nerveagent - I hear what you're saying ... but this way I'll get the best of both worlds. I'll eventually upgrade my audio hardware to Digidesign Pro Tools HD Accel Core 1; as the Mac Pro is used by and & has been recommended to me by the pros, this setup should (hopefully!) be pretty future-proof! Also, there are some applications that I'll run on the OSX, including some Adobe CS3 software, so I'm not buying the Mac soley to run XP & Live - that would be crazy! Cheers!I reckon you are crazy. If you want a kick-arse windows machine, just buy a windows machine. Sure the Macs are intels now and all that ... it just sounds crazy to me, a Mac user, former Windows XP and still current Linux user, to spend that much money on the hardware and not use OSX.
When I went to Mac, I just stopped using the plugins I couldn't bring over. If I was completely dependent on those plugins, I would have not bought a Mac.
Anyone run Live through Vista on a Mac Pro / Macbook Pro?
My next desktop will be an 8-core Mac Pro as well, very likely.
For me, it's actually cheaper.
I've been maintaining two desktops, one Mac and one Windows (self-built), each with an audio interface and each with a MIDI interface.
For mobility, I've been "stuck" with my Windows apps only, since that's what my laptop was, also with its own audio interface and MIDI interface.
3 machines, 3 midi interfaces, and 3 audio interfaces... + and audio patchbay and midi patchbay to mirror my hardware gear.
Between the money spent on maintaining semi-current audio/midi interfaces, and cables, and the time spent trying to keep everything organized, I'm broke, and fatigued of it. And, of course, keeping 3 machines semi-current is also expensive, and making backups is time consuming, etc.
Last week, I replaced my (now aging) Windows laptop with a middle-model MacBook (not pro), which (so far) has been an excellent decision. I haven't noticed anything on the Windows side that behaves differently than it did on my "PC" laptop.
When on the road, I don't even carry an audio/midi interface... Core Audio on Mac and ASIO4ALL one Windows works surprisingly well with the built-in audio card. When in the studio, I hook to MOTU hardware (midi and audio).
That's a reduction of one audio interface and one midi interface, and all the maintenance and expense of keeping it current, and replacing cables, etc... is gone.
One down.
If I do the same with the desktops, I can eliminate yet more hardware (and associated cables and maintenance).
For a project studio, IMHO, less can really be more.
I love it.
One thing I'd particularly stress about buying a Mac Pro right now:
MacBook - rev'd twice since current Mac Pro release
MacBook Pro - rev'd twice since current Mac Pro release
iMac - rev'd 3 times since current Mac Pro release
Mac Mini - rev'd 3 times since current Mac Pro release
Xeon chips - rev'd twice since current Mac Pro release, with two price cuts
Leopard - due out in October
IMO, from watching them for years now, a CHEAPER and more powerful Mac Pro is just around the corner, including multiple models of the 8-cores, instead of the one they have now.
Right now, they're $4000 at the baseline. Wait a month or so, and you'll save at least $1000.
Also, don't buy RAM or hard drive upgrades from them:
Go to newegg, or mwave, or zipzoomfly, and save yourself a fortune.
I'm figuring an 8-core Mac Pro will be $2500 by the end of the year...
Take care,
- zevo
For me, it's actually cheaper.
I've been maintaining two desktops, one Mac and one Windows (self-built), each with an audio interface and each with a MIDI interface.
For mobility, I've been "stuck" with my Windows apps only, since that's what my laptop was, also with its own audio interface and MIDI interface.
3 machines, 3 midi interfaces, and 3 audio interfaces... + and audio patchbay and midi patchbay to mirror my hardware gear.
Between the money spent on maintaining semi-current audio/midi interfaces, and cables, and the time spent trying to keep everything organized, I'm broke, and fatigued of it. And, of course, keeping 3 machines semi-current is also expensive, and making backups is time consuming, etc.
Last week, I replaced my (now aging) Windows laptop with a middle-model MacBook (not pro), which (so far) has been an excellent decision. I haven't noticed anything on the Windows side that behaves differently than it did on my "PC" laptop.
When on the road, I don't even carry an audio/midi interface... Core Audio on Mac and ASIO4ALL one Windows works surprisingly well with the built-in audio card. When in the studio, I hook to MOTU hardware (midi and audio).
That's a reduction of one audio interface and one midi interface, and all the maintenance and expense of keeping it current, and replacing cables, etc... is gone.
One down.
If I do the same with the desktops, I can eliminate yet more hardware (and associated cables and maintenance).
For a project studio, IMHO, less can really be more.
I love it.
One thing I'd particularly stress about buying a Mac Pro right now:
MacBook - rev'd twice since current Mac Pro release
MacBook Pro - rev'd twice since current Mac Pro release
iMac - rev'd 3 times since current Mac Pro release
Mac Mini - rev'd 3 times since current Mac Pro release
Xeon chips - rev'd twice since current Mac Pro release, with two price cuts
Leopard - due out in October
IMO, from watching them for years now, a CHEAPER and more powerful Mac Pro is just around the corner, including multiple models of the 8-cores, instead of the one they have now.
Right now, they're $4000 at the baseline. Wait a month or so, and you'll save at least $1000.
Also, don't buy RAM or hard drive upgrades from them:
Go to newegg, or mwave, or zipzoomfly, and save yourself a fortune.
I'm figuring an 8-core Mac Pro will be $2500 by the end of the year...
Take care,
- zevo
infinite density, zero volume