FCS and iMac/i5/i7 or 8gb RAM? at DVinfo.net

Ryan Bales · October 10th, 2010, 12:18 PM

I am working on a slim budget for our DVD production. We are going to purchase an iMac for our editing station. We can only afford to upgrade the processor or the RAM. What would you people recommend. Any help is appreciated. We will be using Lacie external HD w/ FW800 and the latest FCS. We will be editing HDV with minimal special effects, (it is a documentary.) Thank you for any advice.

Andy Wilkinson · October 10th, 2010, 12:27 PM

OK, I'll start it off with my own opinion. If it were me I'd go for i7 and the minimal RAM (especially as this project will need only "simple" editing).

In the mid/distant future when you feel rich you can add more RAM - very easily!

If you buy an i5 with more RAM...when you feel rich you are still stuck with an i5 (as you can't easily upgrade the processor).

Either processor is excellent, but always go for the best you can afford at any one time (and build on it later).

I'm sure you'll get other opinions....

Mathieu Ghekiere · October 10th, 2010, 03:45 PM

I have an i7 with 8GB RAM from the previous generation. I love the machine.
I would also go for an i7 and if you really can't upgrade the RAM (if I'm not mistaken it's only a 180 dollar difference...), then you can still do it in the future.

An i7 has hyperthreading, so compressor sees it as 8 cores. An i5 doesn't, so your system only sees it as 4 cores.

Ryan Bales · October 10th, 2010, 04:56 PM

Thank you guys. So far it looks like an easy decision for the i7 unless someone can tell me different.

Dave Partington · October 12th, 2010, 02:44 AM

We have an 27" i7 (quad) iMac with 4GB ram and it edits HD with no problem. If we need to layer lots of things we drop back to Proxy (whereas we can stay with 422 or LT on the Mac Pro) due to the HDD bandwidth.

The only gotcha I have to grumble about with the iMac is that the network chip does not support jumbo frames so the network bandwidth is limited to about 24MB/s whereas I get 3 or 4 times that from the Mac Pros.

Thomas Smet · October 14th, 2010, 08:50 AM

I have to agree with everybody else here. The two things you cannot upgrade on the iMacs are the cpu and the gpu. Get the best you can now and add the Ram later. Plus after market ram is typically much cheaper then having Apple add it. I don't know very many people anymore that do not upgrade the ram themselves.

I can also confirm FCS works great with 4GB of ram on my 21.5" iMac. I can also edit HD at full quality even with a core 2 duo and 4GB of ram so I doubt you would notice a massive performance hit by having 4GB instead of 8GB for now.

Fred Stacy · October 14th, 2010, 10:18 PM

Need decent engine to work with HD in FCP6. iMac appears to be the working man's (aka low budget) choice. How much would I lose in processing power if I chose the i5 with basic 4GB Ram?

Thomas Smet · October 16th, 2010, 07:54 AM

While in my last post above I did mention that you should get the best cpu you can because of rendering I personally have always wondered if actual timeline performance and RT would be any better with FCS with any system above a core 2 duo. It is my understanding that while playing back and editing footage FCP only uses 2 cores. Now rendering with Compressor and other applications will be much faster with a 4 core system but in terms of RT playback of video and effects would anything above my current core 2 duo at 3.06Ghz really make a huge difference.

Of course if you can afford it I think core cores will always be better because of rendering and encoding but really for a budget system or somebody who doesn't take if their renders take a few extra hours will a 3Ghx 2 core system offer just as much editing performance with just FCP itself?

October 10th, 2010, 12:18 PM	#1
Ryan Bales New Boot Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Redmond, OR Posts: 14	FCS and iMac/i5/i7 or 8gb RAM? I am working on a slim budget for our DVD production. We are going to purchase an iMac for our editing station. We can only afford to upgrade the processor or the RAM. What would you people recommend. Any help is appreciated. We will be using Lacie external HD w/ FW800 and the latest FCS. We will be editing HDV with minimal special effects, (it is a documentary.) Thank you for any advice.

