Upgrading my iMac.... Advice needed....

[happymoogman]

Hi Guys,

Say, I've been using DP9.01, and doing fine with it.
The thing is, my iMac is now an unbelievable TEN YEARS old, and I need to replace it before it fails on me.
About 80% done with my current album project, and I don't want to mess it up OR have to learn a whole new DP upgrade.
My question is, can I transfer my 9.01 version of DP to the latest version of IMac that I'll be soon getting, and will it still work for me??
I think my last upgrade was digital, so I don't have the disc.

I need your input... thanks in advance.

Dana Countryman

[cuttime]

The latest Apple computers are Apple Silicon only. DP9 is Intel only. In theory you should be able to run it on a new Mac using the Apple Rosetta 2 translation software, however I can't guarantee it.

[mikehalloran]

A brief overview:

A new Mac will require a DP upgrade. DP 11 will open your DP 9 projects but…

If you are still working in 32 bit, many of your plug-ins and possibly some of your VIs will not. Hopefully, you already switched to working in 64 bit when you went to DP 8 — if so, the transition will be easier.

After you finish your current project, run the 9.52 updater. There were a number of changes made. If everything runs smoothly, so much the better.

The least amount of Mac I can recommend is a 2018 Mini or 2017 iMac Pro, the more cores the better. The Mini will run circles around a 2013–14 iMac (which ran circles around the 2012); the iMac Pro is much faster and more robust than the Mini. Both are still available in the Apple Refurb Store but they are ridiculously overpriced there. Buy used if on a tight budget. An 18 core iMP can be found in the $3K–$3.5K range if you know where to look.

Otherwise, if your budget allows, consider either the new M2 Mini (minimum 512GB storage) or the M1 Studio and consign the whole idea of Intel Macs to the past. If the M2 Pro Mini (minimum 1TB) is being considered, the Studio isn’t much more expensive and has advantages so shop carefully. Less than the (minimum storage) on the new Minis runs slower.

You do not need the 5K Studio display (same size but nicer than the 2012–4 27” iMac) but you will likely want it. Large 4K monitors work with them, too, and there are some 8K monitors that work with the M2 Pro and Studio.

Hardware is not the only consideration. If you have large VI and plug-in libraries that haven’t been upgraded in years, these will need money thrown at them, too.

[mikehalloran]

The latest Apple computers are Apple Silicon only. DP9 is Intel only. In theory you should be able to run it on a new Mac using the Apple Rosetta 2 translation software, however I can't guarantee it.

9.52 may or may not, I don’t know. DP 9.01 definitely won’t since it will request license verification with every re-boot beginning High Sierra.

Of the Macs I mentioned, only the iMac Pro can run High Sierra.

[happymoogman]

Thank you, Mike, et al...

Good information there. Yes, I know I'll have to upgrade various software (some is still working from 2008!!), but I wasn't sure about the DP upgrade. I'll try the 9.56 DP upgrade on the new computer first, and see if I can get away with that. Otherwise, I'll go fo the full meal deal.
I've ordered a new computer desk, and I'll have both the new computer and the old one side by side. Any suggestions as to how I can work on the new computer, running DP, yet still transfer files easily over to the old one? I guess I could do it through Dropbox, but it there a way to interface the two, and simply drag a file back and forth?

dc

[mikehalloran]

The 9.52 update is free to you. It's a complete installer that does not require 9.01 to be present. You still need to Authorize it, of course.

Installer Supports
Digital Performer 9.52
Mac v9.52+76360 | May 2, 2018
macOS 10.14, macOS 10.13, macOS 10.12, Mac OS X 10.11

What I do not know is with which OS the installer stops working. I can confirm it does over Catalina and doesn't over Monterey or Ventura so the only chance is if you bring it over via Migration Assistant. If 9.52 works at all on an M1 or M2 Mac, it must be done over Rosetta II.

The MOTU License manager lets you install on multiple workstations but only the last two installs will function. This is done automatically.

You can copy Project Folders from one Mac to another but you may have a Permissions issue if you do not a) use Migration Assistant or b) zip the Project Folder on the old Mac before copying and unzipping on the new one.

As of MacOS 12 Monterey, Dropbox can be used to transfer DP files (and even collaborate on them if everyone is using the same plug-ins). I cannot confirm this on older MacOS or versions of DB older than 167.4.

[waterstrum]

About 80% done with my current album project, and I don't want to mess it up OR have to learn a whole new DP upgrade.

Dana Countryman

Hey Dana...

Great advice from Mike.

I'll just add that if I was in the later stages of an album project, I'd probably finish it before doing the upgrade.
I'm sure your new system will be wonderful, but there might be some stumbling blocks before it works the way you want it to.
That said, if you aren't under the pressure of time constraints or client expectations, you can take the time to "move in" to your new system.

Either way, I wish you a great new album.

[HCMarkus]

I was able to successfully move from a 2010 Mac Pro running DP9.52 under Mojave to a 2022 Mac Studio running DP 11.21 under Monterey I the middle of a 90 minute film score project. The end result was I had a seriously more pleasurable and productive time with the score on the new machine.

New Mac Studio needs external storage. My solution: 8TB Seagate USB3 Hard Drives for Time Machine and Long Term Storage. BackBlaze for Cloud Backup. Old SATA SSDs placed into $12.00 USB3 enclosures. Fast storage is 2TB Samsung 970 Evo Plus drives in OWC Envoy Express Thunderbolt enclosures.

I took me two days to get the new Mac running. First, I made a list of all my plugins on the old Mac. I used Migration Assistant only for Network Settings, then signed in with my Apple ID to handle password management.

Downloaded and Installed all my Apps from scratch, including DP and all plugins. Rosetta supported the plugins that were not yet Apple Silicon Native very nicely.

Moved from Microsoft Office to Libre Office. Libre opens MS Word and Excel without issue, so it is all I needed.

VI Sample Libraries and DP Project Files were transferred using a spare Hard Drive, so I didn't need to re download them all.

Other than BFD and Boz VIs, all my Vis made the move without incident, and the new machine is smooth and super snappy. I still have the Cheesgrater in the machine closet. I've booted it maybe twice since I got the Mac Studio running.

[ronjams]

You had a much smoother experience, and though I use migration assistant, I had major problems with a native access digital performer was OK, but the problems were mainly with the outdated installers and incompatibility with Apple Silicon in general with the plug-ins I should say third party plug-ins so this is an indication to me that the third-party manufacturers are catching up but I got my system working OK