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2.8 (octo) or 3.0 ?

kirkbross

kirkbross

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Mar 6, 2007
666
22
Los Angeles
I'm sure this has been discussed tangentially in other threads, but my decision is between the Octo 2.8 and the 3.0.

That's $800 for a 6.7% boost and I'm assuming every other element in the box is the same between the two.

Either way, I'll have 8 GB RAM because I already bought 6 GB from macsales yesterday. I'll have two 150GB Raptors in there too -- one for Tiger and one for audio.

The MP will be for recording on a Pro Tools LE system with plugins being handled by native power, I.E. no auxillary DSP horsepower one gets from a TDM system. Thus RAM and CPU power will be key. Also, with high track counts, I'll be accessing hundreds of audio files simultaneously.

Any recommendations?
 
I'm in Audio as well and opted for the 2.8. How big will your projects really be to need that extra little bump in performance? More drives for backup and extra RAM seems a better investment. Besides, I can always do with another mic or pre!

BTW, I'd love to hear how those Raptors work out for your audio disk.
 
I was contemplating about this too. It's "cooler" to say that you have a 3.0 ghz instead of 2.8... but went ahead and got the 2.8 with 6 gb of more memory instead.
 
2.8. In terms of price/performance, it definitely represents the sweet spot in the lineup.
 
Digidesign states that they have a Leopard update in the works.

I believe Cromulent is correct in saying Tiger will not work on the new Pro, Digidesign seems to back this up:

"Until this time, please be aware that Pro Tools software is not currently compatible with the new multi-core Mac Pro or with Leopard"
 
Shurran said:
Digidesign states that they have a Leopard update in the works.

I believe Cromulent is correct in saying Tiger will not work on the new Pro, Digidesign seems to back this up:

"Until this time, please be aware that Pro Tools software is not currently compatible with the new multi-core Mac Pro or with Leopard"
Click to expand...

Suckage...

Well, my 2.8GHz FX-62 / XP Pro box is handling Pro Tools okay for now. I migrated from my dual 867 MDD G4 recently because it's too slow (and louder than ten thousand babies being tortured in a gymnasium).
 
You'll probably be waiting for quite a while - In my experience, Digi can be really slow releasing updates. Also be prepared to pay for the pleasure of getting software you already own to work on the new Pro.

This is one of the reasons I switched to Logic. Pro Tools LE really isn't a competitive product anymore, other sequencers offer more features and better compatibility with hardware at a much better price (even though LE comes free, the hardware is amazingly overpriced).

Of course, PT HD is a different matter - but I'd have to sell my firstborn to the devil in order to buy it.
 
OK, you'd have to have some seriously massive projects going on to make that 8 bones worth it.

got my 2.8 last night and running my biggest project (some 50 odd tracks in cubase w/ reason and loads of native instruments plugs) she cruised in at 128 samples with zero problems.

iStat says that all 8 cores were at ~20%

and that's with just the stock ram.

as fernmeister said, save your cash for that neve you've been eyeing.;)
 
So what do people mean by saying that the 3.0 will serve better for future upgrades? I have read that a few times here...
 
big dainjerus said:
So what do people mean by saying that the 3.0 will serve better for future upgrades? I have read that a few times here...
Click to expand...

I don't know about future upgrades, but I am wondering if the 3.0 might end up with a better resell value when Nehalem hits. Some reasoning:

1/ If there's a 3.4 somewhere before Nehalem, the 2.8 might get bumped.

2/ "3.0" is breaking a psychological boundary of sorts. It just seems like a big upgrade if you don't think about it.

I need to do more research on past resell value trends to really figure it out though.
 
krypt said:
I don't know about future upgrades, but I am wondering if the 3.0 might end up with a better resell value when Nehalem hits. Some reasoning:

1/ If there's a 3.4 somewhere before Nehalem, the 2.8 might get bumped.

2/ "3.0" is breaking a psychological boundary of sorts. It just seems like a big upgrade if you don't think about it.

I need to do more research on past resell value trends to really figure it out though.
Click to expand...

Probably nowhere near $800 worth of resale though.

The only logical reason to get a processor upgrade is if you spend alot of time waiting on processing before you can continue to work.
 
From what I have heard Leopard compatibility is not far off for Pro Tools now.

Personally I will be buying the best I can afford as I only upgrade very sporadically (up until my new Mac comes, I had been using an 800mhz g4 and a digi 001.. so that was about 9 years ago).

I have just picked up a new 003 + control interface on the upgrade package, and will be heading to the applestore on Sunday!

I have done a little research into the Tiger problem (in case it takes a long time to arrive) and from what I've read it seems that the best bet will be to try booting to Tiger off an external hdd with pro tools on it. Any attempt to natively install is likely to be blocked. I will be going this route if i get bored of waiting for the compatible version to be released!
 
I'll most likely go with the 2.8GHz version and spend the $800 on more RAM. The only reason to go with 3.0GHz is that a couple of years from now the resale value might be better with a three before the decimal point. But 6 or 7 percent performance difference for almost 30% more money, no, not for me - what I do will benefit from the RAM more than the extra CPU performance.

- Martin
 
Just wanted to bump this because it is the ongoing battle in my mind right now as to which one to get. My brother is telling me to go with the 3.0 to be safe and to not find my MP somewhat obsolete within the next couple years. Will there ever be an issue regarding programs or apps that will run better or be designed for a MP that is 3.0 instead of 2.8 within the near future? Basically is there any benefit or such thing as future proofing my MP with the 3.0? I Will mostly be doing Logic and film editing/scoring and photoshop etc.
 
i too debated...still could change...but google: X5472 Mac Pro and check out all of the more sites that pop up and the chinese and japanese ones that list the chip next to the 3.0!

i would like to go with the 3.0 with an 80w but I am sure that the extra 7% will only come handy if i was rendering something enormous like video...i'm just an audio guy so i think i will be ok...and less heat is good.

note the X5472 is the 120w
 
big dainjerus said:
Just wanted to bump this because it is the ongoing battle in my mind right now as to which one to get. My brother is telling me to go with the 3.0 to be safe and to not find my MP somewhat obsolete within the next couple years. Will there ever be an issue regarding programs or apps that will run better or be designed for a MP that is 3.0 instead of 2.8 within the near future? Basically is there any benefit or such thing as future proofing my MP with the 3.0? I Will mostly be doing Logic and film editing/scoring and photoshop etc.
Click to expand...

The extra speeds aren't going to future proof your purchase. They will help you reduce the time of processor heavy tasks, but it isn't like they are going to run some software that won't work on slower processors from the same family.
 
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