Excited and bummed at the same time.

[L-Dogg]

I have been asked to score a full length motion picture so I want to upgrade my studio.....finally, after procrastinating for over several years. So yesterday I pulled the trigger on a UA Apollo Quad. Long story short but when I got to the store...they only had an open box. They agreed to let me go try it and order a new one for me....great....off I go.

Right off the bat it crashed several times, froze PT and also said my FW800 buss had speed issues......HUH?

So I started fishing and found out my MacPro is not qualified/compatible. It is a 1.1model 2.66Ghz Quad. No good for Apollo. Bummed!


I gotta tell ya........coming from a 002R and 11R...... I heard stuff in that Apollo when it did work that was.......WOW!!!! Clarity, depth, space, definition. Even just with a drum loop. For a moment I thought an additional convolution reverb plug in was on this one drum loop I grabbed....only to realize it was musical stuff/audio info/reverb/depth......in that loop I never heard before. Amazing!!

But Apollo won't work with this computer.....so now what?

My other option....for several years.....has been that I have always wanted an Apogee Ensemble. But concerning me is that it is an old machine now having been out for a while with no significant upgrades etc.......and many say the Duet converters and clock is better....pre's too I think. I need 4 XLR mic pre's though. People told me to wait for NAMM and maybe an Ensemble2. No such luck. In the meantime RME had the Fireface UFX and then Apollo came out.

So what to do? I have never heard an Ensemble in my studio. Do you think it would have the same WOW factor as this Apollo? Should I just stay with my old MacPro and grab the Ensemble.......or do you think it worth the extra bones to try find a nice used 8-Core MacPro so I can use the Apollo? ( I have found a nice loaded with software MacPro 8-core for $1250. I can swing it but it will be tough for a while after that. It is a 3.1 model 2.8Ghz Dual Quad core.)

Thing is........I don't think my old MacPro is even qualified for Mountain Lion at this point. So maybe I am really looking at having to upgrade my computer soon anyway. For that matter......my MBP C2D is not compatible with Apollo either.....a model 3.1.

[L-Dogg]

Oh sorry......another option is to buy a PCI FW 800 card and add functionality. This is the root of the problem with the 1.1 model identifier MacPro. It will only run Apollo at FW400 speeds.

Thing is......I am nervous about that. Seems to me the FW800 buss should run at FW800 speed. I wonder why it doesn't. Also, I don't have much faith in aftermarket parts for Macs.

[nst7]

The Ensemble has officially been discontinued by Apogee. They don't seem to have any plan for a new one right now, because in the press release announcing the discontinuation, they suggest people look at either the new Quartet or the Symphony IO. So I don't think that now would be the time to look at an Ensemble.

You're probably better off keeping the Apollo and getting a new computer.

Is there any reason you need a Mac Pro? Such as for PCIe cards? Because any of the new Imacs, Mac Mini's, or Macbook Pros will be much more powerful than your old Mac Pro. And in many cases, they're much less expensive.

[WernerF]

Pretty much any new piece of gear you may want in the near future is gonna require a newer computer. Unfortunately, computers are not long term purchases and you're pretty much stuck in time until you replace it. I would go for it.

[L-Dogg]

Originally Posted by nst7

Is there any reason you need a Mac Pro?

I have 3 additional internal drives loaded with VIs and samples plus being audio session drives. Am I right that iMac cannot do that? I'd have to get enclosures?

[nst7]

Yes, you would need enclosures. USB 3 ones should work. Or firewire with a Thunderbolt adapter.

I don't know if you can wait for the new Mac Pro's.

Can you still use your 002 for this project, or are you really wanting to have the better sound quality?

[Craig F]

there are external chassis for Thunderbolt that can hold multiple drives

OK, this is just spitballing but if the new "Mac Pros" are going to be aimed at pros a release around NAB would make sense

[L-Dogg]

nst7 ...for a long time I have just been "over" the 002R in terms of sound quality and it is not as quiet/transparent as I would like. But yes.....I might have to just go with the 002R because this is now shifting the focus away from working, to trying to make a new setup work. Not good.

So someone said something that made sense.....several folks actually....at other forums. The Mac Pro is a stellar machine. Why aren't any other very good interfaces having problems with the Mac FW800?

This has something to do with the Apollo drivers but they are "effectively" saying Apple's FW800 is subpar and to fix it you need to get a PCI FW800 card.......to make UA's problem go away!

I'm pressing the Pause button for a minute.

As far as the newest Mac's.......no way I will be able to buy one...way too expensive.

You know......I have been Googling Apollo since it came out. Mostly reviews and comparisons. I saw NOTHING about the Firewire issue (or the Mac Pro 1,1 being not qualified)........ until I experienced the failure and Googled the error message. Then all kinds of stuff popped up...... a lot of people are having the same issue and from what I see....there has been no definitive response from UA.

I'm getting cold feet.

The iMac thing is attractive because the price point is so much lower......but I worry about processing power. I know they are "fast" but how are they for torque and sheer horsepower?

How many of you guys are using iMac's with your recording drives in external enclosures etc?

How does the speed rate when you go from taking your audio drives and samples etc off the internal fast buss and putting them in an external drive? What is that......Firewire housings?

Sorry if my questions are lame.......I am falling asleep-typing with one eye open-brain shut down. Ive been working at Paramount Studio's and I get up at 4:30am to get there at 6am......then 10hr days of hard work. I am beat!!!!

I'm appreciating the help and comments though. Thank you all. Please keep 'em coming if you have thoughts. Any Apollo/PT users?

[nst7]

If you get the new top line Imac (the $1999 one that you special order to upgrade the processor, making it $2199), it's actually more powerful than even some of the current Mac Pros. They're great machines.

Regarding going from internal to external drives, for audio it won't really make much difference. And for samples, now that there's USB 3 and Thunderbolt, it shouldn't make much difference there either, since both of those have so much more bandwidth.


Here's another idea to consider. If it may be a while before you can get a new computer, you may want to return the Apollo.

In the meantime, consider getting an Mbox 3 Pro. It's half the price, and comes with Protools 10 (I see you're still on 9). The sound quality is probably as good or better than the Apollo (either way, it's a huge upgrade from the 002). And it though it has less inputs/outputs, it should be just enough for you, in that it has 4 xlr's, and a digital Spidf for your Eleven Rack.

And, since it's been out a few years (since Protools 8), there shouldn't be any issues with your older Mac Pro. Plus, they have a special offer right now where you get a few great plugins when you register the hardware and software.

This might be a solution for a while, and then you can reevaluate. If you want to go even cheaper, and still upgrade your sound quality, consider the Focusrite Sapphire Pro 40.

[profdraper]

Ditto. The iMac i7 is a great box. So too is the Apollo which I've been using for some time now on a mac pro 3.1 with a number of DAWs including the current Tools. Also on a current Air i7. Thats the way tech goes, expect it: every 3-4 years major HW upgrades. On the other hand, ease of entry & price point is way beyond say 20 years ago. You wont be disappointed with an iMac, but hey –[bleep]upgrade the Apollo to a TB card! and so it goes ...