New imac 5k skylake

DirectorDrew · Mar 1, 2016

Hey just looking for some advice. I got the late 2015 iMac 5k i7 4.0ghz processor. I didnt upgrade the ram through apple because its so much cheaper in other stores.

Im looking to upgrade to 32gb. But, now I see 64gb is an option through OWC.
Did anybody else put 64gb in your imac 5k? Is it worth it over the 32gb when editing 4k footage and what not? Rendering time? Whats your advice?

Captain_Aaron · Mar 2, 2016

DirectorDrew said:
Hey just looking for some advice. I got the late 2015 iMac 5k i7 4.0ghz processor. I didnt upgrade the ram through apple because its so much cheaper in other stores.

Im looking to upgrade to 32gb. But, now I see 64gb is an option through OWC.
Did anybody else put 64gb in your imac 5k? Is it worth it over the 32gb when editing 4k footage and what not? Rendering time? Whats your advice?

64GB over 32GB is not going to have an appreciable impact on rendering time. I edit 4k on my MacBook Pro 15 (Late 2013, Retina) with 16GB RAM and it's just fine. RAM only helps to a point -- rendering is a matter of CPU power.

WetDog · Mar 2, 2016

I have a 16 GB 2015 iMac 27 - I don't think much above this is going to help. I have 32 GB on a 2008 Mac Pro - going from 8 to 24 made a difference on that machine, going to 32 didn't really do much. From what I've experienced and read, 16-24 GB is the sweet spot for OS X and multimedia.

RayH · Mar 2, 2016

Hope this helps [emoji106]

Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots mobile app

herein2014 · Mar 2, 2016

I don't know anything about MACs since I use all Intel platforms but I can tell you that these days neither RAM or CPU has much impact on video rendering as long as you are over 16GB of memory. If you truly want to improve your video rendering times you will need to improve your GPU (video card). I use an NVIDIA GeForce 970 and can render, color grade, and compress 4K at over 30FPS. Also, make sure whatever software you are using has GPU acceleration enabled.

On the exact same system with dual FX 4800s I was barely getting 8FPS.

DirectorDrew · Mar 4, 2016

Captain_Aaron said:
64GB over 32GB is not going to have an appreciable impact on rendering time. I edit 4k on my MacBook Pro 15 (Late 2013, Retina) with 16GB RAM and it's just fine. RAM only helps to a point -- rendering is a matter of CPU power.

herein2014 said:
I don't know anything about MACs since I use all Intel platforms but I can tell you that these days neither RAM or CPU has much impact on video rendering as long as you are over 16GB of memory. If you truly want to improve your video rendering times you will need to improve your GPU (video card). I use an NVIDIA GeForce 970 and can render, color grade, and compress 4K at over 30FPS. Also, make sure whatever software you are using has GPU acceleration enabled.

On the exact same system with dual FX 4800s I was barely getting 8FPS.

Actually I'm being told different.
This video
Mentions that higher ram, such as 64gb, lessens render time. I'm just seeing if anybody specifically has the newer 5k imac and has tried it. The Macbook Pro 2013 may handle editing 4k just fine. But, it is nowhere near comparison to rendering times of a 5k imac. I have seen some newer Macbook Pros slower than my 2010 iMac when it comes to rendering and exporting (finalizing). A 4 minute true UHD 4k (4096x2160) with color grading, effects and whatever else I add. Also exported at 300mb bit rate only takes about 15 minutes to export and thats with 8gb ram. I'm curious if what this video and others are saying it will really help render time if I add 64gb or even 32gb ram. I also have only the AMD Radeon R9 M395 2048 MB (2gb) I didn't opt for the 4gb video card because I saved nearly $700. I do however have the i7 4.0 (4.2 turbo) skylake processor.

herein2014 · Mar 4, 2016

Well I do video and photography editing for a living and I can tell you the GPU is more important than RAM for modern video editing software. I noticed that video was from 2014, modern NLEs use GPU acceleration far more than RAM. My software suite never uses more than around 16GB of memory even though I have 48GB in the system, but it uses up to 95% of the GPU when rendering. I can easily edit 4K in near real time as long as I have GPU acceleration enabled.