Upgrading from G5: 4-Core or 8-Core

Im currently running FCP Studio on a Dual 2.5 GB/X800XT/2.5 GB RAM... but extremely long render and conversion times are crippling my workflow. I also have a lot of problems with live preview in Motion.
So, what Im looking for in a new Mac Pro is 1) fast time-line renders in FCP 2) faster H.264 and MPEG2 encoding in Compressor/BitVice 3) and a stable live preview environment for Motion.
What determines FCP and Compressor render/encoding times... are they mainly CPU processes? And how much RAM... is 4GB enough?
My budget is around 4k and I'm eligible to buy at the Education Store.
1) There's a refurbed 4-Core/2GB RAM/XT1900 at the Apple Store for $3299.
2) OR, should I go for the 8-core $3900 (and upgrade RAM and HDs as soon as I can?
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.
-merrek
G5 Dual 2.5   Mac OS X (10.4.9)   XT800/2.5GB RAM/30" Cinema Display

The symmetric multiprocessing in the Macs and OSX is not linear - that is - having 4 processors will not be twice as fast as 2 and having 8 will not be twice as fast as 4. It's something like 1.5x (if that) per doubling.
Motion is very GPU sensitive. The X1900 is recommended.
Compressor doesn't do multiprocessor particularly well. The new version will allow you to launch multiple instances of the program to take advantage of the available processors.
4GB of ram will allow you fill access from FCP and enough left over for OSX and other minor apps. If you want a whole suite of major applications open - well - think big, RAM big!
All in all, unless you have an application that is specifically tuned to a lot of processors, you'd not get full value for what's in the box. Better to bump up RAM, GPU, and hard drives first. Heck, two first rate monitors + a production NTSC/PAL monitor is a better investment in productivity for most people than more processors...
have fun.
x

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