I'm currently upgrading from a pretty old setup that includes an i5 4690K and a 1050 Ti, coupled with 32GB of DDR3 RAM. My main focus is on 4K video editing, and it can be quite a hassle since I rely on proxies. I've found a used PC locally that features an i9 9900K, a 3090 Ti, and 64GB of DDR4 RAM for under $1,000. While the 3090 Ti seems like an excellent choice for my editing tasks, I'm a bit worried about the 9900K processor due to its age—it's been around for about 7 years. I'm also mindful that upgrading it would likely mean replacing the motherboard altogether. What do you think about going for this used PC versus investing more in a newer and more modern setup, like one with a Core i7 Ultra, a 5070 GPU, and 64 GB of DDR5? I really want to ensure it meets my video editing needs well.
4 Answers
You could also grab a 7600X, 32GB of DDR5, and an AM5 motherboard for around $450, and then use the remaining budget for a graphics card. The 7600X might not be the best for video editing, but it’ll definitely be a big upgrade from what you have now.
Honestly, I picked up a motherboard and CPU combo with a 14700K (DDR4) for about $500. You might want to consider that as it allows you to add a budget GPU and some RAM, all for under $1,000, which would give you a much more powerful setup.
While that setup might seem pricey for gaming or editing, people still purchase used 3090 Ti cards for their VRAM, especially for tasks like AI processing.
That sounds like a solid deal! You might even be able to upgrade to a DDR5 platform down the line. I'm using a 9th gen Intel with a 3090 and haven't felt the need to upgrade for quite a while. I'll be looking at a CPU, motherboard, and RAM upgrade in a few years myself, so incremental upgrades could work well for you too.
Yeah, that’s kind of what I was thinking! I’ll have to shift my mindset to upgrading every few years rather than just replacing everything at once.
For sure! Any upgrade I make will feel like a massive boost after my current setup!