iMac Pro

Discuss anything related to audio or music production.
pierce200
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iMac Pro

Post by pierce200 » Sat Dec 16, 2017 6:48 pm

Surprised to see nobody chiming in on Apple's new machine.
I suppose it is a tad pricey, and perhaps aimed at projects that include a video component.

Kinda strange, the tangerine iMac has morphed into Apple's beast.
Did not see that coming.
If and when a new Mac Pro gets released, a buying decision will become rather complicated.

My hat's off to all of you that are capable of building your own machine!

miyaru
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Re: iMac Pro

Post by miyaru » Sat Dec 16, 2017 7:49 pm

Altough it is tempting, it is more than a bit to expensive for me. That is why I bought a machine aimed at making music. Yes a PC, but powerfull: i7-7700,16 Gb ram 250 Gb M2-ssd and a 2Tb Hdd....

Powerfull enough for my normal needs, and costing around $ 1500,= - a third of the price of the iMac pro!
Greetings from Miyaru.
Prodaw i7-7700, 16Gb Ram, Focusrite Scarlett 18i20 3rd gen, ESI M4U eX, Reason 12, Live Suit 10, Push2, Presonus Eris E8 and Monitor Station V2, Lexicon MPX1,
Korg N1, Yamaha RM1x :mrgreen:

jestermgee
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Re: iMac Pro

Post by jestermgee » Sat Dec 16, 2017 8:50 pm

If you are a Pro and have money at your disposal, makes sense probably but since the "active" life of a Mac+OS support for software appears to be around 6 years you need to consider the cost of complete upgrades of the whole system or loss of compatibility with that kind of investment.

Mac is great straight out of the box and straight into business without too much stuffing around with setting hardware requirements, drivers, OS performance tweaks etc. Also in "general" it is more stable... or that's the skinny I get, i'm not a Mac user so I really don't know the appeal personally.

PC can offer the same power performance for much less as the last poster explained but there isn't that "guarantee" of stability and reliability. Some hardware components just don't quite work well together and that can be a bit of a guessing game ALTHOUGH back in the early 2000's this was much more of a concern than now and Windows has done some great things with automated driver support and general stability. You need to have some better computer knowledge to dig into some of the settings and tweak things to work best for audio work tho.

I have built a new system about every 5 odd years anyway and normally the cost of everything is around $1800au ($1300us) which will always give me one of the top CPUs and motherboards, top of the line coolers, decent case, energy efficient PSU, truckloads of RAM, Latest SSD and one of the good GPUs at the time. If I really want to boost my gaming then it will be about $500 more for a top GPU. So typically for the same cost as a top of the line Mac I can purchase 2 full systems over a 12 year span and maintain the best performance over that whole time. Also upgrades over time are dead simple and extend the usability. That's how I have always looked at it and the old machine becomes a backup to my main system or turned into a media centre or handed down to my kids or donated to a friend etc.

pencilrocket
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Re: iMac Pro

Post by pencilrocket » Sun Dec 17, 2017 5:57 am

because it sounds odd like Garageband Pro, iMovie Pro, iFinalCut Pro. whaaat?

Stromkraft
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Re: iMac Pro

Post by Stromkraft » Sun Dec 17, 2017 4:06 pm

miyaru wrote: i7-7700,16 Gb ram 250 Gb M2-ssd and a 2Tb Hdd....

Powerfull enough for my normal needs, and costing around $ 1500,= - a third of the price of the iMac pro!
While the latter may be true, you should perhaps also mention what's in your PC is not the components in the new iMac Pro. I mean I'm sure there's at least one PC in the price range of the iMac Pro and somehow I don't think you would compare your build with that, whatever it is.

I mean my MBP cost me a 7th of what a new MBP costs. Is that relevant for anyone but me?
Make some music!

steko
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Re: iMac Pro

Post by steko » Sun Dec 17, 2017 4:10 pm

Rahad Jackson wrote:My Awesome Mix Tape #6

miyaru
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Re: iMac Pro

Post by miyaru » Wed Dec 20, 2017 7:38 pm

@Stromkraft: The new iMac pro is extreme expensive for what you get, and Apple is not the only one who can build a computer. A third of the price of my PC is the starting point for an iMac pro - it is not the top level one which might be outstanding....... The 18 core one is way out of line financially I think!

But he, I don't have to buy it, and maybe you will and that is OK. Everybody is entitled to buy what he/she wants.

I have my PC build in an 19 inch servercase, and that is good to swap parts or upgrade if I want, that's why I choose the Win platform.
Greetings from Miyaru.
Prodaw i7-7700, 16Gb Ram, Focusrite Scarlett 18i20 3rd gen, ESI M4U eX, Reason 12, Live Suit 10, Push2, Presonus Eris E8 and Monitor Station V2, Lexicon MPX1,
Korg N1, Yamaha RM1x :mrgreen:

Stromkraft
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Re: iMac Pro

Post by Stromkraft » Thu Dec 21, 2017 5:46 am

miyaru wrote:@Stromkraft: The new iMac pro is extreme expensive for what you get, and Apple is not the only one who can build a computer. A third of the price of my PC is the starting point for an iMac pro - it is not the top level one which might be outstanding....... The 18 core one is way out of line financially I think!
As usual you, as others do, leave out comparing ALL the components in the Apple machine. You need to include every component in detail, including the display. If you don't want a display you must compare to the coming Mac Pro.

