Mac mini for video editing

I have just started to video edit and need a new machine. As of now I have a late 2006 black MacBook.  It is very slow and lags in iMovie. I am considering getting a ssd but I know that won't help entirely. I will use this machine to run final cut pro x or possible final cut 7. I will also be doing stuff involving special effects and what not. I am still new too this stuff. I love film and want to make a couple short films. I am going to college for history and communicatins and want to get my noise wet before hand. Would you consider a Mac mini good for a starter and something that will last a couple of years. Also what model. I want to put a ssd in it and want to know of toi is hard to do. I want quad core so I am looking into the server model. Is the server worth the money? Please don't tell me to get an iMac I don't like them. The glossy screen hurts my eyes and besides I have a grat set up. I have a 23" apple cinema display, keyboard, mouse, and magic trackpad. Or do you think I should get a 15" MBP.

I went to the Apple Store last night after work to by the Mac Mini, but they wanted to charge me an extra £80 compared to the online price. I wanted the 1gb memory upgrade and apparently they was going to charge me for the 500mb they would have to take out to put the 1gb in.
So guess what, I didn't buy it. I've got the order placed online though. Can't wait for it to be delivered, should be about 7 days apparently.

Similar Messages

  • Mac mini for video / music production

    hello!
    i'm really into music and video, i currently do all my video work in premiere pro on the pc, and music is done in a combination of packages like reason, soundforge, etc.
    i'm really tempted by the offer of a mac mini for a few hundred pounds complete with garageband, imovie, etc. plus i can always get final cut on there too.
    I am serious about what i do and would want high quality results. what i'm asking is basically, consdiering the specs of the mac mini, (i'd have to go for the top of the range to get the dvd writer) will it be capable of performing well with video work and more importantly, will garageband let me do professional sounding sequencing and mixing?
    or am i kidding myself that the mini is capable? because if the option is buying a G5, i'll use the cash to upgrade my windows pc instead. it's all about tools for the job for me, i've got no brand loyalty.
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    -the swan

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    On the audio side, I'll leave that to people who have a better knowledge of the application than I do as a rather 8th-rate amateur!
    As for the model you should buy, I would suggest NOT the $699 version with superdrive. I'd suggest you buy the $599 model, replace the 512Mb RAM with a 1Gb stick, and add an external burner. That way you would be getting enough memory to give the mini a solid performance in video work, and giving yourself the choice of DVD burner which not only would include possible dual layer devices (the superdrive is single) but also better burn speeds.

  • Mac Pro for Video Editing?

    So I have an awesome Mac Pro computer at work all well equiped with all the bells and wistles for video editing and now I'm looking to upgrade my machine at home which is currently just a macbook pro with a second monitor.
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  • Mac Mini and Video Editing

    I wanted to find out if the new Mac Mini is powerful enough for basic home video editing. This will not be anything professional, simply Vlogs to post to Youtube. I was looking at building a new PC for this task however I have been looking at the new Mac Mini's, which comes with I movie, and with the new I5 and I7 chips, I was thinking that would be a better option. Thoughts
    Mike

    I would recommend starting with Imovie on a mini, since it will come for free on your system, and if you don't like it/need more, move up to a higher end program.  CS5.5 and Avid Media Composer 5.5 have some great student/teacher discounts if your still a student or have a teacher in the family.  FCPX is priced low for non students as well, 300 ain't a lot for a high end program like FCP, it used to be 1 grand for it til this version came out.  You should be fine running any program on a mac mini (or any model) with at least 4gb of ram.  If you get into professional post production you can always upgrade the mini to 16gb of ram, get a 6g SSD, a external thunderbolt drive, etc.  My 2 generation old mini works fine with high end NLE software, so the new one should work just as well/better. 

  • New mac suggestions for video editing

    I have been looking at getting a new mac to do mostly video editing and DVD authoring. I currently have a 450mhz g4 sawtooth that I thought about upgrading, but figured with the costs to just retire it. I have about a $1200 budget so I am unable to splurge and get a mac pro. Does anybody have any suggestions on what would work best for the money i.e. G5, G4 DP MDD, Macbook.
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    Jamie

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    I eliminate the iMac for the same reason - no expansion slots.
    Basically, it's not recommended to capture video to your built-in drive, so you'd need to connect either a FireWire drive or an eSATA drive (with an ExpressCard adapter). However, your video camera is also likely to be FireWire, so you'd be trying to daisy chain a camera through the FireWire drive which is likely to cause performance problems. Even if the MacBook had two FireWire ports (the newest models do, a FW400 and a FW800, but the refurbs are the previous generation) they still share the same FireWire bus, so it's wise to get a FireWire ExpressCard adapter to add a second FireWire bus to the computer. That way, the drive can use one bus and the camera can use the other. Most cameras operate at 100 Mbps speeds, and slow everything else on the same bus down to those speeds as well. While DV is only 25 Mbps, you still have much less headroom to work with if the bus is operating a 100 Mbps speeds.
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    Adobe's CS suite will run slower on an Intel Mac than on a PPC due to having to run under Rosetta, but most of those apps should still be tolerable. I don't think I'd want to use After Effects under Rosetta, however.

  • Best Mac configuration for video editing

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  • IMac or Mac Pro for video editing?

    Should I invest in a Mac Pro or an IMAC for my video editing needs?
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  • IMac vs the new Mac Pro for video editing in FCPX?

    Hi.
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    Faster project loading, especially for complex projects
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    Mac Pro so far hold up strongly for years, easy to add and upgrade RAM and processor, and maybe, hopefully, even the twin GPUs. Thunderbolt2 for all your projects and storage as well.
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  • How to connect Zi6 HD camera to mac mini for video in?

