KVR Audio

DHR53 · Post by **DHR53** » Thu Jul 22, 2004 5:52 pm

Just got my G5... Looks cool, sounds...really quiet! Heavy as a MOFO! I managed to transfer everything with the Firewire settings transfer thing, which is really slick! Good job Apple on that... I have tried most of my stuff, which worked, after reauthorizing... So performance comparisons, Hmmm... not as dramatic as I had hoped for. Switching from a 1.25ghz G4 (single) to a dual G5, I was looking for some pretty dramatic results... which so far appears to be 25% maybe... I've tried it with Tracktion and Live 4.0b11, and it's better, but not say 50% or so! I opened a song I did in Live 4.0 beta, that has Absynth 2.0, FM7, Tassman 4.0, 2 Alpha 2s and 2 tracks of drum loops (audio)... Delay on 1 send. Was running at up to 85%... Now maybe 50-65%... The big question of course? Optimized for Logic? Which of course I don' have currently... Hmmm... Guess I'll have to defer to the experts on that question... On another note, is anyone using the spdif input on the G5?? Is it useful for getting audio in, or hooking up a mic pre, that has a digital out ??

DHR53 · Post by **DHR53** » Fri Jul 23, 2004 1:28 pm

So, I guess there is nobody here with a G5, eh? Well FYI... in the energy saver panel on page 3 there is a processor setting for low, auto and highest... Set it on highest and that will do the trick... big difference! Now running that song at under 50%... Amazing how dumb threads go 20 pages around here and real questions go unanswered?

fitch · Post by **fitch** » Fri Jul 23, 2004 1:36 pm

i never saw your thread starter yesterday... i would have answered sooner if i had.

no G5 here.. just waiting for more positivity postings.. i've read too much puttes thread on osxaudio.com

keep us informed. i'm interested on how you get on,, what audio interface are you going to be using etc ?

hope all your software runs without a hitch too..

spaceman · Post by **spaceman** » Fri Jul 23, 2004 1:44 pm

don't forget to set the toaster's timer to 5, any higher will burn your toast

VicDiesel · Post by **VicDiesel** » Fri Jul 23, 2004 2:27 pm

DHR53 wrote:Just got my G5... Looks cool, sounds...really quiet!

The cooling is totally brilliant. While the machine is running, open the side panel and take out that transparent piece of plastic. Immeidately your fans start roaring. The air circulation is a really nifty piece of design.

Heavy as a MOFO!

Hee. I did a Logic demo a couple of days ago, and had to lug my G5 all through a building (no cart provided, natch). My poor back.

I managed to transfer everything with the Firewire settings transfer thing, which is really slick!

Very. Work just gave me a new laptop. Hook up the old one in Target Drive mode, get everything over. Done.

So performance comparisons, Hmmm... not as dramatic as I had hoped for. .... Was running at up to 85%... Now maybe 50-65%...

You can not trust these meters in Logic. There is an Apple utility which tells much more precisely what each of the CPUs is doing, and that paints a far more optimistic picture. At one point I though running a bunch a Tassmans was taking 75% of CPU (according to Logic), but according to Apple's monitor it was 60 on the one CPU, and 25 on the other.

V.

DHR53 · Post by **DHR53** » Fri Jul 23, 2004 3:41 pm

I knew you were out there somewhere, Vic! Ha Ha! ...I haven't decided what to do on the audio interface yet... That's why I was wondering about the spdif in... Seems like if it's capable, I ought to use it considering how expensive this thing was

I need something that has an spdif out (presonus digital) that I can plug right into the Mac... My old audiophile card is going to my pc I guess... Changing the power setting though was huge! Even Albino 2.0 (which has been an endless source of frustration on OSX) seems to be cut in half on the cpu usage... Tasssman 4.0 running at between 9-15% now... it was spiking in the 50% range before! Absynth 2.0 barely moves the meter! Yikes! No doubt this thing kicks ass... too expensive though... Selling my old G4 now... Reports to come...

Scot Solida · Post by **Scot Solida** » Fri Jul 23, 2004 4:08 pm

I've been using my dual 2 Gig G5 for a couple of months now, and I am thrilled to death with it. I haven't bothered with the spdif out on it, though. I am using a MOTU 828 MkII, and that has worked quite well. I do know of a few people who have reported intermittent noise from the spdif output, but this doesn't seem to affect all Macs. Something to do with older power supplies.

I am running all sorts of things, including Logic, Nuendo 2 and Live. In Nuendo, I notice that the performance is better than my AMD XP1900+ PC, but not by huge amounts. Less improvement than expected, but still enough to know I am unlikely to hit the wall anytime. OSX seems to be fairly heavy just sitting idle. Now, with Logic, the performance is freakin' amazing. I can load in dozens upon dozens of plugs till I get bored without it creaking. Too bad about the lack of PDC, though.

