multitasking efficiently with Q6600

[umakemebetter]

is it possible to limit software to certain cores? i want to utilize a possibly upcoming build as efficiently as possible - i'm using it for converting peoples VHS's into DVD's.

I Want: to have two digital tv tuner/video capture cards ripping two vhs's at the same time - so can i split the power evenly between the 4 cores? (one program gets two, the other program gets the other two)

and i'd like to do the same when i'm encoding the videos onto DVD

on a separate note, how long would it take to encode 2 hours worth of video into DVD-friendly MPEG2? (itll be in pieces, but each video should contain 2 hours of vid total, and itll be batch converted). and my second question, how long would that take when using only 2 of the 4 cores? (remember, 720x480 mpeg2)

i'd like to know the realistic timings because i'd like to do it all 2 at a time

specs for build:
Q6600
8GB of DDR2-800 (dual channel)
Vista64
250GB HD

don't try to deter me from the 8GB btw, i wont budge

 

[GhostGT]

The program load itself will be distributed among the four cores as the processor sees fit. I don't see you having any problems with that. I've had multiple editing software open/ripping/editing/creating movies at the same time and it still has room for more.

 

[umakemebetter]

oh okay, thank you.
do you have an idea of how long 2 hours of 720x480 mpeg2 encoding would take? with that hardware?

it would take about 6-7 hours with my current hardware, and its not just a simple math equation to calculate the time saved, because theres so many things different about this build

 

[DJ-CHRIS1]

It should automatically distribute it between the cores, however you can also manually tell it which core to use if you desire as well. This is only typically necessary for time sensitive applications. I think it would take 3 hours to encode a movie or so (As each core is almost twice as fast as what you have now), but you'd be able to do 2+ at once.

 

[cwharms]

It's really not needed, but you can do it. Open task manager, right click the service and choose set affinity.

 

[movinup]

The Q6600 can easily handle your needs, but remember that time wise, copying/ripping a VHS is in "real time" to create the initial MPG-2 file. The time to create an .iso for the DVD will depend on the program you use. Check out DVD-Guides.com for all the info you will ever need. Finally, after you do all this it will take time to burn to DVD. Use a quality DVD-/+R and probably no faster than 8x.

Edit: For what it's worth, the quality of any VHS>DVD you create will never be any better than the original quality of the VHS. Consider this before you spend alot of time

 

[Kage]

I limit some programs to only use 3 of the 4 cores, especially ones that even with 4 cores, while rendering etc decides to use up 99% of the CPU