If you had deep pockets, would you consider the new iMacPro as a dedicated gaming rig, and if so what other than maxing out the graphics would you likely upgrade from the basic config?
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iMacPro for gaming?
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I would not. If gaming was my one and only specific goal I would want....
-A better monitor (for gaming), higher refresh rate with some form of active sync and higher response time.
-Better peripherals, not a big deal but the Apple keyboard and mouse are just an additional unnecessary expense.
-Cheap internal storage solutions for game storage.
-up to date OEM driver support
-Better GPU, nothing wrong with Vega however more performance can be squeezed out of the competitors GPU's for gaming at this time.
-Cheaper which is obvious. We aren't comparing to a workstation. ECC memory and Xeon won't offer much for gaming over much cheaper alternatives.
-Overclocking
-Cooling system to support the above overclocking
-Upgradability. A graphics card update or sometimes two can keep you on the bleeding edge of PC gaming performance.
-A better monitor (for gaming), higher refresh rate with some form of active sync and higher response time.
-Better peripherals, not a big deal but the Apple keyboard and mouse are just an additional unnecessary expense.
-Cheap internal storage solutions for game storage.
-up to date OEM driver support
-Better GPU, nothing wrong with Vega however more performance can be squeezed out of the competitors GPU's for gaming at this time.
-Cheaper which is obvious. We aren't comparing to a workstation. ECC memory and Xeon won't offer much for gaming over much cheaper alternatives.
-Overclocking
-Cooling system to support the above overclocking
-Upgradability. A graphics card update or sometimes two can keep you on the bleeding edge of PC gaming performance.
The only way I'd be getting myself an iMac Pro for gaming is if I won a multi-million lottery and decided to quit my day job in favor of becoming an indy VR game developer. Even so that is still so far beyond my current setup I might skip maxing out the graphics and just pickup the baseline config off the shelf in store for same-day use.
It will probably run games quite well. The GPU is probably somewhere between a Nvidia 1080 and 1080Ti. That said, I'm not sure how many games will utilize the Xeon multi-core setup. I might be wrong, but you shouldn't need 10+ cores for most games. I'd imagine most games support at most ~6 cores. Higher core base frequency might mean more in this scenario (=higher single core performance), so if you were getting it for gaming, I'd consider the 8 core, maybe 10. But like others stated, you can probably get a similar setup for cheaper. But this is probably the best 'gaming' machine you can buy with Mac OS.
I think you'd be better off with very high performance quad-core with hyperthreading liquid-cooled and possibly overclocked. Most games don't need many CPU cores but they need powerful ones.
Then there's the graphics cards which would be better in a PC build, running Win 10 for DX12.
And of course you'd want a fast refresh, low-latency monitor, probably with GSync or similar.
I don't think the iMac Pro is well suited to gaming. It's simply not what it's intended to be, nor are games intended to run well on it.
Then there's the graphics cards which would be better in a PC build, running Win 10 for DX12.
And of course you'd want a fast refresh, low-latency monitor, probably with GSync or similar.
I don't think the iMac Pro is well suited to gaming. It's simply not what it's intended to be, nor are games intended to run well on it.
i love apple but their games selection is terrible..
the stuff on the mac app store is ... beyond words
just get a console or a pc or an ipad
the stuff on the mac app store is ... beyond words
just get a console or a pc or an ipad
Correct me if I'm wrong, but both ECC memory and Xeon processors will not buy you much in terms of gaming performance. I think for the money you'd spend on the iMac, you can get (or build) a much better gaming rig.
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You probably could use it for gaming if you really wanted, but you'd be overpaying in the first place and you'd run the risk of falling behind the GPU power curve considering the price you're paying and the length of time you'd need to keep it to 'break even'. The 5k screen is also less than optimal as it sucks up a huge amount of power just telling that many pixels what to do (even if you turn the game's resolution down). Remember 5k is about 14.5 million pixels where even 4k is only about 8 million...
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I use my iMac for work, but also purchased an eGPU box to be able to play games at nights. I didn't want to spend extra money to build a PC for gaming and have 2 different systems on my desk.
"Building a much better gaming PC for the same price" is not a valid recommendation for everyone.
"Building a much better gaming PC for the same price" is not a valid recommendation for everyone.
Do you have an extra external display for the eGPU? It'd be great if you could feed it back in and use the iMac's display.
It’s a pro machine and all the graphics drivers are set up for that you will be better off with something with a gaming gpu and the associated drivers I expect.
Of course if you need a powerful workstation class computer that you want to game on as well then go for your life it’ll be great. However if you want the best gaming setup it’s probably not for you.
Of course if you need a powerful workstation class computer that you want to game on as well then go for your life it’ll be great. However if you want the best gaming setup it’s probably not for you.
So would the 10 core having a higher turbo boost than the 8 core at 4.5 vs 4.2 GHz be more beneficial for applications like games that don’t take advantage of multi-cores, even though the base clock rate is lower (3.0 GHz vs 3.2)? I’m not familiar with how turbo boost works so does it allow the processor to function as a higher clocked single or perhaps dual/quad core processor at the maximum speed when it comes to applications that aren’t optimized for more cores?
To the OPs question: the only other upgrade from what I can tell that would help gaming somewhat would be the Vega 64, even though it isn’t that much better than the 56, runs hot, and is inferior to nVidia’s top of the line when it comes to at least Windows gaming. We will see when the benchmarks and reviews come out.
