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Anyone gone the 2TB SSD option in the 2017 iMac?

Fester1952

Fester1952

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jul 22, 2012
100
11
Adelaide, Australia
Looking at upgrading my 2014 iMac to a 2017 iMac. Have the intention of maxing it out with everything. 64GB ram I will do myself, already have 64GB from OWC (bought here in Australia). The 2TB SSD has a premium price here in Australia +$2,240AU. I have 1.3TB of data on my fusion drive now, I want to avoid having external drives hanging off the new one. I will also take advantage of the 18 months interest free offer for purchase but paying it all off before the expiry of the interest free period. Have many others here gone the 2TB SSD option, going through the threads here it doesn't seem so.
 
It's a huge waste of money in my opinion. you can get some sticky Velcro and stick an external drive to the back of your Mac and you'll never see it. All my photos videos and music are on an external. I can't imagine storing photos on an ssd when they're not used much. I shoot in 14 bit raw too so I do a lot of Lightroom editing and when I'm done I just send them to the external. Ssd is expensive space and you could buy another Mac for how much you spend to upgrade to 2tb
 
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cptn.nemo said:
you could buy another Mac for how much you spend to upgrade to 2tb
Click to expand...

Not in Australia you can't lol

I have a 3TB fusion drive in my existing iMac, do a lot of FCPX work, mainly drone footage, and use Parallels VM a lot for work stuff and also Lightroom. I do find with FCPX sometimes I get the beachball and things grind to a halt for awhile. I don't know, if I didn't go 2TB SSD I would probably go the 3TB fusion like I have now, I know it's a lot of cash, but I can remember paying $1,500 for 8mb of ram once, long time ago! Just thought I would spoil myself and go the full hog this time, prop up Apple's bottom line!
 
In the end, you need to do what ever you really want so you have no regrets, but if your choices are 2 tb ssd or 3tb fusion, i would do neither and go 512ssd and add a 4tb external for 100 bucks.
 
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cptn.nemo said:
you can get some sticky Velcro and stick an external drive to the back of your Mac and you'll never see it.
Click to expand...

Is that for an SSD or HDD external? I've got an SSD external running my system velcroed on the back of the iMac at a 45 degree angle but I don't think I'd do that with a HDD. Wouldn't it need to be vertical or horizontal?
 
I originally ordered the i7 580 with 3TB Fusion drive to replace my 2012 mac mini 6,2 with 1TB fusion drive (which is over 80% full). I found the new fusion drive to be a bit of a drag on performance, I could hear it running and the UPS delivery guy even dropped my expensive package. It landed on the bottom corner crushing the inner and outer packaging. I saw some graphics glitches too while using iTunes. I sent it straight back to Apple.

After much hesitation and weighing of options I've just ordered the same with a 2TB SSD and I've added Applecare. I've already got a buyer for my old mini+thunderbolt display which covers the SSD cost. Of course, it's really expensive but I don't want to lose time shuffling files around manually and noise is to be avoided since I do audio. I already use external disks for backups and archiving, I'd rather not rely on externals for normal use if I can help it. I also prefer to be using an SSD with Apple's new file system in High Sierra (I'll wait for a stable version before upgrading, usually around christmas time).

IMO it's the best moment for me to part with the mini and display. I have a good feeling for this generation of iMacs and the display is great for my ageing eyes. I had a quick search on the prices of these SSDs on the open market and they seem to cost similar to what Apple charges, unlike the RAM which I'll buy elsewhere. The only thing I think I'll miss is the look of the bezel on the tbd, here's a picture of the two together.
Screen Shot 2017-07-02 at 17.01.23.png
 
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I'm tempted to try it in the configuration due to the existing gift cards and return of a previous Mac, mainly due to running a few vms and digital photo and video libraries. Would be beneficial not to have a spinning sluggish mechanical drive internally or externally. Everything else is local network storage or cloud.

Just trying to decide on CPU and ram configurations. 16-32gb should be plenty but it is tempting to get 64gb aftermarket
 
Tjmckay4 said:
Is that for an SSD or HDD external? I've got an SSD external running my system velcroed on the back of the iMac at a 45 degree angle but I don't think I'd do that with a HDD. Wouldn't it need to be vertical or horizontal?
Click to expand...

