New Mac Pro Experiences

[Powerage]

That's a good point to bring up, thanks powerage. I know for HDMI it barely matters if you're using a $5 cable or a $50 one. Good to know it can vary with DP

Yeah, I ended up RMAing a monitor and buying multiple cables trying to solve this issue.

Here is a list of DP approved cables and accessories:
http://www.displayport.org/products...ry[]=cables-connectors&products_manufacturer=

I think I ended up going with an Accell cable like this one, but anyone interested in purchasing one should verify that this is an approved cable. I can't remember exactly which cable I got.
http://www.amazon.com/Accell-UltraAV-B142C-010B-DisplayPort-Latches/dp/B0098HVXVQ

[H] Post in my NEC thread around where we start discussing cables:
http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?p=1042028796#post1042028796

 

[endlesszeal]

this thread made my night. need a laugh after studying medicinal chemistry.

 

[Dayaks]

this thread made my night. need a laugh after studying medicinal chemistry.

It justified stereotypes of Mac users that's for sure.

Why in gods name would they go AMD instead of nVidia for a workstation is beyond me.

 

[UnknownSouljer]

It justified stereotypes of Mac users that's for sure.

I'm a Mac user. Understanding has zero to do with product purchasing, although people often link the two to stroke their own egos.

Why in gods name would they go AMD instead of nVidia for a workstation is beyond me.

I think it's pretty simple. Apple's goal is trying to push open formats. Staying with either AMD or nVidia isn't necessarily a permanent thing, as Apple has a long term relationship with both. So that said using AMD pushes software manufacturers to use OpenCL and Metal rather than brand specific CUDA. Personally I think it's a wise decision in that regard. They're looking at things with a long view.

Also it's not as if AMD isn't heavily invested in the workstation portion of the market. You make it seem unthinkable that anyone would purchase a FirePro card when plenty of people use them.

 

[Dayaks]

Yes, because when I think of defenders of the free and open world I think of Apple's ecosystem. Their move is solely to serve themselves.

nVidia was by far a better choice (on average) for performance. Hell, if they really cared they would have used AMD processors too. The performance deltas of the processors are about the same comparing the quadro to the W9000 (d700), except the d700 was underclocked to help the trash can not overheat. Making the performance delta even worse.

Never mind nVidia is a part of OpenCL via the Kronos group.

 

[TeeJayHoward]

Yes, because when I think of defenders of the free and open world I think of Apple's ecosystem.

Yeah, I agree with ya. It probably came down to AMD offering cards that met their performance objectives at a lower price point than nVidia.

 

[CEpeep]

nVidia was by far a better choice (on average) for performance. Hell, if they really cared they would have used AMD processors too.

Apple tried to go with AMD for CPUs over Intel (especially for the Macbook Air, they wanted an APU) but AMD couldn't meet their yield requirements and wasn't willing to build out more fab capacity for them the way Intel was. There's a number of articles online about this, it's not like Apple didn't try. Intel went all-in for Apple and the partnership has been mutually beneficial (it's a large reason why Intel's GPUs are no longer complete garbage) but AMD wasn't willing to play ball and have themselves to blame for that.

 

[UnknownSouljer]

Yes, because when I think of defenders of the free and open world I think of Apple's ecosystem. Their move is solely to serve themselves.

If you're going to be sarcastic, find something to be sarcastic about. Read what I wrote. Any move regarding the changes of course is to serve themselves. Any capitalistic company is in it for themselves, but this has nothing really to do with that. It's a smarmy remark that doesn't help the discussion.

So, what did I say? I stated that they have a long view and an interest (that is to reiterate and even be redundant, self interest) in ensuring open formats are used because at any given time they could use the other companies product.

Apple doesn't control CUDA. Therefore Apple would probably rather be in a place in which they weren't dependent on CUDA and therefore not dependent on one manufacturer to supply them with product. Being open benefits them. Therefore that is their interest in being open.

Does that make it more clear for you why they would specifically using an open product and at the same time be self serving?

nVidia was by far a better choice (on average) for performance. Hell, if they really cared they would have used AMD processors too. The performance deltas of the processors are about the same comparing the quadro to the W9000 (d700), except the d700 was underclocked to help the trash can not overheat. Making the performance delta even worse.

The other factor is cost.

Never mind nVidia is a part of OpenCL via the Kronos group.

Right, but they're not pushing that format. They support OpenCL because they have to, not because they want to. In the event that things aren't using CUDA they still want to be a viable option. Much like your "Apple is self-serving comment" if nVidia had its way, it would force everyone to use CUDA and ignore open formats entirely. Being a part of the group is done only out of necessity and self interest. Not because they want anyone to use it.

