MP 7,1 Afterburner video accelerator card for new Mac Pro

[chfilm]

Apple just releases some FAQs for the machine, including one for the AB.

Does Afterburner accelerate ProRes or ProRes RAW encoding?
Afterburner accelerates ProRes and Pro Res RAW decoding and playback.

What are the main benefits of using Afterburner?

• Play back multiple streams of ProRes and ProRes RAW in resolutions such as 8K.
• Free up Mac Pro (2019) CPU processors (up to 28 cores) for additional processing and effects.
• Faster transcoding and sharing of ProRes and ProRes RAW projects and files.

So it seems that it does not accelerate ProRes encoding. But it also says faster transcoding of ProRes files. So still uncertain if it accelerates H.64-based codecs to ProRes upon transcoding.

Haha what a brilliant statement from Apple. Doesn’t support encoding, but enables faster transcoding. !?!?

Argh!

I‘m buying the Vega II solo and that afterburner will have to come later. Cmon, 16 cores should transcode pretty fast already, compared to my old 8 core trashcan. Afterburner is just gonna be a lovely bonus that will make it RIDICULOUSLY fast.
And yea, for 8k I can see a benefit definitely, but we‘re not nearly there yet in standard TV and Advertising production. They are just arriving at 4K...

 

[ekwipt]

Does the Afterburner Card fit in any PCIe slot (PCs for mackintosh for example?)

 

[deconstruct60]

Does the Afterburner Card fit in any PCIe slot (PCs for mackintosh for example?)

No. it needs a x16 full length slot. It is not very restrictive but it is also not "any slot". And if you don't feed it enough bandwidth it is not going to do anything amazing in real time with 8K video .
[automerge]1576018464[/automerge]
Apple's page for "what can PCIe cards can you install on a Mac Pro 2019" has a link to "Learn more about Afterburner" . That link right now

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210478

is a dead end "We are sorry , can't find that page". Way to go, Apple. They'll probably have it fixed at some point.

 

[ekwipt]

Cool thanks

 

[PowerMike G5]

Haha what a brilliant statement from Apple. Doesn’t support encoding, but enables faster transcoding. !?!?

Argh!

I‘m buying the Vega II solo and that afterburner will have to come later. Cmon, 16 cores should transcode pretty fast already, compared to my old 8 core trashcan. Afterburner is just gonna be a lovely bonus that will make it RIDICULOUSLY fast.
And yea, for 8k I can see a benefit definitely, but we‘re not nearly there yet in standard TV and Advertising production. They are just arriving at 4K...

I know... perfect language... it’s saying yes and no at the same time lol.

 

[deconstruct60]

...
So it seems that it does not accelerate ProRes encoding. But it also says faster transcoding of ProRes files. So still uncertain if it accelerates H.64-based codecs to ProRes upon transcoding.

I posted in post #44 above that Compressor has Afterburner support . Transform of FCPX projects ( presumably already in ProRes ) can the transformed to some export target . It isn’t inconsistent, just not universally bidirectional . First step of transcode is to put date into the expanded , ‘native’ format before encoding it again in some other format ( step 1 decode. Step 2 encode ) . Decoding is part of that .

 

[deconstruct60]

That link right now

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210478

is a dead end "We are sorry , can't find that page". Way to go, Apple. They'll probably have it fixed at some point.

I think Apple had a typo .

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210748 is similar digits in different order . “About the Afterburner accelerator card for Mac Pro (2019)”

It is focused on decode now . But it is a FPGA so Apple add resetting to an e later for well worked of software they have also written . But it is also about a 75W card ( just PCI-e bus power . It isn’t going to leap over tall build in a single bound or be more powerful than a locomotive . It can do one thing extremely well with a single fixed function integrated circuits . That fixed function can vary a bit over time but it will be narrow.

It is probably not going to cover RED RAW anytime for the foreseeable future . Nor is it likely Apple is going to give 3rd parties access to reprogram it .

Like me much of the new Mac Pro it is aimed at a narrow small group who have heavyweight decode problems . Sure the big GPUs could do that workload , but then they’d do less of something else more general.

 

[bsbeamer]

https://www.newsshooter.com/2019/12/13/red-apple-complete-metal-gpu-accelerated-r3d-support/

RED and Apple have completed METAL GPU accelerated R3D support in the SDK that will be rolled out to developers over the next 24 hours.

This support will also be integrated into the next major release of FCPX.

According to RED, the SDK went out to DaVinci Resolve earlier in the week and there will also be support for use in Avid. If you are a Adobe Premiere Pro user you will have to wait. There is no indication currently of when it will receive support.

3rd parties can start integrating into their apps. Getting the Metal SDK done took priority over re-writing REDCINE-X to support metal so somewhat ironically you will likely see all the NLE’s support it before REDCINE-X does.

If you are a Windows user, RED says “And for the windows folks don’t worry you have some CUDA love coming your way over the next 24 hours as well…”.

What is still unclear is there hasn’t been any mention of whether or not the SDK includes support for the Afterburner card.

