IBryan4423
Level 1 (5 points)
Video

Q: Editing 4K from Gh4 on Older Mac

HI all,

 

I Currently have the following iMac (see specs below). I also currently have a canon 60D and I primarily shoot at 1080p, 30fps. My workflow consists of me converting the footage to prores (often lt) and editing/light grading in Final Cut Pro 7 with a magic bullet plugin. I'm thinking about getting a Panasonic Gh4 but I'm a little nervous my computer won't be able to handle 4K at 30fps or 1080 at 98fps even after transcoding to proRes. I don't do heavy color grading but I will do some. Does anyone have experience with a similar system? Am I going to be able to even remotely edit this footage? Also would it help to upgrade my OS and begin using Final Cut Pro X (something which I've sort of been dreading due to the iMovie feeling of it). - Thanks!

 

2011 27inch iMac (10.6.8)

3.06 Ghz Intel core 2 duo processor

4 gb of ram

ATI Radeon hd 4670 graphics card

Imac, Mac OS X (10.6.3)

Posted on Nov 22, 2015 11:56 AM

by Shane Ross,Solvedanswer
Shane Ross Shane Ross
Level 8 (43,004 points)
A:

The computer...MIGHT be able to. FCP 7 is barely on the edge of being able to work with 4K, having been discontinued shortly after the 4K format came about. You have the proRes 4444 codec that will do 4K, and FCP 7 will work with that. One big issue is that you only have 4GB of RAM.  FCP 7 uses 4GB...but then you have the OS that needs some, and if you have any other programs running they will take some. So with only 4GB, the computer will then rely on Virtual Memory, which is the hard drive...and that will slow the system down. 

 

So yes, your computer will be an issue. The version of FCP will too, but to a much lesser degree...but FCX and Adobe Premiere Pro are better suited for 4K.  ALthough if you use Adobe, you'll need a new machine, no doubt...with lots more RAM and an expensive graphics card. It deals with 4K, natively, by requiring more system resources, RAM, Processor, GPU.

 

BUT...you CAN cut it with this mac...maybe.  The biggest issue is actually HARD DRIVE type. It'll have to be a LARGE hard drive in order to hold the ProRes 4444 4K files. It'll have to be RAIDED and have a very fast connection (Thunderbolt) in order to play them back.  So you'll need something like the OWC Thunderbay 4 or similar.  Firewire, USB3...won't cut it.  Gotta be 2 or more RAIDED drives...and a fast fast connection for 4K ProRes...that's a high data rate.  Even 1080 at 98fps requires this.  But, 98fps? There's no standard for that. There's no standard for 1080p60 at the moment, other than a few web options. 

 

In short...yes, it will work. But only if you boost a few things, and buy a high end hard drive. 

Posted on Nov 24, 2015 3:21 PM

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IBryan4423

Q: Editing 4K from Gh4 on Older Mac

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  • Helpful answers

  • by Shane Ross,Solvedanswer

    Shane Ross Shane Ross Nov 24, 2015 3:21 PM in response to IBryan4423
    Level 8 (43,004 points)
    Nov 24, 2015 3:21 PM in response to IBryan4423

    The computer...MIGHT be able to. FCP 7 is barely on the edge of being able to work with 4K, having been discontinued shortly after the 4K format came about. You have the proRes 4444 codec that will do 4K, and FCP 7 will work with that. One big issue is that you only have 4GB of RAM.  FCP 7 uses 4GB...but then you have the OS that needs some, and if you have any other programs running they will take some. So with only 4GB, the computer will then rely on Virtual Memory, which is the hard drive...and that will slow the system down. 

     

    So yes, your computer will be an issue. The version of FCP will too, but to a much lesser degree...but FCX and Adobe Premiere Pro are better suited for 4K.  ALthough if you use Adobe, you'll need a new machine, no doubt...with lots more RAM and an expensive graphics card. It deals with 4K, natively, by requiring more system resources, RAM, Processor, GPU.

     

    BUT...you CAN cut it with this mac...maybe.  The biggest issue is actually HARD DRIVE type. It'll have to be a LARGE hard drive in order to hold the ProRes 4444 4K files. It'll have to be RAIDED and have a very fast connection (Thunderbolt) in order to play them back.  So you'll need something like the OWC Thunderbay 4 or similar.  Firewire, USB3...won't cut it.  Gotta be 2 or more RAIDED drives...and a fast fast connection for 4K ProRes...that's a high data rate.  Even 1080 at 98fps requires this.  But, 98fps? There's no standard for that. There's no standard for 1080p60 at the moment, other than a few web options. 

     

    In short...yes, it will work. But only if you boost a few things, and buy a high end hard drive. 

  • by IBryan4423,

    IBryan4423 IBryan4423 Dec 20, 2015 4:15 PM in response to Shane Ross
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Video
    Dec 20, 2015 4:15 PM in response to Shane Ross

    Hi Shane,

     

    So I just got access to some Gh4 files to play with (some 4k and some 1080p). The 1080 are fine, no issues after converting to pro-res. 4k is better than I expected but still a lot of dropped frames without rendering after adding each clip to the timeline. Do you think upping my RAM to 8GB or 16GB would help the rendering speeds? I was looking at some of the options on OWC, possibly the 8 or 16gb options (4x4). If upping RAM would help that would be great, but im not sure if there is another bottle neck im missing that would make upping my RAM pointless.

     

    Thanks again!

  • by Shane Ross,Helpful

    Shane Ross Shane Ross Dec 21, 2015 11:12 AM in response to IBryan4423
    Level 8 (43,004 points)
    Dec 21, 2015 11:12 AM in response to IBryan4423

    First off, FCP 7 is not the best with dealing with 4K. It was discontinued when the 4K revolution started.  So ponder that for a bit...you might be better off with other editing software if you intend to edit 4K.  Convert the footage to ProRes 4444 first, however. FCP 7 does not work with that footage natively.

     

    Second...RAM isn't the issue. FCP only uses 4GB, period. No...the issue is the size of the files, the large data rate...so what you need are faster media drives.  A single firewire 800 drive won't play back 4K ProRes.  YOu need at least a two drive RAID, and Thunderbolt, or something faster. 

  • by IBryan4423,

    IBryan4423 IBryan4423 Dec 21, 2015 11:15 AM in response to Shane Ross
    Level 1 (5 points)
    Video
    Dec 21, 2015 11:15 AM in response to Shane Ross

    Thanks! I guess I will start by getting a faster media drive and maybe trying FCPX. Most of my projects will likely be 1080. But from time to time it would be nice to have the 4K option. I plan on upgrading my computer later this year. I just can't stomach buying a $2000 camera and $2500 computer the same week!