PTHDX 11 user: Haven't kept up on things hardware/software and have questions.

[songwritersoul]

Hi guys, I'm retiring in 3 years and figuring out my plan of attack for doing one "last" PT upgrade and super-dream machine PC build before my retirement date. I'm waiting on the PC build for the prices of high capacity m.2 drives to come down and to see what tech comes out in the next couple years, but I'm trying to learn and figure out some things on the Pro Tools side of the equation and hoping you can help.

-If I have an HDX 1 set up with an Avid 16x16 io, which I'm generally happy with, what am I really gaining with these new thunderbolt interfaces, Avid and other brands? Granted my computer can handle it, does thunderbolt allow for ultra low latency recording etc. or what are the real benefits in terms of PT?

-I'm confused with all of the different PT upgrades/packages. With my current set up, if I just wanted to upgrade to the latest version of PT HDX, what would I need to get? Something is getting lost in translation and I'm not sure which upgrade is the "right" one.

-Lastly, I know this is a bit of a debatable subject, but if I have an insanely fast computer (32 core cpu, multiple m.2 drives, 128 gig ddr4 memory), other than being able to track with HDX plugins, which I rarely do, would I really be losing anything to just go HD native?

I know a lot can change in 3 years, but just trying to roughly calculate my financial plans as I'll have less income once retired.

Any insight you can throw my way would be appreciated.

thanks,
Steve

[DetroitT]

Welcome back.
Pro Tools HD Is now Pro Tools Ultimate

HDX is a PCIe computer card.
The HDX thunderbolt is a chassis for the PCIe computer card.

HD Native gets confused as its a no longer produced PCIe card.
Sometimes it’s the term for running ultimate without Pcie cards

[c-tone]

As DetroitT posted, HDX is hardware, and if you have HDX1 and an Avid HD I/O now, you are still on the latest, greatest hardware as far as Pro Tools is concerned (for most music purposes). HD Native (hardware) or even just native (no HDX hardware) would, in my opinion, be a downgrade for you.

You have a few options for upgrading, but it is difficult to make good suggestions without knowing exactly your needs, and of course what the options will be 3 years from now.

The basics:

1) Upgrade software to the latest Pro Tools Ultimate. The options are essentially whether you go for a subscription or a perpetual license. In 3 years, everything could change, but you could realistically estimate that just the software alone could cost a couple Grand.

2) If you need more voices, you could add another HDX card. These cards have been out a long time, so who knows what will be out in 3 years. Your current interface is great sounding and with HDX has the lowest latency possible now.

3) Plug-ins - depending on how many you use, many third party plug ins will probably need upgrading so that you can use with the new PT software. Upgrade pricing varies wildly, but budget for an average of $50 per plug in / bundle.

4) Computer - whatever your budget allows. Again, impossible to know what options there will be in 3 years. Depending on which computer you choose, you may also need extra peripherals, such as external PCI chassis, external drive chassis, extra drives, etc.

-

[JFreak]

The "upgrade" you need is a "reinstatement" of your lapsed (?) support and update plan. Avid does not sell this any longer so find a reseller that still does. And keep renewing your plan yearly.

[songwritersoul]

Thanks for the feedback guys.
So, for me to just upgrade the software from 11x to the latest will cost me around $2k? If that's the case, I may seriously consider dropping the whole thing and jump platforms. PT is all I've ever used and it'd probably be painful learning something different, but there sure seem to be a lot of other options out there with a lot lower software maintenance costs. I've been looking at the UAD platform and wondering how that'd perform using something like Cubase or whatever, but I know little about it. I mainly just write songs and record in my home studio using session musicians for drums and vocals sometimes so my needs are fairly minimal, but I want a system that will not even hiccup when I'm running a bunch of VST's or lots of tracks at mixdown. I think I have some learning to do. I've just been confused looking at the PT upgrades because they seem to range from a couple hundred dollars to thousands.

On a more fundamental basis, are the thunderbolt connections/interfaces "better" because the help lower latency while tracking or what? Probably a stupid question, but I've been out of the tech side of things for a while.

[c-tone]

The $2k was a budget estimate for 3 years from now, but no one knows what that will be at that time. You can find less expensive options now.

Thunderbolt 3 interfaces will potentially offer less latency than many other "native" options, but your HDX card and current interface will have less latency.

[Southsidemusic]

A reinstatement for the HD11 is $999 and sometimes dealers have a $200 off savings and the reinstatement licenee gives you a year of support and updates big or small and the year after it drops to $399 as you would only need a renewal for the software. Same deal i.e support and updates for a year.

Hope that clears it up a bit.