[Quantum Flux]

im going to be buying a powermac g5 with the following specs. before i do i need to know if it will run final cut studio okay?

dual 1.8ghz
1gb ram
36gb western digital raptor sata low access time hdd for OS and software
200gb sata for video scratch disk
64MB nVidia FX5200 8X AGP running a 23" apple cinema display.

thanks for the help.

[mduell]

Should be fine, the graphics card is going to be weak for Motion. Think about buying a better card if you'll be using Motion a lot.
I think you may be better off with another large drive (250GB are best $/GB at the moment) instead of the Raptor. I doubt you'll mind the difference in seek time in return for the extra space.

[Moon Potato]

Your setup will work great for standard definition video projects... in fact, you could probably leave out the raptor in favor of a larger 7200rpm drive without taking a noticeable performance hit.
If you're going to be working with high definition video, or if you will be working with any 3D-intensive apps on a regular basis, I would upgrade the graphics card to at least a Radeon 9800.

[OreoCookie]

Are you talking about a G5 or an upgraded G4?

But in either case, it'll do fine.

[jmgriff]

I run Final Cut Studio on a 12" Powerbook. I don't edit feature films or anything but it generally works fine. You certainly shouldn't have problems with the setup you describe. The fx5200 is indeed a weak card to run Motion ... on my system it is VERY slow, but usable. You could easily start with the system you have an upgrade the graphics card when you have funds.

[MovieCutter]

You don't need the Raptor...especially if you're doing DV video. I run the whole studio on my 15" PB with a 5400 RPM drive, I capture all my footage to an external 7200RPM notebook drive however, but even if I'm capturing to my main drive, everything works fine. I would take the money you're spending on the raptor and buy an X800, X850, 6800GT, or 6800 Ultra. That's going to make a world of difference in Motion. Not to mention you can find 250GB SATA drives for around $100 now...so I would put 2 of those in there. I had 2x500's in my Power Mac G5 until I sold it to get a Quad...I paid $300 for each drive. Something to think about.

[Chad A Wright]

Heck, if you can live without Motion, you can run Final Cut Studio on a Mac mini. That's what I'm running for the moment. It's sure isn't snappy, but for basic editing, it works great.

The Quad G5 can't get here fast enough.