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Trying to Choose The Right Mac for HD editing

A

awoked

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Oct 29, 2007
2
0
Can anyone please help me, i've been looking for almost 3 months now, I can't seem to find the right one, I am sort of limited in money, but I want something that will last.

I have considered :

MacBookPRo : but realised i did not need the portability

Imac 24'' : But from what I hear i don't know how well it can handle HD video editing

Mac Pro: Very expensive and would need to buy monitor with it, (this is looking like it right now)

If anyone could give me some advice it would be greatly appreciated.
 
I do 720p editing on my 2.33 15" MBP w/2GB RAM, and it works fine. I run Final Cut Express HD - just because it has all the tools and features I need. Once the new MBPs come out, Im sure you would be able to run FCE just fine. Leo actually sped up my rendering time by about 20%... which is awesome considering its all on the same hardware, just a new OS. OR... you can wait till the quad-core mobiles come out (intel is releasing them 2QTR '08 - so maybe '08s MBP update in Nov??).

Mac Pro is EXPENSIVE - and unless you REALLY need that much power, a MBP is the best option for ya. Also, drop a 250GB HD in yourself... HD data is ~10GB/hr... so you can use up a lot of space pretty easily on your scratch disk.

iMacs just dont have the horsepower to do it well... wouldnt recommend that option.
 
Hey guys.

Why is the MBP better than the iMac 24" 2.8GHz?
Is it just for portability or the specs are also better?

Thank you.
Bas.
 
baslotto said:
Hey guys.

Why is the MBP better than the iMac 24" 2.8GHz?
Is it just for portability or the specs are also better?

Thank you.
Bas.
Click to expand...


Yes, I think you'll find the portability will be a better value than any small difference in specs, but it just comes down to how you'll use it.
 
awoked said:
Imac 24'' : But from what I hear i don't know how well it can handle HD video editing
Click to expand...


well, we use several 24" iMacs for HD editing in a daily production enviroment... and dont have any issues... render/export times may be slightly slower than other workstations in our office, but for basic news stories without alot of effects, it is totally fine.
 
How much editing are you going to be doing? If you're going to be editing at least 24 hours a month (isn't that much really), IMHO, get the Mac Pro when it updates.

Get a 30" screen too. The screen real estate, fast processors, cheaper internal drive space (not from Apple), and RAM options will save you time in the long run. In truth, for what you get, the MP is NOT that much more expensive if you consider the amount of time saved in rendering, encoding, etc.

You also won't have to replace it for a fairly long while.

MBP and iMacs will get the job done. But the best tool for the job (provided you are doing the job often enough) is definitely a MP.

If it is truly "very expensive" for you, then it might not be the best option. You'll need extra drives/RAM/screen in addition to the computer. Just make sure that the computer you choose meets your needs. If you get a MBP, you'll need an external monitor as well. Both MBP & iMac will need an external HD. FCP/Motion on a laptop screen is a form of cruel & unusual punishment. Again, it will get the job done. But what kind of shape will you be in when you get there?
 
awoked said:
MacBookPRo : but realised i did not need the portability

Imac 24'' : But from what I hear i don't know how well it can handle HD video editing/QUOTE]

Macbook Pro and iMac are the SAME EXACT computer except for the graphics card. However the graphics card doesn't matter for editing.
Click to expand...
 
HD comes in many flavors.

What exactly do you mean by HD editing? That could and can mean different things. Are you working with footage from and HDV camera or footage from a pro HD camera? If you're using footage from an HDV camera you can capture through FW. However, for pro HD material you will need a deck and a fast array.

HD is confusing these days as the term is thrown out casually. Alot of people still don't realize what it truly means to 'go HD'. More info will determine what computer will work best for your situation.
 
HD comes in many flavors.

What exactly do you mean by HD editing? That could and can mean different things. Are you working with footage from and HDV camera or footage from a pro HD camera? If you're using footage from an HDV camera you can capture through FW. However, for pro HD material you will need a deck and a fast array.

HD is confusing these days as the term is thrown out casually. Alot of people still don't realize what it truly means to 'go HD'. More info will determine what computer will work best for your situation.
 
RE: Not enough info...

What you are using now...

If you have a desktop Tower, there is likely a bit you can reuse. A new Mac Pro doesn't mean a new monitor if you already have one.

Looking at the apps on Apple's site and seeing what you are doing and the minimum they require is also helpful.

---

If you are running a business out of you house, and want to keep doing this and updating.

Spending 50-100 bucks to file a corporation, a few hundred to open a business account, buying an accounting app, etc. may be needed in the future to actually get a loan to buy the equipment to grow. Keeping a business account and running things through that, and keeping track of cash flow is quite useful.

If it is a hobby or you are a student, then the path and machine choices may be different since what you want, and what you "need," may be two different things.
 
thanks a lot to everyone

thanks a lot for everyones help, heres a bit more information on why I will be purchasing one:

I will be going to vancouver film school in may '08. Where I'll be needing the computer to edit all different sorts of Photo's, Sounds, and mostly Film Footage, This is where the portability for the MBP would come in handy.

Also I will be purchasing a pro HD camera in the near future. (I haven't decided which, that will be a whole nother story next summer)

I will be probably doing hours of editing a day.

I will be using the computer for both HD camera footage, Pro HD footage and also regular footage. I will also be hopefully using a new version of FCP and Photoshop CS.

Does anyone know about any updates on the New MBP's or a release date for them?

Also for the MBPs, I am sort of worried of over-heating issues, I haven't heard anything but I am hoping there is none?

**If I want a mac that I will be able to do hours of video and photo editing of all kinds each day at a fast speed, and one that will last me a few years, is the new upgraded MBP really the best choice?
 
My 2.33 MBP gets a little warm when doing rendering for a while (10 min+)... but nothing too bad... i usually put it on my desk if its going to render that long or longer. But i do editing with it on my lap (FCE-HD) for hours at a time, its warm, but not hot.

The MBP updates usually come around end of the calendar year (Nov-ish) from what I've seen - could be wrong on this tho.
 
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