Lightroom 6 on 2009 Imac?

[bmac89]

Hi,

So my first question is whether I can expect Lightroom 6 to perform ok on my system?

I have a 2009 Imac 9,1
Core 2 Duo 2.6ghz
8gb RAM
NVIDA Geforce 9400 (256mb)

I know it is getting on the old side, but I'm not quite ready to upgrade.
It is the graphics card that concerns me most. I seem to meet all the other requirements.

Also I am currently running Snow Leopard (yeah yeah) and will obviously need to update to Mavericks or Yosemite. If it was not for Lightroom I would be very happy to stay with SL which runs very fast on my system.

So my next question is can I expect Yosemite to run ok on this system?
I know it meets the system requirements but not sure how well it will run. Hopefully someone can share from experience.

I had Yosemite Beta running off an external USB drive on this system - this was ok for testing but obviously not suitable for general use. So I don't know how much of the slowness factor was the usb drive vs the operating system on my computer.

The other problem is I am running out of space on the internal hdd but that's a whole separate issue! The thought of opening the screen up is quite daunting!


The system requirements for Lightroom 6 are:

Multicore Intel processor with 64-bit support*
Mac OS X 10.8, 10.9, or 10.10
2 GB of RAM (8 GB recommended)
1 GB of Video RAM (VRAM). 2 GB of dedicated VRAM is suggested for large, high resolution monitors, such as 4K and 5K-resolution monitors.
2 GB of available hard-disk space (cannot install on a volume that uses a case-sensitive file system or on removable flash storage devices).
DVD-ROM drive required if purchasing Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® retail boxed version
OpenGL 3.3–capable video adapter for GPU-related functionality


Thanks

 

[illusionx]

Using Yosemite is OK on such system. I have it on a 2009 macbook pro. The only downside is the time it takes to boot up, which is kind of long without an SSD.

 

[Traverse]

Using Yosemite is OK on such system. I have it on a 2009 macbook pro. The only downside is the time it takes to boot up, which is kind of long without an SSD.

Longer with Yosemite than prior versions of OS X?

 

[illusionx]

I don't think i've ever used 10.6 on my 2009, or so briefly that i don't remember anymore.

But i did load 10.6 on an older 2008 white macbook, and that booted up really fast.

 

[bmac89]

I don't think i've ever used 10.6 on my 2009, or so briefly that i don't remember anymore.

But i did load 10.6 on an older 2008 white macbook, and that booted up really fast.

SL boots up very fast compared to my external Yosemite (very slow) and Mavericks (bit slow)

So other than boot up it runs smooth and fast or only ok?
If I had plenty of hard drive space I would just create a partition and try it out.

 

[illusionx]

It's OK. I use Aperture and the problem is the CPU being on the slow side to process all the images when I import(raw) and export (jpeg) them. GUI on Yosemite is being bit choppy compared to ML. I've never ran Mavericks on my 09 before i got a new machine.

 

[bmac89]

Thanks for the replies.

Is anyone able to tell me whether LR6 is likely to function ok on this system?

Obviously I would just try the free trial out if I had the hdd space and was currently running Yosemite on a separate partition.

I have tried LR5 trial but this was running off OSX Yosemite on an external usb drive, so obviously the whole system was slowed down.

 

[MCAsan]

It is time to start planning to replace your Mac if you want to use support versions of LR and PS. Apple may not mention lots of hardware changes at WWDC. There is a very good chance new Macs will start this fall based on Skylake series of Intel CPUs. If so they could have DDR4 memory bus, Thunderbolt 3...etc. With TB3 there is enough bandwidth in one cable to support an external 5K monitor.

 

[bmac89]

It is time to start planning to replace your Mac if you want to use support versions of LR and PS. Apple may not mention lots of hardware changes at WWDC. There is a very good chance new Macs will start this fall based on Skylake series of Intel CPUs. If so they could have DDR4 memory bus, Thunderbolt 3...etc. With TB3 there is enough bandwidth in one cable to support an external 5K monitor.

Hmmm that is what I thought. I was just hoping that I could use LR6 on the Imac 9,1 in the meantime before upgrading to new mac.

I am tempted by the Imac Retina 5K, but don't know that it is really necessary, especially with the price tag. I know it is quite reasonable considering you are getting a top end machine + a top end screen, but even so it seems quite a luxury. Lots to think about!

