Mac Mini Server + FCP X - Page 2

gadgetguy · Mar 21st, 2012, 11:33 AM

Thanks very much Lars! Not sure how I missed that one...

I think I'll give my friend's base Mini (2.3 i5) a shot with FCP once he gets his 8 gig upgrade. Undoubtedly it will be slower than a quad core i7 but it'll give me an idea anyway. That said, I will probably just wait and get a machine with a discrete graphics card - I've been a little iffy about the whole integrated card stuff from the beginning.

Thanks very much for your input all!

screature · Mar 21st, 2012, 11:39 AM

	Quote:			Originally Posted by Lars
	Will upgrading to 8GB RAM increase my Intel HD3000 graphics memory? - MacRumors Forums.

	Quote:			Originally Posted by gadgetguy
	I was actually just about to post that. Look here.

Thanks guys, good to know...

Still think it is not really great for the heavy lifting of FCP X though, at least not if one doesn't want to be frustrated with really slow rendering and performance as this is still shared memory. With a dedicated GPU the VRAM adds to the equation for rendering, the "bump" to 512MB doesn't really add anything (if you already have 8GB or more of RAM) as it is simply drawing away from overall system RAM.

screature · Mar 21st, 2012, 11:46 AM

	Quote:			Originally Posted by gadgetguy
	Thanks very much Lars! Not sure how I missed that one... I think I'll give my friend's base Mini (2.3 i5) a shot with FCP once he gets his 8 gig upgrade. Undoubtedly it will be slower than a quad core i7 but it'll give me an idea anyway. That said, I will probably just wait and get a machine with a discrete graphics card - I've been a little iffy about the whole integrated card stuff from the beginning. Thanks very much for your input all!

I guess it depends on your budget and how much editing you do... A Mini server is still going to cost over a grand with taxes and extra RAM so is "adequate" all you want?

Having been a professional video editor in another career, hardware bogging down the creative process is just plain frustrating, at least it was for me. If you can save up for a system that has a dedicated GPU and preferably 1GB of VRAM it is going to make the process so much smoother and more satisfying, just my take on it. Good luck with whatever you choose.

zen.state · Mar 23rd, 2012, 12:01 PM

The quad i7 and it's 1333MHz memory access will more than make up for any lag caused by integrated graphics. I would prefer the quad i7/integrated combo over a dual core C2D or i5 with dedicated.

As an Apple tech I can verify from using a few newer mini servers that they are screamers. GPU's are so good these days that even the lower end are still pretty damn good and especially when complimented with an i7. Other than current high demand gaming I can't see it hitting any walls.

gadgetguy · Jun 13th, 2012, 05:07 PM

Just wanted to drop in with a quick update. My university budget dictated I wouldn't be dropping the coin on a new iMac so I jumped on a refurb Mini Server at the beginning of April and haven't looked back. It does feel a little sluggish when doing lots of rendering but I have yet to use a quad core iMac to compare. $849 for the computer, $40 8 gig RAM upgrade, $250 for a 27" Acer H274HL (gorgeous LED monitor! Highly recommend for a budget monitor, HDMI input along with DVI/VGA too) so after tax I spent roughly $1250 in comparison to a refurb iMac @ $1600 after ram upgrade. The other thing that kind of sold me is the dual hard drives in the Mini - I'm planning on picking up a 120 GB SSD next time they're on sale, this thing will fly! My buddy put one in his 2.3 i5 Mini and it's literally seconds from off to desktop fully loaded, amazing!

All in all, if I was doing anything more serious than I am currently (videos here and there, a little bit of YouTube stuff, the occasional friend's wedding) I would probably want an iMac but again I have not compared speeds so who knows, this could be close to that speed. Just wanted to conclude for anyone else looking into doing this! Go for it if you're a hobbyist on a budget!