bought the low level i5 and put in 64 gigs and attached a 2TB samsung T7
iMac20,1
Geekbench 5 Score
1232
Single-Core Score
6476
Multi-Core Score
my geekbench https://browser.geekbench.com/v5/cpu/4178704
the % performance vs cost IMHO was not worth the extra 1k for the 5700xt setup (since I would have done the ethernet to) since I will be buying apple silicone when its out
my PS score (Photoshop) using the puget bench
www.pugetsystems.com
Overall Score
915
GPU Score
96.2
General Score
81.8
Filter Score
101.2
some random i9 @ 3.6 with 128GB and 5700xt
which is the machine spec I was thinking of getting
www.pugetsystems.com
Overall Score
1092
GPU Score
114.6
General Score
96.2
Filter Score
122.1
as you can see not a huge difference to my i5 above when comparing cost %
for me I do not use filters much its more about layers and masking custom actions for brush size etc... and I tend to work on one image longer so opening closing etc... is not a issue but this might help some I hope
what I do:
full time pro photographer going to start doing some youtube since I am working less
I also do retouching for other pro photographers magazine covers or gallery showing kinda retouch so larger complex files
wife is a full time graphic designer
both of us have been doing this for 20+ years full time as in only job
hard core tech and color guru kinda guy
not only computer:
this is the first time I ever bought a lower end system but I do have other machines to take the load if its ones ONLY machine I would say buy the higher end maybe but the i5 depending on what you do might be OK to
so we have 3 old mac pros a mac mini (2018) with eGPU setup(wifes main machine) and a PC that runs a intel 7820x with a 1080 FTW GPU NVMe etc... setup so we do have good setups side note the PC I hate hate hate the file system but that thing is fast for output and PS etc... and was built with just using Capture One
what our machines do:
the PC was dedicated C1 (capture one) tether machine for the photo studio
the mac mini eGPU is wifes main machine to run in design and illustrator etc...
and we had two PS workstations
and the 3rd was replaced with the mac mini a few years back and was saved for backup
thoughts:
so far its doing great with C1 and PS retouching in actual work not just benchmarks
I kinda wanted 1 machine to do both capture and PS and my older second monitor died so I needed a 2nd monitor anyway (I edit on BenQ and/or NEC)
I know the new silicone is coming out wanted to wait but needed a machine now so the reason I bought the $1799 model (0n sale) as price creep is real and the higher end really needs the higher end GPU to fly and when spending that might as well jump the ethernet up so you end up spending about $1000 more and decided just save that for the new silicone
SSD size speed:
the boot being small non issue as I have always used a dedicated boot for nothing more then my apps which are basic as its a work machine in a studio so C1 an adobe suite and a couple apps that is it
all work is on a 2nd SSD drive
all archive is on NAS external devices (on network)
GPU:
C1 the high end 5700xt iMac would be better no doubt and I would suggest that to someone without a dedicated tether machine or this is the ONLY machine get a high end if you have to buy it now but if you do not have to wait !
as far as GPU and adobe well adobe sucks using the GPU as well as it can ? so its not a huge deal again PS bench above and my real world editing so far for my workflow its a non issue
closing thoughts:
I think for exporting and stuff to many put to much into that for export timing ? IMHO its about the working part that I can not walk away from that matters if exporting I can walk away do other things grab the iPad check email watch some youtube make lunch dinner grab a snack etc... and let it do its thing
its the time when sitting editing that matters and those numbers are nill
again a full time photographer/retoucher perspective and nothing to do with my wifes graphic design use or for heavy video work I am still learning video reckon once I know more doing more on video I will be on apple silicone !
long ramble and my bad grammar but hope it helps someone on the fence or gives new perspective i5 for its price
IF you need one now otherwise I do think wait for the new if you can hold out
side thought the ipad pro with the magic keyboard is a game changer for daily stuff like email etc... so it has taken a huge load off my main computer use
iMac20,1
Geekbench 5 Score
1232
Single-Core Score
6476
Multi-Core Score
my geekbench https://browser.geekbench.com/v5/cpu/4178704
the % performance vs cost IMHO was not worth the extra 1k for the 5700xt setup (since I would have done the ethernet to) since I will be buying apple silicone when its out
my PS score (Photoshop) using the puget bench
PugetBench Individual Results
Would a New Computer be Faster? Whether you’re evaluating an upgrade or simply comparing your system to the latest hardware, this chart shows the potential performance gains of a new computer. Each bar links to a configuration page, allowing you to factor in pricing to determine if an upgrade is...
