? I do more photos than videos but hope to get a drone sometime soon and will likely be editing video more and more. My most recent DSLR (Nikon D500) can shoot 4K video so mega files. Depending on the drone 4K drone footage is also an option.

And which card? Given it will be an AMD build I'm leaning towards an RX 5XX card. Not sure which one? If I get a GTX I'll have to learn a new system as I'm running three screen array using Radeon Eyefinity. So push my video cards a little.

I do play a few video games but would not buy the card for gaming. The primary purpose of the new build would be photo and video editing. (at least that's what I'll admit to, if I'm honest my current system could probably do fine for a few more years but I want a new one just because it's been so long since I built this one (2011 build).

[G0bble]

You forgot the most important component of all - the one that has been traditionally 10x slower than the cpu/graphics card and dragging your performance through the mud all these decades - Storage! A hidden revolution has quietly dawned without anyone noticing - As big as the leap from 8 bit microcontrollers to the 32 bit x86 architecture, is the jump from mechanical hard drives to nvme pcie3x4 SSDs.

Don't be stuck on brands on Asus/Gigabyte etc. go for the features that support nex.gen requirements that will keep your box current for the next decade. Gigabyte has been working for me well without ever having to RMA a mobo in the last decade or more. But get the mobo brand with the features you need to future proof your build. That includes a minimum of 2xpcie3x4 slots/lanes free for two SSDs (preferably m.2 connector if not with two free pcie3x4 lane slots) over and above your requirements for pcie2/pcie3 slots/lanes for graphics. will need some browsing over a few days to gather specs and estimate number of pcie lanes you need to be sure you get the right hardware. Don't get a mobo with just pcie2.0 at any cost.

Skip the Ryzen7 and go for a Ryzen5. Why? Use the money saved to buy SSD - because SSDs cost $$$ - actually $$$$ if you go high capacity. I use 2 256GB SSDs (because I cant afford 1TB SSDs) - one for boot and one for video processing working area. All the media files I am working on are copied to my pcie ssd and the output files go there too. When done, I move the files to archival storage (mechanical hdds) and start fresh with my next video.

General rule of thumb - you should be spending $$ on already fast components and $$$ on the slowest ones that need development. Throw the money at the weakest link to strengthen it and you have have h/w components that keep up with each other in terms of latencies.

HTH
G0bble

[tletter]

Use the money saved to buy SSD

I have a SSD but there isn't much bang for the buck with VideoStudio as the program when rendering is clearly not Disk I/O bound. My experience is that Smart Proxy is required when editing regardless of whether a SSD is used or not. I'd spend money on CPU and memory to increase the performance of VideoStudio.

[TonyP]

Nah.... 32GB of RAM will never get used. I am using AMD Ryzen 7 1700X overclocked to 3.95Ghz. Yes, it's water cooled. For video card, MSI Gaming X RX480 8GB running on 2 monitors (27" 4K and 24" 1920x1080). 16GB of Corsair 3200Mhz RAM running at that speed. I do all my rendering and exporting to a mechanical drives, since I don't want to flood my 1TB SSD. Why mechanical? Storage space can't be beat for the price. I work with a lot of 4K and tons photos (like you), and don't mind a few seconds of possible wait in loading or writing something. Building a NAS to handle this so that any computer on my network will have access to the same files.
Motherboard is a Gigabyte AB350 Gaming 3, which was RMA'ed 4 months after I bought it. It's back and running, but looking at a MSI X370 Gaming Plus mobo now. I've used Gigabtye for well a decade.
I personally would recommend the Ryzen 7 for multi-threaded applications. Yes, the Ryzen 5 is good at it (and faster at gaming), but the Ryzen 7 is better at multi-threaded work. And since you wrote that you will be keeping the computer for a while, more and more software will begin to take advantage of more cores/threads. I agree with tletter for the same reason. Exporting is where you will really see all the cores/threads used depending on the output file settings and what fx you used.

My "old" computer was based on AMD FX8350 OC'ed to 4.2Ghz.

[G0bble]

Use the money saved to buy SSD

I have a SSD but there isn't much bang for the buck with VideoStudio as the program when rendering is clearly not Disk I/O bound. My experience is that Smart Proxy is required when editing regardless of whether a SSD is used or not. I'd spend money on CPU and memory to increase the performance of VideoStudio.

I am new to VS but at least with GoPro studio earlier, loading files would take ages before I could work on the project. SSDs solved the issue to a degree. I am curious why output rendering would not be I/O bound? Ultimately its written to a disk file is it not?

Thanks for your insights into this.

G0bble

[tletter]

with GoPro studio earlier, loading files would take ages before I could work on the project

I've never used 'GoPro studio' so I cannot comment on it. However, VS can create Smart Proxy files to largely eliminate the delay of loading huge video clips from the file system. I put these Smart Proxy files on my SSD which load rapidly when editing.

I am curious why output rendering would not be I/O bound? Ultimately its written to a disk file is it not?

Of course the rendered file is ultimately written to a file system. However, as shown in the following image, the rendering process is CPU and memory intensive with minimal disk I/O. Disk I/O is not a limiting factor and in fact I render directly to a NAS eventhough I have a system with an SSD.