All in all, I am quite pleased with the G5. I hardly use the PC since getting it, except for things like Wavelab and RGC plugs that I can't get on the Mac.
Nice and quiet in here with the PC off ad the Mac on, though...

But DANG! Was it ever expensive!

DHR53 · Post by **DHR53** » Fri Jul 23, 2004 4:34 pm

Yea, I may have to go back to Logic, but I wasn't excited about upgrading Xpress, so I sold it... Now I'm thinking again about that Pro... Just ordered NI komplete though so, I was hoping Live 4.0 and Reason would do it... but, Pro is probably the way to go with a G5... I wish Apple would do a crossgrade...

Tronam · Post by **Tronam** » Fri Jul 23, 2004 4:57 pm

fitch wrote: i never saw your thread starter yesterday... i would have answered sooner if i had.

no G5 here.. just waiting for more positivity postings.. i've read too much puttes thread on osxaudio.com

Yeah, I have been following that thread as well. But, remember that he is still using a Dual G4 and hasn't gotten his G5 yet. So, we have no idea if the problems that he has been experiencing will still occur when he gets the new system. I hope it provides him with some much needed relief. I can say that my G5 (Rev2 Dual 2ghz) has been solid as a rock since it's arrival 2 weeks ago.

My OSX plug-in collection is not nearly as extensive as Putte's, but I am using Albino 2, CronoX, Chameleon, PlastiCZ, FM7, Eqium/Firium, Reason 2.5 and the UAD-1 without issue in Logic 6 Pro and the performance/stability has been outstanding. Neither Logic or the OS itself have locked up or crashed even a single time. I'm not using the fxpansion VST-AU adapter though, as these are all native AU plugs. I don't want to suggest that the adapter is inherently unstable, but I can't help wondering if it could at least be a factor at some level.

-Tronam

VicDiesel · Post by **VicDiesel** » Fri Jul 23, 2004 5:00 pm

Tronam wrote:My OSX plug-in collection is not nearly as extensive as Putte's, but I am using Albino 2, CronoX, Chameleon, PlastiCZ, FM7, Eqium/Firium, Reason 2.5 and the UAD-1 without issue in Logic 6 Pro and the performance/stability has been outstanding. Neither Logic or the OS itself have locked up or crashed even a single time.

I have some stability issues, but I'm pretty sure that Garritan Personal Orchestra is to blame for most of them; also I think that removing Pluggo may have improved the situation. A new version of GPO seems to be close to release, thank $DEITY.

But in general the G5 is very solid, and so is Logic. I've never yet lost work, and I've had it for half a year now.

V.

Joxer the Mighty · Post by **Joxer the Mighty** » Fri Jul 23, 2004 5:09 pm

In Nuendo, I notice that the performance is better than my AMD XP1900+ PC, but not by huge amounts

Was that a dual XP1900+?

Scot Solida · Post by **Scot Solida** » Fri Jul 23, 2004 5:29 pm

Joxer the Mighty wrote:
In Nuendo, I notice that the performance is better than my AMD XP1900+ PC, but not by huge amounts
Was that a dual XP1900+?

No, and that is the bothersome thing. I wonder if Steinberg aren't putting too much into optimizing their software for the Mac. Other culprits are Reason, which doesn't take advantage of the second processor whatsoever.

It's kind of a drag, as I like Nuendo a lot, and I wish it would offer the same kind of performance that Logic offers. As a Powercore user, Logic's lack of PDC is annoying (never mind that god-awful "click and hold for a second" madness. Still, as I said, I am not going to hit the DSP wall with either sequencer. But neither am I going to defend the "price-to-performance" discrepencies between Mac and PC. The Mac is really expensive, and a similarly powered PC could be had for much less. I am pleased with the ease of use of OSX and the stability is fantastic, so I think it is worth it for my use (which involves 12 hour days of constant use). It is nice to kind of forget about the computer itself and get on with my work...I couldn't do that with my particular PC...but I know people with more stable PCs than mine...LOL.

kuniklo · Post by **kuniklo** » Fri Jul 23, 2004 5:35 pm

Just out of curiousity - what to people use for mixing/mastering plugins on Macs?

On the PC you've got Voxengo & Kjaerhus, as well as Waves, PSP etc.

Are the plugs bundled with Logic good enough or do people just use Waves on the Mac?

Joxer the Mighty · Post by **Joxer the Mighty** » Fri Jul 23, 2004 5:39 pm

Scot, I can see how that would be disappointing, especially since an XP1900 isn't exactly a fast processor at this point. Still, there's much to be said for stability, not to mention how quiet the G5's are.

VicDiesel · Post by **VicDiesel** » Fri Jul 23, 2004 5:42 pm

kuniklo wrote:Just out of curiousity - what to people use for mixing/mastering plugins on Macs?

Before I got Logic Pro I was using Apple's own 4-band AUMultiBand compressor and the AUMatrixReverb. Maybe not pro quality, but decent, and free.

V.

New Dual 2.0 G5... Observations!