Computer Upgrade Advice

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Computer Upgrade Advice
by Kevin Allmond on Jun 20, 2012 at 12:00:16 pm

Here is my current Computer setup:
Late 2009 iMac
3.06 GHz Dual Core Processor
8 GB 1067 MHz DDR3 RAM
500 GB Hard Drive
NVIDIA GeForce 9400 256 MB Graphics
FCPX, Adobe Premier Elements, Motion, Compressor, iLife 11

When I bought this machine, I did not realize that I would get into HD video editing like I am today. It has become a hobby and passion. As I go forward with my editing, I am realizing that I need a faster machine due to slowness in render times, drop frames in the final product, and ghosting when rendering 1080p video.

I am in the position to upgrade, but I am having a hard time deciding which way to go. I have 3 questions that should help me in my decision making:

1. The more that I read, I am understanding that a stout graphics card is preferred for video editing. How true is this?

2. What is the minimum preferred specs for a video editing machine?

3. I am really thinking about wanting to have the portability of a laptop. Can I get away with a Macbook Pro/Air, and what should be the minimum preferred specs with that?

A couple of things to remember, I don't have a big budget. As much as I would like to pick up the top of the line Mac Pro, or video editing system, I can't. Again, this is hobbyistic more than anything. The other thing is, I am going to stay with Apple product. Not only am I just happy with the Apple machines that I own, I have too much invested in Apple now to migrate back over to Windows.

As always, your help is greatly appreciated!

Thank you

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Re: Computer Upgrade Advice
by Todd Perchert on Jun 20, 2012 at 2:18:50 pm

1. For FCPX you will want an OpenCL compatible card. Look Here: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4664
Basically, the gpu helps to accelerate your playback and previews. But, I believe with the Macbook Air you are stuck with the Intel HD 4000 which isn't listed.

2. Minimum specs all depends on what sort of files you are editing. HDSLR files are usually quite small and low data rate, so you don't need quite as much, compared to DVCPRO HD or some AVCHD. But generally a 4-core cpu over 2 GHz will get you by, and at least 6-8 GB or RAM. But RAM depends on what you are doing. Doesn't sound like you are rockin' the AfterEffects, so 24 GB of RAM may be overkill.

3. Certainly. Many people edit with their laptops. Once again it all comes down to what sort of files you are dealing with.

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Re: Computer Upgrade Advice
by Kevin Allmond on Jun 20, 2012 at 2:58:48 pm

Thanks for that. I currently own three Canon Vixia cameras (HF G10, HF M40, HF M500), which all record AVCHD by default.

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Re: Computer Upgrade Advice
by Kevin Allmond on Jun 22, 2012 at 4:44:54 pm

I appreciate the help. Just to let you know, I purchased a 2.2 quad core i7 macbook pro with the dual Intel HD Graphics 3000 and AMD Radeon HD 6750M 512mb graphics card. Its only 4gb of ram, but i plan to upgrade it to 8. I think/hope this will be a good machine for me.

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