WHICH new Mac?

[rukidding]

My problem is that I'm running 7 instances of 5.1 PhoenixVerb and 3 instances of Halo 5.1 Upmix.
Even with a much lower track count than usual I'm getting bogged down. I was running VEP5 with 15 or more metaframes but now it's not even possible to use VEP with this setup. I've tried using satellite PCs for ambience and found it cumbersome with multiple computers and would like to have my entire session saved on one system without getting beachballs. All suggestions welcome and thank you so much! G

[mikehalloran]

At the WWDC, Apple promised that the new Mac Pro 7.1 eliminates the need for slave computers. They didn’t say VEP but that’s clearly what they meant.

It was released two days ago. $6k — $53k depending on your needs. Contrary to the articles, any TB3 monitor works—don’t need the $6k 6K.

Do you need that much horsepower? I don’t use VEP and can’t answer that. The iMac Pro is a very powerful machine. A 10 core can handle 300 instances of Kontakt with a convo reverb and another plug on each track without breaking a sweat (half that load puts a strain on a 12 core 6.1 Mac Pro). I was looking at one when I found a barely used 14 core for the same price and snagged it.

The Apple Refurb Store has some great prices on 8–18 core iMac Pro’s at the moment. Selection changes daily.

You don’t give much info on what you’re doing. You should create an instance for each VI — this lets the OS balance the load among the cores.

[HCMarkus]

Sell your home and buy a maxed out 7,1 Mac Pro.

Seriously, if the wherewithal is yours, why the heck not?

[mikehalloran]

One thing that Apple touted big time in 2018 but hasn't mentioned since is that any Mac with a T2 chip and 10G Ethernet can be harnessed with any other to combine horsepower. They were demonstrating 5–20 2018 Minis to crunch a single animation file. When controlled by an iMac Pro, no eGPU was required. DP has low GPU requirements so that's not really an issue.

The latest Mac Pro, Mini and iMac Pro all have this capability. The Mini must have the 10G Ethernet option. I'm not sure about the MacBook Pro since I don't see a 10G Ethernet option (perhaps through TB3? I don't know).

You could buy a maxed out Mini or low end iMac Pro and add a Mini as a slave machine if that wasn't enough. Since Apple has a 14 day return policy, you could also buy something, test it and upgrade for the difference.

Refurb Store:
https://www.apple.com/shop/refurbished/mac

New Mac Pro
https://www.apple.com/mac-pro/

LG 4K & 5K monitors. The 27" Ultrafine is the display for the current iMac and iMac Pro.
https://www.lg.com/us/4k-monitors

[rukidding]

Thanks Mike! The 5.1 plugs are the real culprits. I mix film score and am totally in the box. I was hoping to hear from others doing the same thing and how their performance is. Maybe the film scoring list would be better to post on.

[HCMarkus]

Sounds like, if you want to keep running under macOS, you could really use a beefy version of the 7,1 Mac Pro. If you need a single-computer solution in a headless format (i.e., not an iMac Pro) it is either the latest Mac Pro or a high-end PC.

[Michael Canavan]

If I had the money but didn't have endless pockets,I would go for the 16 core. A decent system (1TB SSD, 96GB RAM) comes in at around 10K.

There's always a trade off with chips and "turbo boosting", I couldn't say with any certainty this is true for the new Xeon chips, but IMO for what we do starting off with 3.2ghz VS 2.5 might be a wiser choice, plus it's 5k more for 12 more cores, you can get a whole computer with 12 cores for 5K.

[rukidding]

Thanks Michael! That's good perspective.

[thanatopsis]

If I had the money but didn't have endless pockets,I would go for the 16 core. A decent system (1TB SSD, 96GB RAM) comes in at around 10K.

