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Apple iMac Pro goes on sale December 14th

engadget.com

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Re: Apple iMac Pro goes on sale December 14th

#81

Post by epmaybe »

santaclaus wrote: post #20
pen2l wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I know a few folks who work in pretty reputable firms (their clients include BMW and Mercedes benz), they all use windows. I think 3D artists prefer windows (I know c4d and maya work on apple, I wonder if Houdini works on apple)

> 3D artists prefer windows The 3D shops I used to work at (Pixar, Weta) both used Linux, actually. Houdini does work on macOS, but the super outdated OpenGL drivers were a major problem.

I remember reading somewhere that Pixar built their own software because nothing came close to what they needed. Is that true?

Re: Apple iMac Pro goes on sale December 14th

#82

Post by hungerstrike »

Aaargh20318 wrote: post #53
jawngee wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's why you wait a few days. The hackintosh community is very active. Also, at this point, the things that would brick you in the past are no longer applicable with a modern hackintosh.

> That's why you wait a few days. The hackintosh community is very active. That may be fine for a home user, but if my livelyhood was dependent on this machine I'd rather buy something less hacked together and with actual support options. This is not about wether or not it will actually work, it's about liability.

People who depend on Macs for a living also have to stay behind on OS updates for reasons of staying compatible with production software. For instance, my friend works at a publishing house and they are all running Mavericks.

Re: Apple iMac Pro goes on sale December 14th

#83

Post by santaclaus »

epmaybe wrote: post #81
santaclaus wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> 3D artists prefer windows The 3D shops I used to work at (Pixar, Weta) both used Linux, actually. Houdini does work on macOS, but the super outdated OpenGL drivers were a major problem.

I remember reading somewhere that Pixar built their own software because nothing came close to what they needed. Is that true?

Yes, they develop an animation package named 'Presto' that allows them to do super customized character rigs.

Re: Apple iMac Pro goes on sale December 14th

#84

Post by wlesieutre »

rbanffy wrote: post #80
wlesieutre wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm sure render farms are great, but if a single modern computer would be fast enough, why bother? He also does just as much photography and 2D advertising work, which as far as I know wouldn't benefit from one.

I would say even the 8-core one is pretty much fast enough for mostly anything 2D you can throw at it and a buy-and-forget option for the next couple years. Also, keep in mind even Apple thinks this is a stopgap computer - they still mentioned the future modular MacPro on the last event.

I'm sure the 8-core iMac Pro is a great computer but it's also a $5000 computer. I'm glad they're getting back to a modular Mac Pro, but people have been bailing for years and are continuing to bail while said computer doesn't exist yet. $5000 for a stopgap computer without an upgradable GPU just strikes me as insane.

There are external GPU docks, but if I'm paying $3000-$5000 for a computer I'd rather it just have 3-4 PCIe slots.

Re: Apple iMac Pro goes on sale December 14th

#85

Post by rbanffy »

wlesieutre wrote: post #84
rbanffy wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would say even the 8-core one is pretty much fast enough for mostly anything 2D you can throw at it and a buy-and-forget option for the next couple years. Also, keep in mind even Apple thinks this is a stopgap computer - they still mentioned the future modular MacPro on the last event.

I'm sure the 8-core iMac Pro is a great computer but it's also a $5000 computer. I'm glad they're getting back to a modular Mac Pro, but people have been bailing for years and are continuing to bail while said computer doesn't exist yet. $5000 for a stopgap computer without an upgradable GPU just strikes me as insane. There are external GPU docks, but if I'm paying $3000-$5000 for a computer I'd rather it just have 3…

The GPU that comes with this machine costs about US$ 1000. The CPU seems to be an 8-core E7 for the lower end model, which is slightly north of USD 1200. With 32 GB of RAM and a 5K 27 inch best-in-class monitor and a reasonable amount of PCIe flash storage, the USD 5K is not bad at all. A cutting edge GPU costs about that and, if you are serious about having the top-performer you should count on spending that much in gear every year.

Things could be different if you didn't need the screen (I need the pixel count, but not so much the density and color precision, for instance) and would prefer the cash to be invested in memory (32 is enough for me now, but I'd get 64 or 128 for a machine that has to be usable 5 years from now).

Re: Apple iMac Pro goes on sale December 14th

#86

Post by Aaargh20318 »

jawngee wrote: post #63
Aaargh20318 wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> That's why you wait a few days. The hackintosh community is very active. That may be fine for a home user, but if my livelyhood was dependent on this machine I'd rather buy something less hacked together and with actual support options. This is not about wether or not it will actually work, it's about liability.

I depend on this machine to pay my rent, keep the lights on, keep insulin in my kid, keep us all fed. If this machine bites the dust, I swap out the part or I restore from Time Machine. At least with this machine, I have the option of swapping out the part. It's not some mystical black box. These are standard PC parts that are supported by macOS. I think I only use two kexts that aren't shipped with macOS to get to 1…

If the hardware fails you can replace it, but what if Apple improves the security of the OS and prevents the next OS update from working on a hackintosh ? What if a bug in one of the hacked parts wipes your entire drive ?

