Mac Users: Design recommendations for a new studio computer

[Paulie]

I've started writing film trailers and think I've hit my hardware limitations. Current setup:

MacBook Air
OS X 10.9.5
8GB RAM
1.7GHz Core i7
256GB SSD internal for O/S and Logic
External OWC 7200rpm 1TB drive storing all Kontakt files. Drive is 2/3 full, I don't expect to add any new libraries soon.
Drive is connected through an Elgato thunderbolt interface connected to my Macbook.

In my trailers I'm usually ok until I hit "Act 3: EPICness". Strings and Brass and Drums oh my! I start getting what sounds like crackling sounds, then some skips or stuck notes.The external disk light starts blinking some, so I'm assuming that I'm caching too much.

If there's a way to avoid an upgrade, I'm all for it. But I'm also interested in getting much more memory and a faster Mac to improve library load times and remove any chances of problems during bouncing. Trying to keep it under $2500 if possible. Large monitor not needed, I have a couple already. A refurbished recent model is also an option, I don't want anything more than two years old, new is an option as well.

Fire at will, Mac peeps.

[Paulie]

sheeze... just looked at the new Mac Pro. Awesome, but seriously expensive.

Re-thinking the monitor comment, a new 27" iMac 3.2GHz quad core i5, 16GB 1600MHz RAM and 512GB SSD internal comes in at $2499.

But, Mac Pro 3.7GHz quad core, 16GB 1833MHz RAM, 512GB PCIe flash SSD internal (and better graphics hw) comes in at $3,399.

iMac comes with two Thunderbolt ports, Mac Pro comes with six Thunderbolt 2 ports.

I would think that disk and RAM are the most important factor for smooth bounces. Avoid caching, load as much as you can into RAM and hit the high speed SSD only when needed.

For those with horsepower, is the jump from four to 6 cores plus 12MB of L3 cache worth the $500 difference? This computer will be dedicated specifically to music composition, so video performance doesn't matter.

Thanks folks.

[RockChild56]

I would be interested in the answer to that ? also.
Oh and my math has it at a $900.00 difference.

[johncolumbo]

Hello Paulie,

Wow, it sounds like you actually have a really sweet setup already...

You have that 7200rpm hard drive hooked up with an Elgato interface? Are you talking about this thing https://www.elgato.com/en/thunderbolt/t ... olt-2-dock ... if so I'd try eliminating that Elgato interface from the picture for the hard drive and just hook the hard drive directly to the macbook to see if it is causing latency.

Are you using Logic X or 9?

[Len911]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6820676053

What about the above external 1tb ssd thunderbolt drive for $794.99

Also what are your Kontakt settings, for the disk streaming?

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/6072006
Load meters (cpu/hd)

The meters should give you a clue where you stand.

Gosh, I'm thinking $2500 minus $800 equals $1700 I could spend on gear or software,lol!

[gatorjj]

Paulie, have you looked at what the latency is set at for your audio interface? If it's really low it eats up a lot of CPU cycles and can cause the crackles, especially when you have a lot of plugins in action.

You want it low when you're recording, but for mixing it doesn't matter so you can set it high and free up a lot of CPU for the EPICness to happen

[Kolstad]

You could consider setting up a slave through ethernet using Vienna Ensemble Pro, like this:

http://thinkspaceeducation.com/quick-guide-to-vsl-ep/

[Paulie]

Logic Pro X, just upgraded to 10.2 yesterday.

Yes, I'm using the Elgato Thunderbolt 2 dock as in the picture. The Macbook Air only has a single Thunderbolt port, the Dock has two Thunderbolt ports. I use one for the 1TB 7200RPM drive and the other for my Zoom TAC-2R Thunderbolt audio interface.

I was not aware of latency settings in Logic or on the intervace so I will dive into that right away. That very well could be the issue.

[johncolumbo]

Hey Paulie,

Your setup makes sense (not that I doubted that)... thanks for explaining.

Something else to check out is this article about the power on/off button in LPX which is meant to save on CPU for tracks that are not being used or are muted http://www.logicprohelp.com/forum/viewt ... =1&t=97524 ...

When I was using LPX several months ago this eliminated the overload crash that would happen for me at the worst times.

Hope that helps,

[Paulie]

So, is there a command that automatically powers down unused tracks to save CPU, or is it always a manual process?