-
Which MAC PRO
Hi,
I am just wondering what advice anyone has for getting a mac pro specifically for after effects and final cut.
I have been working on a powerbook G4 for the past few years and its done me just fine…i need something new and bigger to handle some of the projects i’ve got coming in.
I really want to know what is it that i actually need in my mac to run after effects and final cut to as near optimum as possible as i keep reading different things…do i really need a two 3ghz mac pro or am i going to be fine with a two 2.8 ghz model (or whatever it is!!) I realize i will need to by more RAM which i intend to do but…any clear advice please!?!?!?pifacesi.
-
6 Replies
-
The best way to do it is to set a budget on what you want to spend and work backwards.
For processor speed, There’s not going to be a huge difference between 2.8 GHz and 3.2 GHz and you’d probably never notice the difference anyway. As for the number of cores, go with the highest you can afford. I’m not sure how much power you are going to need. For a starter system, the One 2.8Ghz Quad is good (that’s 4 processors right there). The next step up would be the Two 2.8Ghz Quad (8 processors). You could pay the extra for the 3.0Ghz and 3.2, but that’s not worth it.
Final cut pro isn’t written well to fully use the processors, neither is after effects. I use the Nucleo Pro add-on for AFX which maxes the processor usage.
Ram: I wouldn’t go under 4gb. Rule of thumb, I believe, is 2 GB per processor.
Hard drive space is up to you, Graphics, the Radeon 2600 will do the job, unless you want to run 2 30″, then you’ll need a second. Monitor size is your own preference. I’ve found that for dual screen, 23″ was big enough. The 30″ is huge.
Personally, I’m running a 2×2.8GHz Quad (8 processors) with 4gb of Ram, 4x1TB drives and 2 23″ monitors. I wish I had gotten more ram, but the system works great. The only time I wish I had more ram is when I’m doing AFX renders with Nucleo. I don’t get the full potential out the system then.
-
All good points Jake. I use the 8 core 3.2 with 16 gigs of memory. Memory is so cheap that its worth getting the 2gigs per core.
…….
I will only add this as the BIGGEST reason to get more cores and memory
AND megahertz. 3d rendering. My 3d package sees each core as its own computer so I get virtually an 8 times speed increase. C4d\Maya are all multithreaded apps so thats good. When an HD rendered 3d scene takes close to 10 minutes a FRAME, the mghz saves hours on top of hours.SuperNova
Animation & Visual Effects
Scott Novasic
Los Angeles Ca
web:https://web.mac.com/finaleffects -
Hey,
Thanks guys…everything you have said is extremely useful and answers all that i wanted to know.
thanks again.
Simon
-
Hey,
Thanks for this. Where can i get the Nucleo Pro Add on????
Cheers,
Simon.
-
-
You shouldn’t need Nucleo to do multiprocessor rendering if you have AE CS3 or above. However Nucleo Pro does provide a few extra features…
AE7 Pro – Nucleo – Mocha v1.2.3 – PS CS3 – FCP 5.1.4
MacPro Quad 3GHz / ATI 1900XT / 8GB RAM / OSX 10.4.11
30″ ACD / Decklink SP / SONY PVM-20M4E/ Wacom Intuos 3 A4 / XServe / United Digital RAID
———————————
Production Studio CS2 – Combustion 3 – Mocha v1.0.1
Win XP Pro 32 / Intel Core2Quad Q6600 / 2GB RAM / NVidia Quadro570 / DeckLink Pro / Roland DS-5s / Sony BVM-20G1E / 2 x Dell 2007FP / Wacom Intuos 3 A4 / 320GB boot/800GB RAID-0
Reply to this Discussion! Login or Sign Up