Will FCP X Run Smoothly On This iMac?

[JSchwartz15]

I am thinking of purchasing the 27" 3.1 GHz iMac with 12GB RAM (default 2x2 with an additional 2x4). Will FCP X and Motion 5 run smoothly on this or would I need to upgrade to 16GB RAM, 3.4 GHz, and the AMD Radeon HD 6970M 2GB?

 

[fa8362]

Yes, of course it will.

 

[goMac]

Define smoothly.

An iMac will run FCPX. A better iMac will run it better. A better Mac Pro would run it even better.

Any machine you can buy today will at least start the program and let you use it though. Your experience will depend on what you're doing though.

 

[JSchwartz15]

Define smoothly.

An iMac will run FCPX. A better iMac will run it better. A better Mac Pro would run it even better.

Any machine you can buy today will at least start the program and let you use it though. Your experience will depend on what you're doing though.

I use lots of keying, multi-cam and synchronized clips, color correction, and titling with 720p Optimized footage. Right now I am running on a Early 2009 iMac with 4GB RAM an Intel Core 2 Duo and NVIDIA 9400M. It is miserable.

 

[goMac]

I use lots of keying, multi-cam and synchronized clips, color correction, and titling with 720p Optimized footage. Right now I am running on a Early 2009 iMac with 4GB RAM an Intel Core 2 Duo and NVIDIA 9400M. It is miserable.

That model iMac will probably do you fine. You're going to have render times, obviously. But nothing too problematic. An SSD might be a good idea if you're working with multiple clips at a time, otherwise your drive could be getting thrashed.