“Apple’s new hardware will bring a mind-blowing level of performance to Metal-accelerated, proxy-free R3D workflows in Final Cut Pro X that editors truly have never seen before. We are very excited to bring a Metal-optimized version of R3D.”
Jarred Land, president, Red Digital Cinema

 

[bxs]

I have an interest in the Afterburner's (AB) impact and benefits. I'm aware there are Apps or a facility for monitoring the GPU utilization. So I'm wondering if Apple has embedded some software for monitoring the AB's utilization in real time or even logging what is it doing. If Apple provides nothing in this respect, are there 3rd party solutions for this I wonder, or if not at this time, are there 3rd parties working/developing software for monitoring the AB's utilization ?

 

[Blair Paulsen]

As a RED guy since day zero, and owner of both RedRocket and RedRocket-X accelerator cards, I can confirm that having a specialty card handling R3D files takes a lot of load off other resources. Based on what little we actually know about the AB card at launch, let alone after a couple revs, it's value for RED files is hard to know. That said, there sure seems to be a lot of potential for the AB card to take the decoding load.
What we do know, is that RED is working with Apple in some manner and has already announced an SDK that leverages Metal. Implementing RED (R3D) decoding in the AB FPGA certainly seems like an obvious move. Not every MacPro buyer is doing 8K video work, but clearly Apple is aiming the 7,1 at those that are. That cohort includes a significant population of folks working with RED footage, who, like me, would whip out the credit card a lot faster if the AB card can rip through R3Ds like butter.

 

[H. Flower]

The beauty of this new machine is if they rewrite the software for RED, we can easily add the card later.

 

[Blair Paulsen]

Adding the AB card after we know the situation with RED support is where I'm at as well. That said, if it's going to happen at some point in 2020 anyway - I'd rather get it in the initial BTO so I can enjoy the ProRes chops in the meantime. Note: for me, $2K is too much for ProRes acceleration alone.

 

[bxs]

I have an interest in the Afterburner's (AB) impact and benefits. I'm aware there are Apps or a facility for monitoring the GPU utilization. So I'm wondering if Apple has embedded some software for monitoring the AB's utilization in real time or even logging what is it doing. If Apple provides nothing in this respect, are there 3rd party solutions for this I wonder, or if not at this time, are there 3rd parties working/developing software for monitoring the AB's utilization ?

I'm guessing one way to determine the benefit and usefulness of the AB is to run with it installed and observe performance etc, and then run the same again with the AB removed.

Does anyone see an issue with this for making a valid comparison with AB and without AB ?

 

[chfilm]

I'm guessing one way to determine the benefit and usefulness of the AB is to run with it installed and observe performance etc, and then run the same again with the AB removed.

Does anyone see an issue with this for making a valid comparison with AB and without AB ?

That would be my approach as well.

 

[H. Flower]

It's just too early, we need benchmarks for this Afterburner card to justify its 2k cost, IMO. Prores is going to scream on these machines, and it may not be worth it, especially if you're not editing anything above 4k.

 

[bxs]

It's just too early, we need benchmarks for this Afterburner card to justify its 2k cost, IMO. Prores is going to scream on these machines, and it may not be worth it, especially if you're not editing anything above 4k.

Our office is receiving more and more 8K footage from clients these days. I agree, it's a spendy accessory for sure, and I had much hesitation deciding wether to include it, as finding really good information as to its benefits was eluding me.

 

[ekwipt]

Most people working in 4K or 8K are working in proxy (lower quality media) and transcoding once the offline edit is done. The majority of editors don't really need this, once it goes to Online (resolve or similar) I can see it being necessary

 

[chfilm]

Most people working in 4K or 8K are working in proxy (lower quality media) and transcoding once the offline edit is done. The majority of editors don't really need this, once it goes to Online (resolve or similar) I can see it being necessary

The thing is of course it’d be nice to skip the whole proxy workflow! But so many shoots deliver 4K material that’s not prores! Some Sony Mxf flies or r3d stuff... afterburner could still be useful if it would help actually encoding the prores media from these files- but this is the big unknown here that nobody can answer yet.

 

[ekwipt]

I don't think Apple will open the Afterburner for anything but ProRes, but who knows! Isn't it weird that Red and Apple were at court over codec workflows only a month ago, but still working together across this...

https://nofilmschool.com/apple-goes-war-red

 

[chfilm]

I don't think Apple will open the Afterburner for anything but ProRes, but who knows! Isn't it weird that Red and Apple were at court over codec workflows only a month ago, but still working together across this...

https://nofilmschool.com/apple-goes-war-red

Red Is my smallest worry since they ported it onto metal. What’s worse are those sony h264 codecs. I have no hope of Apple programming afterburner to support these, Just as I said, it it would even help just generating the Proxies, which could be basically online prores files in this scenario, would be of huge help!

 

[H. Flower]

Hmmmmm

 

[Korican100]

I assumed that it accelerated any native camera codec. But its just prores and prores raw. I'm naive, and thats a Bummer

 

[OkiRun]

I think Apple's main goal is for users to stick with Metal/FCPX/ProRes/Afterburner. They've provided an optimized/seamless integration.

 

[vel0city]

 

[zoomp]

Ok this is pretty impressive. We work on features a lot, and it’s becoming common practice to use XQ as a alternative to ArriRaw, which requires massive catarata to work, on 3.4k it’s 1 TB per hour bc it’s uncompressed. XQ is about 60% and very efficiently compressed. We do a lot of transcodes from XQ to 422 and this should speeds things up a lot, even if it does not encode. One could encode in parallel 16 videos at the same time, for example.