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Post by Johnkenn on Feb 18, 2018 17:36:15 GMT -6
I loathe to even think about this, but at some point in the next 2 years, I’m probably going to have to invest in a new computer...and the thought of how much I’ll have to spend on a Mac makes me sick to my stomach. I’ve been on Mac for around 13 years now, so unfortunately, I’m absolutely clueless about Windows. Of course, considering I just invested in a Symphony MkII, I might have to go the Mac route, right?
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Post by cowboycoalminer on Feb 18, 2018 17:45:04 GMT -6
Depends on what kind of card you’ve got in it. If it’s a digital card, you can use something like an RME MADI card to interface with a pc. Then it would use the converters only in the Symphony and not the interface part. Since you’re already running a Symphony and are satisfied with it, I believe I’d stick with a Mac. My 2 cents.
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Post by rowmat on Feb 18, 2018 17:57:45 GMT -6
I'm contemplating running Reaper on Linux at some point in the future. I'm going to load Linux onto my MacBook Pro and experiment with it for a while. Since Apple informed me it is not offering anymore updates for my iPad it started suddenly running like it is stuck in molasses. This was around time it became public Apple was slowing down iPhones in an effort to force owners to upgrade.
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Post by ragan on Feb 18, 2018 18:15:22 GMT -6
I'm still on a Mac for studio stuff, but for school I grabbed a little Lenovo Yoga 720 laptop. Dude, this thing rules! My wife has this one's bigger brother and I really dig that too.
I'll stick with Mac for studio stuff probably (like you, JK, I'm on a Symph MKII and I also use Slate Batch Commander heavily) but just wanted to chime in and say I think Windows 10 is a really nice OS. And if Apogee supported Windows, I'd think about a PC for my next studio rig (knock on wood). So, so much cheaper.
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Post by kcatthedog on Feb 18, 2018 18:31:44 GMT -6
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Post by Johnkenn on Feb 18, 2018 19:19:47 GMT -6
I could probably take a $2500 hit on Mac and that would be enough for a good rig I’d guess. Think I was just traumatized from seeing the iMac Pro prices. Guess I could sell my car.
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Post by putinesqua on Feb 18, 2018 19:22:22 GMT -6
there was a mention in tapeop a while back about an outfit that builds hackintoshes, w/ thunderbolt...can't remember what it was called or find it readily
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Post by rowmat on Feb 18, 2018 19:35:42 GMT -6
there was a mention in tapeop a while back about an outfit that builds hackintoshes, w/ thunderbolt...can't remember what it was called or find it readily I think the Hackintosh route has enough issues to be offputting to many. I looked at this a few years ago and was put off by potential hiccups everytime you needed to upgrade something.
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Post by johneppstein on Feb 18, 2018 20:15:26 GMT -6
Our studio computer is running on Windows 7. No problems. The only problem with Win 7 for audio is that some pigheaded companies still refuse to write drivers for it. Guess they don't need my money.
So is my general use desktop which is also fine unless I do something stupid online.
I have a laptop with Win 10 and hate it. HATE it. it's really difficult for me to get much done on it, too many basic functions are hidden behind its prettified, phonelike UI that I have not been able to figure out how to defeat, if in fact any way exists. They even make it obtuse to do simple things like moving a file to a different directory, whereas in previous versions you'd just open both folders and drag and drop. There's probably a way, but it's not straightforward. In fact the damn thing is so obtuse that I don't use it - I used it when I was travelling last year and that was more than enough. Couldn't even get the screen set to a (simple) color scheme that doesn't annoy me.
Maybe somebody used to working a Mac might do better with it, I dunno. I've been on Windows since 95 (before that I was on Amiga) and I like a computer that acts like a computer, not like a phone. (I hate my phone, too.)
But Win 7 is just fine and is supported - probably because a lot of users refuse to upgrade to 10.
I haven't used it but I hear Win 8 is buggy as hell.
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Post by mulmany on Feb 18, 2018 20:21:57 GMT -6
I am curious about the new Intel NUC that is supposed to launch in April. They were designed for VR and are spec'ed like crazy. They have 8th gen 4 core i7, dedicated AMD graphics, 2 thunderbolt 3 ports, 2 HDMI 4k, 2 mini display ports, and a bunch of USB 3.1/C ports. It's also only a little bigger then the old skull canyon nuc.
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Post by BenjaminAshlin on Feb 18, 2018 20:49:23 GMT -6
I have just purchased an old i7 mac mini to tie me over for a year or two. I figure that thunderbolt will be more common place on the windows side in a few years. One thing that keeps me on mac is Logic but I believe I could move back to Cubase.
Apple has been fairly uninspiring since there lineup change in 2012. Being all Apple devices at home for many years now I can see the competition catching up in most departments and don't feel it is worth the extra cost to me anymore.
