Suggestions on a powerful MacPro setup for composing with VI's

[park]

I've been using Pro Tools for composing film scores for ten years. I have Pro Tools|HD 2 Accel. I've been using GigaStudio on PC as my main sampler, but I'm planning to move on and get EWQL Hollywood Strings and other system heavy VI's on a MacPro with Pro Tools. The goal is to get the most powerful Pro Tools system possible on one computer for composing using VI's.

Does anyone have any good advice on how to configure the new MacPro's?
Which MacPro model, number of cores, amount of RAM, etc.

One (perhaps) stupid question:
I've read that Pro Tools can't access more 3 GB RAM. Does this mean that RTAS VI's can't access more than that? There has always been RAM issues with GigaStudio. I'd like to get rid of those...

Thanks!

Pete

[nst7]

Someone else may chime in here about which Mac Pro to get, but my suggestion if your doing a lot of composing is to consider using Logic, at least for the composing side. For the simple fact that it now runs in 64 bit, and thus can access a lot more ram. You can always print to audio and then mix and finish in Protools.

[iwalkthruwalls]

Originally Posted by nst7

Someone else may chime in here about which Mac Pro to get, but my suggestion if your doing a lot of composing is to consider using Logic, at least for the composing side. For the simple fact that it now runs in 64 bit, and thus can access a lot more ram. You can always print to audio and then mix and finish in Protools.

Can you run ProTools HD on the new, say... 12 core Mac Pros? Even if the chips are 64-bit? If so, you are saying they would ignore that accessible power.

Sorry, I'm a bit naive with the 64bit knowledge.

Thanks!

[Firechild]

Logic 9 in 64 bit mode is a joke, don´t consider that. There are very few 64 bit plugins at the moment and if they are, read below, no need for a 64 bit host anyway. If you run 32 bit plugins you can only have one plugin window open at a time and there will still be that 32 bit RAM limit for those plugins...

If you use Kontakt 4 Pro Tools 32 bit is perfectly fine because Kontakt 3.5 / 4 is using the RAM outside the host and more VI developers are working on similar solutions so the need of a 64 bit DAW is not very important within a year because all RAM hungry plugins as Sample Players and Drum VI´s will use this excellent "memory server" technology which basically opens up another app in the background which are handling the RAM for the plugin.
Omnisphere/Trillian is also using memory server. PLAY kind of but not very nice implemented.

[nst7]

When I suggested Logic, I wasn't suggesting it for plugins. I'm aware that most of those are 32 bit. I was thinking more of virtual instruments, because he was talking about composing, and more of those might be able to take advantage. When someone's composing, the plugins are not as important.

Also, I don't know that using Logic 64 bit is a joke, as someone recently posted that they don't even bother with VE pro now because Logic in this mode is working well for them.

[Dism]

Macs have been 64 bit since they went Intel. All the C2Ds are 64 bit. Hell, my 6 year old AMD is 64 bit.

64 bit processors have been around for a long time. It's only been recently that software and OS's have started actually using it. I can see it becoming actually effective within the next year or so, especially with the core counts multiplying.

That being said... there's no reason why anyone really needs the new 12-core at this point. An 8-core will more than do the job of what most people need. Personally, I'm aiming for an older octo-core towards the end of the year, since the prices are going to start dropping as these 12-cores start shipping.

If you have the budget for a $5-6000 computer, perhaps you could go for it, but I would wait until the Avid guys get to test it out, and make sure everything works well. Unless you don't mind beta testing...

[tonwurm]

Originally Posted by park

I've been using Pro Tools for composing film scores for ten years. I have Pro Tools|HD 2 Accel...

you´ve been using pt for 10 years, so you better stay with it and don´t have to learn another program like logic or something else

I´m using (as many others of this community) Vienna Ensemble Pro as a VI-host and NI Kontakt 3.5 in standalone mode, a very stable and effective setup

[Jon_Atkinson]

Originally Posted by tonwurm

I´m using (as many others of this community) Vienna Ensemble Pro as a VI-host and NI Kontakt 3.5 in standalone mode, a very stable and effective setup

+1

[C.Bayley]

Vienna Ensemble Pro on a separate computer +1
run all your VI's that are AU like spectrasonics.NI etc within VEPro, and any Air plugins within PT8

grief free

[spicemix]

Logic 64bit including offline freeze is the only option that makes sense to me. Pro tools is many years behind for that workflow.