New Mac Pros Hexacores Announced

[TAFKAT]

.. Hard to get any further detail as both Apple.com and Apple.com.au are still dead for me, have been since 10PM last night...

Can't wait for all for all of the reinventing the wheel spin over this, considering everyone else has had these solutions for 9 months or so... LOL

[kdm]

.. Hard to get any further detail as both Apple.com and Apple.com.au are still dead for me, have been since 10PM last night...

Can't wait for all for all of the reinventing the wheel spin over this, considering everyone else has had these solutions for 9 months or so... LOL

Here's the breakdown (in US dollars):

Single quad Xeon: $2499
Dual quad Xeon: $3499

Upgrades include the hexcore systems, SSDs, etc. Think $6000-10,000 for a tricked out system that would probably run $3000-$4000 in the PC world. lol

Vin - am I right/wrong in thinking that we would do better with i7 PCs in terms of price/performance?

[LEX]

Accelerated architecture.


Choose your cores: 4, 6, 8, or 12.
The new Mac Pro offers two advanced processor options from Intel. The Quad-Core Intel Xeon “Nehalem” processor is available in a single-processor, quad-core configuration at speeds up to 3.2GHz. For even greater speed and power, choose the “Westmere” series, Intel’s next-generation processor based on its latest 32-nm process technology. ”Westmere” is available in both quad-core and 6-core versions, and the Mac Pro comes with either one or two processors. Which means that you can have a 6-core Mac Pro at 3.33GHz, an 8-core system at 2.4GHz, or, to max out your performance, a 12-core system at up to 2.93GHz.


The single-die advantage.
Many multicore processors are composed of two separate dies, which means some cached data has to travel outside the processor to get from core to core. That’s an inefficient way to access information. Enter the Quad-Core and 6-Core Intel Xeon processors. Their single-die, 64-bit architecture makes 8MB or 12MB of fully shared L3 cache readily available to each of the processor cores. The result is fast access to cache data and greater application performance. Combine that with the other technological advances and you get a Mac Pro that’s up to 1.5x faster than the previous generation.1


Fast memory. And lots of it.
System memory is often connected to a processor through a separate I/O controller. But Intel Xeon “Nehalem” and “Westmere” processors feature an integrated memory controller. By connecting memory directly to the processor, the new Mac Pro processors have faster access to data stored in memory, and memory latency is reduced.

The integrated memory controller, along with fast DDR3 ECC SDRAM at either 1066GHz or 1333GHz, gives Mac Pro an increase in memory bandwidth over previous generations. More bandwidth allows for more data to be fed to the processor faster, helping each core spend its time processing data, not waiting for information to arrive. And Error Correction Code (ECC) corrects single-bit errors and detects multiple-bit errors automatically. That’s especially important in mission-critical and compute-intensive environments.

Power when (and where) you need it.
The Mac Pro features Turbo Boost, a dynamic performance technology that automatically boosts the processor clock speed based on workload. If you’re using an application that doesn’t need every core, Turbo Boost increases the speed of the active ones, up to 3.33GHz on a 12-core Mac Pro, and up to 3.6GHz on a 6-core system.

Up to 24 virtual cores.

The Intel Xeon processors support Hyper-Threading, which allows two threads to run simultaneously on each core. So, for example, a 12-core Mac Pro presents 24 virtual cores that are recognized by Mac OS X. Performance is enhanced because Hyper-Threading enables the processor to take better advantage of the execution resources available in each core.

Path of least resistance.
A bidirectional, point-to-point connection — called QuickPath Interconnect — gives the Intel Xeon processors quick access to the disk, I/O, and other Mac Pro subsystems. In dual-processor Mac Pro models, there’s a QuickPath Interconnect between the two processors as well. This connection acts as a direct pipeline, so processor-to-processor data doesn’t need to travel to the I/O hub first. It’s another way the Mac Pro boosts performance across the board.


Powerfully efficient.
The Mac Pro meets the stringent low power requirements set by the EPA, giving it ENERGY STAR qualification. ENERGY STAR 5.0 sets significantly higher efficiency limits for power supplies and aggressive limits for the computer’s typical annual power consumption.2

[LEX]

Faster than a speeding anything.


Even faster standard graphics.
All-new high-performance graphics cards from AMD make Mac Pro graphics technology faster than ever before. Perfect for motion graphics, 3D modeling, rendering, or animation, the ATI Radeon HD 5770 with 1GB of GDDR5 memory comes standard. It not only provides faster performance compared to previous Mac Pro standard graphics cards — it’s also faster than the top-of-the-line graphics cards in the previous generation.

Give your graphics a turbo boost.
For even more graphics horsepower, upgrade to the ATI Radeon HD 5870 with 1GB of GDDR5 memory. An ideal choice for the most demanding applications, this card features a wider memory bus and higher-performance GPU, resulting in faster performance compared with the ATI Radeon HD 5770.


Don’t keep those pixels waiting.
The foundation of the Mac Pro graphics architecture is the latest generation of GPUs connected to the system via a fast and wide PCI Express 2.0 16-lane bus. Couple that with Core Animation, Core Image, and Core Video technologies in Mac OS X Snow Leopard. The result is a graphics platform that allows applications to seamlessly tap into a teraflop of graphics power.