I bet that no builder will be able to get all the components, from a place where anyone can purchase, for lower than what Apple offers this package for. And even if you did it wouldn't be the same form, which is one of the main points of getting an iMac.

Please feel free to prove me wrong with posting a reference for someone that has made the full comparison with component shop links. This is not about building a comparable machine, but the same machine from all practical standpoints. If you settle for a comparable then you are probably not interested in the iMac anyway. Comparing Apples with Oranges is so boring.

One area where Apple machines will offset the base price comparison unreasonably is with added memory and storage. That's one area where Apple keeps being unreasonably expensive.
Last edited by Stromkraft on Thu Dec 28, 2017 10:57 am, edited 1 time in total.
Make some music!

JBlongz
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Re: iMac Pro

Post by JBlongz » Thu Dec 21, 2017 10:07 am

I love and use only Apple computers, but I say its a good idea to miss this one. If money does not come easy, avoid buying first generation machines, especially those that have impressive specs. Here’s sometimes to think about.

CPU throttling - With so many cores packed into a machine that still uses small fans to move heat, you may not get the full potential of the expensive CPUs. When internal temperature reaches a preset threshold (like a compressor/limiter), the CPU speed will be automatically decreased.

Remember, Apple could barely get their trash can Mac Pro to manage thermals well enough. The iMac Pro is a temporary solutions for people waiting on a new Mac Pro, which may be totally redesigned. Aside from RAM, I don’t see a major performance difference VS MacBook Pro for music. For video, it avoids an extra monitor for those who may require it.
rMBP Quad 2.8GHz, 16GB, 1TB SSD | UAD Apollo 8
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Stromkraft
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Re: iMac Pro

Post by Stromkraft » Thu Dec 21, 2017 12:41 pm

JBlongz wrote:
CPU throttling - With so many cores packed into a machine that still uses small fans to move heat, you may not get the full potential of the expensive CPUs. When internal temperature reaches a preset threshold (like a compressor/limiter), the CPU speed will be automatically decreased.
If so — I believe you are wrong — Apple will shoot themselves in the feet. Or their customers will. Ever heard about Class Action Suites?
JBlongz wrote:Aside from RAM, I don’t see a major performance difference VS MacBook Pro for music. For video, it avoids an extra monitor for those who may require it.
Then you're a very bad reader. Both for specs and additional external monitors.
Make some music!

JBlongz
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Re: iMac Pro

Post by JBlongz » Thu Dec 21, 2017 12:45 pm

I meant having an iMac Pro is for those who want to avoid an external monitor for 5k display.

As for temps, we’ll see.
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Stromkraft
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Re: iMac Pro

Post by Stromkraft » Thu Dec 21, 2017 3:44 pm

JBlongz wrote:I meant having an iMac Pro is for those who want to avoid an external monitor for 5k display.
I'm still not following that part fully, but I assume perhaps you mean the convenience of the iMac form factor. Personally, I don't see myself buying one of these, but when I get my hands on one in the store I might change my mind.
Make some music!

JBlongz
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Re: iMac Pro

Post by JBlongz » Fri Dec 22, 2017 7:42 am

Fortunately, the eGPU situation is evolving quickly. Hooking up a high end CUDA card via Thunderbolt 3 is a better solution for the creative who moves around a lot. One can travel around with the laptop, making necessary video/3D edits, then render at a later time. It beats having to use two machines in my opinion.

I do a lot of video editing and rendering with a fully loaded, early 2013 15" MacBook Pro. Aside from offloading video renders to a trashcan mac pro, it is fully sufficient for music and video editing....even 4K...though my screen is not 4k, it does not hinder me editing and rendering 4k....I don't pixel-peep.

As for the CPU, throttling it happens more than you think, and for various reasons. Wether or not its a class action worth pursuing is beyond my legal expertise. As for technical, I have observed it with several macs and there are other reports for years.
rMBP Quad 2.8GHz, 16GB, 1TB SSD | UAD Apollo 8
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JBlongz
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Re: iMac Pro

Post by JBlongz » Thu Dec 28, 2017 7:53 am

JBlongz wrote: CPU throttling - With so many cores packed into a machine that still uses small fans to move heat, you may not get the full potential of the expensive CPUs. When internal temperature reaches a preset threshold (like a compressor/limiter), the CPU speed will be automatically decreased.
Stromkraft wrote: If so — I believe you are wrong — Apple will shoot themselves in the feet. Or their customers will. Ever heard about Class Action Suites?
Apple has been shooting themselves in the foot forever...even with iPhone as you have seen on the news.
Here's a recent article proving Mac CPU throttling....its not purely Apple's fault as intel has designed the specification to operate that way under warranty. http://appleinsider.com/articles/17/12/ ... o-the-test
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Stromkraft
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Re: iMac Pro

Post by Stromkraft » Thu Dec 28, 2017 12:14 pm

JBlongz wrote: Here's a recent article proving Mac CPU throttling....its not purely Apple's fault as intel has designed the specification to operate that way under warranty. http://appleinsider.com/articles/17/12/ ... o-the-test
The relevant quote is:
"caused the clock speed to drop from 3.9GHz to about 3.6GHz for a second or two."
That's a 7.8% performance drop for 2 seconds. Hardly something to be worried about. You made it sound like a massive performance decrease.
Make some music!

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