MP 7,1 Waiting for Mac Pro 7,1 A1991 (no more)

[Ph.D.]

Anyone catch the refresh rates on that monitor ?

It's 60 Hz, or else "ProMotion" would have been mentioned. Also, more than 60 Hz would likely have crippled the number of monitors that could be connected at once.

Another important question: Is there a fan or fans in it? "Quiet" is not the same thing as "silent."

Also, note that the Pro's graphics modules have only one connector (looks like HDMI?) that isn't Thunderbolt.

 

[BB8]

I had hoped for a base $3999 model. Alas. Looks like Apple is redirecting people like me to a maxed out Mac Mini.

The new "pro" pricing (loving all these elitist comments btw) makes the best case yet for Apple to offer consumer grade parts in the Mac Pro form factor (xMac).

 

[wallysb01]

Some people seem to think that if you complain about the price, you are not a "pro" user.

I think it is fair to say that a jump in base price from $2999 (6,1) to $5999 (7,1) over the course of six years is not proportional to inflation.

View attachment 840465

I had hoped for a base $3999 model. Alas. Looks like Apple is redirecting people like me to a maxed out Mac Mini.

[doublepost=1559600069][/doublepost]

You're right. Odd, to me it looked a little smaller.

Yes, 10% YoY is not realistic. That's college tuition growth.... in a supposed depreciated tech sector.

Anyway, the base model does come with some nice expansion possibilities, but remember most of this is the type of thing that's present on standard super micro boards.... I'm just not sure what the base model is for? Folks that don't need much CPU but can plug a ton of stuff in via PCIe, I guess.
[doublepost=1559603919][/doublepost]

The new "pro" pricing (loving all these elitist comments btw) makes the best case yet for Apple to offer consumer grade parts in the Mac Pro form factor (xMac).

This is probably true. We could really use something headless in-between the mac mini and the pro now. I suppose the mini will get the 9th gen here soon and get 8 cores, but no dGPU for folks that need that end.

 

[0388631]

This is probably true. We could really use something headless in-between the mac mini and the pro now. I suppose the mini will get the 9th gen here soon and get 8 cores, but no dGPU for folks that need that end.

EGPU enclosures seem to be more worthwhile these days or so I've been lead to believe. I think the new i9 processors in the Mini would be a great idea.

 

[Woof Woof]

As far as I can tell you are correct, the modules on Apple's website look exactly like the iMac Pro modules pictured here. https://everymac.com/systems/apple/...c-pro-how-to-upgrade-replace-ssd-storage.html

whether or not they will allow non-Apple SSDs to work with the T2 chips remains to be seen

Is it my imagination, or are the new MP (and iMac Pro) modules shorter than a regular NVME? It looks like there isn't enough space between the module connectors and the case to fit a traditional 80mm NVME blade with an adapter, so they will have to be installed in a PCIe slot. Not terrible, but could cause some issues with storage in slots getting marked as external (and not usable by Windows if you want to use it.)

 

[fuchsdh]

It's 60 Hz, or else "ProMotion" would have been mentioned. Also, more than 60 Hz would likely have crippled the number of monitors that could be connected at once.

Another important question: Is there a fan or fans in it? "Quiet" is not the same thing as "silent."

Also, note that the Pro's graphics modules have only one connector (looks like HDMI?) that isn't Thunderbolt.

I'm guessing no fans, since there doesn't seem like there's any point to the massive heatsink and all those holes if they were relying on a fan. There's no mention of one on the product page, but I suppose that doesn't really tell you anything.

The new "pro" pricing (loving all these elitist comments btw) makes the best case yet for Apple to offer consumer grade parts in the Mac Pro form factor (xMac).

I feel like it kind of makes sense to just turn the Mac mini into the xMac—if not with PCIe slots, than still a few more DIMM slots and a non-soldered GPU. It's already no longer "mini" in the world of NUCs and the Apple TV scooped a lot of its presentation/media center elements, so adding some height to bridge between its current size and the tube Mac Pro wouldn't materially affect its presence on a desk. But I think given today's moves Apple sees the iMac as fulfilling that niche, imperfectly thought it might be, same as they always have.

