Redux question: high Quad-core vs low 8-core?

I've posted about this before, but can't seem to figure out still whether FCP will run noticeably better on a 2.93 Nehaleem Quad-core, or a 2.26 Nehaleem 8-core (these are the two models I've narrowed myself-meaning my budget?down to)... Any thoughts? The benchmark sites I've seen are focused on programs I'll never run, and I don't care about gaming or stuff like that. It's all about Final Cut RT playback* and rendering, After Effects, and Compressor for me. Anyway, any advice is greatly appreciated.

Greg

* e.g. the laptop I'm on right now is having a real hard time with multi-clips, even though it's the latest FCP, with a new macbook pro configuration. It is 5400 RPM, but I'm not super sure that's the problem...

Dude, that's totally the problem. You're trying to edit with your footage on your laptop's built-in drive? That's totally a problem.

Oh, no, it's not on the internal drive. I'm using firewire 800 and eSata externally

For rendering in FCP, I'd say faster individual processors. For transcoding in Compressor or multi-processor rendering in AE, I'd go with more cores.



www.strypesinpost.com

I've got the same sort of situation.

Am configuring purchase of a new iMac and, as FCP is my main use, am wondering which chip will provide the best rendering/processing for video editing.

My chip set choices are:
2.8Ghz Quad Core i7
or
3.33Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo.

I'm maxing out the RAM to 16GB (probably don't really need that much, but what the heck!). I have external G-Raid drives as my scratch disks.

Any recommendations would be appreciated.

Regards, Cyrus
iMac 27" Intel i7 Quad-Core; 16GB RAM; 2TB HD
Final Cut Studio, FCP X, Photoshop CS5, After Effects, etc.

Well, I don't render that much in FCP, so I'd go for the 2.8 Quad with the fastest graphics card I can find, although hooking up a broadcast monitor to that thing is going to be tricky.



www.strypesinpost.com

Thanks. I don't do anything requires a broadcast monitor. All my videos are maximum 15-20 minutes and always played back on a computer in QuickTime at the office as training videos or presentations (from Keynote). Every once in awhile I'll output to a DVD for family, but so far the results have been more then adequate for my needs.

Again, thanks for your input. I'll go with the 2.8 Quad i7 chip.

Regards, Cyrus
iMac 27" Intel i7 Quad-Core; 16GB RAM; 2TB HD
Final Cut Studio, FCP X, Photoshop CS5, After Effects, etc.

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I don't do anything requires a broadcast monitor.

I say this with all the respect in the world: You seriously have no idea what you're missing.

I don't quite understand why you say an iMac can't interface to a broadcast monitor. It would work the same way I drive mine from a Mac Pro: FW to camera/deck to monitor. Did iMacs drop the FW port? Direct analog video out from the computer to a BC monitor has never been the right way to do this.

I was thinking like a capture card with an SD/HD-SDI signal?



www.strypesinpost.com

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FW to camera/deck to monitor.

Only works with DV.

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Only works with DV

He never said what format he was working in.

>Only works with DV.

And DvcproHD. Depending on your deck, you may get SDI or component signals, and anything below that is just to check if you've got a signal and if your fields are going out correctly. Frankly, I'd rather shell out that 800 quid for a BMD SDI card.



www.strypesinpost.com

I'm not clear on what you mean by "I don't render that much in FCP". When you're in FCP, and you have material that needs a render, what do you do then? Assign the render to another program? I have to admit, I've never heard of this...What is a typical workflow for you? Thanks for your time.

G

Typical? Edit, send to Color, render, send back to FCP. Graphics, compositing are usually done up in AE. Less than 10% of my timeline in FCP requires a render.



www.strypesinpost.com