Hi so i've been trying to build a PC for AVID 2020 (or above?) but it's a bit of a minefield. Here are my builds so far - https://ca.pcpartpicker.com/list/PpxVQD also (because I probably wont be able to get that graphics card this century) a pre build- https://www.signa.com/products/signa-4k-6k-red-premiere-pro-davinci-video-editing-pc?variant=32541636001852

But i can't seem to find out if Nivida 3060 or 3070 cards are compatiable with AVID. Everyone says Quadro but please tell me how i can find one of them. I'm in Canada by the way.

I just want dsomething that will run AVID smooth and without issue. Any help would be huge thank you!

Kind Regards,

Ben

The rules I've used for over 20 years for minimum trouble editing experience is stick to the systems Avid certifies.

I generally stick to HP machines and have just ordered an HP Z840.

Fast cores is a must (ignore the turbo speeds) less fast cores is better than more slower cores. But I aim for 8 or more cores (my HP Z Book laptop only has 4 cores and thats ok for most stuff)

Re graphics cards I check the Avid certified specs and see what cards they list for the various systems. I try and stick to one of those cards. My HP Z840 will have a Nvidia M4000 card.

I've gone with an NVme 512GB boot drive as way faster than an SSD SATA drive plus a 1TB NVme for current media storage.

Then 3 x 3TB 7200 spinners in a RAID 5 to give me 6TB of archive storage.

For a DIY Avid box try to clone a supported system: get a motherboard with the same chipset and CPU, I do not know the options for i9 systems as of now, but google will help. If You can't clone a supported system go for an Intel CPU and plenty of RAM. Key for a smooth ride is a Quadro card, it will save You a lot of headaches, better a low end Quadro than a top of the line gaming card.

I too always follow certified machines specs but last year I bought a refurb Z840 from a great company, Teksavers in Texas. I had a M4000 in my Z800 and planned to move it over but instead got a technically unsupported GeForce RTX2060 Super which is far better than the older Quadro M4000. A major Avid  system integrator, Pudget Systems (I think that's the name) uses RTX cards extensively in their builds. It may be too late but I have a M4000 I'll sell cheap (which is not my intent on this tech forum) but I'd urge you to try to find a 2080 Super if you can't find a 3000 series RTX. Somebody high up in Avid gave me an unofficial wink and a nod regarding the Gforce RTX series not being officially supported, but will work with Avid.

Currently and in the past Avid hasn't made much use of the GPU so its not critical. But I have seen issues with unsupported cards and inaccurate renders. So I avoid them.

Anything intel works well (stick with i7 or i9 for hypterthreading).  I use nvidia (1080 ti) and that works well too.  Maybe media composer doesnt use GPU, but resolve and other apps will (in case you use those).

If you're going to build a system I highly reccomend a motherboard with thunderbolt 3 (i don't have experience with tb4 yet but im sure that works too).  It will make your life easier with drives, thunderbolt blackmagic devices, etc.

You can either buy a premade Avid spec computer or if you want to save money, look at the specs of those computers and build it yourself based on what those systems have. Stick with Intel processors. For GFX, you can use the Nvidia GTX cards. No need for Quadro. I have built systems for Lions Gate Films in the past as well as Miramax and although they will use spec, I know that it can also be a waste of money....

My system is this:

Intel i9 10940 3.30Ghz

128 GB Ram ( I also use 3d apps)

GTX1080 Ti x 2 (I also use Resolve Studio)

MB - MSI Creator X299

Blackmagic Decklink Studio 4K

Drives: internal SSD's for o/s and cache

Media drives: QNAP TVS-872XT NAS with 64TB

Much depends on your usage for the PC.

For a serious production device, the cookbook applies.

Something less, then:

Fast clock CPU speeds, Several Solid state storage drives (M2) A Large Tower for expansion and adequate cooling support.

Generally GTX works, excepting the absolute latest cards as driver tweeking tends to be a bit behind the hardware.

The power supply should be calculated for 60~75% loading.

Four Ram slots (or More) on the MoBo start at 64 Gig populating two slots.

Do not overclock the MoBo or Graphics Card.

Best of Luck. 

Amazing thanks folks this is a great help. I think I'm going to hunt for one of these higher end video cards! I'm going to use it for AVID, probably the odd encoding in resolve and a little bit of AE. Not sure if that consistutes actually using Resolve tho?

Resolve likes CUDA cores, which the RTX 20XX ans 30XX provide. Here's a handy site to compare. I certainly wouldn't recommend a Quadro card unless you have the dough and client base to support it, and I own NVIDIA stock. :) I have two RTX2060 systems and they work great.

GPU UserBenchmarks - 661 Graphics Cards Compared

You can absolutely overclock your cpu without any problems.  Just use coretemp to see your temps and make sure you're stable at 100% usage.

Media Composer actually works better than Adobe with overclocking (i think its the lack of AVX cpu instructions or something.  just an assumption from some tests).

In your shoes I'd try to find a HP Z840 like Pat said, but only a cheap used one.
Prices on those have dropped a lot recently because of AMDs new offerings.

My next DIY will be AMD Epcy Milan/Zen3 .
24 cores, all of them faster than intel's current design, 8 ECC memory channels, 128pcie lanes.
all that for a cool 1300 bucks.
I'd pair that with a board like this.
This is not certified, but still a safe bet.
The new AMDs have north and southbridge on the CPU now, motherboards can't cause compatability issues anymore.

THat sounds good. Yes i think do the HP except why used? I'd like a warrenty. I'd also like a thunderbolt 3 i guess i could add that on.

What graphics card are you using for your build?

If you buy new, you won't get a good price for a pro intel system.
As far as I know, prices for new HP workstations are unchanged,
only the used market has gotten much cheaper recently because of AMD's pressure.

If you find one one ebay, we'd check for you if it's a good offer.

I will continue using my gtx 1070 card from ~4 years ago, is good enough and you can't buy new graphics card anyway b/c global chip shortage.

You have to decide if you want/need the system available 24/7. If yes, then there is no other way than a new certified system.

If not, you have plenty of options.

1. Refurbished certified system. Price might look good, but check for waranty because components normally fail early or after a few years.

2. DIY system: You can build a system along the recommendations of Avid (X299) or go freestyle. Please be aware that the consumer plattforms (AMD AM4, Intel LGA 1200) have limits for PCIe Lanes and SATA Ports.

The price for GPU's are absolutely insane. But Avid does not need much GPU power. If you don't much this for AE or Resolve, look for some older Quadros or GTX 1XXX/2XXX for a decent price.

In your setup I would replace the 10900K with the 10850K.