Next Gen Intel Macs

markbnyc · Post by **markbnyc** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 6:39 am

Hi everyone,

Does anybody have any idea when generation of Intel Macs are going to hit? I'm looking to upgrade from my poor, overworked G5 in the next few months and was wondering if I should hold out for gen2 or just dive in with the current crop when the time comes.

Thanks.

jgest · Post by **jgest** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 6:57 am

I have been in the same situation since last april...do I upgrade or not with all the intell transitions. I waited 9 months and just bought a macbook pro (I need the portability)
Since Leopard is right around the corner, my humble suggestion would be to either buy now and wait for the leopard thing to resolve incase of software issues, or does sonnet have a dual processor upgrade for your "overworked mac".
These seem to be rapidly changing times to be constantly on the bleeding edge of technology. Now I still have to wait for TC-Powercore to go UB. What good is the newest/fastest machine that none of my software works on.....

Dwetmaster · Post by **Dwetmaster** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 7:25 am

The current gen of intel are good to go. You don't have to be scared. Even if you wait for the 2nd gen, the 3rd gen will already be announced by the time they get out. Then you would have to wait the 3rd gen?

Frodo · Post by **Frodo** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 10:50 am

Yeah-- the thing about the current gen Macs is that we've reached sort of a 3Ghz stall of sorts. Consider that the PPCs topped out at 2.7, and the best bang-for-the-buck Intel right now is the 2.66. (The 3G is another story in the $3800 range.) From what I've been reading, the CPUs are not going to make any flying leaps in the way of clock speed as soon as they have in the past. Intel has just released its 4-core chip cluster within the past month or two, the clock speeds are still coming in between 1.6- 2.66.

These chips have yet to arrive in a Mac model and none have been officially announced (although rumors are running rampant). The current trend in lieu of clock speed is to increase the amount of CPUs on a single core, so any speed bumps above 3G will likely be small ones for a while-- and yet to come.

The other reason not to wait too long is that not all software is coded to thread to the growing CPU cluster sizes in what appears will be the trend on next gen models. This will come along in time, but as mentioned earlier the tech chase/wait is an endless cycle.

As for release dates of Mac models, with no new towers announced this month, the next period in which Macs are typically announced will be May/June with shipping around Aug. Laptops and iMacs have had the most recent updates, so it's *most likely* that the towers will be the next revision-- that is, if iPhone and other Apple gadgetry don't take priority.

In a nutshell, there's less reason to wait than there used to be.

markbnyc · Post by **markbnyc** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 11:19 am

Thanks Guys!

Very much appreciated.

HCMarkus · Post by **HCMarkus** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 5:59 pm

If the Frodster is right as far as release of the next Mac Pro, I may have to eat my words concerning the "imminent" arrival" of the eight-core Mac! I am really quite happy with my PPC, but I was just so *sure* the OctaMac would be released this January...

Regardless, I concur that the current Mac Pros are mean music machines. Even if they only match my 2.5 GHz Quad G5 in performance, (indications are similarly-clocked Intels meet or exceed the PPC in most areas) I think you'll be having a really fun time once you get your migration to Intel accomplished.

The promise of the Too Cool for School Native DAW is, in my book, now a reality.

Frodo · Post by **Frodo** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 6:50 pm

HCMarkus wrote:If the Frodster is right as far as release of the next Mac Pro, I may have to eat my words concerning the "imminent" arrival" of the eight-core Mac! I am really quite happy with my PPC, but I was just so *sure* the OctaMac would be released this January...

Regardless, I concur that the current Mac Pros are mean music machines. Even if they only match my 2.5 GHz Quad G5 in performance, (indications are similarly-clocked Intels meet or exceed the PPC in most areas) I think you'll be having a really fun time once you get your migration to Intel accomplished.

The promise of the Too Cool for School Native DAW is, in my book, now a reality.

Not to worry, HC. I won't hold your optimism against you!

The one thing about the Intels vs the Quad PPC is that the Intels do offer some benefits with RAM speed, cache and bus performance even where the CPUs appear to be about even. Still, the Quad PPC remains a formiddable machine. For all the excitement generated by Intels, there is still a PPC confort zone with the Quads-- and dare I include the 2.7 Duals with that assessment?

Some things people need are not ready for Intel yet-- and I don't only refer to DAWs. It's been said before, one app to keep an eye on is Photoshop. Being an Adobe product, it bears mentioning that Adobe is bringing Premiere back to the Mac after dropping it 5 years ago. That it will run on the Intel-Mac (and not PPC) is a true look-ahead road sign. That Adobe and Macromedia have paired up is equally significant, so watching the moves of these major software players will be paramount to track in terms of how and when the computer seasons are likely to change over the coming year.

But waiting for those cyber leaves to turn red or for new silicon flowers to bloom is worse than watching a pot of water boil. If you need a new computer now, go get it. If what you have is working well for you, stick with it.

The most important thing is to keep making music and to keep making money to stay ready for whatever your next hardware upgrade might be.

mhschmieder · Post by **mhschmieder** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 8:11 pm

Another interesting sign to watch will be my former employer Autodesk, who bought the Alias/Wavefront division of SGI (formerly separate companies anyway), or at the very least bought the rights to all or most of those products (Maya/etc.). I believe some of those products are cross-platform, and as additional integration takes place with AutoCAD, 3D Studio, etc., there may be a push to return those products to the Mac platform, on which they once reigned anyway.

Frodo · Post by **Frodo** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 8:17 pm

mhschmieder wrote:Another interesting sign to watch will be my former employer Autodesk, who bought the Alias/Wavefront division of SGI (formerly separate companies anyway), or at the very least bought the rights to all or most of those products (Maya/etc.). I believe some of those products are cross-platform, and as additional integration takes place with AutoCAD, 3D Studio, etc., there may be a push to return those products to the Mac platform, on which they once reigned anyway.

Is that a fact? Schmie-- I'd not heard that or even suspected it. Brilliant prospects!! Wow! Definitely worth looking out for. Thanks.

Frodo · Post by **Frodo** » Thu Feb 01, 2007 12:37 pm

Looks like Maya 8.5 for Intel is on the scene in a big way!!

http://www.macworld.com/2007/01/reviews ... lsrc=mwrss