Tim Wierenga

Q: Will an iMac 2009 handle Final Cut Pro?

I presently use Final Cut Express on a Macbook Pro 2006. The video card is going bad, so I have been waiting to purchase an iMac until the new ones come out, which I understand could be as soon as next week (or not!). In the mean time, I have come across an iMac 2009 for sale. Will a three year old iMac be able to handle Final Cut Pro?

Mac OS X (10.5.8), Printers Brother HL-2070N, Epson 835; Airport Ext MC3

Posted on Sep 15, 2012 9:01 AM

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Q: Will an iMac 2009 handle Final Cut Pro?

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  • by mishmumken,Helpful

    mishmumken mishmumken Sep 15, 2012 9:22 AM in response to Tim Wierenga
    Level 5 (4,000 points)
    Sep 15, 2012 9:22 AM in response to Tim Wierenga

    The deciding factor here is the video card. Have a look here: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4664

     

    You'll need as much RAM as you can get for decent performance plus a FW 800 external drive. Thunderbolt would be better though.

  • by Tim Wierenga,

    Tim Wierenga Tim Wierenga Sep 15, 2012 9:47 AM in response to mishmumken
    Level 1 (110 points)
    Sep 15, 2012 9:47 AM in response to mishmumken

    I have the firewire drives needed, and from the document you referenced, it appears that Final Cut Pro is compatible with the video card. But since it is only a dual core machine, will the experience be satisfying or frustrating (I know that is a question that is relative to the user, but in the past I have noticed that video editing on older machines can get frustrating)? The specs, except for the chip (which is a big one) do not seem to have changed much on the iMac over the past 3 years.

  • by W. Richard Glendon,Helpful

    W. Richard Glendon W. Richard Glendon Sep 15, 2012 2:08 PM in response to Tim Wierenga
    Level 4 (1,146 points)
    Sep 15, 2012 2:08 PM in response to Tim Wierenga

    With one qualification, namely that I have only been making short videos, I'm really enjoying getting to be comfortable with FCP X. An external hard drive attached by FireWire 800 contains the video. My machine is described in the image below:

     

    Screen Shot 2012-09-15 at 5.04.13 PM.png

     

    Good luck,

     

    dick glendon

  • by Russ H,

    Russ H Russ H Sep 15, 2012 2:46 PM in response to Tim Wierenga
    Level 7 (21,865 points)
    Quicktime
    Sep 15, 2012 2:46 PM in response to Tim Wierenga

    Asssuming it has the Core 2 Duo (like Dick's machine), you're good. If it's the Core Duo, don't think so. The 9400 works fine.

     

    The newer iMacs are really fast, however – much faster than the Core 2 Duo models.

     

    What MM said…RAM makes a big difference.

     

    Good luck.

     

    Russ

  • by fox_m,

    fox_m fox_m Sep 15, 2012 8:14 PM in response to Tim Wierenga
    Level 5 (5,552 points)
    Video
    Sep 15, 2012 8:14 PM in response to Tim Wierenga

    You didn't specify which 09 iMac... There were core duos, i5's (quad-core) and i7's (virtual 8-core)

    Mine handles it all quite well.

     

    09imaci7.png

  • by Tim Wierenga,

    Tim Wierenga Tim Wierenga Sep 16, 2012 4:55 PM in response to fox_m
    Level 1 (110 points)
    Sep 16, 2012 4:55 PM in response to fox_m

    I checked it out, and it has a 2.4 GHz Core 2 Duo with only 2 gig ram.