Re: Apple iMac Pro goes on sale December 14th

#87

Post by wlesieutre »

rbanffy wrote: post #85
wlesieutre wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm sure the 8-core iMac Pro is a great computer but it's also a $5000 computer. I'm glad they're getting back to a modular Mac Pro, but people have been bailing for years and are continuing to bail while said computer doesn't exist yet. $5000 for a stopgap computer without an upgradable GPU just strikes me as insane. There are external GPU docks, but if I'm paying $3000-$5000 for a computer I'd rather it just have 3…

The GPU that comes with this machine costs about US$ 1000. The CPU seems to be an 8-core E7 for the lower end model, which is slightly north of USD 1200. With 32 GB of RAM and a 5K 27 inch best-in-class monitor and a reasonable amount of PCIe flash storage, the USD 5K is not bad at all. A cutting edge GPU costs about that and, if you are serious about having the top-performer you should count on spending that much in…

I don't disagree about any of the specs, but when next year rolls around I'd rather be able to upgrade my GPU and add more RAM, not replace the whole thing including an best-in-class 5K display just because it's all glued together.

I'll also point out that the iMac used to be able to be plugged in as a display (target display mode), but the iMac Pro isn't listed on the compatible models page. For whatever reason, they dropped that feature after the 2014 models and decided not to reintroduce it.

Once you're no longer using it as your primary workstation, that gorgeous 5K panel is going up on Ebay or wherever along with the rest of the computer. If you want to spend your money efficiently, I have a hard time believing that's a better deal than a workstation and monitor from Dell or similar.

http://appleinsider.com/articles/17/06/15/2017-4k-5k-imacs-w...

Re: Apple iMac Pro goes on sale December 14th

#88

Post by rbanffy »

wlesieutre wrote: post #87
rbanffy wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The GPU that comes with this machine costs about US$ 1000. The CPU seems to be an 8-core E7 for the lower end model, which is slightly north of USD 1200. With 32 GB of RAM and a 5K 27 inch best-in-class monitor and a reasonable amount of PCIe flash storage, the USD 5K is not bad at all. A cutting edge GPU costs about that and, if you are serious about having the top-performer you should count on spending that much in…

I don't disagree about any of the specs, but when next year rolls around I'd rather be able to upgrade my GPU and add more RAM, not replace the whole thing including an best-in-class 5K display just because it's all glued together. I'll also point out that the iMac used to be able to be plugged in as a display (target display mode), but the iMac Pro isn't listed on the compatible models page. For whatever reason, the…

> not replace the whole thing including an best-in-class 5K display just because it's all glued together.

That's a fair point. With this machine you are committed to a certain performance over a long period before you commit yourself to the next machine. With a modular design, you can change the asset in smaller increments, at the cost of having an upgrade process to manage.

Re: Apple iMac Pro goes on sale December 14th

#89

Post by wlesieutre »

rbanffy wrote: post #88
wlesieutre wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't disagree about any of the specs, but when next year rolls around I'd rather be able to upgrade my GPU and add more RAM, not replace the whole thing including an best-in-class 5K display just because it's all glued together. I'll also point out that the iMac used to be able to be plugged in as a display (target display mode), but the iMac Pro isn't listed on the compatible models page. For whatever reason, the…

> not replace the whole thing including an best-in-class 5K display just because it's all glued together. That's a fair point. With this machine you are committed to a certain performance over a long period before you commit yourself to the next machine. With a modular design, you can change the asset in smaller increments, at the cost of having an upgrade process to manage.

Admittedly I'm not the target market, since I use some Windows-only software and my work computer's years-old GPU and is fast enough for the CAD work I do.

I do make incremental upgrades on my personal desktop though (mostly gaming). The last rebuild was triggered by some failed parts, so I ended up doing a new motherboard and processor and switching to DDR4, but I still have the GPU, screen, SSDs, and some other miscellaneous components. If I'd had an out of warranty failure on an iMac Pro motherboard I wouldn't have been able to salvage those. Or perhaps knowing that giving up the computer means losing the screen along with everything else, I'd have just shelled out a couple of thousand dollars on repairs.

I was a pretty early adopter of 4K screens and I'm still using the same one more than three years later.

Re: Apple iMac Pro goes on sale December 14th

#90

Post by thirdsun »

seanalltogether wrote: post #10

My brother has been obsessed with Apple products for the past 20 years, he was the one who convinced my parents to get one in 1998. He's been a professional photographer since 2001 and has worked on different iterations of Mac Pro machines ever since. This Thanksgiving he finally gave in and asked me how to build a PC for his work studio. He just can't justify working on desktop Mac Pros anymore. He'll keep the mac l…

It's similar for me. I've been a Mac user for decades and use an old iMac as my main computer - msotly for audio work and web development. This machine needs to be replaced rather sooner than later, but I'm having hard time justifying the price/performance ratio of Macs. The configuration I'm looking for will cost me at least €3000.

I'm also using a PC as media center and gaming system and I envy what €3000 will buy me in PC world. More importantly, it'll be a machine I can selectively upgrade at any point, unlike the iMac. I'm just not sure if the price justifies using Windows, which I kind of tolerate, but really am not fond of.

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