Should I upgrade my FCP Studio and Power PC?

evolvnyc

evolvnyc

Well-known member
Seeking advice from more FCP savvy folks...
My current set-up:
Power PC G5 Dual 2.3 Ghz with 4.5 Gb of ram
FCP Studio Full version

The Problem:
I shoot and edit video as a second business (Still photographer is my main gig) and I have started to encounter issues when asking editors to work on things for me, they are using the newest version of FCP Studio. I do basic editing myself, but I am by no means an "editor." My machine is running 10.4.11 btw. My question is this; I can upgrade to the newest Intel desktop and FCP Studio 2 (though I'd rather save the money) without it hurting TOO bad, but is this necessary? As more people get the new FCP, will I be problematic as far as sharing files if I am still running FCP Studio? Are there any amazing strengths with the Intel machines and FCP Studio II that the normal casual editor, like myself, would need (besides speed)? Would you recommend waiting for any reason? My files are all over the place and the thought of transferring and organizing is daunting, any tips on how to set-up a messy system and keep it streamlined, should I switch?

Thanks for any opinions!
 
Is your current system enough for what you are actually doing and getting paid for?

Unless your current system is hindering your own work in some way (it's too slow, you can't do enough effects, you don't have a feature FCS2 has, etc.) then I don't see the point of upgrading just to keep up with everyone else.

Of course you will see an improvement in performance by having a faster system, but beyond that, if you don't need anything in particular (ignoring the needs of other editors), then you'll just be wasting money.

Having said that, as far as working with other editors, I can see how that's a problem. Have you tried using the XML exporting options in FCP and share that with the editors back and forth rather than FCP project files? It's not going to be perfect and some things aren't passed on, but it could be a solution.

How about just upgrading to FCS2? A quickly look at the specs shows that your current system should handle it and all you need is FCP.

Just my two cents...
 
It is sufficient, and the speed is fine as well. I guess if it actually works 100% fine on 10.4 on a non-intel mac, just getting FCP Studio 2 is the way to go, is anyone running this on 10.4 on a non-intel machine? Thoughts? Thanks, Cools.
 
I have been running FCS 2 on my 2.3 GHz PowerPC and it works flawlessly and fast!

Recently I updated it to 6.0.4, OS-X 10.4.11 and everything is perfect. :)
 
11 edit bays here on G5's running 10.4.x and FCS 2 for the past year or so w/o any notable hiccups.


-A
 
Well, one more: G5 dual 2 Ghz, 4 Go ram, 6 SATA drives and FCS2. All of this works flawlessly.
 
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