M1 Mac mini and Final Cut Pro X?

As usual, I am behind everyone else regarding innovation and have just watched a YouTube video comparing the new base model M1 Mac mini (£699) with a maxed out 27 inch iMac.


The main test involved exporting a 4K project from iMovie and the mini did it in half the time of the iMac.


The mini has integrated graphics so presumably it would take a hit in other parts of the editing process.


Has anybody got any hands-on experience with this machine (or similar) or has any insight into how it would perform with FCPX?


It sounds too incredible to be true at that minuscule price!

iMac 27″ 5K, macOS 10.15

Posted on Dec 4, 2020 5:58 AM

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6 replies

Dec 20, 2020 9:51 AM in response to Ian R. Brown

Hi

i got the 16gb version of the M1 Mac mini, and I’m afraid to report that it seems a bit laggy with Final Cut Pro x at the mo. I’m making some 4K timelapses and it seems to be struggling and stalling and I’ve been experiencing the spinning beach ball of doom.

i had watched YouTube videos of reviewers and bought it as an upgrade to a 2014 MacBook Pro. After just a couple of days I’m considering whether I should return it. I’ve also got an issue with the monitor as I’m getting a flicker at times when watching video....

my advice.... wait!

Dec 6, 2020 3:23 AM in response to Ian R. Brown

Consensus is to wait it out if your concerned about dealing with glitches and stuff not performing or functioning correctly. It's early yet and I have seen only a couple videographers post their experiences with the new Mac's. Most are seeing a few glitches and some have reported serious problems with certain tasks editing high resolution content in certain formats. Typical teething pains when you introduce a new hardware platform and a new release of a operating system like Big Sur. . Then you have all the third party and even Apple software that will have to be tested by early adopters and report back bugs and issues that will have to be addressed. Some already have made YouTube videos detailing their experiences and issues. I am excited about this new potential for performance, but I am also waiting for the dust to settle like I did with the Power PC to Intel changeover.

Dec 4, 2020 8:04 AM in response to Ian R. Brown

I don't have one but it won't take much web searching to see that the answer is yes...they are incredible...but...plenty of people are having issues. The issues are -probably- BigSur related. Some folks are having bluetooth issues, others find that high res ultra wide screen monitors don't work in high res ( and that might be hardware and unfixable). WiFi is a widely reported issue. Most of these issues sound like BigSur teething problems to me. So there are definitely potential issues but that said, plenty of people are not having issues. It only has two T3 ports so you'll need a hub if you want more T3 and of course neither the RAM or SSD is upgradeable but from what I've read it really is quite something. As efficient as the RAM is, I won't get an M1 until it's an M2 that can use more ram or I am convinced that 16 on an M1 is really equivalent to 32 on Intel and I don't quite believe that.

Dec 4, 2020 8:58 AM in response to digibudII

I am not really bothered about multiple monitors, extra RAM and Thunderbolt etc.


I would just be plugging it into a normal 1080p HDMI monitor and using USB 3.0 SSDs and HDDs and expecting to run FCP X at a blazingly fast speed.


My real interest is that, being a pessimist and miser, I have been wondering what I would do if my 2017 iMac broke down. The idea of spending a further £2,000 for similar performance was not attractive . . . but the idea of getting much better performance for a mere £699 sounds a great idea.

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M1 Mac mini and Final Cut Pro X?

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