New iMac? New Macbook Pro? Video Editing and Daily Work

[lindmar]

I'm looking for some advice.

I'm currently doing more video editing. I'm shooting short videos in 4K but I edit on a 1080p timeline. For the most part both of my machines can handle things, sluggish at times, but can waddle through it. I.E. Things are fine with short videos + luts, gets a bit slow when I add titles, multiple layers etc.

My current machines:

Macbook Pro Early 2015 2.7 Core i5 with 8GB Ram
27" iMac Mid 2011 2.7GB with 16GB Ram

Both machines are older, but both run fine.

My work is split 50/50 between on the road and at home. I prefer to edit at home, but editing on the road would be nice too.

I tried a MBP with Touchbar this year and hated it. I returned it.

So, my questions:

1) Do I get a new 2019 iMac and load up the ram? Keep my current Macbook.
2) A new macbook of some sort + external monitor.
3) Keep both and wait to see what Apple comes out with this year.
4) Other option?

Both these machines have been absolutely incredible, and as I said, they're both running fine. What is going to get me another 5 years?

Thanks for your input and suggestions!

 

[shaunp]

What are you editing in? FC or Adobe? Or something else?

 

[evilmurries]

WWDC is in a couple weeks so I recommend waiting if possible just in case there are any genuine surprises. That being said, I would direct you to the iMac simply because

I tried a MBP with Touchbar this year and hated it. I returned it.

Your mbp is much more modern so you can keep it as your "on the go."

 

[kohlson]

Like me, you seem to have suboptimal portable and desktop systems. Your MBP is certainly short of memory for any of the major NLEs. And you dod;t mention what graphics capabilities it has.
The iMac is probably too resource-poor for 4K anything..

A new iMac (5K, base memory and 2TB Fusion) is a good start. Load it up with 32GB of 3rd party memory. Only you know if your MBP will work for you. And perhaps you can change your workflow to optimized.

But more info on your NLE and workflow would be helpful.

 

[MSastre]

If you are doing video work you'd be better off getting an SSD in the iMac, then adding an external drive for the extra storage space needed, than going with a Fusion drive.

 

[lindmar]

I got the new iMac with 512GB SSD, 64MB Ram, and added an external SSD.

It's cutting through stuff like butter. What used to take 43 minutes renders in 2 mins.

 

[jagooch]

If you are doing video work you'd be better off getting an SSD in the iMac, then adding an external drive for the extra storage space needed, than going with a Fusion drive.

This!

Question though, which processor?

For iMac 27" 2019,
low end processor starts at 3GHz CPU Radeon 570X GPU ,
mid 3.1GHz CPU with Radeon 575X GPU

For storage I'd max it with 1 TB SSD
Memory 8GB RAM and then upgrade it yourself.

 

[MSastre]

This!

Question though, which processor?

For iMac 27" 2019,
low end processor starts at 3GHz CPU Radeon 570X GPU ,
mid 3.1GHz CPU with Radeon 575X GPU

For storage I'd max it with 1 TB SSD
Memory 8GB RAM and then upgrade it yourself.

Get the best the fits your budget. For RAM upgrades I always use Crucial. Excellent RAM.

 

[jagooch]

Get the best the fits your budget. For RAM upgrades I always use Crucial. Excellent RAM.

Sigh, they are all in my budget. So that isn't a good determining factory for my case. I'm looking more for cost/value ratio.
ie maybe I won't notice the difference between low and mid tears, but then again maybe I will. Perhaps there is a huge performance boost between them that is worth paying for. I don't know. Hopefully someone does

 

[MSastre]

The GPU is becoming much more important in video editing now and will continue to do so, so again, get the best you can afford.