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Adobe updates?
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I got tired of Apple rumors about Mac Pro and Apples screwing up and killing FCP 7.
I switched to Adobe CS6 and a top of the line HP Z820 and am darn glad I did.
The computer switch took lots of twists and turns before I decided on the workstation from HP.
https://magazine.creativecow.net/article/hello-pc-the-journey-to-mac-and-back
Tom Daigon
PrP / After Effects Editor
http://www.hdshotsandcuts.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxPrG3WUyz8
(Best viewed at 1080P and full screen)
HP Z820 Dual 2687
64GB ram
Dulce DQg2 16TB raid -
[Douglas Morse] “However, the near impossible upgrade path of the new iMac (including RAM or harddrive) is atrocious.”
The 27″ iMac the user can easily replace RAM easily….small back door on the iMac gives the user access to all 4 RAM slots. The 21.5″ not so much. The hard drives on both models are difficult to get to unless you like removing the screen.
Ryan Holmes
http://www.ryanholmes.me
vimeo.com/ryanholmes -
[Douglas Morse] “I would stay away from Windows 8 because the new interface is terrible — or get an add on that makes it more like Windows 7. But as I watch what is happening with Apple, I wonder if my current iMac will be my last?”
I ran the preview a bit, and I think the new Win8 UI (“Metro”) is actually very clever. We normally associate Apple with design, but I think Microsoft has done an outstanding job of re-conceiving the way we interact with our computers and devices in a very meaningful and useful way.
Of course, Metro is new, and it is different, and not everything is perfectly intuitive the first time around — especially if you expect it to be like Win7. That said, the traditional desktop is just one click away in Win8, so it really doesn’t need to be the horror that the web is making it out to be.
I spend most of my time on the machine actually in my apps, so the desktop metaphor isn’t really all that important to me. I’m currently planning on updating a production system to Win8 early next year.
I ran my business on Macs for a decade, but I added a Z800 that HP sent me for evaluation into production last year. It’s a great machine, with industrial design that’s superior to the Mac Pro, and all kinds of performance options that are unavailable anywhere on the Mac product line. I now consider myself cross-platform: my primary workstation is a PC, and my primary laptop is a Mac. I have other supporting systems, both Mac and PC, in my studio. I move a lot of work back and forth from platform to platform. I’m using both platforms for their unique advantages.
I’ve been really happy with the HP and Windows 7: it’s stable, secure, and FAST. I quickly discovered that a lot of the preconceptions I had as a long-time Mac user were out of touch with reality. A good PC is a fine choice for daily creative use.
Walter Soyka
Principal & Designer at Keen Live
Motion Graphics, Widescreen Events, Presentation Design, and Consulting
RenderBreak Blog – What I’m thinking when my workstation’s thinking
Creative Cow Forum Host: Live & Stage Events -
I was talking to a programmer friend of mine whoe is based in australia and he told me this past weekend that he believes windows 7 and windows 8 have both been solid. I could pick up a real sweet PC for a fraction of the cost of a new macpro I guess. Maybe I’m too brainwashed by apple.. waiting to see if they will put interest in pro users or if they are really just trying to market consumers. Other friends I have are hopeful of Apple… I’m still in the decision mode as to whtehr I can count on them for support and innovation from a professional standpoint in the futre…
MotionFoundry, Inc. Video Post
Clients: GM, AOL, Kohl’s, 3 Doors Down, IKEA, Kelloggs, Toyota, Thomas Nelson, NASCAR Affiliates -
My experience is…ditto Walter.
Mac Pro for Email/Web. HP Z820 for editing.
Tom Daigon
PrP / After Effects Editor
http://www.hdshotsandcuts.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxPrG3WUyz8
(Best viewed at 1080P and full screen)
HP Z820 Dual 2687
64GB ram
Dulce DQg2 16TB raid -
Brian –
It sounds as if you drank the Apple cool aid a long time ago, but the withdrawal symptoms can be easily overcome by the money you will save, and the broadening of hardware and software choices you will get on the PC side. I’m not trying to start a cross-platform war here – I’ve worked on both, and pound for pound, you can get more bang for your buck with a PC. As Tom and Walter have said, the HP workstations are hardware honey badgers!
Joe Bourke
Owner/Creative Director
Bourke Media
http://www.bourkemedia.com -
Joe, in the interest of full disclosure, The top of the line HP Z820 was probably more expensive then any Mac Pro ever customized. It was about $10,000 and that was with a 27% discount.
Of course it also blows any Mac Pro out of the water as an editing machine, but not the best bang for buck.
That said, I am in awe of its performance.
Tom Daigon
PrP / After Effects Editor
http://www.hdshotsandcuts.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxPrG3WUyz8
(Best viewed at 1080P and full screen)
HP Z820 Dual 2687
64GB ram
Dulce DQg2 16TB raid -
I’m with you Tom. I figure bang for the buck in capabilities, and the HPs far surpase anything Apple has ever built! I’d rather spend 10K for a machine that’s going to pay for itself many times over, then wait, hat in hand, for Apple to throw out some peels.
Joe Bourke
Owner/Creative Director
Bourke Media
http://www.bourkemedia.com -
Well said.
Tom Daigon
PrP / After Effects Editor
http://www.hdshotsandcuts.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxPrG3WUyz8
(Best viewed at 1080P and full screen)
HP Z820 Dual 2687
64GB ram
Dulce DQg2 16TB raid -
We got a really sweet Dell machine in our shop for Windows testing and for the most part we liked it. The only real hangup we had was shooters sending us XDCAM QT files. There’s no native codec for this on Windows so we had to purchase the Calibrated Software plug-in to make the files work in Premiere Pro on Windows. But even with that, our 8 core, 48GB RAM machine would slow to a crawl when working with those files.
The editor who was working on that machine tried out our test 27″ iMac with the 32GB RAM and was absolutely floored by it. So we replaced his Dell with a second 27″ iMac. For straight editing, working with simple After Effects projects and Photoshop, it’s a killer machine.
For heavy rendering, heavy VFX, you still want a tower with lots of ram and dual nVidia cards. We have two Mac Pro 12 Core machines that do most of our heavy lifting. Edit on the iMac and when necessary do final render on the Mac Pro.
We have 5 edit suites currently running with 4 more possibly coming online in 2013 plus more field units, so I can’t spend $10,000 – $20,000 per edit workstation anymore, I have to get the most bang for the buck. The iMac is definitely the sweet spot for that. If you only are going to need one workstation for your job, then I would go with a tower. Mac or Windows is purely your own preference.
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Editor, Colorist, Director, Writer, Consultant, Author, Chef.
HD Post and Production
Biscardi Creative Media“This American Land” – our new PBS Series.
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