Communigate Pro AE-List@media-motion.tv Message 65792

Other World Computing (MacSales.com) announced that they will be selling RAM for the New Mac Pro too. Their RAM is also very good

-----Original Message-----
From: Dennis Wilkins <AE-List@media-motion.tv>
To: After Effects Mail List <AE-List@media-motion.tv>
Sent: Tue, Dec 10, 2019 5:29 pm
Subject: Re: [AE] We can order a new MacPro tomorrow.

I’d personally get the 16-core one with the better GPU and then get as much RAM as you can afford aftermarket (192GB or better). AE uses a ton of RAM and when it runs out performance can be 3X slower or worse (not the possibly 10-25% like we’re talking about with the Mac vs PC debate). I’m not sure how AE uses CPU cores but it seems like it uses several at 20-50% of their potential, rather than 1-2 maxed out. I’ve seen old iMacs render AE projects faster than much faster machines because they had substantially more RAM per thread. The more CPU cores you have, the more RAM you need for AE imo. I’d consider getting a bigger SSD from Apple too - they aren’t that much more in the big picture.

I haven’t moved to Catalina yet and if you haven’t just be aware that you need to check what apps/scripts/etc you regularly use and make sure they’re supported or you have an option to choose from. QuickTime 7 is officially dead as are all 32bit apps going forward. I’m guessing you won’t be able to install older versions of AE and Premiere (I’m not sure how far you’ll be able to go back in that regard).

If you get a business account at Apple you can save some money (it’s easy), or use an Apple card (5% off at Apple). I’ve also bought several Macs from Expercom which discounts Apple products (you may have to call them to set up an “account” to see the lower prices on their webpage. If you can wait a bit they often offer custom build options with 3rd party RAM that will save you money (I’ve never had a problem with their RAM and it’s warranted for a lifetime). They aren’t listing that as an option yet for these machines though.

I’ll be interested to hear how it works for you; I’m sure those apps will be well supported by that machine, although the GPU may be underutilized until they release updates specifically geared for it.

Dennis Wilkins | c o d e - c o l l e c t i ve

On Dec 10, 2019, at 1:41 PM, Jim Curtis <AE-List@media-motion.tv> wrote:

In spite of the arguments against it, and I appreciate all the input, pro and con, I still think I’m going to order one. I can be the canary in the coal mine.

So my question for the experts is: Since Ae and Pr comprise 99% of my paying work, what do you think would be better?

16-core
32G RAM (base)
Radeon Pro Vega II with 32GB of HBM2 memory (+$2400 over the base GPU)
1 TB SSD
$10,799 from Apple.

or

24-core
32G RAM (base)
Radeon Pro 580X with 8GB of GDDR5 memory (base)
1 TB SSD
$12,399 from Apple

IOW, fewer cores and better GPU vs. more cores and lesser GPU.

I understand this may be unanswerable now, but I wonder whether buying the base GPU can be replaced (or augmented) with a better 3rd party card later. Apple’s prices to upgrade the GPUs are stratospheric.

I’ll add more RAM later from a 3rd party. Their upgrade to the SSD isn’t as obscene as some of their other upgrade options.

Again, part of the reason to buy one of these is for tax purposes. I’m currently working on a 2012 cheese grater that has a hard time with Pr 2020.

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