    I am wondering what is the best way to connect my Koday Zi6 HD camera to my mini so that I can grab video directly from the camera. The camera has HD and AV mini jacks. It also has a built in flip out usb socket, like the flip camera, but this I believe is only used for uploading video files.
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    Is there such a thing as a USB to AV phono adapter?
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  • HT4534 Mac Mini HD Video Conferencing

    I am considering purchase of a mac-mini for video conferencing.  This article (http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4534?viewlocale=en_US) refers to "built in camera".  Of course, the mac-mini has no built in camera.  I would be using my HDTV for a monitor.  Can I use the Logitech c910 & the mini for HD Facetime?

    I also have a mac mini and am using the Logitech C920.  At the beggining, I had issues with its built in mics not working with FaceTime, but I found a solution for the problem and now all the programs that interface with the camera work great (FT, Skype, iMovie, etc).  If you do buy the C920 run into the same issue that I had with the mic not working, here is the quick solution for the problem:
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  • I am planning to buy mac mini 2.5Gzh. I will be using it mainly for video editing and I am planning to upgrade up to 8GB. Is it a good buy or should I try some other alternative.

    I am planning to buy my next desktop. I will be using this mainly for video editing. I am not a professional video editor, I normally do home made videos for youtube, like tutorial, DIY project etc. I use Nikon D3100 camera and some basic green screen techniques as part of recording. So my basic video editing would be just syncing audio, editing videos to cut un-necessary frames etc and some basic effects. I am also planning to buy final cut pro.
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    Great advice from RRFS!
    For video editing, do go for 16 GB of RAM ffrom OWC & consider the twice as fast i7 2.6 model, see Geekbench scores here..
    http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/mac_mini/specs/mac-mini-core-i5-2.5-late-2 012-specs.html
    http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/mac_mini/specs/mac-mini-core-i7-2.6-late-2 012-specs.html

  • What format is best for an external hard drive for video editing on a mac?

    What's the best format for an external hard drive for video editing to be use with a mac only? I need to format my new hard drive and want to be sure I choose the right format.

    I concur with Kappy. His suggestion is correct.
    Allan

  • Which of these macs would you choose for video editing?

    The main difference is the MBP has an Serial ATA drive, and the Air has a Flash drive.  Also the MPB has 2.9Ghz, and the Air has only 2.0Ghz.  Which one would you pick for editing with Final Cut Pro X? (Also curious which one you would pick even if video editing wasn't a concern for you, thanks!)
    MacBook Pro 13.3” - Dual-Core i7 2.9Ghz ($1269 refurb, or $1399 new at BestBuy)
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    Originally released June 2012
    13.3-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit glossy widescreen display, 1280-by-800 resolution
    8GB (2 x 4GB) of 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM
    750GB Serial ATA @ 5400 rpm
    8x double-layer SuperDrive (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
    Intel HD Graphics 4000
    Or
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    8GB memory
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    Intel HD Graphics 4000

    Zenman1969 wrote:
    Thanks for the answer.  Didn't realize the 13" MBPs differed from the 15" MBPs.  I thought the screen was the only major difference. 
    Apple fools a lot of people with that. The 13" is really a MacBook and not a "Pro" machine.
    The best machine for video editing depends upon what your going to do, full on production or casual home stuff.
    A 15" MacBook Pro and a iMac for the casual lightweight stuff and iMove can do the job.
    The new MacPro coming out for the heavy duty stuff.
    The industry seems to be moving away from Final Cut Pro X as it's been consumerized or something, lacking needed features and moving towards Avid on powerful Mac's or Windows 7 towers.
    http://arstechnica.com/apple/2011/07/does-apple-still-care-about-creative-pros/
    http://www.avid.com/US/
    So perhaps a mix of Avid and Final Cut Pro X if your serious about furthering your career.

  • I want to upgrade my Power Mac G5 Quad (Mac OS X 10.5.8) for video editing purposes. What upgrades should I make?

    Hello!
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    Rendering,editing and exporting takes some time on my computer. I just want things to go faster.
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    Thanks in advance!!!

    Here are other video cards that you can search for that will also work in your G5.
    NVIDIA GeForce 7800 GT with 256 MB of GDDR3 SDRAM, and NVIDIA Quadro FX 4500 with 512 MB of GDDR3 SDRAM
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  • Good Mac for video editing?

    Hi,
    I'm interested to buy a new Mac for video editing and I don't know which mac to choose. I need a laptop computer that can run Adobe After Effects and Final Cut Studio without too much bugs. I asked some people which Mac I need to buy, and they told me a Quad-Core iMac 27 inch or a Mac Pro.
    Since my bugdet is quite limited, I will prefer buying an iMac than a Mac Pro because the iMac already has a screen.
    Thank you,
    Franklin Schrans
    <Email Edited by Host>

    appsandhacks(youtube) wrote:
    Hi,
    Thanks for the great advice, but since I live in Belgium I can't order a Mac from the US Apple Store.
    Franklin Schrans
    [email protected]
    Franklin,
    You are correct you cannot purchase from the US Apple Store however the Belgian store does have  refurbished section located at: http://store.apple.com/be-fr/browse/home/specialdeals/clearance?mco=OTY2ODY2NQ
    I see they don't have anything to sell right now however I would continue checking this site very frequently, products come and go very quickly. If you decide to purchase new in order to get the most powerful iMac purchase a machine based on the i7 processor. You can also call the online store their number is in the upper left corner of the store's home page, they can also provide advice or if you visit your local Apple Store they can assist as well.
    Roger

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