Also, from what I have read, it seems the current Imac 5k struggles with powering the screen/graphics - including issues running LR... but maybe this has been solved in LR version 6.

 

[Apple fanboy]

Hmmm that is what I thought. I was just hoping that I could use LR6 on the Imac 9,1 in the meantime before upgrading to new mac.

I am tempted by the Imac Retina 5K, but don't know that it is really necessary, especially with the price tag. I know it is quite reasonable considering you are getting a top end machine + a top end screen, but even so it seems quite a luxury. Lots to think about!

Also, from what I have read, it seems the current Imac 5k struggles with powering the screen/graphics - including issues running LR... but maybe this has been solved in LR version 6.

Why not just continue to use LR5 until you upgrade? It's not amazingly different except the HDR and stitch pano options.

 

[bmac89]

Why not just continue to use LR5 until you upgrade? It's not amazingly different except the HDR and stitch pano options.

Sorry for the confusion. I have only used the 30 day free trial of LR 5 on an external USB install of OSX. I have not yet purchased it and have not been able to try it on the internal drive.

Half way through using the LR 5 trial, LR 6 was released. The problem is I don't really know how LR 5 would perform as I was only running it off an external and therefore it was obviously slow.

 

[rotlex]

I moved from Aperture to Lightroom CC a month ago. My current primary comp is a Mid 2007 2.8Ghz Core 2 Duo 24" iMac with 4GB RAM and a 256MB vid card. My Aperture Library, imported into Lightroom, is 500GB and 80K images. (Referenced). Lightroom runs perfectly fine. Seriously. (Runs a bit faster than Aperture did and I thought that was more than acceptable).

Frankly, I've been avoiding upgrading this machine for a LONG time now as it just keeps performing. I think this will be the year, but I'm waiting until we see a new version of the Retina iMac with Skylake CPU.

For reference, LR loads in roughly a minute. Image browsing is quick, again, depends on what you consider quick, and image adjustment\manipulation is better than Aperture. No lag in sliders, quick preview updates etc. etc. Who knows, maybe I can make it to 2017 with this machine and put a 10 year sticker on the case, LOL.

 

[bmac89]

I moved from Aperture to Lightroom CC a month ago. My current primary comp is a Mid 2007 2.8Ghz Core 2 Duo 24" iMac with 4GB RAM and a 256MB vid card. My Aperture Library, imported into Lightroom, is 500GB and 80K images. (Referenced). Lightroom runs perfectly fine. Seriously. (Runs a bit faster than Aperture did and I thought that was more than acceptable).

Frankly, I've been avoiding upgrading this machine for a LONG time now as it just keeps performing. I think this will be the year, but I'm waiting until we see a new version of the Retina iMac with Skylake CPU.

For reference, LR loads in roughly a minute. Image browsing is quick, again, depends on what you consider quick, and image adjustment\manipulation is better than Aperture. No lag in sliders, quick preview updates etc. etc. Who knows, maybe I can make it to 2017 with this machine and put a 10 year sticker on the case, LOL.

Thanks - that is very encouraging.
Are you running Yosemite, Mavericks or Mt Lion?

I have been reluctant to update OSX as SL runs so well on this computer. It works like a charm for everyday use.

 

[Ray2]

Thanks - that is very encouraging.
Are you running Yosemite, Mavericks or Mt Lion?

I have been reluctant to update OSX as SL runs so well on this computer. It works like a charm for everyday use.

I had a 2.8 iMac 8,1 with an ssd. Yosemite is the first OS since SL I was impressed with. Definitely go ahead and do that part of it. I did a fresh install. Personally, I think another machine might be in the cards for you.

I've been running LRv5, C1v7 and Aperture on my system (including the now replaced iMac) for almost a year now. I find Aperture's GUI to run the smoothest. Some tools in all of them will slow things down on your machine. Unless you need LRv6 for some specific reason, perhaps leave well enough alone until you bite the bullet on a new Mac ir have a specific reason for LRv6.

 

[rotlex]

Thanks - that is very encouraging.
Are you running Yosemite, Mavericks or Mt Lion?

I have been reluctant to update OSX as SL runs so well on this computer. It works like a charm for everyday use.

Currently running Yosemite 10.10.3. It runs as good, if not better, than previous versions for me on this machine.