Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

What software do you intend to use on it?

aellman Loc: Boston MA

I would add HP to that list. All of my IT friends prefer them.

Barny

My AOC 2436Vwh monitor does not seem to have sufficient controls available to calibrate it any suggestions
fed up of googling for info

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

You're right - it doesn't. That's where the external calibrator comes in that I mentioned in the previous post. When you calibrate the monitor, it generates a profile that's loaded on start-up and modifies the look up table (LUT) for the video card so that the card outputs an image that has the correct color and brightness for that particular monitor. I know it's probably not the solution you wanted, but as far as I know, it's the only way to do it correctly. The upside is you'll be able to calibrate all the monitors you have now or will have in the future.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Gene, take a look on the first page of the thread (it's the first thing I asked as well).

Cheers,
Chris

pmackd Loc: Alameda CA

If there is a local computer shop with a good reputation you can also have them build a machine to your specs. You can order the components from some online site like Tigerdirect or Newegg and save some money. But the real point is to have in person/on site support with local people "within strangling distance" if things go wrong. Dealing with big company tech support on the phone can be mighty frustrating. Been there done that many times with Dell. They will usually ask you to do all sorts of stuff yourself...maybe for hours on end... before sending you a replacement part, or if you pay for on site support sending a tech to your location. Local is better; the owner of a computer store often has far greater depth of knowledge than the tech support people on the phone.

pmackd Loc: Alameda CA

Whichever computer you get learn how to back up the system (operating system, all software, and documents/data other than your photos. ) Western Digital provides a free program called Acronis you can download to do this with on Windows PCs. You can also use Windows back up features but Acronis is better. Do the system backup at least every six months, then delete the old backups. Once you have done this you have put yourself in a position where a crash of your main system drive (very possible, even if SSD) is practically a non-event. You will be able to rebuild your system to usable condition in less than an hour. Whereas without this, you would have many hours to days of work, enormous stress, and possible lost data to contend with...and could very well need to hire an expert to help.

In my opinion you need at least three (3) copies of your photos, though one could be in the cloud. Hard drives fail, and some may fail early.

aellman Loc: Boston MA

I have spent way too much time on the phone with Dell support. If I ever have to spend another 2 hours
following their trial and error method, I'm going to stab myself. >Alan

pmackd Loc: Alameda CA

Like I said! Fortunately for me, I was eventually able to train a few students to make the Dell calls...this when I was managing computers for a high school. We eventually figured out that if we refused to do what they suggested and demanded a field guy to come do the work on site, they would usually go along. But we were a big customer, with hundreds of their computers, and had three year on site support. Eventually the support ran out and we stopped calling Dell, except to order overpriced proprietary power supplies. We had to do all the diagnosis and repair ourselves. Imagine drawers full of dead hard drives...

Haydon

I'd look at a custom built PC and not a laptop if your interested in editing and a Windows based machine to use your money smartly.I endorse Gene's suggestion using Microcenter if your uncomfortable doing your own build.

aellman Loc: Boston MA

Don't know if you ever tried this, but if you can get them to bump you up to the higher level support people (they call them "top 10%"), it's a whole different world of people who actually know something. With the lower level people it's a crap shoot. Years ago I had the misfortune to have a ransomware virus. I spent 4 hours (OMG) on the phone with a rep who had absolutely no clue. I finally hung up and called back, hoping against hope to get someone better. I got a guy who fixed it in five minutes. I asked him how he did it. He said that he had had a lot of cases of this virus (FBI), and had done research and testing on solutions. He found the right one. You might ask why that wasn't shared with the rest of the support people.

carlberg

MAC sightings in the documentaries were usually fleeting glances or in the background, hardly useful placements. They were clearly being used by the subjects of the docs. BTW, we've been satisfied Apple/MAC users since 1980.

aellman Loc: Boston MA

I was speaking of commercial movies, in which the Macs are painfully obvious. Not as familiar with documentaries.

bobben49

It's the Monitor! Most laptops do NOT have an IPS Monitor and you should connect them to a calibrated IPS Monitor for final color ajustments. If you do not have a quality IPS monitor that is properly calibrated you will never get your colors right except by accident. See Arnaud Frich's excellent article on photographic color management:

http://www.color-management-guide.com/how-to-choose-monitor-for-photography.html

For a fairly current list of IPS monitors see:

http://www.144hzmonitors.com/best-photo-editing-monitor-2016/

Lots of CPU and GPU speed and lots of GPU and main system memory make the editing process go much faster and smoother: If you are a Windows 10 user please note Gaming Desktops and Gaming Laptops have plenty of this stuff. Note most photo editing software does not support multiple video cards so if you go the gaming desktop route invest in the best single video card with lots of memory not multiple video cards. And turn on the "Use Graphic Processor" feature as GPU's are designed to more rapidly process graphics than any CPU of the same generation. Also make certain you have something that allows your camera to transfer graphic images to your the computer. If your camera is fairly new it will most likely have WIFI. If not you will need a card reader that supports the same memory card as your camera uses. If you get a 4K monitor make certain the video output of your computer or laptop supports 4k.

If you are an Apple person all the same applies but make certain that you get the Apple Computer you get and the monitor you get can be connected. Many Monitors have "Apple" versions or are "Apple compatible". Also be very careful that the particular Apple computer or laptop you get even has a way to connect to an external monitor. Apple does not feel the least bit obligated to conform to any PC industry standard or to not completely change their interfaces when a new model comes out. Check your specifications carefully.

Note laptop touch pads are terrible when using photo editing software, a high quality mouse is a little better but do not come close to a Wacom graphics tablet. (You don't need the $800 one unless you have really great drawing skills. they have models under $100 that will fill most photographer's needs.)

LAST BUT NOT LEAST --- SHOOT RAW! and use or learn Lightroom/ or On1's raw editor due out in a few weeks that allow you do non-destructively edit raw files. You loose too much detail when you have your camera convert your photos to JPEG.

My System is Home Built.
MSI Gaming Motherboard-- gaming motherboards are made with the best components since gamers like to overclock there systems.
Intel I-7 processor
32 GB RAM
NVidia 970 GPU
2 500GB SSD's For software and OS (Windows 10)
2 3GB server grade spinning drive in level 1 raid all my photos are stored here
Carbonite off-sight backup of all digital photos
Logitech gaming mouse and a Wacom tablet
Dell U2413 IPS Monitor
Syder Elite color calibration system
Lightroom/Photoshop and On1 Raw on preorder

Hope this of help.

Bob Benson
http://www.bug-bird.com/

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

MicroCenter does the custom config as well. They will try to steer you towards a machine optimized for gaming, but your needs are a little different - so an 8 gb video card to drive 5 displays is not something you need or want. On the whole, I have had a dozen or so interactions with them, sending them people who need something like what the OP is looking for, and they have been reasonable in price, competent in their build, and overall a great customer experience.