Mac or PC for editing?

I believe in picking the software you want to use first, then pick the optimum platform to run it on. For CS6 right now that is PC. Mac has very limited GPU support.
If you want to shoot and edit raw, CS6 is the best choice currently. No need to transcode anything if your workstation has the juice to handle the data flow. This is more about fast drive arrays and lots of storage than maximum processing power.
 
Morox said:
When do they usually ship new products?
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Usually mid-Summer for the Minis, but there might possibly be an announcement during the WWDC (June 11-15) when the new MacBook Pros are going to be announced. Usually you can order shortly thereafter.
 
Gary Huff said:
It's been coming "soon" for the past year and a half, so I'm not sure if waiting is a worthwhile endeavor.
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Well, the Linux version has never been coming "soon" but is actually much closer now, as you can see from this clip. The OS X version will follow the Linux version.

Definitely coming soon is the full Windows version, due for release on 28th May from www.lwks.com. Lightworks is free, and Lightworks Pro, which has improved codec support (AVCHD, XDCAM etc in real-time) is $60/€50/40 per year or half that if you're in education.

The Lightworks Pro includes multicam support, network project sharing and a real-time GPU-accelerated title tool. Both versions include background autosave (so it doesn't interrupt what you're doing!) and background archiving.

Lighworks Pro also includes a full-featured stereoscopic timeline - developed specifically for Martin Scorsese's Hugo, which was edited on the same software that you can download for nothing on May 28th!

Disclosure: I work for Editshare/Lightworks
 
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I was a Mac developer and a total snob. In 1999 I bought a Dell and followed Adobe over to Windows. That Dell was not cheap so I learned to hotrod it on my own and now save tons by building my own machines. Now I see no advantage to using a Mac for anything, you kinda miss out if you choose that platform. I'm sure GPU support will improve and if prices can come down and become competitive they might have a chance to get on top again in graphics and video.
 
Apple has been very smart in not focusing on the specs, but instead on the user experience. Some people simply don't care how brand spankin' new the tech is, and concentrate on how easily they can do things in the system. That's where the Windows side of the spectrum has failed, because in the past it was a focus on performance and the technical side of CPUs/GPUs/Memory/ect. Now usability is pretty much the same for both, but the Windows side is still felt like its more for techies than creative, even though both PCs and Macs are essentially two sides of the same coin now.

I love working in both. Only problem is that I want to use Alt+C and Alt+V on Windows after being in an OSX environment for a while.
 
Gary Huff said:
Some people simply don't care how brand spankin' new the tech is, and concentrate on how easily they can do things in the system. That's where the Windows side of the spectrum has failed, because in the past it was a focus on performance and the technical side of CPUs/GPUs/Memory/ect.
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once you're in the editor is the usability all that different between mac and pc? i've never tried editing with adobe premiere on a mac, but i imagine it's a fairly similar experience.

the way i see it, editing video is all about performance. that is why people are willing to pay more for a mac pro vs. a mac mini. being as adobe products now utilize gpu acceleration, it's only logical for me to pair the best possible cpu with the best possible gpu i can afford. so if i'm looking at two equally priced computers, that both allow me to use my editor of choice, i'm getting the one with the better specs, regardless of whether or not it's windows 7 or os x lion.
 
ugafan said:
once you're in the editor is the usability all that different between mac and pc? i've never tried editing with adobe premiere on a mac, but i imagine it's a fairly similar experience.
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That's what I've been saying for some time now.

When I am in Avid Media Composer V6 or CS6, the OS disappears once you are in the app.

My windows system I built SCREAMS over anything on the mac side, and I had a LOT larger pool of Nvidia cards to choose from too.