Some people seem to think that if you complain about the price, you are not a "pro" user.

I think it is fair to say that a jump in base price from $2999 (6,1) to $5999 (7,1) over the course of six years is not proportional to inflation.

View attachment 840465

I had hoped for a base $3999 model. Alas. Looks like Apple is redirecting people like me to a maxed out Mac Mini.

[doublepost=1559600069][/doublepost]

You're right. Odd, to me it looked a little smaller.

I was picturing on the desk itself. Under the desk makes more sense.

Probably the most useful thing about all the AR stuff for me is that now lots of products come with AR demos so you can get a feel for the size. And man, the new cheesegraters is an absolute unit:

 

[now i see it]

 knows whoever buys this monster will likely keep it 10 years (or more). So the higher price to enter this new Mac Pro universe is understandable. This ain't an unrepairable iMac that's disposable after the screen tanks, or a laptop that's good for a couple years until the keyboard borks. This new beast is gunna hang around for a very very long time.

 

[fuchsdh]

 knows whoever buys this monster will likely keep it 10 years (or more). So the higher price to enter this new Mac Pro universe is understandable. This ain't an unrepairable iMac that's disposable after the screen tanks, or a laptop that's good for a couple years until the keyboard borks. This new beast is gunna hang around for a very very long time.

I'd agree, but at this point anyone planning on buying one and having it last a decade seems like they need their head examined. Only time will tell if Apple's support is what it needs to be, and the true extent of its upgradability. The 1st-gen Mac Pros were a fairly mature platform by the time it was withering on the vine so upgrade paths were understood. This is a new beast at a new Apple and a clearly new direction.

EGPU enclosures seem to be more worthwhile these days or so I've been lead to believe. I think the new i9 processors in the Mini would be a great idea.

Unless you're trying to rely on Bootcamp they're a pretty good option, although that's extra desk real estate consumed.

I'm guessing that eGPUs and Thunderbolt are likely Apple's patch for the xMac area. It's not ideal, but it's also saving thousands of dollars. (around $2300 for my use case.)

Of course, at this point the better question is whether Apple's going to update the Mac mini this fall and keep it competitive; on one hand they've gotten much better about spec bumps, on the other they have their zombie notebook lineup still hanging around.

 

[zephonic]

I'd agree, but at this point anyone planning on buying one and having it last a decade seems like they need their head examined. Only time will tell if Apple's support is what it needs to be, and the true extent of its upgradability. The 1st-gen Mac Pros were a fairly mature platform by the time it was withering on the vine so upgrade paths were understood. This is a new beast at a new Apple and a clearly new direction.

This. Apple has never been very sentimental at dropping support for older products, and if the ARM rumors are true, I don't see anyone doing ten years with a Xeon Mac Pro.

 

[Ph.D.]

This. Apple has never been very sentimental at dropping support for older products, and if the ARM rumors are true, I don't see anyone doing ten years with a Xeon Mac Pro.

You could limp through 10 years. But remember, you often couldn't buy a newer graphics card, etc., from Apple for an older machine. All too often, "not supported" = not what it came with originally, despite de facto compatibility. And an 8,1 or 9,1 will likely have PCI 4 or 5 too.

So yeah, given that so much of it is proprietary, I wouldn't trust this machine to be all that upgradeable, at least if looking for upgrades from Apple. But third-party support should eventually be available.

 

[Flint Ironstag]

SO much room for an xMac. Just call it the Mac.

- same case in space grey
- Xeon 8c & 12c options
- 16GB base RAM expandable to 384 - 512GB
- 256GB base storage
- RX580
- 1000W power supply
- only accepts regular PCIe cards, not the (guaranteed overpriced) modules
- keep the 4 double spaced PCIe slots & lose the top 2 (keeping the IO slot)
- couple of M.2 slots and a 2.5" drive
- dual 10Gb ethernet
- wifi & bluetooth

Starts at $2499. Would sell like hotcakes. (should start at $1999)

 

[zephonic]

SO much room for an xMac. Just call it the Mac.

