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Click here to view the next post in this series, “The Dream is Ordered”

My blog post “I’m A Geek – My Dream Computer Setup” is by FAR the most read post in the history of my site. It has consistently been on the most viewed list week after week. So tonight I figured I’d give you guys a little follow up.

My current setup is the same as last time, and the great little soldier just isn’t cutting it anymore. I shoot in HD, and need to start working in Final Cut Studio so that I am familiar with it for college. There’s no way my 4 gigs of ram and Intel graphics card could handle the computer-crushing strains of HD motion graphics, so it is most definitely time for an upgrade. My dream of a Mac Pro is still out of reach, but I can get pretty damn close for at least two grand cheaper by going with one of the late ’09 model iMacs. Let’s take a look at the setup.

27 inch iMac

• 2.8 GHz. Quad Core i7 Processor
• 8 Gigs of Ram
• 1 TB Harddrive
• ATI Radeon HD 4850 512MB Graphics Card
• 8x Double-Layer Superdrive
• Wireless Magic Mouse and Keyboard

If you compare this machine with my former “dream setup”, you’ll see that it’s actually not that much less of a computer. Sure it’s 8 gigs of ram less, and only has a 1TB hard disk, but the ram is still double what I have now, and I have a 1TB external hard drive anyway. The ATI HD graphics in this machine are actually just a model or so down from what I had chosen for the Mac Pro, and offer some insaaaane performance. All in all I think this is a hell of a good machine, especially for me at this time.

Now this, my friend, is where it starts to get fun.

Seeing as after purchasing my new Mac I will still have my old one left to sell, that will provide the cash to upgrade to Final Cut Studio. Video nerd heaven.

In case you have been in a technological closet (or are, ya’ know… cool), here’s a little synopsis of what Final Cut Studio is, and what it has to offer. Final Cut Studio is an industry standard for video production. It has been used in everything from Academy Award winning documentaries and short films, to hit television shows such as Leverage, and now it’ll be in my grubby little hands. Oh lawdy.

I cannot begin to express how excited I am about this upgrade, or how ecstatic I am that this will actually be happening soon.

I can’t promise when all of this will be going down, but I can promise that I will keep all of you guys updated here on the site with blog posts and vlogs about this pinnacle moment of my nerdosity.

I’d love to see your comments about this setup, and hear what your dream machine would be. Remember that I always post these blogs for input and discussion, so feel free to leave a comment and I’ll swiftly respond.

Thanks for reading,

-C