Ultimate FCS2 HD Mac Pro configuration?

T

tippert

Member
We all got the great news re. Final Cut Studio 2, and for those of us who've literally waited YEARS to move from our Powerbooks to the desktops, it's time to take the plunge.

I currently have a HVX200 but I'll probably own a RED w/in the next two years. I'm willing spend more now so I don't have to think about upgrading my system for as long as possible. I will be using the system primarily for HD editing and color correction with the new COLOR software including in FCS2.

This is the Mac Pro configuration I'm considering, but I'd love some input:

- Two 3.0GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon (Q? I know I won't get a lot out of the 8-cores now, but will Mac OS updates make this what I'll want in the future?)

- 8GB RAM (4 x 2GB) (Q? Does it make sense to pay more for the 4x2GB over the 8x1BG for future expansion?)

- 2 x 500GB 7200-rpm Serial ATA 3Gb/s (Q? Is there any reason to buy 4x500GB drives and make my internal drive a RAID instead of buying an external RAID?)

- ATI Radeon X1900 XT 512MB (2 x dual-link DVI) (Q? I've heard this is the one to go with, is that true?)

- 2xApple Cinema HD Display (23" flat panel) (Q? Should I go with Apple or the Dell 2407. I like the additional inputs on the 2407, but I here the Apple displays are superior. If I get the dell w/ component inputs, could I use it for Color Correction?)

- One 16x SuperDrive (I will buy an additional third party Blue-Ray drive later)

I'll buy my HD/SDI card, monitor for color correction and RAID drives later, but I want the Mac Pro ready to go when my FCS2 upgrade arrives.
Thanks for the help!

Best,

Tom
http://web.mac.com/thomaswinston
 
...about processors. YES Leopard will support the 8-cores and so will FCS2.

If you want to enjoy COLOR and Motion3, go for a goood graphics adapter!

2 23" screens will be fine!

Uhm about the RAM, if you wont upgrade to 8GB within the next 12-18 months.. for for 8x1GB... the prices will drop!


just my 2cents (and I am working for apple ;) ...on ProApps..)
 
Mark, Thanks a lot for your input.
In terms of the Graphics adapter, are you talking about the graphics card I order with the Mac or a third party card I can get for perfomance? Which one do you suggest?

-Tom
 
hypermog pretty much hit the nail on the head. I wouldn't invest in an 8 Core Mac, man. I know I say it a lot on this site, but they ARE fake. Biggest waste of money EVER. You'll regret it later this year when true Quad Cores drop and there are better Octo core systems.

If I were you, I'd save my extra money on that fake 8 Core and just get a Quad Xeon (still a fake Quad Core anyway), then drop my money into storage space.

ALso, you're not going to get much more play on the Graphics side considering the current run of Mac Pros. Either one of those cards are outdated, I'd go with the higher priced GeForce card though.

I'd also invest in the MATROX system, now that you can use it with any DVI input monitor. And go with a Gateway 24" Screen as they're really damned good screens, on par with the Dell 24" easily. More inputs, features, and better quality considering it's 1:1 DHCP 1080 capable.

If anything, just steer clear of those fake 8 cores man.
 
Straight from the apple rep @ NAB, Apple is supposedly moving away from Nvidia, and stressed better performance with the XTI1900, even as compared to my current PNY4500.... we were specifically discussing Motion 3 at the time, but he informed me that I might try to stick with the xti1900 when I move our facility to Intel Mac world....

As well, the 8 core processors can be "scheduled" and used individually with compressor 3, distributing the encoding load....

Who knows... he was a rep after all.....
 
With the Compressor 3, you will be able to run one instance of Compressor per processor. This, with an 8-core machine, you can run 8 instances and thus achieve a major improvement in encoding times. To my way of thinking, the 8-core is of greatest value to those who are doing heavy compression work.

Ned Soltz
 
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