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Obsolete Mac Pro VS Windows PC – What should I expect?
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For Windows based systems, HP workstations are great, as are Dell Alienware desktops. Heck, you could get a top of the line Alienware desktop for around $2.5k to $3k.
https://www.dell.com/us/p/alienware-aurora-r4/pd.aspx?~ck=mn
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The big difference is that HP can be optimized to effectively work with Adobe CS6 through HPs Performance Management software. They have worked in conjunction with Adobe to create the ability to easily alter the bios to work efficiently with CS6. Its also been certified to run CS6 (drivers, etc,) by actually testing the software on the computer.
With Alienware you get a computer.
Tom Daigon
PrP / After Effects Editor
http://www.hdshotsandcuts.com
Mac Pro 3,1
8 core
10.7.3
Nvidia Quadro 4000
24 gigs ram
Maxx Digital / Areca 8tb. raid
Kona 3 -
Tom, what was the exact model you got, speed, config etc, and if I may ask, how much was it? I went to the HP Site and found it really quite confusing and it also seemed the 16 core models were also lower speed CPUs. Do they offer a i7 model for those that might not need all those cores?
Did you also get the NVidia cards through them or do you plan to install things separately?
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Tom,
I don’t disagree with you about HP’s workstations being “certified” to work, and if one has the extra money for that peace-of-mind, so be it.
In my experience, as long as one buys quality hardware, you shouldn’t have any issues. And it doesn’t hurt to do a little research, google is your friend. 😉
For instance, I travel quite a bit, so I have to use a laptop for editing. Last August, I purchased an Asus G53SW to edit on. It has worked near perfectly with CS5.5 and CS6. Even though it has a GTX460M in it, which isn’t certified for Mercury Playback, using the hack works great. It renders/exports very fast.
To add to that, in January, I purchased a Blackmagic Design Intensity Shuttle USB 3.0 card. Even though I read that BMD’s USB 3.0 products are very finicky with USB 3.0 controllers, I took a chance anyway. After updating the USB 3.0 drivers on my laptop, it’s worked like a champ. I’ve even tested it on an Asus G73 laptop, and it works.
I just feel that if you buy quality hardware, your odds of it working are pretty darn good. The money I saved was used to purchase other gear, so it was a win-win situation for me.
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[Tom Daigon] “The big difference is that HP can be optimized to effectively work with Adobe CS6 through HPs Performance Management software.”
Tom,
Are there any benchmarks to support this? In my testing, https://www2.hp.com/Hpsub/cache/285683-0-0-225-121.html“>HP Performance Advisor does very little to optimize ISV apps (including any CS apps) unless there is a clear problem with the hardware or OS configuration i.e. sub-optimal memory configuration, not enough memory, etc.
In addition, there is very little in HP BIOS that can be tweaked for performance with the exception of Hyper-Threading which is on some HPs is turned off OOTB (out-of-the-box) – e.g. no over-clocking or timing options.
On the other hand I am shaving 20-30 seconds off boot times on nearly any supposedly “optimized” HP system by turning off unnecessary boot agents (network, SAS), taking out unnecessary services and run-at-boot OS and app modules. On top of that, showing my clients how to monitor memory and CPU usage helps more than anything else. HP doesn’t do that – they can’t for a number of reasons.
Yet on the other hand many of the options on HP site are sub-optimal as well: HP SSDs are 2 generations old, way over-priced; using SAS boot drives increases boot times by 10-20 seconds; HP memory is over-priced and fails more often than Lifetime, Edge or Kingston memory. Yet not every 3rd party SSD will work well in HP systems: BIOS compatibility issues.
Bottom line, there is more to system optimization than HP PA (Performance Advisor). It does catch some configuration errors but does little beyond that.
Alex Gerulaitis
Systems Integrator
DV411 – Los Angeles, CA -
[Keith Moreau] “Tom, what was the exact model you got, speed, config etc, and if I may ask, how much was it?”
Apologies for jumping in: Tom already answered some of these above: Z820 CTO with two E5-2687 (fastest available), GTX-50 which he is getting separately.
[Keith Moreau] “I went to the HP Site and found it really quite confusing and it also seemed the 16 core models were also lower speed CPUs. Do they offer a i7 model for those that might not need all those cores?”
True: the fastest clock is on a quad-core E5-2643 at 3.3GHz and 10MB cache; it’s unlikely to be a good choice for CS apps that need the balance of memory and CPU speed, with cache size and the number of cores. A six-core E5-2667 at 2.9GHz, 15 MB cache is likely to be faster for most CS work-flows. Tom’s E5-2687 is the fastest available (and the most expensive) choice.
Alex Gerulaitis
Systems Integrator
DV411 – Los Angeles, CA -
Keith , heres a copy of the system.
The salesman said anyone I referred would get the same discounts as I did. FYI, I get nothing for the referral.
Gabriel Lucero
Small & Medium Business Sales
Inside Sales Representative
HP Business
Hewlett-Packard CompanyPhone # 1-855-707-0285
I didn’t research the single chip Sandy Bridge systems at all, but they may be a good choice depending on your work flow.
I will be using the provided Nvidia card until the new Kepler comes out next year.
Tom Daigon
PrP / After Effects Editor
http://www.hdshotsandcuts.com
Mac Pro 3,1
8 core
10.7.3
Nvidia Quadro 4000
24 gigs ram
Maxx Digital / Areca 8tb. raid
Kona 3 -
[Alex Gerulaitis] “Are there any benchmarks to support this? In my testing, https://www2.hp.com/Hpsub/cache/285683-0-0-225-121.html“>HP Performance Advisor does very little to optimize ISV apps (including any CS apps) unless there is a clear problem with the hardware or OS configuration i.e. sub-optimal memory configuration, not enough memory, etc.”
Creative Cow nearly always breaks HP URLs. Here is the shortened and unbroken one, for HP Performance Advisor:
full URL:
https://h20331.https://www2.hp.com/Hpsub/cache/285683-0-0-225-121.html
Alex Gerulaitis
Systems Integrator
DV411 – Los Angeles, CA -
Mike, Im glad you are as happy about your purchase as I am about mine 😀
Tom Daigon
PrP / After Effects Editor
http://www.hdshotsandcuts.com
Mac Pro 3,1
8 core
10.7.3
Nvidia Quadro 4000
24 gigs ram
Maxx Digital / Areca 8tb. raid
Kona 3 -
Alex, we spoke on the phone several weeks ago. As a system integrator I understand your vested interest in folks buying from you. And you bring up interesting points regarding HP. But for my money, it is well worth the expenditure to have the repair support done at my place of business. No one in my detailed research comes close to matching that. And the serviceability I can do is reminiscent of the Mac Pro design which I really liked. Combine all that with a great price after discounts and I am a happy camper.
Tom Daigon
PrP / After Effects Editor
http://www.hdshotsandcuts.com
Mac Pro 3,1
8 core
10.7.3
Nvidia Quadro 4000
24 gigs ram
Maxx Digital / Areca 8tb. raid
Kona 3
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