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Update my trashcan 2015,wait, or buy a new 2019 mac pro


angelonyc

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I have a 2015 6 core 3.5 MG, Mac pro, with 64 gig of memory, 1TB SSD and two Thunderbolt 2 raid systems set to it. After asking around, I was told the 6 core would be the best fit for me. Well it wasn't. I usually end up with about 130 tracks, but 30 - 45 tracks of audio when finished.

Of course every new computer that comes out, the virtual instrument companies will create VI's that use a lot more CPU power. I like to keep my song in live MIDI form for as long as possible. If however I use complex UVI or U-he instrument patches, I can bring Mac to a stop with about 15 instruments, (actually I get a loud click and then no audio). My solution is to turn some patches into audio, save instrument as channel strip, and then reset it to nothing. Then I can continue. But as I work on a piece, I sometimes decide to change a chord in middle, do some harmonies, which requires me to do over the audio tracks again. A hassle, but doable

 

OWC (Other World Computing) offers a 2 TB SSD, $699 and a 12 core CPU $479. The new SSD is runs twice as fast, and OWC claims the architecture of the Mac can handle that. The instructions to replace the 6 core CPU with the 12 Core are very clear cut. Having experience with the insides of a Mac and PC. I feel I can do it myself. OWC charges $700 for the service. I bought my two RAID systems from them, and am very pleased with their professionalism, quality, prices, etc.

 

From what I'm gathering, with the 2019 mac pro, there will certainly be substantially more expensive. possibly putting it beyond my budget. I'm debating whether to upgrade my Mac pro. I was hoping Apple would come out with a somehow cheaper model of 2019 in a year or 2. But the more I think about it, I doubt it.

 

I was wondering what others are considering. I certainly don't want to go the 'hackintosh' route. I've use Logic for over 30 years, and don't want to change DAWs, or platforms at this stage of my life.

 

I'd love to hear other's thoughts about this.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Mac Mini or change platforms, for me. I currently have one foot in Win/Cubase land and it's been ok.. Not ideal, of course after being a Mac Pro user for so long (like learning a new language lol) but it's worth knowing what the alternatives are.... And it ain't all that scary now i'm 6+ months in.

 

Being able to maintain/upgrade/fix my own machines is a big factor for me, hence my move personally.

 

But as per the previous replies, Mac Mini hands down the sweet spot machines for Audio users. That's very clear.

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  • 1 month later...

Looking at the specs of the new mac pro - seriously a 256 TB internal drive? Some 3rd party developers insist on putting their data on system drive. When I bought a mac pro 2015. I upped to a 1TB drive.. Worth it. I create the song on internal SSD, then port over to a RAID system when finished. I want more power than the other macs have, but am NOT paying $15K for a computer. If I was younger and pulling in $$$ form gigs, yes, but older now. Just doing music for my own pleasure.

 

I'd think there must be tons of 'pro-supers' like me. Need the extra power, but can't pay a 'corporate' price for a computer. Hackintosh looks inviting, but I'm not that much 'computer nerdy' specially a PC.. VEP might be the way to go.

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Looking at the specs of the new mac pro - seriously a 256 TB internal drive? Some 3rd party developers insist on putting their data on system drive. When I bought a mac pro 2015. I upped to a 1TB drive.. Worth it. I create the song on internal SSD, then port over to a RAID system when finished. I want more power than the other macs have, but am NOT paying $15K for a computer. If I was younger and pulling in $$$ form gigs, yes, but older now. Just doing music for my own pleasure.

 

I'd think there must be tons of 'pro-supers' like me. Need the extra power, but can't pay a 'corporate' price for a computer. Hackintosh looks inviting, but I'm not that much 'computer nerdy' specially a PC.. VEP might be the way to go.

 

I have 512GB internal on all my Macs right now, Thunderbolt3 externals are as fast as the internal, so there's no real issues with that. i don't work on internal. my internals have 350GB free most of time, i could get away with 256GB.

 

Also, the 2015 Mac Pro unless upgraded to the absolute max is shadowed by the 2018 Mini. I'm not sure if you realize how much power a 15K$ Mac Pro actually has.

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Thanx Ploki. No I don't really know how much a 15K will have.

 

When I bought my 2015 Mac pro. I told several Mac staffers I wanted 40 tracks of live virtual instrument, and live midi. My projects get extremely large. No one could give me a real answer. everything from a mac mini to only a 12 core totally maxed out Mac pro would do the job. If I use either U-he most serious plug-ins, or UVI's most serious patches. I can choke the Mac pro with 8 virtuals. I can usually get 20 or so live virtuals. Then I turn to audio, and save channel strips if I need to go back and make changes. I can continue living with this situation for a while. I've got two Thunderbolt 2 RAID systems, and they have no problem handling whatever demands I put on them.. Although it sounds ridiculous, and I never thought I would be doing it, I get upwards of 140 tracks. The pieces are make are quite long and complex. I often create several versions of a part, before I pick the one I want. I know some folks would say, if I was using that many tracks, I don't really know what I'm doing. but that's the method I choose.

 

I'm retired now, with a fixed income. So I can't justify spending 15K on a computer. I'll just sit it out for a while, then be able to get a sense of things more. Thanx for details on your set-up it does help give me an indication of how powerful computers have become in the present.

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Because 40 tracks of virtual instruments can me it will max out a dual cpu 56-core monster, or won't even scratch a 6-core.

 

I can run about 13 Divas on my Mac Mini. I can run probably a hundred retrosynths.

But divas are HUNGRY.

if you want 100 divas, you will need to get the 28-core.

 

I have projects ranging from 40 to 200 tracks, a lot of soft instruments, some mixed, some surround, some stereo. so far so good.

so you won't get a weird look about tracks from me

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A lot of people use the highest sample rates that their equipment can deliver too and then combine this with the lowest buffer setting they can use, and that can have a dramatic effect on performance/overhead as both these settings affect the load on a system.

 

So it's not always so easy to define how many virtual instruments you can run, but it's worth considering what you actually need rather than letting the hardware you own dictate.

 

I consider myself quite lucky that anything beyond 48k sample rate is out of requirements, and as long as i'm around 8-10ms in+out latency i'm gold. That means i'll always get plenty of overhead even on older machines..... Hence why i'm still happily swimming the cheesegrater mac river. :)

 

If i was in the 96k territory and demanding 2-4ms of latency that's a whole new realm for me, and would mean completely different hardware specs required.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I'd personally consider the latest "Mac Pro" offerings as being the sort of thing that I might try to offer to LucasFilm or Disney. This is extremely high-end equipment suitable for graphics rendering and other CPU-craving applications. I just can't seriously imagine it being necessary for handling music.

 

I did, in retrospect, spend a little too much time with my previous MacBook Pro until it unexpectedly died ... leaving me with nothing but an hour-old Time Machine backup 8-) ... spending too much time "bouncing" things when I really should have thrown silicon at it sooner. But I just can't imagine justifying the purchase of that level of gear for this purpose.

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