Hi, lots of conflicting stuff around iMac vs Mac Pro. Can anyone with a pro' level 4k workflow recommend a Mac solution spec that will easily handle 4k RAW? We're shooting it on the X5R and Canon 1d X Mk11. Thanks. Ian
Mac spec for 4k RAW editing?
- Thread starter Eagle33331
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Can't speak to the Mac.
It if you are a Premiere Pro user, the new proxy feature has really lowered the requirements for hardware.
It if you are a Premiere Pro user, the new proxy feature has really lowered the requirements for hardware.
I run the latest 5K iMac with the upgraded 4GB graphics card, It's the i5 not the i7 and it struggles. I think its partly down to the fact that the graphics cards are not in the recognised compatible list on the Adobe website. I'd go for the Mac Pro if I was you.
I'm a dyed-in-the-wool mac guy, and I really think that none of the Macs are that great now. I'm not the only one that feels this way, -- many pro users are looking for alternatives since there are not great options in Mac, and most of the best ones are not upgradeable. Even MacRumors agrees: iPhone, iPad, Mac Buyer's Guide: Know When to Buy
I'd strongly consider building a hackintosh for that kind of editing at this point.
I'd strongly consider building a hackintosh for that kind of editing at this point.
Thanks folks. Late reply owing to failure of Yosemite to upgrade to el capitan, forcing a wiped drive and reload from scratch. B&@@£y Apple! I only did it because we can't get can't get cinelight to work in Yosemite but it will in el cap'.
Shame about the iMac. I'd hoped the highest spec version woulD cope ok given what the forums say..
Are there only 4 of us using a Mac workflow, though?
I have a iMac 5K.. i7 4GHz, 32GB upgraded 2133Mhz RAM, 512GB SSD and Radeon R9 M395X 4GB.
Editing most photographs, but sometimes there will be some movie clips, too.
Can not say it's particularly fast, but earlier I had a custom built computer with a 5960X and lots of stuff.
Has gone from Windows, then I no longer agree to Microsoft's behavior.
Probably i have one of the most powerful HTPC with Linux in Sweden now..
Editing most photographs, but sometimes there will be some movie clips, too.
Can not say it's particularly fast, but earlier I had a custom built computer with a 5960X and lots of stuff.
Has gone from Windows, then I no longer agree to Microsoft's behavior.
Probably i have one of the most powerful HTPC with Linux in Sweden now..
im new to this stuff -just playing at this stage really so probably doing things wrong. i cant say much about highend x5 raw etc, as i have opted for phantom 4 over inspire. even its footage stalled my base model imac 5k, (i5 & r290 card ) while playing with color grading in divinci, i got the spinning colored wheel of death until i restarted the computer and shut of everything in the background.
Many thanks for the info'. I spoke to a guy who is using an iMac 5k who is successfully processing 4k RAW but using half resolution to view on screen. No speed issues. Well, we've pushed the button on the 5k - 4.0Ghz, 32GB Ram, 1TB flash drive, 4Gb vid' card. I'll report back in a week. We deal in editing 10 second clips for Stock - rather than making movies; so I'm hoping it'll be fine for this.
Ever since the iMac 5k came out i looked for this same answer. When doing my reserch i found out in a fourum, that to edit 4k you need an 8-core processor, and 4gb video card, but since the iMac had a 5k display it would need at least a 5gb video card which is not an option anywhere right now. Since then i'm still waiting on the new iMacs and Macs Pro, but if they dont pull a good system, im seriusly thinking about jumping back to windows.
In the mean time im using proxy files, and optimized media and im loving it! Makes my old iMac feel new and fast.
In the mean time im using proxy files, and optimized media and im loving it! Makes my old iMac feel new and fast.
There are many many articles of speculation about what Apple's future plans are, so I won't go into extra detail here, but as a person that has been quite close to the Apple ecosystem since 1987, I have to say I'm not hopeful.
Apple has been dragging it's feet about true professional systems for a while now, and has either abandoned (ie Aperture) or dumbed-down (ie Final Cut) many of the products on which they made their professional reputation. They have done this with hardware too. In Apple terms, sales of more capable products like the Mac Pro are slow compared to other products that account for 2/3 of their income, like the iPhone.
Not so long ago, Apple Computer Inc. became simply Apple Inc. What you might read in this change is that Apple's scope is much broader now, into all consumer devices, as they look for another runaway hit like the iPhone that singlehandedly made them the most valuable company in the world. And it's not necessarily a computer. It could be a car, or maybe something else with broader appeal, sooner ie a toaster? Blender? HomeKit driven Washer/Dryer? They are trying to make the next thing that every person on the planet both needs and wants. As much as we wish it was so, that thing is not going to be a high horsepower video editing machine.
