iMac, Fusion Drive, Flash Storage

[musicman691]

Originally Posted by davemartone

I had that exact machine. I got it with 32 gigs or ram and a 1TB SSD. It worked perfectly with PT and Logic. However I could not stand the fan noise. I returned it and got the trash can with the $1000 off


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I wonder why the fans in the thin iMacs are as noisy as people are saying? I have the model previous to these (the one with the internal optical SuperDrive) and it's quiet enough I can work with an open mic three feet from it with no problem.

[cmbourget]

Originally Posted by musicman691

I seriously hope no one takes your comments as gospel for there are some seriously mistaken impressions. Two Thunderbolt disks do NOT have to take up both ports as you can daisy chain Thunderbolt peripherals; I know the original spec was a max of six in a chain and don't know if that changed with Thunderbolt 2.

And be careful of what Thunderbolt generation you're talking about when comparing it to USB3.

Properly outfitted an iMac is NOT a mediocre purchase - certainly a lot cheaper than an iTrashcan.

I replied one last time.

You only take the items you like. Try to understand the whole instead of fixing yourself on a point. The cost of this iMac and the constraints of Apple and its connectivity makes it mediocre (for the price). The problem of the fan is confirmed by Dave (see above) and by many users on the Internet. He resold his IMac with loss. I use it for the Internet ...

I see that you are with PT 11. This version caused less problem (especially with the fan), indeed. But I'm in favor of version 12 (up to 12.4 - Dave, higher also version 12). Logic Pro also required fewer resources, but we are on a PT forum.

JFreak argues that the screen is included in the purchase, which is important. That's what attracted me personally. But this is not an argument for mixing work on PT. This superb screen increases the heat unnecessarily and contributes to this beautiful fan sound in the middle of the pan! If we mix heavy metal, it may not be tiring, but with calmer music, close to silence sometimes, it's different: especially when the clarinets have fans ... but all tastes are possible!

On Thundebolt or USB, I'm talking about the versions currently available on the Apple site, not the future. The future also exists for other systems ...

I think I said what I have to say, to help. No opinion is gospel and the reader can make his idea with the diversity of testimonies.

[JFreak]

MBP and iMac become noisy when you load your session with plugins. Dead silent shen you track without. But that (fan noise) is why many prefer iTrashcan and external display.

As very often said, your mileage may vary...

[cmbourget]

Originally Posted by JFreak

MBP and iMac become noisy when you load your session with plugins. Dead silent shen you track without. But that (fan noise) is why many prefer iTrashcan and external display.

As very often said, your mileage may vary...

All my plug-ins are on UAD with DSP.

[JFreak]

I also used to have all my plugins on TDM, but those rigs are now cemented on PT8 and PT10 and I only use them on live gigs. This one at home is a HDN and my MBP surely gets noisy with a full mix

[musicman691]

Originally Posted by JFreak

MBP and iMac become noisy when you load your session with plugins. Dead silent shen you track without. But that (fan noise) is why many prefer iTrashcan and external display.

As very often said, your mileage may vary...

Even running a boatload of vi's and other plugins the fans in my 'fat' iMac are quiet (yes they are working). I've run out of cpu power before the fans would ramp up.

[Sting]

Originally Posted by cmbourget

If we go back to the basic question: buying an iMac (i7) can go to work in Pro Tools, but you have to choose the full SSD option, available on the Apple site, and absolutely avoid the Fusion Drive.

It is also necessary to endure the fan because the management of the IMac protects a processor prisoner in a very small cage, with a video card of laptop, which is ridiculous, especially for a screen 5k and 27 inches.

A Thunderbolt disk must also be provided for the session files. And another for virtual instruments if needed, which takes all Thunderbolt connections available. A USB 3 works, but less fast. Even the Thunderbolt does not have the speed of an internal disk, no matter the marketing.

So it is a mediocre purchase and very expensive. I know, because that's what I have (but with the Fusion Drive ... big mistake!). And I returned to my old Mac Pro 2010, with its beautiful PCIe slots (for my UAD systems) and its 4 internal disks, all transferred in SSD, and adding 4 USB 3 ports. The processor sometimes stops, but one Good management corrects this, especially with the new functions of Commit Tracks and Freeze.

Hi everyone. Going to upgrade my iMac from a 2009 model to this spec of iMac. 27-inch iMac Retina 5k. 4.2GHz Quad - Core Intel Core i7 Processor, Turbo Boost -4.5 GHz. 8GB memory. 2TB Fusion Drive. Radeon Pro 580 with 8GB Video memory. Running OS Sierra. I will also be upgrading to PT 12.

After reading this thread it seems the fusion drive is not the best way to go especially when I will specifically be using this iMac to record with PTs. I do not want to suffer clicks or pops or indeed those dreaded annoying error messages stating running out of processing power or memory as per the computer I'm using at the moment (low spec). Apple do offer as an alternative the option of 512 SSD + £180, 1TB SSD +£540 and 2TB SSD at a whopping +£1,260.00 which is out of my price range.

So the question is would I be much better going from spending £2,249,00 on this mac with a fusion drive to one which is going to have the 1TB SSD. More money or I can downgrade the computer to the mid spec one on the Apple site to help compensate for the price of the 1TB SSD?

Would this also be a suitable external drive to use with PT 12 as I will be using this to record and store my songs on?
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/...A3FREYMWGGD9ME

Thanking you kindly in advance of any advice?

[Darryl Ramm]

Originally Posted by Sting

Hi everyone. Going to upgrade my iMac from a 2009 model to this spec of iMac. 27-inch iMac Retina 5k. 4.2GHz Quad - Core Intel Core i7 Processor, Turbo Boost -4.5 GHz. 8GB memory. 2TB Fusion Drive. Radeon Pro 580 with 8GB Video memory. Running OS Sierra. I will also be upgrading to PT 12.

After reading this thread it seems the fusion drive is not the best way to go especially when I will specifically be using this iMac to record with PTs. I do not want to suffer clicks or pops or indeed those dreaded annoying error messages stating running out of processing power or memory as per the computer I'm using at the moment (low spec). Apple do offer as an alternative the option of 512 SSD + £180, 1TB SSD +£540 and 2TB SSD at a whopping +£1,260.00 which is out of my price range.

So the question is would I be much better going from spending £2,249,00 on this mac with a fusion drive to one which is going to have the 1TB SSD. More money or I can downgrade the computer to the mid spec one on the Apple site to help compensate for the price of the 1TB SSD?

Would this also be a suitable external drive to use with PT 12 as I will be using this to record and store my songs on?
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/...A3FREYMWGGD9ME

Thanking you kindly in advance of any advice?

Why are you asking this question on the end of a thread that clearly answers it already. Did you read any of this thread?


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[ramonetl]

I personally would not get an IMAC. I dont want to be tied to their display when there are so many touch screen or other options available. I got a NIB Mac Pro on ebay that was a 6 core 32gb with a 256gb flash drive. I easily found a 1tb for a lot less than apple was selling that was oem drive and swapped it out and upgraded also to a 64gb ram system. I dont get CPU or memory errors like I used to on my macbook. I would go that route and then pick your own display. There are a lot of directions you could go. A lot of people like raven, but you also have DTouch and Acer has a 27" 10 point touch system for 499 at BH. I have even seen a lot of folks doing really cool things with overlays and tvs. Why limit yourself to Imac? You can get better displays and more of them for the same money. I say Mac Pro and get your own externals and upgrades. Performance is flawless and no glossy display to drive you crazy.