www.pugetsystems.com
915
GPU Score
96.2
General Score
81.8
Filter Score
101.2
some random i9 @ 3.6 with 128GB and 5700xt
which is the machine spec I was thinking of getting
PugetBench Individual Results
Would a New Computer be Faster? Whether you’re evaluating an upgrade or simply comparing your system to the latest hardware, this chart shows the potential performance gains of a new computer. Each bar links to a configuration page, allowing you to factor in pricing to determine if an upgrade is...
www.pugetsystems.com
1092
GPU Score
114.6
General Score
96.2
Filter Score
122.1
as you can see not a huge difference to my i5 above when comparing cost %
for me I do not use filters much its more about layers and masking custom actions for brush size etc... and I tend to work on one image longer so opening closing etc... is not a issue but this might help some I hope
what I do:
full time pro photographer going to start doing some youtube since I am working less
I also do retouching for other pro photographers magazine covers or gallery showing kinda retouch so larger complex files
wife is a full time graphic designer
both of us have been doing this for 20+ years full time as in only job
hard core tech and color guru kinda guy
not only computer:
this is the first time I ever bought a lower end system but I do have other machines to take the load if its ones ONLY machine I would say buy the higher end maybe but the i5 depending on what you do might be OK to
so we have 3 old mac pros a mac mini (2018) with eGPU setup(wifes main machine) and a PC that runs a intel 7820x with a 1080 FTW GPU NVMe etc... setup so we do have good setups side note the PC I hate hate hate the file system but that thing is fast for output and PS etc... and was built with just using Capture One
what our machines do:
the PC was dedicated C1 (capture one) tether machine for the photo studio
the mac mini eGPU is wifes main machine to run in design and illustrator etc...
and we had two PS workstations
and the 3rd was replaced with the mac mini a few years back and was saved for backup
thoughts:
so far its doing great with C1 and PS retouching in actual work not just benchmarks
I kinda wanted 1 machine to do both capture and PS and my older second monitor died so I needed a 2nd monitor anyway (I edit on BenQ and/or NEC)
I know the new silicone is coming out wanted to wait but needed a machine now so the reason I bought the $1799 model (0n sale) as price creep is real and the higher end really needs the higher end GPU to fly and when spending that might as well jump the ethernet up so you end up spending about $1000 more and decided just save that for the new silicone
SSD size speed:
the boot being small non issue as I have always used a dedicated boot for nothing more then my apps which are basic as its a work machine in a studio so C1 an adobe suite and a couple apps that is it
all work is on a 2nd SSD drive
all archive is on NAS external devices (on network)
GPU:
C1 the high end 5700xt iMac would be better no doubt and I would suggest that to someone without a dedicated tether machine or this is the ONLY machine get a high end if you have to buy it now but if you do not have to wait !
as far as GPU and adobe well adobe sucks using the GPU as well as it can ? so its not a huge deal again PS bench above and my real world editing so far for my workflow its a non issue
closing thoughts:
I think for exporting and stuff to many put to much into that for export timing ? IMHO its about the working part that I can not walk away from that matters if exporting I can walk away do other things grab the iPad check email watch some youtube make lunch dinner grab a snack etc... and let it do its thing
its the time when sitting editing that matters and those numbers are nill
again a full time photographer/retoucher perspective and nothing to do with my wifes graphic design use or for heavy video work
I am still learning video reckon once I know more doing more on video I will be on apple silicone ! long ramble and my bad grammar but hope it helps someone on the fence or gives new perspective i5 for its price
IF you need one now otherwise I do think wait for the new if you can hold out
side thought the ipad pro with the magic keyboard is a game changer for daily stuff like email etc... so it has taken a huge load off my main computer use