In terms of computers, Apples improvements over the last 6-7 years have been really only incremental. Screen resolution bumps, processors, etc. But nothing huge -- my 2010 MacBookPro laptop is 90% as good and useful as the best MacBookPro sold today. Meanwhile, iMacs get faster cards and video, but none have the architecture to handle a 5K file, or even a 4k file that well. There are many bottlenecks there.
People doing pro 4k and 5k are making do with MacPro "trash cans", but still have to depend on large peripherals to get the job done. The irony here is that Apple once made the perfect box for these kind of users -- the 2006 - 2013 Mac Pro. Lovely machine. I'd go back to one if I could just get the video and Thunderbolt2 cards needed for modern workflow. And the new MacPro hasn't seen much new in development either. Everyone I know in high end production is ready to jump to a new platform* if they can get the technology bumps they need. They all love the MacOS, but it has become an increasingly difficult thing to stay with it when Apple seems deaf to their needs.
We are .001%. Apple is designing for the largest audience it can. The next device that everyone has to have. And I doubt that thing is a desktop computer.
*by "new" platform, I don't mean Windows. There's a lot of interest in a platform that is "open" like a flavor of UNIX, but that is specifically tailored to media production.
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Thanks guys. Well, we've started the workflow. Importing a full X5R SSD onto a USB 3 HD via my editor's (older) Macbook was taking about 12hrs. It's now taking 1 hour via the iMac 5 to a thunderbolt HD. Rendering is taking approx 1 second per DMG - 25 minutes per minute of RAW video. We're waiting on a RAM delivery to bump it to 32Gb, then we'll be as high spec as this machine will allow and the extra RAM should reduce this rendering time. Playback of a rendered clip at full size is pretty good but with an occasional jerk. So we'll be playing back 50% size files when reviewing.
Detail, including in shadows and highlights, is very good as is sharpness - though less so at the edges using the Olympus 12mm. We expected this. All on a par with our GH4. Not, though, close to that of our Canon 1dX mk11. But we never expected it to be. Clips will be 10 seconds and I do hope the system will cope with editing & processing them fast. Info' on this next week when my editor is back from hols.
Detail, including in shadows and highlights, is very good as is sharpness - though less so at the edges using the Olympus 12mm. We expected this. All on a par with our GH4. Not, though, close to that of our Canon 1dX mk11. But we never expected it to be. Clips will be 10 seconds and I do hope the system will cope with editing & processing them fast. Info' on this next week when my editor is back from hols.
Watching this thread. Very interested in how the iMac performs as I am about to pulling the trigger on one next week. I hope it is satisfactory. The highest spec,ed iMac is about the top of my budget. I'm not working with 4K raw yet but I need the ability to grow.
Latest : The iMac - now with max 32Gb ram - still can't play the native raw clips from the Canon properly. Jerky/too fast etc etc. My, less educated, solution is to export them into little 420px files (it's very fast at doing this) which play with no issue. I can use these to id the times of each clip I want my editor/processor to work with at the raw end of the scale. I'll let you know next week how he gets on with this last and. p'raps, most telling part of the process. I'd really have thought the mother of all iMacs should be capable of replaying raw 4k as it becomes standard. If Apple want to reserve this for the Pro then the Apple man in the Mac Bar really shouldn't have told me it would be fine with 4k. I'm sure we'll find a workaround..
This thread here -- which is about NAS/storage (which will be your next headache anyways) has a lot of good machine info as well: RAW DAS/NAS Storage
And then there's this one: Video editing?
I wouldn't trust what anybody told me in a Mac store. Their geniuses have a bit of training, and some do have some knowledge, but that's generally acquired prior to working for Apple. If you want to know about professional level editing needs, ask another professional.
Before buying any apple product check out this buyer's guide from macrumors.com iPhone, iPad, Mac Buyer's Guide: Know When to Buy they recomend not to buy anymac right now unless you really have to. Apple is about to anounce their new mac line, this is exactly what im waiting for.
To upgrade your current mac to max specs you can use this page MyOWC at MacSales.com
However i had done couple of upgrades, and soon after that, latest apple updates often degrade around 50% some of these upgrades so its like i didnt do much, but still work better than original.
Many thAnks Pixl and Carni. I'll check these links out tomorrow. We're using 4tb thunderbolt drives for storage and will be deleting the raw footage in favour of the rendered clips. Interestingly I see no speed difference between rendering from the iMac's 1tb flash drive and the NAS.