Oh yikes you're right I never thought of that. Maybe it should be laying flat...


Also, if you really want the 2tb SSD go for it if that's what makes you happy and it doesn't add much to the monthly cost. I'm sure you'll easily be able to sell that down the road. For me personally, and a lot of others here, were happy with externals. But if you're going to regret your choice go ssd all the way. It's a big purchase you might as well get what you really want
 
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Taz Mangus said:
The main disadvantage to using SSD over USB is not having Trim.
Click to expand...

The real question is how much of an impact that has and whether internal garbage collection is good enough without taking up too many writes. Also I believe it's possible to have TRIM support if you use thunderbolt, but I'm not sure there are any TB3 enclosures for SSD's yet.
 
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Strelok said:
The real question is how much of an impact that has and whether internal garbage collection is good enough without taking up too many writes. Also I believe it's possible to have TRIM support if you use thunderbolt, but I'm not sure there are any TB3 enclosures for SSD's yet.
Click to expand...

Yes Trim over TB. There are some TB3 enclosures but not many.
 
Yes, until I saw how much I pay for it. Then I cried and left it alone. Accepting defeat - and while I was wiping he tears from my face I pat myself on the back comforting with the thought I'd use the $500+ to spec it to 64gb later in life.
 
Fester1952 said:
Not in Australia you can't lol

I have a 3TB fusion drive in my existing iMac, do a lot of FCPX work, mainly drone footage, and use Parallels VM a lot for work stuff and also Lightroom. I do find with FCPX sometimes I get the beachball and things grind to a halt for awhile. I don't know, if I didn't go 2TB SSD I would probably go the 3TB fusion like I have now, I know it's a lot of cash, but I can remember paying $1,500 for 8mb of ram once, long time ago! Just thought I would spoil myself and go the full hog this time, prop up Apple's bottom line!
Click to expand...
If the price is not a problem for you i don't see why you shouldn't go with it expecially if it is a working machine (video editing will require even more space in the future). Since you also need VM i would never buy anything under 1tb ssd. Another option is 1tb + external ssd: the only problem is that right now there is no tb3 ssd option at decent price (the lacie cost too much in my opinion).
 
gian8989 said:
If the price is not a problem for you i don't see why you shouldn't go with it expecially if it is a working machine (video editing will require even more space in the future). Since you also need VM i would never buy anything under 1tb ssd. Another option is 1tb + external ssd: the only problem is that right now there is no tb3 ssd option at decent price (the lacie cost too much in my opinion).
Click to expand...
Exactly, if I could afford it, I would have it.

I am recording quite a bit of 5k screen recording for intranet training stuff, and got a couple of great 4k movies to play with and test the video card. And my 1tb has 550 gb free space now. It adds up quick when things are not slow and you try to compromise with smaller files and lower settings. (And yeh, I will get the space back, because the source + end results are stored & backed up on external drives. But still .. I've only had it for a few weeks.. 1gb/minute 5k screen recordings means 20gb for 20gb raw video before putting it in premiere pro and cutting it down etc.
 
Fester1952 said:
Looking at upgrading my 2014 iMac to a 2017 iMac. Have the intention of maxing it out with everything. 64GB ram I will do myself, already have 64GB from OWC (bought here in Australia). The 2TB SSD has a premium price here in Australia +$2,240AU. I have 1.3TB of data on my fusion drive now, I want to avoid having external drives hanging off the new one. I will also take advantage of the 18 months interest free offer for purchase but paying it all off before the expiry of the interest free period. Have many others here gone the 2TB SSD option, going through the threads here it doesn't seem so.
Click to expand...
Actually, I have just received my iMac with a 2 TB SSD. I didn't have the time to set it up yet but in these posts I have explained the reasons for my decision. ;-) -> Post 1 and Post 2.
 