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Post by nnajar on Feb 18, 2018 21:17:39 GMT -6
A 2012 Mac Pro is super powerful and very inexpensive now. I got a 12core last summer for 1k.
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Post by mdmitch2 on Feb 18, 2018 22:36:03 GMT -6
I'm running a dual boot, win7/hackintosh. It's been very stable since I got it working (which was a lot of effort). But I'm still paranoid about it, and thinking about a new Mac.... given the price of the iMac Pro ($5k), and the likely price of the new Mac Pros coming this year ($7k), I'm considering using a high end Macbook Pro for the main studio computer.... they're supposedly going to have the new 6 core processors before long, which should be more than enough to handle any audio requirements, and should be <$3k.
Anyone using a Macbook Pro for their main studio computer? For me, the other big advantage is the ability to use the same computer for location work...
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Post by mulmany on Feb 18, 2018 23:27:09 GMT -6
A 2012 Mac Pro is super powerful and very inexpensive now. I got a 12core last summer for 1k. No t-bolt is a deal breaker. If I went pcie card it would be a no brainier.
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Post by guitfiddler on Feb 18, 2018 23:43:15 GMT -6
I picked up a used 2012 Mac Book Pro i7 w/thunderbolt/FW $650. Then I put in two ssd’s and maxed out the ram, so after that it wasn’t such a great deal! Lol.
Oh, and windows machines...I used to build windows machines but once windows 8 came out they lost me. Also, I agonized with several security updates on a daily basis interfering with workflow and fixing bugs that caused issues with my software on occasions. Mac just works for me.
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Post by Ward on Feb 19, 2018 6:59:58 GMT -6
They're slow. They crash a lot You can't find anything Things don't work the way you expect IT guys love them because you can hack and chop them up into tiny bits ...and you need IT guys to put them back together They smell funny They cheat on their taxes They are against the 2nd amendment They're against the 1st amendment too They disrespect their fathers and they curse on God.
There!
P.S. They don't really love their mothers, and they just play nice to them so they can gain trust and rifle through their purses.
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Post by swurveman on Feb 19, 2018 8:01:03 GMT -6
I loathe to even think about this, but at some point in the next 2 years, I’m probably going to have to invest in a new computer...and the thought of how much I’ll have to spend on a Mac makes me sick to my stomach. I’ve been on Mac for around 13 years now, so unfortunately, I’m absolutely clueless about Windows. Of course, considering I just invested in a Symphony MkII, I might have to go the Mac route, right? I asked Apogee if I could use my RME AES interfaces on my Windows PC with a Symphony and this was their response: "Yes, next month we will release a software update for Symphony I/O MkII which will offer " standalone routing" meaning you can direct the Analog inputs directly to the RME AES digital outputs and vise versa." This was awhile ago. I'm not sure how it's working. You would think they could pull it off. I think you'd have to use RME's Totalmix instead of Maestro for your digital mixer. Since you use Cubase, I would think you could use ASIO Direct Monitoring when in standalone routing mode. Totalmix requires routing to hardware reverbs or compressors to , for example, send some no latency reverb and/or compression to a singer for cue mix purposes. I have no idea about Maestro's latency. If you used ASIO Direct Monitoring and set up a reverb cue send to a plugin inside Cubase there would be latency if the buffer setting was higher. As far a PC vs Mac thing goes, I grew up with PC's in business. So, I never even considered a Mac and - having bought a powerful PC- have never had audio issues with my RME interfaces. I'm running 32 channels of ad/da with no problems. Of course, my RME interfaces are expensive too.
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Post by guitfiddler on Feb 19, 2018 11:17:06 GMT -6
They're slow. They crash a lot You can't find anything Things don't work the way you expect IT guys love them because you can hack and chop them up into tiny bits ...and you need IT guys to put them back together They smell funny They cheat on their taxes They are against the 2nd amendment They're against the 1st amendment too They disrespect their fathers and they curse on God. There! P.S. They don't really love their mothers, and they just play nice to them so they can gain trust and rifle through their purses. You forgot one huge thing...They like to kill babies.
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Post by johneppstein on Feb 19, 2018 11:17:29 GMT -6
One thing about a Windows machine is that once you've got it running, it's going to be running for a long time. There are no constant incremental OS upgrades changing things around at random whenever some bright boy at the company gets a brilliant idea, no deciding to eliminate standard ports, none of that phony "innovation for innovation's sake" (That just happens to force you to buy proprietary hardware from Apple), none of that. With Windows you just wait until Microsoft releases the inevitable Service Pack to swat the bugs from the new version , THEN buy the OS and you're generally good to go. No random changes that require new drivers for everything every 6 months or so.
There are things to be said for buying your OS from a company that isn't in the proprietary hardware business.
