Unsure whether to go for 1TB or 2TB SSD for video editing workflow?

[Disposable_Hero]

Hi all,

I'm currently looking at upgrade my Mac to a 27-inch iMac with mostly maxed out spec (3.6GHz 10-core i9 processor, 128GB RAM, 5700 XT) but the final thing I'm just a bit unsure about is what size SSD to go for. The price is obviously already quite with the rest of the spec and I already know I want to upgrade the standard 512GB SSD - I'm just unsure whether to go for 1TB or 2TB and was hoping someone could give me an idea of what differences I would see from the two and whether it's worth it?

I primarily use my Mac for video editing and motion graphics and at the minute I store most of my media on external hard drives and work from them. My current thinking is to get the 1TB SSD and then invest in an external SSD to store video / graphics / audio on and work from that so as to not clutter the internal drive. One of the main reasons for upgrading is the increase in the amount of times I'm having to work with 4K footage and so I ideally need a system that can handle this comfortably.

Would getting a 2TB SSD provide any significants benefit for this workflow or am I better off saving the money and investing in external SSD drives down the road as and when I need them?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[wilberforce]

If you are going to use external SSD anyway, then I think 1TB internal SSD should be fine. 1TB is definitely a worthwhile upgrade from 512GB for only $200.

I got 2TB internal SSD only because I don't use external SSD. My iMac is in a living room and don't like the look of things always plugged into it. I use only external hard (spinning) drives for occasional bulk long-term storage.

btw, the larger the internal SSD, the faster it is. I think the speed difference between 1TB SSD and 2TB SSD is probably not much, but it is a possible consideration if you are on the fence.

Are you sure you need the i9 and the 128GB RAM? MaxTech did a comparison, and concluded that the 5700XT is definitely worth it, but the i9 and more than 64GB RAM gave little performance improvement. The cost of the i9 and the extra 64GB RAM is more than the cost of the 2TB SSD. Check this out, if you have not already seen it:

I assume you know already to NOT order the machine with 128GB of Apple RAM - order it with only 8GB, and install your own third party RAM. Else you are donating $$$ to Apple for no purpose.

 

[Disposable_Hero]

If you are going to use external SSD anyway, then I think 1TB internal SSD should be fine. 1TB is definitely a worthwhile upgrade from 512GB for only $200.

I got 2TB internal SSD only because I don't use external SSD. My iMac is in a living room and don't like the look of things always plugged into it. I use only external hard (spinning) drives for occasional bulk long-term storage.

btw, the larger the internal SSD, the faster it is. I think the speed difference between 1TB SSD and 2TB SSD is probably not much, but it is a possible consideration if you are on the fence.

Are you sure you need the i9 and the 128GB RAM? MaxTech did a comparison, and concluded that the 5700XT is definitely worth it, but the i9 and more than 64GB RAM gave little performance improvement. The cost of the i9 and the extra 64GB RAM is more than the cost of the 2TB SSD. Check this out, if you have not already seen it:

I assume you know already to NOT order the machine with 128GB of Apple RAM - order it with only 8GB, and install your own third party RAM. Else you are donating $$$ to Apple for no purpose.

Thanks for the detailed response! I am planning on only ordering it with 8GB RAM and upgrading it myself - sorry, I should've specified that!

My thinking is to only use the internal SSD to install software on and then use external drives for all other media but I was just unsure on what the performance difference might be between the 1TB and 2TB.

That video is very interesting though so thanks for posting that - gives me something else to consider now!