..........

Starts at $2499. Would sell like hotcakes. (should start at $1999)

Would cannibalize iMac sales. Non-starter.

 

[psingh01]

I expected it to look like the modular HP computer "Elite Slice". I laughed when after 2 years it was revealed to be another cheese grater tower. However, they made the right choice. Go with what works!

 

[partsofspeech]

I said it would be a cheese grater spec bump. But nothing justifies the time wasted on delay or the greedy price.
[doublepost=1559609455][/doublepost]While PC can have small form to accommodate pro power and upgradability, Apple not only cannot beat that but even regresses to thoughtless design. The holes will let tons of dust in.
[doublepost=1559609879][/doublepost]

 knows whoever buys this monster will likely keep it 10 years (or more). So the higher price to enter this new Mac Pro universe is understandable. This ain't an unrepairable iMac that's disposable after the screen tanks, or a laptop that's good for a couple years until the keyboard borks. This new beast is gunna hang around for a very very long time.

Nvidia’s AI GPU will pose as a serious paradigm disruption.
[doublepost=1559610197][/doublepost]

As far as I can tell you are correct, the modules on Apple's website look exactly like the iMac Pro modules pictured here. https://everymac.com/systems/apple/...c-pro-how-to-upgrade-replace-ssd-storage.html

whether or not they will allow non-Apple SSDs to work with the T2 chips remains to be seen

Most likely they won’t. It is not in Apple’s interest. T2 compatible SSDs will be Apple branded and will be the Prada of SSDs.

 

[Manic Harmonic]

It would be really cool if the afterburner could be intergrated into Logic somehow. Some hardware synthesizers use FPGA to generate sound, so it wouldn't be out of the question... If they were going to do that they would have announced it though, so I assume they are leaving the audio DSP card market to Avid and UAD.

 

[Dean Yu]

I'm guessing no fans, since there doesn't seem like there's any point to the massive heatsink and all those holes if they were relying on a fan. There's no mention of one on the product page, but I suppose that doesn't really tell you anything.

TWO fans unfortunately

 

[wallysb01]

Would cannibalize iMac sales. Non-starter.

Start it at $3K and it probably wouldn't.

 

[fuchsdh]

TWO fans unfortunately

Haha yeah I saw that video just now. That thing is gonna' be a monster (though presumably it will in fact be pretty quiet.)

Can't wait for five years down the line when we can get some of that tech at a reasonable price!

Start it at $3K and it probably wouldn't.

I think the better question is, would Apple care about cannibalized iMac sales? They are clearly Apple's best-selling desktops but the economics of them have always been wonky—even to this day when you spec them out against other machines where Apple skimps in certain places (flash BTO prices) you're often getting a heavily subsidized screen out of the equation (when the 5K came out and earlier [I think the 2010 models?] you were essentially getting a nearly-free display for the price.) I really have no idea how that works besides bulk discounts making it tenable, but the only argument I can see against Apple selling a more expensive product is they're afraid of damaging repeat buys or BTO pricing with a machine like the Mac Pro but at a more prosumer price point.

 

[Ph.D.]

TWO fans unfortunately

Darn. No buy just due to that. Oh well, you saved me $6k.

 

[Jyby]

Science Rules!

 

[Ph.D.]

So no word the new Mac Pro is made in the United States? Wasn't Mac Pro 6,1 made in the US? And it was cheaper?

It's pretty safe to say that US-built would have been mentioned if true.

 

[Jyby]

Science Rules!

 

[Mago]

Are those two ports in the middle SATA ports? What do people think?

I think are plugs for the case tb3 ports and power switch

 

[goMac]

I still can't believe they actually did another cheese grater.

I've been shellshocked all day.

 

[fuchsdh]

Nvidia’s AI GPU will pose as a serious paradigm disruption.

Nothing is stopping Apple from swallowing their pride and stepping aside so that Nvidia can bring their GPUs to Macs in the future. We will see.