Use SSD or HD for editing current Project with Premiere Pro?

[CC268]

Hey guys,

I am wondering if I should be placing my current Project Files on my SSD (256GB) for better performance during editing and then later move them to my HD (1TB) for storage?

Here is my current desktop setup:

https://pcpartpicker.com/b/bcnnTW 

[Bill Gehrke]

Your link does not work for me.  Ideally you should have two SATA III SSD's for editing unless your one SSD is is the super speed PCIe Gen 3 x4 variety.  When you are finished efiting then move to a hard disk drive.  A lot depends on your media and the size of your projects

[CC268]

Hmm...odd it works for me. I have a Samsung EVO 850 250GB. Hard Drive is just a Western Digital 7200 RPM 1TB hard drive.

I know it is not ideal, but it is what I have to work with for now. I'd just like to know what the best configuration is for my current setup.

[Bill Gehrke]

Your 850 EVO is a SATA III SSD and having your OS/Applications plus your project files is asking too much from that SSD.  You desperately need a good starage SSD.  Your motherboard readily supports another SATA III 6Gb/s device or a real super solution would be a M.2 PCIe Gen 3 x4 SSD, or a third solution is to use your USB 3.1 port with something like a Samsung T5 250 GB portable SSD.

[CC268]

I just checked and I do have an M.2 port on my motherboard. What would you recommend for a good M.2 SSD?

If I am going to set this machine up so that I can do some decent editing what do I need to do in terms of storage? Would I be alright with my current 850 SSD, my HD, and then an M.2 SSD?

[CC268]

Alright so here is my plan. Let me know what you think.

1. Leave my current Samsung 850 EVO 250GB SSD for OS and Software

2. Buy an M.2 SSD like the Samsung 960 EVO 500GB for Project & Source Media, Cache, and Scratch

3. Leave my current WD Blue 1TB HDD for general storage - all archived Premiere Pro projects will go on this for now. I can upgrade to more storage space later.

I know it is ideal to have 3 SSDs, but I can't swing that right now.

Does this sound like a decent plan?

Thanks.

[Bill Gehrke]

Great plan.  I have not found a third SSD necessary unless you have 100+ clips that timeline.

[CC268]

What are your thoughts on a normal SSD vs. the M.2 SSD?

Also if I go with the M.2 SSD would it be alright if I went with the 860 EVO M.2 500GB instead of the 960 EVO M.2 500GB? Saves me a little cash. I might just go for the 960 though.

Thanks for your help.

[RjL190365]

If you do go with an 860 EVO, the m.2 version would be a waste of an m.2 port since it is only a SATA m.2 SSD that performs no better than its 2.5" SATA III mate. And not all m.2 ports support SATA signaling – some only support PCIe signaling, and thus the 960 series must be used instead as the 860 EVO will not even physically fit into a PCIe-only m.2 socket.

[CC268]

Ahh okay thanks. So 960 it is then. Is 500GB more than enough?

[Bill Gehrke]

CC268  wrote

What are your thoughts on a normal SSD vs. the M.2 SSD?

Also if I go with the M.2 SSD would it be alright if I went with the 860 EVO M.2 500GB instead of the 960 EVO M.2 500GB? Saves me a little cash. I might just go for the 960 though.

Absolutely not!  The 860 EVO Is a SATA III @ 6 Gb/s device where the 960 EVO is a PCIe Gen 3 x4  32 Gbit/s SSD.

Here is what you will get from a PCIE Gen 3 x4 960 EVO and the important test vto look for are the Sequential ratings:

Here is typicall what you would get from your 860 EVO (I do not have one to test):

Notice on the picture below the killer word SATA,

Just because it says M.2 does not mean high speed'

[CC268]

Great thanks I will go with the 960 then and go with 500GB.

[CC268]

Bill,

Alright some final thoughts, hope you don't mind giving me a little more feedback.

I have narrowed down my options in terms of upgrading my current storage configuration (see here for PC hardware: https://pcpartpicker.com/b/bcnnTW)

So here are the two possible configurations I am thinking of:

Configuration 1:

C Drive: OS & Applications - Samsung 850 EVO 250 GB (currently own)

D Drive: Project & Source Media, Media Cache & Scratch - Samsung 960 EVO M.2 500GB ($240)

E Drive: General storage, archived projects, documents, etc - WD Blue 1TB (currently own - I may upgrade this)

Configuration 2:

C Drive: OS & Applications - Samsung 850 EVO 250 GB (currently own)

D Drive: Project & Source Media - Samsung 860 EVO 500GB ($150)

E Drive: Media Cache & Scratch - Samsung 860 EVO 500GB ($150)

F Drive: General storage, archived projects, documents, etc - WD Blue 1TB (currently own - I may upgrade this)

Configuration 3: the ideal configuration (also most expensive)

C Drive: OS & Applications - Samsung 850 EVO 250 GB (currently own)

D Drive: Project & Source Media - Samsung 960 EVO M.2 500GB ($230)

E Drive: Media Cache & Scratch - Samsung 860 EVO 500GB ($150)

F Drive: General storage, archived projects, documents, etc - WD Blue 1TB (currently own - I may upgrade this)

Obviously Configuration 3 is optimal, but it is also the most expensive and may be overkill for a small hobbyist like me.