I went with the 12-core, 2TB SSD, 48GB RAM version. It was about $8K. I budgeted a few K for internal SSD and M.2 PCIe cards and some other stuff like a graphics card.
Apple RAM is crazy expensive. You can get the same specs for 1/3 the price elsewhere. I just wanted more than what my Tube had without the fuss of adding more right now. I can upgrade it more later as it gets even cheaper from 3rd-party sellers. If you're going to upgrade it right away, get the 32GB from Apple and look up the specs and get more 3rd party.
I'm betting the CPU will also be upgradeable, at least with the current Xeon series, as the Tube processors were. I've seen tear-downs and it looks as simple as the Tube to upgrade the CPU. The 12-core version is over twice as fast as my 8-core 3.0GHz Tube, so I'll be happy for a few years. But I would probably recommend the 16 core for people who use almost exclusively multi-processor applications and don't want to upgrade it themselves anytime soon.
The Apple SSD is also crazy expensive, and you have to take it in for servicing to upgrade the built-in drive. There are PCI cards that can take SSD and M.2 drives and are bootable and can be faster, so you could just get the 256GB, but that seems like a waste. 1TB is good. Again, I wanted more than my Tube had even though I put the User folder on a separate drive.
The 580X is a joke for 3D graphics, but fine for audio applications. It has a huge heat sync and is totally silent. The whole computer is really quiet even when working hard. But I want a better Radeon for 3D applications or maybe an Nvidia just for the PC side.
It is really a nice machine. It is super over-engineered. Besides the built-in drive it is very user serviceable and upgradeable. It has nice touches like a switch you flip to unlock all the PCI cards instead of having to poke a pencil or something at the little feet of each separate card to unseat them. I think iFixIt gave it a 9/10 and they often give Apple products a 2/10 for serviceability.
It does have limitations. Motherboards are going to start having PCI 4 soon, but I think this Pro will last me 5+ years. Even with upgrades along the way that comes to well under $200/month. I spend more on phone and Internet. And with a decent GPU I don't have to build a new gaming PC I was considering.

[philbrown]

I'm starting from the ground up:
$400 wheels
$1000 monitor stand
-----------------------
$1400

Seems reasonable.

[thanatopsis]

I'm starting from the ground up:
$400 wheels
$1000 monitor stand
-----------------------
$1400

Seems reasonable.

For $1400 you can get a PC laptop that overheats and doesn't even leave you with any place to hang your hat.

[mikehalloran]

3rd party RAM is less expensive but I’ve found it in stock at Crucial and OWC only. 1/3 Apple’s price — you got a link?

The CPU is user upgradeable, absolutely (as it is in the iMac Pro if you’ve got the nerve to crack it open). There is no price savings over Apple, however — they’re charging the same price as Fry’s. If you think about getting the 8 core now and upgrading later as your needs grow, that’s a strategy but if looking for a costs savings by doing it now, good luck with that.

[HCMarkus]

The CPU is user upgradeable, absolutely (as it is in the iMac Pro if you’ve got the nerve to crack it open). There is no price savings over Apple, however — they’re charging the same price as Fry’s. If you think about getting the 8 core now and upgrading later as your needs grow, that’s a strategy but if looking for a costs savings by doing it now, good luck with that.

I thought I saw someone's calculations... going from 8 to 12 was break even, but after that, you come out ahead in the swap, plus you can sell the original CPU.

OTOH, you could also break your brand spankin' new Mac Pro and be out thousands.

[mikehalloran]

The CPU is user upgradeable, absolutely (as it is in the iMac Pro if you’ve got the nerve to crack it open). There is no price savings over Apple, however — they’re charging the same price as Fry’s. If you think about getting the 8 core now and upgrading later as your needs grow, that’s a strategy but if looking for a costs savings by doing it now, good luck with that.

I thought I saw someone's calculations... going from 8 to 12 was break even, but after that, you come out ahead in the swap, plus you can sell the original CPU.

OTOH, you could also break your brand spankin' new Mac Pro and be out thousands.

Yea, that. AppleCare means that you would be unlikely to sell the original CPU for 3 years. But by then upgrades will cost a lot less And there will be plenty of used units on the market, my main reason for saying it’s a very good future strategy.

[Flanker27S]

3rd party RAM is less expensive but I’ve found it in stock at Crucial and OWC only. 1/3 Apple’s price — you got a link?

The CPU is user upgradeable, absolutely (as it is in the iMac Pro if you’ve got the nerve to crack it open). There is no price savings over Apple, however — they’re charging the same price as Fry’s. If you think about getting the 8 core now and upgrading later as your needs grow, that’s a strategy but if looking for a costs savings by doing it now, good luck with that.

I'm curious, is there a shop in Europe in which I could find Apple stuff for cheap like that? I can only find parts for the full price, I can pay for it, but if I can have it for less, then it'd be welcome. Bonus points if it's a physical shop in Germany, as I'll be driving back and forth accross the country to insure these houses in Germany in February.