sbattey wrote in post #12637275
4GB is plenty...in fact, 8 is a luxury but isn't necessary...
4GB is usually OK for regular users who won't be using FCP and LR. Though FCP says 2GB minimum and 4GB recommended, you'll be swapping to the HD a lot. If you don't mind the slow down of constantly needing to swap to the hard drive, 4GB is fine. Otherwise, move to 8GB.
sbattey wrote in post #12637275As for your other questions, i5 vs i7 isn't a big deal unless you want to pay extra for extra speed...personally I feel that the lowest end i5 is plenty powerful enough for what you will throw at it. Also, the new iMacs are all 4 core, so you can do some heavy multitasking.
More often than not, the more cores you have the better your performance with FCP. For LR, an i5 is plenty. If you work on movie projects that are longer than twenty minutes, get an i7. If you're just going to do little family videos, i5.
sbattey wrote in post #126372754x2 gb is the essentially same as 2x4gb..
Except for two things - 4x2GB sticks means you will have to replace sticks to upgrade while 2x4GB sticks means you still have two empty slots to upgrade later. The second thing, and much more minor, is you always want the largest memory stick due to the slight speed increase (since the memory controller does not have to keep switching to different blocks across several dimms).
sbattey wrote in post #12637275The difference between 4gb to 8 gb to 16gb is pretty big, but 4 is plenty unless you doing extreme computing. I edit with 4gb all the time.
The move from 4GB to 8GB speed wise is noticeable. 64bit software typically loves to use RAM. I'm not sure about LR, but FCP will eat up RAM like crazy if you use a lot of filters and HD footage. I do TV work and sometimes get up to seven video layers and four camera's (multicam) and if I used only 4GB I would go crazy from waiting.
Trust me, 8GB is where you'll most likely want to be.
sbattey wrote in post #12637275As for hard drives...SSD is not necessary...just a luxury. As for internal or external, your internal drive is going to be faster than your external drive under most conditions. Also, an internal drive in an iMac is protected better from the elements/bumps/falls than an external will be, so the one inside the computer is probably your best option for your primary storage of photos.
An external drive can be used for backups, but given the fact that they are subjected to harsher conditions, keeping your primary files on one isn't wise, and they aren't as fast anyway.
SSD will make your system faster, more responsive and boot times will be significantly reduced. If you have the money and really really want the speed increase, send your iMac to OWC for an SSD upgrade. Otherwise, just get the largest internal drive you can.
Thunderbolt promises to make external drives super fast, but they'll be expensive for a while. Otherwise, Firewire for external backups and archiving work is well worth the investment. I edit sometimes from FW drives with Aperture and I don't see any issues with speed.
sbattey wrote in post #12637275One thing you didn't really mention is video cards, Personally, I recommend you choose the upgraded option for video cards. If you are looking at the 21 inch iMAc, get the one that is more expensive than the base model. Same for the 27 inch. Graphics cards play a big role, especially if you ever plan on playing games on the iMac. Also some applications use them for processing power.
I chose the upgrade video card in my previous generation iMac, and I am SO happy I did...And since you can't change it you might as well get it to begin with.
Not sure exactly how important the video card will make actually, but it is significant enough to warrant attention. Yes, many of Apple's software packages will use the video card's VRAM and to a lesser extent the GPU, but LR will only make limited use of either.
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