Graphics on display.
Every new Mac Pro graphics card features three display ports for maximum workspace flexibility. Two Mini DisplayPort outputs connect to a pair of Apple LED Cinema Displays with ease. And a dual-link DVI port connects a 30-inch Apple Cinema HD Display or other DVI display. And with support for two ATI Radeon HD 5770 cards in the Mac Pro, you can connect more displays — up to six total.


Graphics Card Specifications


ATI Radeon HD 5770 ATI Radeon HD 5870
Memory interface 128-bit 256-bit
Frame buffer memory 1GB GDDR5 1GB GDDR5
Memory bandwidth 76.8GB/s 153.6GB/s
Processing units 800 stream processing units 1600 stream processing units
Processing power (single precision) 1.35 teraflops 2.72 teraflops
Ports 2 Mini DisplayPort and 1 dual-link DVI 2 Mini DisplayPort and 1 dual-link DVI
Slots occupied 2 2
Auxiliary power cables used 1 2

[LEX]

12 -core price starts at $4999.

LEX

[TAFKAT]

Vin - am I right/wrong in thinking that we would do better with i7 PCs in terms of price/performance?

Thats always been the case.

Need to wait for the official launch and pricing for the single/dual Hexacore Xeon MacPro's to see exactly where the dust settles.

The equivalent X58/5600 DAW systems are far better spec'ed, for a start they have the full Tri Channel memory layout , not some half arsed 4 slot per socket layout that Apple offer , not to mention higher quality motherboard/PSU , etc, etc. The MACpro engineering is a thing of beauty tho, but having a closer look you have a cut down OEM Micro ATX board shoehorned into a much smaller crawl space - in 3rd party OEM channels, those boards would be a laughing stock compared to the ones we use, there are limited vid card options, etc, etc.

They sure do look pretty tho... :-)

[LEX]

Prices are out:
http://store.apple.com/us/configure/Z0M4?mco=MTg2OTQ5OTk

LEX

[TAFKAT]

.. saw that a few days back, laughed my head off at the local prices, thanked St Steve for allowing me to supply better spec'ed systems for thousands less... :-)

[Daryl]

I have noticed some strange things being written across various forums in regard to these machines. Many people are blathering on about 1333 memory. AFAIK when 3 slots were filled the Mac Pro memory should always have run at 1333, but it was Apple that locked it to 1066. Furthermore, unless these motherboards are totally different from the previous gen, when 6 slots are filled it will run at 1066 anyway, and when all 8 slots are filled the memory will run in dual channel mode. Is this correct? If so, is this stated anywhere in the Mac Pro specs?

Having said all this, as Logic can only use 8 out of the 24 cores of the "big" Mac Pros, are most Mac users actually going to be any better off? Certainly not financially. :palm:

D

[leggy]

So what it the best memory config in say the new single 6 core mac pro to get 1333? It is odd how Apple arrange the memory in their machines.

Rob

[paulwr]

Having said all this, as Logic can only use 8 out of the 24 cores of the "big" Mac Pros, are most Mac users actually going to be any better off? Certainly not financially. :palm:

D

Crazy prices. VisionDAW in LA is about $2500 less, comparing 4 hard drives, 24GM rams and the 2.93 speed cpu. And they aren't known for being cheap, and they load and test all of your music software and tweak it as good is it can be tweaked for audio.

As far as cores go in the mac, there might be some things able to run stand alone alongside the DAW program to then access more cores. I don't know how much on macs, though. VE Pro would certainly help a composer, but $2500 more for a machine..... I guess if you really love Logic, its where you have to go.

-Paul

[Daryl]

So what it the best memory config in say the new single 6 core mac pro to get 1333? It is odd how Apple arrange the memory in their machines.

Rob
If the motherboards as the same as the current crop of Mac Pros, then you should use 3 out f the 8 memory slots.

D

[TerryG]

If the motherboards as the same as the current crop of Mac Pros, then you should use 3 out f the 8 memory slots.

D

Humans only use 10% of their brains, what's the problem?

This is just an example of machines emulating man... think of it as digital alzheimers.
You know what grandma used to say... "An apple a day... how's that go again?"
:palm::rotfl:

[TAFKAT]

If the motherboards as the same as the current crop of Mac Pros, then you should use 3 out f the 8 memory slots.

D

Thats 8 memory slots across 2 sockets, as in 4 per socket- which in the reality distortion field surrounding Cupertino, some how divides correctly into a Triple Channel memory array.

Those motherboards are a joke compared to 3rd party professional boards , which have at least 6 memory slots per socket.

[Daryl]

Thats 8 memory slots across 2 sockets, as in 4 per socket- which in the reality distortion field surrounding Cupertino, some how divides correctly into a Triple Channel memory array.

Of course it is. Doh. So is 1333 going to be possible, or has something else changed?

D

[TAFKAT]

Re 1333 memory speed , there should be absolutely no reason not to unless Apple are being overly conservative.