MP 7,1 Radeon Pro 580X vs Vega 56 (iMac Pro) for 4K video

[Apple Knowledge Navigator]

Hi all,

I'm looking to purchase a desktop Mac for my small business, where we'll be editing some 4K video (documentaries/clips no more than 10-mins long), doing a lot of graphic design work and some AutoCAD.

I've narrowed the options down to a base Mac Pro and iMac Pro, but although the iMac Pro offers great immediate value, I can't seem to find any information about how the 580X in the Mac Pro handles 4K editing.

Any feedback would be very helpful. And just to clear up; I'm not considering the regular 27" iMac as the cooling solution isn't as advanced as the other machines.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Kris Kelvin]

Which software will you be using for editing video?

Generally speaking, both systems mentioned are able to handle 4K video. In theory, the Vega 56 is slightly faster than the 580X (~10% or so), but it depends on multiple factors how that plays out in real life scenarios. In most cases, you probably wouldn't notice a difference. The same is true for the CPU, by the way: Both single- and multi-core results are very similar for the base Mac Pro (2019) and the base iMac Pro (Late 2017).

Considering the iMac Pro also contains a great display and a larger SSD, it's a good deal.
That being said, if you're considering upgrading the GPU at some point, the Mac Pro is the way to go – but definitely more expensive.