 

[pixelblue]

Pretty sure Apple would rather see OpenCL succeed so that nVidia and AMD continue to compete for better performance on a platform neutral standard. It also allows Apple to get the best component pricing. They regularly switch between nVidia and AMD options, as seen in the iMacs and Macbooks in recent years.

 

[elleana]

Back to the original topic - if I were in the market for something like this now (but didn't need one right this instant), I should wait a couple of months to see if there's a new model on the horizon right? December 2013 and January 2016 is a very long time in between upgrades.

 

[TeeJayHoward]

Back to the original topic - if I were in the market for something like this now (but didn't need one right this instant), I should wait a couple of months to see if there's a new model on the horizon right? December 2013 and January 2016 is a very long time in between upgrades.

While I've heard nothing about an update to the model since November's "AAPLJ951" rumor, I personally would wait. At this point, it is a three year old system selling for as much as a brand new one. There's been one CPU upgrade cycle already (E5v3, which Apple skipped) and Broadwell-EP (E5v4) is due out any time now.

 

[pixelblue]

Every 3 years seems to be typical for the Mac Pro I think. At this point they might wait for Skylake.

 

[ledcriss]

LOL Funny AF

 

[twyrick]

I've owned one of the new Mac Pros since early 2014. I use it as my primary home computer. Overkill or a waste of money? I guess it's a matter of perspective. In my case though, I'm a long time Mac user who had good experiences with both a 2006 and a 2008 Mac Pro tower (and a G5 PowerMac tower before those). I got lots of life out of all of them *and* a decent amount of money back at resale time in each case, too. So when I finally decided it was time to retire the 2008 model -- I went with the new trashcan, trusting Apple's new vision of what a "Pro" desktop machine should be.

I also invested in a "DAT Optic eBox" external 5 drive RAID cabinet to connect to the nMP via Thunderbolt, for additional storage capacity. (My nMP was purchased as the stock "mid range" model with only a 256GB SSD in it. But I upgraded that to a 512GB one after a short time, by buying a "pull" from another machine off eBay.)

So far, it's done everything I expected or needed from a desktop machine, so I'm pleased. I run a setup with 3 displays (one widescreen LG panel that requires a Mini-DP to DVI-D adapter cable) and 2 27" LG IPS panels that run at regular 1080p resolution. I used to do some video editing on my Mac Pro towers, so the fact the nMP was supposed to be optimized for good performance in Final Cut Pro X was another consideration for me. I have to confess that I haven't had time to do much of that in the last couple years though. I did recently upgrade my Canon digital camera though to a 70D, so hope to shoot some video with it when I get the opportunity. That may re-ignite my video editing desires.

I can't speak for the special use-cases where someone feels nVidia is the superior chipset for rendering or other 3D graphics work ... but it does come up occasionally as a factor for some of the creative people working in the company I work for. We stuffed a custom flashed nVidia card in a 2010 Mac Pro tower for one of those guys, to placate him with one specific app he was using constantly. I know he's said, multiple times, that the custom config. we made for him with that card in the 2010 Mac Pro is far better than he'd have with the nMP.

I do some occasional Mac gaming (games like CoD MW3), and the D500 chips in my nMP have been easily up to the task of running those games in the resolutions I wanted, at very playable speeds. Again, sure -- if I was frame-rate obsessed, I'm sure the numbers it puts out would upset me vs. what's achievable with the right Windows box and video card. But I'm just looking for a good gaming experience without caring about all the benchmark details here. And this nMP delivers on that. I also leave a small server running on it here, and it's nice that the system runs so quietly and unobtrusively.

All in all though? If someone was in a similar situation as I'm in, today, and asked what the best Mac is they could buy? I would probably lean towards the high-spec configuration of the 27" iMac with the 5K display in it. You have to consider I've gotten almost 2 years of use out of this machine already. It'd be tougher to justify paying the $'s for it today, unless Apple releases a refresh to it.

 

[elleana]

Back to the original topic - if I were in the market for something like this now (but didn't need one right this instant), I should wait a couple of months to see if there's a new model on the horizon right? December 2013 and January 2016 is a very long time in between upgrades.

If anyone cares - I wound up getting a refurb 2012 Mac Pro tower with a six core W3680 processor and 32GB RAM. Upgraded the video card and added an SSD and I now have 80% of the performance of the nMP at half the cost (somewhat generalising but you get the idea..).

 

[aubsxc]

The question is not if its technically possible - yes it is.

Again: I need to buy an adapter Thunderbold > DP 1.2 to connect an average 4k display
on a MacPro and nor Apple nor any other delivers one!

I would be happy if you have a source.

I believe he is trying to tell you that a Thunderbolt port will work as a Displayport port. So plug your Displayport cable into the Thunderbolt port and you are good to go.