October 10th, 2010, 12:27 PM	#2
Andy Wilkinson Inner Circle Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Cambridge UK Posts: 2,853	OK, I'll start it off with my own opinion. If it were me I'd go for i7 and the minimal RAM (especially as this project will need only "simple" editing). In the mid/distant future when you feel rich you can add more RAM - very easily! If you buy an i5 with more RAM...when you feel rich you are still stuck with an i5 (as you can't easily upgrade the processor). Either processor is excellent, but always go for the best you can afford at any one time (and build on it later). I'm sure you'll get other opinions.... __________________ Andy K Wilkinson - https://www.shootingimage.co.uk Cambridge (UK) Corporate Video Production

October 10th, 2010, 03:45 PM	#3
Mathieu Ghekiere Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Belgium Posts: 2,195	I have an i7 with 8GB RAM from the previous generation. I love the machine. I would also go for an i7 and if you really can't upgrade the RAM (if I'm not mistaken it's only a 180 dollar difference...), then you can still do it in the future. An i7 has hyperthreading, so compressor sees it as 8 cores. An i5 doesn't, so your system only sees it as 4 cores. __________________ http://productionsofthe3rdkind.com http://pr3k.com

October 12th, 2010, 02:44 AM	#5
Dave Partington Trustee Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: York, England Posts: 1,323	We have an 27" i7 (quad) iMac with 4GB ram and it edits HD with no problem. If we need to layer lots of things we drop back to Proxy (whereas we can stay with 422 or LT on the Mac Pro) due to the HDD bandwidth. The only gotcha I have to grumble about with the iMac is that the network chip does not support jumbo frames so the network bandwidth is limited to about 24MB/s whereas I get 3 or 4 times that from the Mac Pros. __________________ Qualified UAV Pilot with CAA PFAW Aerial Photo / Aerial Video \| Corporate Video Production

October 14th, 2010, 10:18 PM	#7
Fred Stacy New Boot Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Harrisburg, IL Posts: 5	i5 or i7 on iMac? Need decent engine to work with HD in FCP6. iMac appears to be the working man's (aka low budget) choice. How much would I lose in processing power if I chose the i5 with basic 4GB Ram?

October 10th, 2010, 04:56 PM	#4
Ryan Bales New Boot Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Redmond, OR Posts: 14	Thank you guys. So far it looks like an easy decision for the i7 unless someone can tell me different.

October 14th, 2010, 08:50 AM	#6
Thomas Smet Trustee Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Milwaukee, WI Posts: 1,719	I have to agree with everybody else here. The two things you cannot upgrade on the iMacs are the cpu and the gpu. Get the best you can now and add the Ram later. Plus after market ram is typically much cheaper then having Apple add it. I don't know very many people anymore that do not upgrade the ram themselves. I can also confirm FCS works great with 4GB of ram on my 21.5" iMac. I can also edit HD at full quality even with a core 2 duo and 4GB of ram so I doubt you would notice a massive performance hit by having 4GB instead of 8GB for now.

October 16th, 2010, 07:54 AM	#8
Thomas Smet Trustee Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Milwaukee, WI Posts: 1,719	While in my last post above I did mention that you should get the best cpu you can because of rendering I personally have always wondered if actual timeline performance and RT would be any better with FCS with any system above a core 2 duo. It is my understanding that while playing back and editing footage FCP only uses 2 cores. Now rendering with Compressor and other applications will be much faster with a 4 core system but in terms of RT playback of video and effects would anything above my current core 2 duo at 3.06Ghz really make a huge difference. Of course if you can afford it I think core cores will always be better because of rendering and encoding but really for a budget system or somebody who doesn't take if their renders take a few extra hours will a 3Ghx 2 core system offer just as much editing performance with just FCP itself?