Haswell RMBP vs MBP 2011 - not good

[jrichie]

Hey guys,

I recently sold my 2011 MBP [quad 2.2ghz I7] to 'upgrade' to the new haswell machines.

Given the time difference I was expecting the new machines to be much more powerful, but this is not the case.

I have bought the following RMBP to compare :

13" 2.8ghz I7, 16gb ram, 512gb SSD

15" 2ghz I7 8gb ram, 256gb SSD

To cut the story short I bought the 13" online and was slightly disappointed with the performance with Rhino 3D so assumed I needed iris pro, so just got the 15".

However, basically the performance in orbiting the models is identical [not impressive]. I have compared this against my girlfriends 2011 MBP [same specs as my old one] and it is super fluid on the same model.

So basically, given the evidence I have, I am going to have to spend AU$3200 on a machine now to match a 2.5 year old computer !!

What the hell is going on at Apple as so far my impression in real world tests is that the iris pro is not good enough for professional 3D applications .

Anyone else experience this or am I just missing something?

 

[ohbrilliance]

A quick Google came up with this page:

http://www.simplyrhino.com/rhinotraining/hardware.html

"modelling applications such as SolidWorks, 3D Studio Max and Rhino use only one processor core for some modelling tasks whereas rendering plug-ins like
V-Ray,Brazil and Maxwell will make use of all the available cores. Rhino 5.0 64 bit will still use only one processor core for most modelling tasks but will be able to access much greater amounts of memory."

It sounds like Rhino 3D doesn't take advantage of multiple cores. So your latest quad core isn't achieving more than a dual core, and probably less if it's clocked slower per core. So I wouldn't blame Apple for this.

(Note, that I don't know anything about Rhino. I just googled it, that's all).

 

[jrichie]

thanks for the research however it's not the rendering side I am concerned about. It is the orbiting of a model which I would assume is the video card doing the work.

Just to update on my testing, the 13" is absolutely fine and super fast at orbiting the same model when connected to my 27" cinema display but pretty crap when just going through the retina display.

Basically I am starting to come to the conclusion that the Iris and Iris Pro are still not powerful enough for the retina display.

This is a bit of a shame as I have been waiting so long for these computers and am now regretting selling my old machine, which on reflection was brilliant.

A quick Google came up with this page:

http://www.simplyrhino.com/rhinotraining/hardware.html

"modelling applications such as SolidWorks, 3D Studio Max and Rhino use only one processor core for some modelling tasks whereas rendering plug-ins like
V-Ray,Brazil and Maxwell will make use of all the available cores. Rhino 5.0 64 bit will still use only one processor core for most modelling tasks but will be able to access much greater amounts of memory."

It sounds like Rhino 3D doesn't take advantage of multiple cores. So your latest quad core isn't achieving more than a dual core, and probably less if it's clocked slower per core. So I wouldn't blame Apple for this.

(Note, that I don't know anything about Rhino. I just googled it, that's all).

 

[leftyMac]

thanks for reporting! I've been very tempted to upgrade my 2011 MBP, since it's already been almost 3 years with this machine. I was wondering about the improved performance from Iris / Iris Pro.

the reality is, there's no lag that I noticed, using my MBP, now that I got an external monitor, it feels like a new machine!

the ONLY time I wish I had a faster computer is when rendering video clips in premiere (multiple HD videos, lots of effects, imported After Effects clips, etc.).

I still don't feel the necessity to upgrade it yet. I'd have to say, this MBP was the best investment ever!!!

sorry you sold yours for an overpriced MBP that's not that much better.

 

[LYFK]

OP are you running Rhino Beta for OSX or Rhino 5 through bootcamp/virtual?

 

[jrichie]

I am running the beta on OSx.

Just installing Revit in bootcamp to test this out now, and will update this.

The difference in using an external monitor is truly amazing. It is like 2 different machines.

I am not sure why more people are not reporting this......

 

[buleohara]

I read that Rhino suggests NOT to use Intel graphic cards, see link...

http://wiki.mcneel.com/rhino/rhino5videocards

I'd like to hear from someone who has tested Rhino on Apple's new top end laptop??

15" with NVIDIA GeForce GT 750M 2GB

 

[erigas]

I read that Rhino suggests NOT to use Intel graphic cards, see link...

http://wiki.mcneel.com/rhino/rhino5videocards

I'd like to hear from someone who has tested Rhino on Apple's new top end laptop??

15" with NVIDIA GeForce GT 750M 2GB

Bump.
I have the same 2011 2.2 GHz mbp and was thinking about upgrading.
I'm also using Rhino, modo, MOI and Spaceclaim.
I'll be interested to know what you guys find out.

 

[richard371]

isn't the retina on the 13" only about 200 lines higher in resolution?

thanks for the research however it's not the rendering side I am concerned about. It is the orbiting of a model which I would assume is the video card doing the work.

Just to update on my testing, the 13" is absolutely fine and super fast at orbiting the same model when connected to my 27" cinema display but pretty crap when just going through the retina display.

Basically I am starting to come to the conclusion that the Iris and Iris Pro are still not powerful enough for the retina display.

This is a bit of a shame as I have been waiting so long for these computers and am now regretting selling my old machine, which on reflection was brilliant.