Anaconda_ Posted June 25, 2018 Share Posted June 25, 2018 Hey all, I'm looking to change my home editing setup. Will this work relatively well with Prores 4k footage? (Coming from atomos recorders and eventually the new BM cam.) I can get it ridiculously cheap, but fear the system is simply too old to bother with. I get confused with all the numbers and versions on computer hardware, so like to double check haha. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newfoundmass Posted June 25, 2018 Share Posted June 25, 2018 Probably not. That's a ten year old graphics card and it's only a dual core processor. HOWEVER you may be able to have OWC upgrade the processor and graphics cards for a couple hundred dollars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anaconda_ Posted June 25, 2018 Author Share Posted June 25, 2018 That's what I was thinking. A good starting place... I also saw this one, which may be better. Replace the graphics card and add some ram, the rest will be good right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
no_connection Posted June 25, 2018 Share Posted June 25, 2018 I'm no expert on Apple but that is 2009 model right? 100$ would be generous to pay, and you will pay that yearly in just electricity. And absolutely not worth to be upgraded. The RAM alone draws about 60W. *edit* jut to be clear, the first one you posted What CPU does the 2nd one have? Ok a quick look at model history and it seems that you need a 2010+ model with at least a better X5675 to get anywhere. And it's still a stretch since you don't have hardware acceleration to fall back on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anaconda_ Posted June 25, 2018 Author Share Posted June 25, 2018 OK, so essentially, stop being a cheapskate and man up? Good to know. Thanks guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nigelbb Posted June 25, 2018 Share Posted June 25, 2018 6 hours ago, no_connection said: I'm no expert on Apple but that is 2009 model right? 100$ would be generous to pay, and you will pay that yearly in just electricity. And absolutely not worth to be upgraded. The RAM alone draws about 60W. *edit* jut to be clear, the first one you posted What CPU does the 2nd one have? Ok a quick look at model history and it seems that you need a 2010+ model with at least a better X5675 to get anywhere. And it's still a stretch since you don't have hardware acceleration to fall back on. ProRes is designed to be very light on CPU & does a great job at the expense of larger files sizes but that first system is a 2006 Mac Pro 1,1 & will not be up to the task of 4K video even with a graphics card upgrade. The second system is a 2010/2012 Mac Pro 5,1 (or a 2009 4,1 that has had the firmware upgraded) & the hex core W3680 3.33GHz CPU is still a decent performer as CPU performance hasn't improved all that much over the last 10 years. That should handle 4K ProRes fine with an upgraded video card. However you need to look at the price carefully. It does draw a lot of power but is beautifully made & will chug through the work without missing a beat. If you are not committed to Mac then a similarly specified HP Z400 Windows workstation with a hex core W3680 3.33GHz CPU can be bought for a lot less than half the price of a Mac Pro 5,1. newfoundmass 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newfoundmass Posted June 25, 2018 Share Posted June 25, 2018 The only issue with getting a Windows system is that @Anaconda_ might be a FCPX user. I've considered building a Hackintosh (or finding someone to make one for me since I've never done it before) for my next system. I know the rumor is that, with Apple bringing processor manufacturing in-house, Hackintoshes might not be possible in a few years, but with Apple not having released a iMac upgrade in over a year (and iMac Pros are way out of my budget) and the latest MacBook Pro having issues with keyboards, etc. the ability to have a Mac with better specs than anything Apple has available and for a fraction of the price is a very tempting thing, even with some of the issues with system updates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anaconda_ Posted June 25, 2018 Author Share Posted June 25, 2018 Thanks guys regards to price. That second one is €500 with a monitor (nice to have a spare). That seems like a steal even with necessary upgrades. Not FCPX user, but work with macs at the studio, so makes sense to keep it the same at home. I haven't used windows forever, and I hear it doesn't play so nice with Prores anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
webrunner5 Posted June 25, 2018 Share Posted June 25, 2018 You need to get a Late 2013 or newer or go home as the say. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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