Is 500GB enough for Project & Source Media, and Media Cache and Scratch?

[CC268]

Holy cow...so I took like 300 clips in Maui...transcoded it from H.264 to Cineform YUV 10 bit. 690GB of data! So...obviously 500GB SSDs are not going to work for me. Going to have to rethink all of this and how to handle this much data.

[RjL190365]

In your case, then, if all of those clips are going to be assembled together as a single movie, then you're trapped between a rock and a hard place. Your current disk configuration will not do since all spinning hard drives start dropping off in performance drastically at around 60 percent full - but in the case of your single WD Blue 1 TB HDD, it will be over 70 percent full! (This is because Microsoft and the hard drive manufacturers define TB and GB differently, where Microsoft's 690 GB definition is actually 690 GiB - but the HDD maker's "1 TB" definition actually only holds 931 GiB. That hard drive will be almost 75 percent full, plus additional space consumed by the exports and miscellaneous files created by the process!)

And since the 1 TB Samsung 960 EVO is out of your budget, and I do not recommend any m.2 version of the 860 EVO for various reasons (including that using a single SATA m.2 SSD might prevent the use of the other m.2 socket for anything at all by simply disabling that second port), then your only viable choice would be a 1 TB 860 EVO in the 2.5" (not m.2) form factor at this point.

(DISCLAIMER: I am not slamming the m.2 version of the 860 EVO per se. It still has its use, particularly in those laptops that have only m.2 ports for internal storage that only support SATA m.2.)

[CC268]

Alright...so at this point let's say I just want to do the needed upgrades and do it right. What would be your recommendation? Don't worry about budget.

Get a second 1TB SSD like the 860 EVO and then maybe like a 6TB Seagate Barracuda HDD? Or maybe even just a nice big external HD for keeping all archived media?

My understanding is that an M.2 is not a huge upgrade from a normal SSD, so spending $450 on an M.2 1TB SSD seems a bit overkill.

I would get two 1TB SSDs, one for Project Media & Source Media and one for Media Cache and Scratch Disks, but I have a midsize tower and don't believe I have room for 3 SSDs and a HD. So that would mean I would have to use my M.2 slot - and like I said $450 for a 1TB M.2 is pretty steep.

I really appreciate any feedback. At this point I just want to do this right and get it done with.

[Bill Gehrke]

I would check two things

1. Does that 690 GB include both the original media and the transcoded media?  After transcoding you could archive the original.
2. Media, and Nedia Cache is generally much smaller than the media itself.  Do you keep deleting the Media and Media Csche files?

I like Randall's suggestion of just going to one 1TB SATA III for your projects and media

[CC268]

Thanks for the help. I think I will start out with the 1TB 860 EVO and then maybe upgrade my 1TB hard drive to the 6TB Seagate Barracuda.

To answer your questions:

1. No I have kept both the h.264 files and the transcoded Cineform YUV 10 bit files. Oh, and I did Cineform proxies too. So some of it is unnecessary. Should I delete the original h.264 files?

2. I haven't touched the media and media cache files. I guess I should be deleting those?

Some questions for you:

1. So I should keep the Projects, Media, Cache, and Scratch on the 1TB HD?

2. Should I upgrade to the 6GB Barracuda HDD or just buy like an external hard drive to keep archived projects on?

Thanks.

[Bill Gehrke]

CC268  wrote
Thanks for the help. I think I will start out with the 1TB 860 EVO and then maybe upgrade my 1TB hard drive to the 6TB Seagate Barracuda.
To answer your questions:
1. No I have kept both the h.264 files and the transcoded Cineform YUV 10 bit files. Oh, and I did Cineform proxies too. So some of it is unnecessary. Should I delete the original h.264 files?
2. I haven't touched the media and media cache files. I guess I should be deleting those? 
Some questions for you:
1. So I should keep the Projects, Media, Cache, and Scratch on the 1TB HD?
2. Should I upgrade to the 6GB Barracuda HDD or just buy like an external hard drive to keep archived projects on?
Thanks.

1. I would never delete your original files but just archive them.
2. Go ahead and delete them because you may have lots of no longer needed unused files.When you reopen the project note the size of those project files.  In my typical projects leave the Media Cache and Media Cache Files folders in the default location in the Users folder on this two SATA III SSD laptop

Questions

1. No, you are limited on your storage space so put only the Project Files and the Media on you largest SSD,  It is the way I do on my laptop.  I also have an an alternative editing procedure I also use a very high speed portable USB 3 SSD like a Samsung T5.  This allow my to be editing on my laptop disconnect the T5 and walk over to my desktop plug it in and keep editing or do my exporting.  Below you will see the T5 performance
2. I would think you are going to need more archive space before long so the external device might be a better plan.

[CC268]

Thanks for the help. I think at this point my best route may be a 1TB 860 EVO, 6TB Seagate Barracuda, and a nice external hard drive.

[MyerPj]

Your write up on PcPartPicker.com was good, thanks!

[CC268]

Honestly I might just spend the money and go with a 1TB 960 EVO M.2, a 1TB 860 EVO, and a 6TB Seagate Barracuda. About $700 total.