Does the 3.4 i7 iMac's 2GB VRam option enhance the performance of Final Cut Pro X, Compressor or Motion? I've heard conflicting answers from Apple employees. Is there any benifit (to me) for spending the extra $$$ for the 2GB upgrade if the machine's intended used primarly for these applications?
From my experience, having more VRAM doesn't make the final output faster, the rendering, but working with the app is better with more VRAM because it can put more of your project in the VRAM and access it faster and even do more of the "real time" playback.
I'd definitely get as much VRAM as I can. FCP X and Motion are both GPU-oriented.
If you said you wanted an iMac for Adobe applications, I'd say no. But FCP X and Motion both benefit greatly from VRAM and faster GPU options.
From my experience, having more VRAM doesn't make the final output faster, the rendering, but working with the app is better with more VRAM because it can put more of your project in the VRAM and access it faster and even do more of the "real time" playback.
I'd definitely get as much VRAM as I can. FCP X and Motion are both GPU-oriented.
If you said you wanted an iMac for Adobe applications, I'd say no. But FCP X and Motion both benefit greatly from VRAM and faster GPU options.
$100 to go from 1 gig to 2 gig is a no-brainer. You'll see a difference.
An Apple tech told me on the phone yesterday that 1GB of VRAM was an extreme amount of VRAM and that FxCM (Final Cut Pro X, Compressor and Motion) would NOT benifit from the 2GB VRAM upgrade. He said that the extra VRAM only came into use for 3D rendering like games and the like, but it was a waste of money for FxCM.
This is inline with my understanding that this VRAM is useful only used for 3D texture maps for 3D rendering. It does not aid in rendering 2D from a NLE or help accelerate transcoding video in Compressor. I'd love it if someone could provide benchmarks to support that the 2GB upgrade directly enhances FxCM.
To me it's a no-brainer to NOT spend money on something does not do anything usefull, even if it's only $100.
OK, so if you are going to ignore the advice of people on this board using this software for years, why waste our time asking the question?
I'm sure some guy whose job is to do telephone support knows better than content developers creating videos and motion graphics for clients. That guy obviously doesn't know what he's talking about because the VRAM and GPU are used heavily in FCP X and Motion. That is why an iMac is faster than a Mac Pro with 12 cores right now.
But ignore me. Get the slowest GPU and 512k VRAM because they are only used in 3D.
2GB VRam Upgrade useful with Final Cut Pro X, Compressor or Motion?
