New Macs arrive... at DVinfo.net

Andrew Clark · March 3rd, 2009, 01:09 PM

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Joe Lawry · March 3rd, 2009, 03:26 PM

Finally new macpros.

So for those in the know, can you inform 'us' users who have been sitting on the fence about buying a new machine, should we buy one of the new machines or get pick up an old one before they are discontinued. Should i go out now and buy an old 2.8 Octo core, at a good price.. or should spend the extra money and get the new single 2.66 quad core machine? Using the machine for XDCAM Ex/P2 Editing with the occasional uncompressed 10 bit SD work. Going to be putting a kona LHe card in whatever i buy.

The new 2.66 is $500 usd more expensive than the old 2.8 down here and probably close to that in australia..

Harrison Murchison · March 3rd, 2009, 06:21 PM

I'd go with the more physical cores. The new architecture is nice but it's not going to make up for missing 4-cores when compared to the previous architecture.

Andrew Clark · March 3rd, 2009, 06:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joe Lawry

Finally new macpros.

So for those in the know, can you inform 'us' users who have been sitting on the fence about buying a new machine, should we buy one of the new machines or get pick up an old one before they are discontinued...

Ditto on that Joe...I too am considering either a Windows only machine with the i7 920 cpu or one of these new MacPros...probably just the single cpu (quad core) configuration.

I'd like to see some comparisons (editing, rendering, 3D compositing, etc...) of the both the (single processor config) Quad Core versions (2.66 & 2.93) vs. the current desktop i7 on the Windows side (920, 940, 965) line up.

The "dual processor" configs are nice, but just a bit pricey for the slight performance increase that it states on the Apple website....at least it's pricey to me.

Funny, looking at the MacPro tower they eliminated FW400 and just went with FW800 and USB2.0. Would figure they would have included HDMI (which you can do via a DVI - HDMI adpater from your graphics card) and an e-SATA port. Seems like the "Windows Only" machines give you a few more connection options on their motherboards.

But I suppose the bottom line is the apps you want / need to utilize for your workflow.

Joe Lawry · March 3rd, 2009, 11:01 PM

After speaking with a few people down here the thoughts are there wont be a refresh to far off from these ones, end of the year max, with dual octo cores, so i think im gonna pick up an old 2.8 machine at a good price while i can. Save some dollars.

Emmanuel Plakiotis · March 4th, 2009, 11:57 AM

Does anyone know if the single processor Mac pro can be upgraded to a dual chip machine, including the ability to host more RAM as the current dual chip can?

Evan Donn · March 10th, 2009, 01:23 PM

If you're primary software isn't optimized for multi-processor use the new machines may be better - they have a 'turbo' mode where if they determine that one core is handling most of the load they can disable the remaining cores and overclock the single core to optimize performance.

Lynne Whelden · March 10th, 2009, 03:30 PM

Isn't this just a small percentage increase in performance and still no blu-ray support?

Harrison Murchison · March 11th, 2009, 12:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lynne Whelden

Isn't this just a small percentage increase in performance and still no blu-ray support?

Depends.

Nehalem the core architecture can encode some files at %40 faster than previous Xeon Penryn procs.

AnandTech: The Nehalem Preview: Intel Does It Again

Evan Donn · March 11th, 2009, 02:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lynne Whelden

Isn't this just a small percentage increase in performance and still no blu-ray support?

Geekbench score on the 2.92ghz hit 17,6000: MacPro4,1 : Geekbench Result Browser

By comparison, the previous generation 3.2ghz maxed out at around 11,000: Mac Pro (Early 2008) : Geekbench Result Browser

So no, I'd say it's not just a small percentage increase in performance.

March 3rd, 2009, 01:09 PM	#1
Andrew Clark Major Player Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Bay Area, CA Posts: 477	New Macs arrive... MacPros - Apple - Mac Pro - The fastest and most powerful Mac ever. iMacs - Apple - iMac - The all-in-one desktop for your photos, movies and music. Mac Mini - Apple - Mac mini - The most affordable and most energy-efficient Mac.

March 10th, 2009, 01:23 PM	#7
Evan Donn Major Player Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 795	If you're primary software isn't optimized for multi-processor use the new machines may be better - they have a 'turbo' mode where if they determine that one core is handling most of the load they can disable the remaining cores and overclock the single core to optimize performance. __________________ My latest short documentary: "Four Pauls: Bring the Hat Back!"

March 10th, 2009, 03:30 PM	#8
Lynne Whelden Major Player Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: williamsport, pa Posts: 604	Same old story... Isn't this just a small percentage increase in performance and still no blu-ray support?

March 3rd, 2009, 03:26 PM	#2
Joe Lawry Major Player Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Auckland, New Zealand Posts: 418	Finally new macpros. So for those in the know, can you inform 'us' users who have been sitting on the fence about buying a new machine, should we buy one of the new machines or get pick up an old one before they are discontinued. Should i go out now and buy an old 2.8 Octo core, at a good price.. or should spend the extra money and get the new single 2.66 quad core machine? Using the machine for XDCAM Ex/P2 Editing with the occasional uncompressed 10 bit SD work. Going to be putting a kona LHe card in whatever i buy. The new 2.66 is $500 usd more expensive than the old 2.8 down here and probably close to that in australia..

March 3rd, 2009, 06:21 PM	#3
Harrison Murchison Major Player Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Seattle Posts: 243	I'd go with the more physical cores. The new architecture is nice but it's not going to make up for missing 4-cores when compared to the previous architecture.

March 3rd, 2009, 11:01 PM	#5
Joe Lawry Major Player Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Auckland, New Zealand Posts: 418	After speaking with a few people down here the thoughts are there wont be a refresh to far off from these ones, end of the year max, with dual octo cores, so i think im gonna pick up an old 2.8 machine at a good price while i can. Save some dollars.

March 4th, 2009, 11:57 AM	#6
Emmanuel Plakiotis Major Player Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Athens, Greece Posts: 344	Does anyone know if the single processor Mac pro can be upgraded to a dual chip machine, including the ability to host more RAM as the current dual chip can?