i'm thinking of getting the new imac to run fcp studio 2 with footage shot in HD from a canon xh a1. any views on how i should specialize my comp?

The top model with as much RAM as you can afford would be the best, I think...
Of course, for that kind of money, you can *almost* buy a low end Mac Pro, depending on your budget...

I have the previous iMac, 24inch 2,16 C2D 2 gig RAM
and a XL-H1.
It works fine for editing HDV, but I haven´t done any long projects yet so I can´t say how that would affect the system.
I would go for RAM over processor speed, and the best graphic card if you want to do any effect work

Nagisa,

As suggested above, if you look at the max-setup available on an iMac you're not too far away from a nicely equipped MacPro.

If you intend to do more than home-movies and want to really expand both your capabilities and your output for the future you'd be better served by getting a MacPro instead.

well, i work better on a desktop rather than a laptop so i prefer the imac on that account. and its cheaper.

He means the Mac Pro, not the Macbook Pro.
Problem with tthe iMac is that you can´t expand in anyway. You´re stuck with what you get.
I think I would have got a MacPro if I could turn back time. The thing I really miss is to be able to add a card like BlackMagic etc