I'm building a new mac, and having a hard time visualizing how my HD work will appear on screen in AE. I'm planning on using one of my two old basic 19" LCDs, then adding a monitor that will accommodate a full view of HD. Can I do this with the 23" cinema display, or do I have to go clear up to 30"? It seems like at 1920x1080, the 23" wouldn't leave me any room for buttons on my comp window. Is there a toggle in AE that will let me utilize a 23" for both work and preview, or am I going to be frustrated at my *almost* big enough 23" monitor?
Also, if you feel like chiming in, I'm also looking for input on the following:
-- What kind of hardware setup do you recommend for consistent HD playback? Is this mostly a RAM issue, or do I need to build a RAID? I'm not doing any "editing", just AE and Cinema4D work.
-- Is the NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT 512MB a better product than the ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT 256MB ($150 less) for what I'm doing?
Thanks for your input. Please feel free to politely direct my tired question to the correct lead if you know of it. I couldn't find anything specifically related to building a new Mac.
Re: HD fits in a 23" cinema display? by Lars Bunch on Jul 9, 2008 at 1:54:57 pm
Hi,
The 23" Cinema Display is a 16x10 monitor and will show a small amount of buttons below the video if you open up a quicktime file. When you use the full screen playback in AE, it should display your animations pixel for pixel with a little room on top and bottom but none on the sides. There is no need to get a 30" to make sure you are seeing everything.
Obviously in normal working situations, you won't be able to see the entire frame at full size, but this is rarely an issue and you can always toggle the ~ key to view the main window. I use a 30" monitor and I still rarely see the whole frame at full resolution while I'm working. The larger screen is definitely worth it, but it is not necessary. I would say that the 23" screen is the minimum size I would want to work with for HD.
If you can afford a RAID, get it. A lot of memory is probably more important as it speeds up your rendering and helps in RAM previews, but you should be able to play back your final animations without skipping. Also faster disc access makes life happier.
You can get a simple Port Multiplier box with the appropriate eSATA controller card relatively cheaply at macgurus.com. I have a couple of these and with 5 drives striped in a RAID 0 I am able to play back full size, uncompressed HD. You might also want to consider an SAS RAID if you have a MacPro. Highpoint RocketRAID with an Enhance drive enclosure seems like an inexpensive way to go.
There are others who can answer the question on graphics cards better than I can, but my feeling is that unless your software is specifically optimized to utilize the GPU, a high end graphics card isn't going to make a huge difference in your work flow. The less expensive one is likely to do just fine. Just make sure it will support a 30" monitor if it is likely you will get one.
