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SP or DP Mac Pro for music

M

Mierk

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Oct 27, 2009
4
0
I have searched the forum and have not found advice specific to my question. I am a composer currently running Digital Performer 7.2 on my 2.53 MPB 4GB ram. I just got paid for a gig and am ready for the MP that I have been drooling over. I run many sample libraries currently from external drives. Very slow and tedious as you can imagine. Here's my question.

Refurb 3.33 6 core OR new 2.4 8 core? (currently $350 difference)

My understanding is that processor power is not nearly as critical in this type of work as video. RAM is important though also the ability to stream data from hard drives (SSD good option). I know about RAM limitations on SP. I would probably start out with 16GB (from owc of course).

Thoughts?
 
My thoughts are how big are your files. seems to me that a quad 2.8 at a discount with 32gb ram can be had for under 3k. lots of upgrades are available.
 
Last edited:
With Logic I'd go 3.33 6-core. Mainly because of my sloppy channel strip management. The MHz help because you can overload core audio if you don't balance plug-ins with slower core speeds. With DP it may be different. I don't use DP. The 6-core beats the 2.4 8-core in everything except RAM capacity. Sometimes by a lot and sometime by very little. Theoretical power goes to the 3.33 6-core as well.
 
An SP model will suit your needs, and if at all possible, the Hex for the faster clock speed (vs. an SP Quad).

The reasoning is, even if you don't have enough applications open to keep all the cores occupied, the faster clock speed will get single threaded or limited multi-threaded applications done faster (so long as there's not an I/O bottleneck).
 
Mierk said:
I have searched the forum and have not found advice specific to my question. I am a composer currently running Digital Performer 7.2 on my 2.53 MPB 4GB ram. I just got paid for a gig and am ready for the MP that I have been drooling over. I run many sample libraries currently from external drives. Very slow and tedious as you can imagine. Here's my question.

Refurb 3.33 6 core OR new 2.4 8 core? (currently $350 difference)

My understanding is that processor power is not nearly as critical in this type of work as video. RAM is important though also the ability to stream data from hard drives (SSD good option). I know about RAM limitations on SP. I would probably start out with 16GB (from owc of course).

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

http://www.gearspace.com/board/music-computers/371545-logic-pro-multicore-benchmarktest.html
 
derbothaus said:
Just to clarify that test is of multiple same allotment of plugs. Not any indication of normal working distributed resources. Now what else do you want to do with the Pro? That will help your decision.
Click to expand...

Thank you all for the input. Anything else done on the system will not be nearly as intensive as the audio work. Some light graphic/web design and the occasional small final cut project.
 
The extra MHz will help the most with FCP and Adobe apps. Adobe is terrible with multicore use. The 8-core will be quite a bit slower for you in Adobe unless you need more than 32GB of memory for your projects. Totally worth the 350.00 extra IMO. If you were going to use the 2.4GHz for a dedicated Logic only machine I'd suggest that but the sheer volume of non multithreaded apps that I touch on a daily basis (ie. iTunes conversion, MS Office, Adobe) benefit the most from high clock speeds.
This may help:
http://macperformanceguide.com/Reviews-MacProWestmere-CoresExplained.html
 
derbothaus said:
The extra MHz will help the most with FCP and Adobe apps. Adobe is terrible with multicore use. The 8-core will be quite a bit slower for you in Adobe unless you need more than 32GB of memory for your projects. Totally worth the 350.00 extra IMO. If you were going to use the 2.4GHz for a dedicated Logic only machine I'd suggest that but the sheer volume of non multithreaded apps that I touch on a daily basis (ie. iTunes conversion, MS Office, Adobe) benefit the most from high clock speeds.
This may help:
http://macperformanceguide.com/Reviews-MacProWestmere-CoresExplained.html
Click to expand...
Larger RDIMM's are available now (OWC has a 48GB kit for the SP MP), and there's actually 32GB sticks as well (Samsung). So the limit is now higher, reducing the need for a DP system based on memory expansion only (4 or 6 cores are enough, but the software is RAM hungry).
 
derbothaus said:
The extra MHz will help the most with FCP and Adobe apps. Adobe is terrible with multicore use. The 8-core will be quite a bit slower for you in Adobe unless you need more than 32GB of memory for your projects. Totally worth the 350.00 extra IMO.
Click to expand...

To counter this, audio apps love more cores.
 
goMac said:
To counter this, audio apps love more cores.
Click to expand...

Yes. But the 2.4 still is underwhelming and has less power (mathematically) than the 6 core.
Like 2-5 more tracks on that benchmark. Were talking only 2-5% AND it will excel in all else.
 
Mierk said:
I have searched the forum and have not found advice specific to my question. I am a composer currently running Digital Performer 7.2 on my 2.53 MPB 4GB ram. I just got paid for a gig and am ready for the MP that I have been drooling over. I run many sample libraries currently from external drives. Very slow and tedious as you can imagine. Here's my question.

Refurb 3.33 6 core OR new 2.4 8 core? (currently $350 difference)

My understanding is that processor power is not nearly as critical in this type of work as video. RAM is important though also the ability to stream data from hard drives (SSD good option). I know about RAM limitations on SP. I would probably start out with 16GB (from owc of course).

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

Get the dual CPU. That way you can upgrade in the future to 2 3,33 CPUs. No matter what people say about audio you can never have enough CPU power. It might be an "overkill" now. But hey would you rather have a computer that is useful for 3-4 years or one that is "good" now?
 
fabriciom said:
Get the dual CPU. That way you can upgrade in the future to 2 3,33 CPUs. No matter what people say about audio you can never have enough CPU power. It might be an "overkill" now. But hey would you rather have a computer that is useful for 3-4 years or one that is "good" now?
Click to expand...
Buying more machine than is currently needed tends not to work out very well for the user though financially speaking (not be able to utilize the hardware to it's fullest potential), as the software development doesn't move as fast as hardware does.

So this approach needs to be taken very cautiously IMO (i.e. research the specific software used for future features and a timeline if it's even available).
 
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