You'd be surprised how many "switchers" in our field are going back to the PC.
 
ugafan said:
once you're in the editor is the usability all that different between mac and pc? i've never tried editing with adobe premiere on a mac, but i imagine it's a fairly similar experience.
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I was talking about perception in the quote you referred to, not any actual usage. And you are correct, once you're inside the NLE, the differences are not readily apparent, save for cosmetic.

the way i see it, editing video is all about performance. that is why people are willing to pay more for a mac pro vs. a mac mini. being as adobe products now utilize gpu acceleration, it's only logical for me to pair the best possible cpu with the best possible gpu i can afford.
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That's true, but it works better on the Windows side than it does on Mac. If you purchased a Mac Pro 2008, you can't change out the motherboard or CPU. You can do things like add RAM or a graphics card, but you're stuck with the fundamentals outside of that. My desktop PC is currently a Core 2 Quad, but I can easily change it to a Ivy Bridge system if I want, without having to purchase a whole new machine.

Most of the Mac Pros I've been supplied to work with have been the 2008 model, and I find performance is roughly on par with my 2011 Mac Book Pro (sometimes even a bit worse in specific circumstances). A new Mac Pro would be the absolutely fastest Mac available, but if Apple decides to kill the line, then the new Ivy Bridge iMac will be faster than the 2008/2010 Mac Pros and a Ivy Bridge i7 Mac Mini would be as well (though probably not as much as the iMac).
 
As much as I love Apple products and computers and OSX, I'd say build a PC and get CS6. Unless you really want to edit on FCPX or really want to buy a Mac anyway because you want OSX (which is great), bang for your buck is on the PC side.

Win7 is fast and stable, CS6 runs great on Win. Get an NVIDIA card like the new GTX 670 for Adobe's Mercury Playback engine (as a bonus you can play games on it!), and pickup one of Intel's new Ivy Bridge CPUs.
 
where are the damned new mac pros????? or should I say the new iPro, i've heard that name being tossed around, supposed to be the mac pro replacement.... please apple just come out and tell us if the mac pro is dead so we can move on to a pc
 
I took the plunge and ordered a new desktop. Although it's mainly for editing, I miss my days of pc gaming. Picked up an i7, 16 GB's of RAM and a Nvidia GTX 560 Ti. While it's not a highend desktop, it should do for now!
 
Morox said:
I took the plunge and ordered a new desktop. Although it's mainly for editing, I miss my days of pc gaming. Picked up an i7, 16 GB's of RAM and a Nvidia GTX 560 Ti. While it's not a highend desktop, it should do for now!
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You'll love the performance of that system in CS6.
 
Mac or PC for editing? That's a tough one. I left Apple in '99 and stuck with Adobe as they were PC only for a while. Now that I'm integrating Resolve into my workflow, (I'm buying the Blackmagic Cinema Camera) I'm still better off with a PC with dual GPUs. Once I'm inside the App, the OS still works for me. Windows 7 64 bit is rock-solid, has built-in anti-virus protection and won't crash and I've logged a lot of hours. Apple had a good run with FCP but they continue to demonstrate a lack of vision as they push their agenda. They lost me a long time ago.

For editing I dont' think it matters. Choose your flavours, spend your money, just don't get all uppity like so many Apple users do. That's the worst part of this debate. I still think there's a place for both platforms.
 
WhiteMonkey said:
Mac or PC for editing? That's a tough one. I left Apple in '99 and stuck with Adobe as they were PC only for a while. Now that I'm integrating Resolve into my workflow, (I'm buying the Blackmagic Cinema Camera) I'm still better off with a PC with dual GPUs. Once I'm inside the App, the OS still works for me. Windows 7 64 bit is rock-solid, has built-in anti-virus protection and won't crash and I've logged a lot of hours. Apple had a good run with FCP but they continue to demonstrate a lack of vision as they push their agenda. They lost me a long time ago.

For editing I dont' think it matters. Choose your flavours, spend your money, just don't get all uppity like so many Apple users do. That's the worst part of this debate. I still think there's a place for both platforms.
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I decided to go with a PC. As they are ahead of the pack by a decent margin in terms of hardware, I want to be as future proof as possible and this is where a Mac lags.
 
Up to '99 I was the "internet guru" for the Matrox RT2000/2500, which turned a PC into a screaming realtime editing machine. After looking at the "blue screen of death" one too many times on an important project, I defected to Apple and never looked back. Now that Windows is a lot more stable, though, I wouldn't rule out a return to the PC and Premiere, especially since Apple dropped FCP in it's previous form.
 
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