Mac Pro :: Would An I7 Quad Maxed Out IMac

I know there had been some discussions here about the new i7 quad, and before I spend my hard earned cash I wanted some last minute opinions.

I post this here in the Mac Pro forums because I figure there might likely be more FCP users...which is what my main use for my new machine will be.

I have been wanting a new unit for several months now, and have been just waiting to pull the trigger on a Mac Pro. In fact, it has gotten to be a running joke around my house with my wife and I...we can be talking about something totally non-related and I will say "I just have one word for you...OCTO!!!" Anyway, I digress.

While I simply cannot justify (or afford really) a maxed out octo, I have been considering a "fairly" maxed out quad MP. But now that the new iMac has appeared, I am having more trouble.

I am not a pro...meaning I am not paying my bills with FCP. I would characterize myself as prosumer...which describing myself really means consumer who likes nicer equipment. I do want a "respectable" machine that will handle FCP with somewhat ease.

My current video set up is an HMC150 mixed with Canon 7D. Converting to ProRes 422 (not the HQ flavor) and using things like Magic Bullet. Not doing much Motion work...mostly because I have not learned that process yet. I am currently doing it on a maxed out 2008 iMac. And so far it has not been all that bad. Ingesting is not taking long enough to bother me really...and editing is nice and smooth. The only really long times are for rendering and encoding to H.264.

So, given these facts, am I way out in left field here considering a maxed out iMac? I am sure that during the process, the render and encode times will be what taxes the machine the most. And I am not even really sure that those times would be much different on a quad MP. Octo, sure. But even then I am not sure what kind of differences we are talking about. I mean would a similarly configured octo have double performance from the quad? Would a 2 hour render or encode on an octo take 4 hours on a quad?

The other thing I am thinking is this...Even if the iMac turns out to be way less than what I would like, I am thinking I can use it for awhile (as long as I can stand it) then maybe down the road look again at the MP...say after the 6 or 12 core thing plays out. I could always use the iMac as the monitor for a MP down the road. The glossy thing is not a factor for me...it doesn't bother me at all.