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Post by Bob Olhsson on Feb 19, 2018 12:31:08 GMT -6
Microsoft has moved to monthly security updates and semi-annual feature updates. I'm running Windows 10 Home and have only had a single Microsoft update problem which was fixed by re-installing a plug-in. The only "tweaks" I do is to disable the power/battery saving features. I suspect people get into a lot of the trouble I never see by tweaking windows. Macs don't have as much access under the hood which leads to fewer problems. I've always run a "dumb" system because I assume that's what developers expect most of their customers to be using. I've always run a backup system disk and continued that practice when I moved from Mac to windows in 2002. In addition to a safe backup to previous versions, it allows me to directly compare OS versions using the very same hardware. I found Windows 8 both more reliable and faster than Windows 7 so I switched in spite of absolutely hating the interface. Windows 10 gives me the performance advantages of Windows 8 along with a much better interface. Coming from Macs, I've never had any interest in making it look like Windows NT which I suspect is why a lot of Windows fans seem to prefer Windows 7. I highly recommend the Pro Tools PC folks. Their hardware is all tested to be compatible with Mac OS if you want to go that route and is rock-solid running Pro Tools on Windows. www.pro-tools-pc.com
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Post by BenjaminAshlin on Feb 19, 2018 12:54:51 GMT -6
Does anyone here run a windows laptop with thunderbolt?
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Post by swurveman on Feb 19, 2018 15:18:54 GMT -6
I loathe to even think about this, but at some point in the next 2 years, I’m probably going to have to invest in a new computer...and the thought of how much I’ll have to spend on a Mac makes me sick to my stomach. I’ve been on Mac for around 13 years now, so unfortunately, I’m absolutely clueless about Windows. Of course, considering I just invested in a Symphony MkII, I might have to go the Mac route, right? I asked Apogee if I could use my RME AES interfaces on my Windows PC with a Symphony and this was their response: "Yes, next month we will release a software update for Symphony I/O MkII which will offer " standalone routing" meaning you can direct the Analog inputs directly to the RME AES digital outputs and vise versa." This was awhile ago. I'm not sure how it's working. You would think they could pull it off. If you did that, I think you'd have to use RME's (or whatever interface you choose) digital mixer Totalmix instead of Maestro for your digital mixer. Since you use Cubase, I would think you could use ASIO Direct Monitoring when in standalone routing mode. Totalmix requires routing to hardware reverbs or compressors to , for example, send some no latency reverb and/or compression to a singer for cue mix purposes. I have no idea about Maestro's latency. If you used ASIO Direct Monitoring and set up a reverb cue send to a plugin inside Cubase there would be latency if the buffer setting was higher. As far a PC vs Mac thing goes, I grew up with PC's in business. So, I never even considered a Mac and - having bought a powerful PC- have never had audio issues with my RME interfaces. I'm running 32 channels of ad/da with no problems. Of course, my RME interfaces are expensive too.
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Post by wiz on Feb 19, 2018 15:36:58 GMT -6
I asked Apogee if I could use my RME AES interfaces on my Windows PC with a Symphony and this was their response: "Yes, next month we will release a software update for Symphony I/O MkII which will offer " standalone routing" meaning you can direct the Analog inputs directly to the RME AES digital outputs and vise versa." This was awhile ago. I'm not sure how it's working. You would think they could pull it off. If you did that, I think you'd have to use RME's (or whatever interface you choose) digital mixer Totalmix instead of Maestro for your digital mixer. Since you use Cubase, I would think you could use ASIO Direct Monitoring when in standalone routing mode. Totalmix requires routing to hardware reverbs or compressors to , for example, send some no latency reverb and/or compression to a singer for cue mix purposes. I have no idea about Maestro's latency. If you used ASIO Direct Monitoring and set up a reverb cue send to a plugin inside Cubase there would be latency if the buffer setting was higher. As far a PC vs Mac thing goes, I grew up with PC's in business. So, I never even considered a Mac and - having bought a powerful PC- have never had audio issues with my RME interfaces. I'm running 32 channels of ad/da with no problems. Of course, my RME interfaces are expensive too. I remember total mix having verb, and maybe EQ and comp? but definitely verb Cheers Wiz
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Post by swurveman on Feb 19, 2018 16:21:42 GMT -6
I remember total mix having verb, and maybe EQ and comp? but definitely verb Cheers Wiz It depends on which RME interface you have. There are no digital FX on my AES -32 interface (no DSP built into the card). So, Totalmix only allows me to use hardware to get the job done for headphone reverb or compression outputs if I need to. There are other RME interfaces that have DSP built in.
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Post by guitfiddler on Feb 19, 2018 17:40:40 GMT -6
I remember total mix having verb, and maybe EQ and comp? but definitely verb Cheers Wiz It’s all about the verb man! Pass the bricasti bro!
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