New Quad Mac pro vs. 8 core
by Michael Esteves
on
Sep 23, 2009 at 8:58:42 pm
Hi guys,
I'm going to be investing into a Mac Pro sometime around November, and I was wondering which machine to purchase?
I was planning on purchasing the base Quad Mac Pro for 2899 CDN, but I was thinking if I should invest a little bit more and go for the base 8 core? Will I notice any difference in efficiency/productivity?
Also, I'm purchasing the new Final Cut Studio 3, and my question is will I be able to use the same product key on two different macs, like I did with Final Cut Studio 2?
Re: New Quad Mac pro vs. 8 core by Michael Sacci on Sep 23, 2009 at 10:26:44 pm
If you got the money the more cores the better. We are still not see the full potential but things like compressor really likes the more cores. My guess we will see a update in FCS3 in 6 moths or so that will take advantage of Grand Central Dispatch which will really unleash all the power of the cores. They system will also give you a little longer life. But this is not a right wrong thing, it is a good, better thing.
Re: New Quad Mac pro vs. 8 core by Stuart Ferreyra on Sep 23, 2009 at 11:26:09 pm
I was talking to our engineer /rep from Apple because we are in need of purchasing a Mac Pro. Before continuing, I want to make sure it's clear that this is my personal opinion about purchasing a high-end Mac Pro at this moment:
1.- If you don't really need to buy a Mac Pro right now, please don't. The Mac Pro line is due for an update sometime in February - March.
2.- The top of the line Mac Pro as of March 2008 was the 3.2GHz Octocore. According to our Apple sources, that machine sits right below today's top model and above today's medium model. Today's entry level Octocore Mac Pro is slower than 2008's medium or high end models.
3.- 2008's Top-of-the-line Mac Pro is still a smoking fast machine that can be purchased used on Ebay or refurbished through Apple with all standard Apple warranties.
4.- The $$$ savings will be significant. A 2008 3.2 Octocore can be purchased right now for $3299. Cheaper and faster than today's medium and entry level Mac Pro.
Now, I know there are technicalities about the new Xeon Nehalem processors being a bit better at multithreading, faster memory controller, cache, etc, etc, but you pick your battles between time of purchase, speed and budget.
Unfortunately, I can't wait until next year. We need a new system now. And since I can't wait, I am going for 2008's 3.2 for the time being.
Stuart Ferreyra
Timecode Multimedia Colorist / Post Supervisor
Re: New Quad Mac pro vs. 8 core by Uli Plank on Sep 24, 2009 at 5:59:41 am
We did the same thing, stuffed our refurbished 2008 model with RAM and are very happy, working with huge RED transcodes and 3D animation.
Plus, since you are asking this in the Color forum: Color doesn't profit much from CPUs, it's all about GPU. We got the ATI 4870 and it works great.
Director of the Institute of Media Research (IMF) at Braunschweig University of Arts
Re: New Quad Mac pro vs. 8 core by walter biscardi on Sep 24, 2009 at 4:05:34 pm
[Stuart Ferreyra]"Unfortunately, I can't wait until next year. We need a new system now. And since I can't wait, I am going for 2008's 3.2 for the time being. "
I'll just add that we have both machines here. The 2008 3.2 and the newest 2.93. There's a definitely difference in performance, especially rendering in Final Cut Pro / After Effects and the performance of Color between the 2. The 2.93 is noticeably faster and we are running the ATI 4870 card in that machine as well.
Is it worth the extra money? To me it's always worth buying the latest machine because I know it will run for three years before we replace it, though if I need to I can replace it in 2 years.
That's just what we do here, getting the 2008 3.2 will definitely work in your situation and anyone else considering that route as well.
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Editor, Colorist, Director, Writer, Consultant, Author.
Credits include multiple Emmy, Telly, Aurora and Peabody Awards.
Owner, Biscardi Creative Media featuring HD Post Biscardi Creative Media
Creative Cow Forum Host:
Apple Final Cut Pro, Apple Motion, Apple Color, AJA Kona, Business & Marketing, Maxx Digital.
Re: New Quad Mac pro vs. 8 core by Stuart Ferreyra on Sep 24, 2009 at 8:22:19 pm
[walter biscardi]"The 2008 3.2 and the newest 2.93. There's a definitely difference in performance, especially rendering in Final Cut Pro / After Effects and the performance of Color between the 2. "
That's why I am not even comparing the 2.9 to the old 3.2. At that level there is no comparison. A new 2.9 makes no sense for what we need this system for. When the new Mac Pros hit next year, we'll be buying at least 1 top-of-the-line.
Stuart Ferreyra
Timecode Multimedia Colorist / Post Supervisor