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Lando555 said:
Actually, I have just received my iMac with a 2 TB SSD. I didn't have the time to set it up yet but in these posts I have explained the reasons for my decision. ;-) -> Post 1 and Post 2.
Click to expand...
I basically agree with your posts, i read them earlier already and I was like 'this guy thinks like me', but i didn't have that much saved up and the money was the only issue for me to not get it.
Instead, I put a few SSD on usb-c in raid and stuck them to the back out of sight. I consider them 'perm', as a second drive, and read/write speeds are much higher than the old systems, so it feels like an internal drive to me. ( i simply got a startech usb-c > ssd cables that were higher than the speeds of the ssd disks ) I wish I could have put them below the stand, but that's where the Pretty Warm Air is that the new imac blows out there when it's under stress. I didn't want to melt the disks :p
 
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Thanks madmin and Lando555, you have reinforced my decision to go the 2TB SSD. I even have the approval of the financial controller now (the wife!). I have recently thrown $5K Australian dollars at a dental implant so around $2K Australian for the SSD doesn't sound so bad, makes me feel better thinking of it that way! Lando555, be interesting to hear what you think of your new beast once setup.
 
Floris said:
I basically agree with your posts, i read them earlier already and I was like 'this guy thinks like me', but i didn't have that much saved up and the money was the only issue for me to not get it.
Instead, I put a few SSD on usb-c in raid and stuck them to the back out of sight. I consider them 'perm', as a second drive, and read/write speeds are much higher than the old systems, so it feels like an internal drive to me. ( i simply got a startech usb-c > ssd cables that were higher than the speeds of the ssd disks ) I wish I could have put them below the stand, but that's where the Pretty Warm Air is that the new imac blows out there when it's under stress. I didn't want to melt the disks :p
Click to expand...
Thank you! Believe me, this SSD decision was really hard. Actually, I hadn't planned to spend so much on this iMac. But then I began to notice that I might not be really happy with the alternatives and I wanted to avoid buyer's remorse. Especially with a computer in this price range. But let's be honest, your alternative solution will be just as good for real-world use. It's just a question of comfort. I would have needed to get additional hardware for a setup like yours so we didn't have the same situation.
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Fester1952 said:
Thanks madmin and Lando555, you have reinforced my decision to go the 2TB SSD. I even have the approval of the financial controller now (the wife!). I have recently thrown $5K Australian dollars at a dental implant so around $2K Australian for the SSD doesn't sound so bad, makes me feel better thinking of it that way! Lando555, be interesting to hear what you think of your new beast once setup.
Click to expand...
I remember talking to my wife about this... she trusted me that this is the right decision. ;-)
Unfortunately, I won't have time to set up the new iMac before the next weekend. Of course, I will give you an update. Yet, the good thing about the SSD upgrade is that there is no doubt that the internal SSD is much faster than external SATA SSDs and that a fast SSD gives you the best performance boost for everyday use. If you want this snappy feeling and no lags, SSD is the way to go and way better than HDD/Fusion Drive. The only things that could be discussed are price and size of the SSD. Performance-wise the situation is clear.
 
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If you can justify its expense then go for it! We would all have the 2tb SSD versions if we could justify it.
 
Strelok said:
It's a waste of money, but if you really can't deal with external drives, then go for it. Otherwise, just get something like this and velcro it to the back like someone mentioned.
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-T3-P...99012343&sr=8-4&keywords=samsung+external+ssd
Click to expand...



Lets break down the price. Assume he's getting the i7

Option 1.) 512 gb SSD iMac $2,700 + 2 TB external SSD $750 = $3,450
  • Extra 512 GB of storage
  • $450 cheaper

Option 2.) 2 TB SSD iMac = $3,900

  • Cleaner setup
  • Higher resale value(2 TB SSD models will be fetching for some good coin years down the road)
  • Faster read and write speeds (Can someone confirm if there is any advantage editing off a single PCI SSD vs USB 3 SSD)
  • A bit more flexibility if bootcamp was involved(may not apply to the OP at all)

When you factor everything in the 2 TB option is not that bad. It's definitely a ripoff in price but it's not quite as bad as I think it seems on the surface.
 
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