JHAG Posted February 23, 2016 Share #1 Posted February 23, 2016 Advertisement (gone after registration) So I'm on the market for a new iMac, as my Macbook is not enough to handle pics. Having a very good deal from an official Apple UK merchant, I'm sill wondering about two options : - iMac 128 SSD + 3 TB Fusion drive - iMac 256 SSD + external WD 8 TB drive USB 3.0 Merchant says second setup is faster, system and apps being on 256 SSD, pictures and documents being on external. I must say just 8 months of picture files are already filling up a 1 TB Macbook drive up to 65 %, so storage, large and fast, is becoming an issue. Any advice from distinguished members ? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted February 23, 2016 Posted February 23, 2016 Hi JHAG, Take a look here Advice for new iMac. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
LocalHero1953 Posted February 23, 2016 Share #2 Posted February 23, 2016 I can't answer for Macs, but having gone all SSD a year ago, I wouldn't return to spinning drives. I have 2x1Tb, but in the interval of course the capacity has gone up and the price has come down. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHAG Posted February 23, 2016 Author Share #3 Posted February 23, 2016 Paul, Full SSD is really too expensive if I need up to 10 TB. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manoleica Posted February 23, 2016 Share #4 Posted February 23, 2016 Paul, Full SSD is really too expensive if I need up to 10 TB. Look at it as an investment.. Far less breakdown hassle, less upgrading later.. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
prk60091 Posted February 23, 2016 Share #5 Posted February 23, 2016 (edited) I would go with ssd and use ssd attached storage (either usb 3 or thunderbolt or look at drobo or symbology NAS) I just recently became a convert to ssd with a brand new macbookpro I went with ssd and have my storage on att'd ssd's (they plug into my AirPort Extreme so they are visible throughout the network. My my next purchase is either the drobo or synology. Edited February 23, 2016 by prk60091 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
tobey bilek Posted March 11, 2016 Share #6 Posted March 11, 2016 Off load pics to external drive where they belong. Keep a few favorites as duplicates on SSD if you wish. Or keep everything on SSD for 3/12 months, then move the oldest. Or never put any files on SSD, download card to external and work from there. Plugging up main drive will slow computing time, make using extra ram mandatory and slowing down computer, just generally not a good way to work. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHAG Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share #7 Posted March 11, 2016 Advertisement (gone after registration) I'm going towards internal SSD (500 Gb), with system, apps and some essential files only. Still pondering externals though. SSD is too expensive for my needs (8 TB). What's the upside of Sinology NAS versus for example RAID ? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
tobey bilek Posted March 17, 2016 Share #8 Posted March 17, 2016 My 2 year old Air is small SSD. 125 I think + 8 GB special order. It handles PS just fine . No computer will work properly if you use the main drive as a storage library. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
otto.f Posted March 17, 2016 Share #9 Posted March 17, 2016 I went for the second option. iMac 27" 5K SSD, no fusion, some external drives for all images with Thunderbolt connections. Very fast, no problems. I had to add some extra RAM, 8+32, to get CaptureOne and Creative Cloud running fast enough for my standards Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHAG Posted March 17, 2016 Author Share #10 Posted March 17, 2016 Apparently, Thunderbolt is not faster than USB3 if external are HD. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CheshireCat Posted March 18, 2016 Share #11 Posted March 18, 2016 (edited) So I'm on the market for a new iMac, as my Macbook is not enough to handle pics. Having a very good deal from an official Apple UK merchant, I'm sill wondering about two options : - iMac 128 SSD + 3 TB Fusion drive - iMac 256 SSD + external WD 8 TB drive USB 3.0 Merchant says second setup is faster, system and apps being on 256 SSD, pictures and documents being on external. I must say just 8 months of picture files are already filling up a 1 TB Macbook drive up to 65 %, so storage, large and fast, is becoming an issue. Any advice from distinguished members ? Sorry, but without further information, it is impossible to say which setup is faster. And keep in mind that drive speed has a zero-ish impact on photo processing. Speed, apart, my recommendation for mass storage is to get what you need for the next 12 months. When you run out of storage space, buy a new drive at "future cost", which will be much lower than "now cost" Edited March 18, 2016 by CheshireCat Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
otto.f Posted March 18, 2016 Share #12 Posted March 18, 2016 'And keep in mind that drive speed has a zero-ish impact on photo processing.' But loading the photo into your processing program is very dependent on drivespeed Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CheshireCat Posted March 18, 2016 Share #13 Posted March 18, 2016 'And keep in mind that drive speed has a zero-ish impact on photo processing.' But loading the photo into your processing program is very dependent on drivespeed Not really. Even the crappiest mechanical drive for laptops will load a typical 24 MP raw file in less than one second. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Her Berger Posted March 18, 2016 Share #14 Posted March 18, 2016 My 2 year old Air is small SSD. 125 I think + 8 GB special order. It handles PS just fine . No computer will work properly if you use the main drive as a storage library. +1, agree, small internal SSD, maximum RAM and 2 storage discs, one for the pics, 2nd for backups. just my Cup of tea. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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