To the OPs question: the only other upgrade from what I can tell that would help gaming somewhat would be the Vega 64, even though it isn’t that much better than the 56, runs hot, and is inferior to nVidia’s top of the line when it comes to at least Windows gaming. We will see when the benchmarks and reviews come out.
It would be a nice gaming machine. But not for that price. I can build something soooo much better for a fraction of the price. I could even do it hackintosh if I wanted to.
It would be stupid to purchase this machine just for gaming.
It would be stupid to purchase this machine just for gaming.
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I'm also curious about this. Another interesting side note is it looks like Apple is under clocking both the 8 and 10 core while keeping the 14-18 core's at their original frequencies. (Yet they all have the same TDP.)
The Xeon CPUs have a considerably lower clock speed than the normal iMac CPUs. That would probably play a factor in FPS, esp. in the most demanding games - right? Anyways, it would be much better waiting for the iMac 2018 model, which would hopefully include some version of the Vega 56 GPU and a 6 core CPU.
iMac Pro was primarily designed for creative professionals. It's not something I would buy strictly for gaming purposes. There are far more inexpensive and logical solutions on the market if that were the case. It's like comparing a 400HP sports car to a 400HP semi truck. Both provide the driver a lot of power, but serve completely different markets. Same goes for the iMac Pro.
I would buy the Xbox One X and pair it with a FreeSync gaming monitor, and use my iMac for less demanding titles such as The Sims, Starcraft II, etc. (games you would typically not find on console)
I would buy the Xbox One X and pair it with a FreeSync gaming monitor, and use my iMac for less demanding titles such as The Sims, Starcraft II, etc. (games you would typically not find on console)
I’m not going to argue with any of this as everyone is correct and even putting iMac Pro and gaming in the same sentence is an oxymoron.
Just want to put this out there:
Destiny 2 will probably run at uncapped 60+ fps in 4K on the iMac Pro.
Destiny 2 will definitely run capped at 30 fps in “adaptive 4K” (resolution scaled depending on how busy things are) on PS4 Pro and Xbox One X.
Carry on, console kiddies!
Just want to put this out there:
Destiny 2 will probably run at uncapped 60+ fps in 4K on the iMac Pro.
Destiny 2 will definitely run capped at 30 fps in “adaptive 4K” (resolution scaled depending on how busy things are) on PS4 Pro and Xbox One X.
Carry on, console kiddies!
But then you have to factor in the price differential, you could quite literally get an ordinary (decently specced) 27" iMac and a PS4/XBO AND a mid range gaming laptop for the entry price of the iMac pro...
It'll be fine for gaming. It's just insanely over-budget in every non-gaming regard. Also, my biggest fear is how friendly will the T2 chip be with Windows 7. Because this is a Mac, it comes bundled with OSX, which is not the ideal gaming operating system. At least it still has an ethernet port.
It's also funny that it uses AMD for graphics instead of Nvidia.
It's also funny that it uses AMD for graphics instead of Nvidia.
That's a good point. On my self-built gaming PC, I insist on keeping Windows 7.
However, at one point, one of my two Nvidias in SLI configuration literally fried (and filled the room with acrid electronic odour).
While the PC was "in the shop" (fortunately nothing else was damaged), I just had to keep my online fix going and since everything else I do is Mac based, my only real option was to Boot Camp my 8-core Mac Pro with its dual D700.
Worked fine (bumped down to 1440p from the 4K the PC SLI is able to push), but I'm sure I was forced to install Windows 10 using modern Boot Camp. It may have been possible to get the drivers running under Windows 7, but it seemed like a lot of work.
It's virtually certain the iMac Pro is only going to officially support Boot Camp'ing Windows 10, and whether the iMac Pro's much more modern drivers will install under Windows 7 is questionable.
However, at one point, one of my two Nvidias in SLI configuration literally fried (and filled the room with acrid electronic odour).
While the PC was "in the shop" (fortunately nothing else was damaged), I just had to keep my online fix going and since everything else I do is Mac based, my only real option was to Boot Camp my 8-core Mac Pro with its dual D700.
Worked fine (bumped down to 1440p from the 4K the PC SLI is able to push), but I'm sure I was forced to install Windows 10 using modern Boot Camp. It may have been possible to get the drivers running under Windows 7, but it seemed like a lot of work.
It's virtually certain the iMac Pro is only going to officially support Boot Camp'ing Windows 10, and whether the iMac Pro's much more modern drivers will install under Windows 7 is questionable.
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No external display. Unfortunately I'll be waiting for High Sierra update in spring that'll enable the internal display feed support for the eGPU. Until then I'm utilizing the radon pro 580 on the iMac. I could easily plug in an external display but I've set my mind on using a single system with 1 monitor for everything.
An iMac Pro for gaming?
I'm sorry, but that's one of those times when people are called fanbois/blind fanatics.
Apple dont care about gaming on Macs and dont care about releasing a Mac that can have up-gradable gaming GPU's, who in their right mind would even think about this?
And since there are people with such much money to spare, might as well just spend a couple more grand and make a proper gaming PC or buy a console.
I'm sorry, but that's one of those times when people are called fanbois/blind fanatics.
Apple dont care about gaming on Macs and dont care about releasing a Mac that can have up-gradable gaming GPU's, who in their right mind would even think about this?
And since there are people with such much money to spare, might as well just spend a couple more grand and make a proper gaming PC or buy a console.