Steve (or anyone else),
Could you be a little more specific about "you can do quite a bit with HFS on PTNT"? Does that statement imply that an NT user cannot achieve 32 track performance using HFS? Do the optimizations that you and Mike are referring to not exist when an NT user is using HFS? If so, how substantial (exactly) is the performance hit?
I hope I'm not bugging anybody too terribly much by harping on this so much, but it seems like a really major inconvenience to have to save converted copies of sessions (if I'm not using HFS on an NT system) in order to quickly hand my session to a Macintosh/Pro Tools user.
I'm sure someone at Digidesign has taken into consideration the following facts:
- 100% of the the installed base of Pro Tools users work on Macs
- It is not uncommon to need to open a Pro Tools session on a system other than the one it was originally created on
In light of those facts, I ask myself these questions:
Q: Do I have to convert a Pro Tools session, or a save a copy, or import files, or anything else to open a Pro Tools session on a different Macintosh than the one I originally created the session on?
A: Nope. I just double click the session file.
Q: In light of the million things that can go wrong on a session, do I want to worry about the substantial time and effort involved in converting a session from an "NT format" to a "Mac format" so I can get to work?
A: No way. I don't need the hassle.
Q: Can Digidesign really assure me that this conversion will be 110% problem free?
A: Nope.
Q: Does the producer I'm working for really give a damn about technical problems and/or delays? Does the artist want to hear my explanation as to why they have to wait on me to convert the session for who knows how long and deal with whatever problems might arise during that process in order to begin working on their session that was created with their new Pro Tools/NT system?
A: Very very unlikely.
Q: Do artists, producers, and engineers ask their peers in the industry (whom they know and trust) for advice on purchasing a Pro Tools system before they make their decision?
A: They sure do. I don't know anybody who laid out all the dough for a Pro Tools system without spending a lot of time talking to someone who was already an expert.
Q: If one of those artists, producers, or engineers was asking me for my opinion on purchasing either a Mac or NT Pro Tools system, would I recommend the NT system for any reason?
A: I can't think of a single reason why I would make such a recommendation, even if that reason was that the NT system cost substantially less. (I'd love to be given a reason though - educate me!). I can think of several reasons why I wouldn't make such a recommendation, one of which is this issue of a very inconvenient method of achieving compatibility between the two platforms.
If, just for fun, I make the enormous hypothetical leap of assuming that the unproven PT/NT system will work as well as the proven Mac/PT system, and that the PT/NT system is completely on par with the Mac/PT system - and only then start considering any significant issues (like compatibility issues between the two platforms) - I have to conclude that recommending a PT/NT system is a good way to lose some friends!
Am I wrong to think that implementing completely transparent cross-platform compatibility is really this important?
Opinions welcome!