Is a SSD drive for a new Mac Pro "worth it"?

I will be purchasing a new Mac Pro quad-core in the next month or so. My computer usage, other than email and some word processing, consists primarily of editing RAW photo files using Nikon Capture NX2, Photoshop Elements, and iPhoto. I do almost nothing with video. Would a SSD boot drive offer me any significant advantage over a 1 TB hard drive? Would it appreciably speed up photo editing of the RAW files, or simply boot faster? If you do recommend one, what size would I need for a boot drive to contain the OS and all program software? I will be upgrading from my current G5, so I suspect anything will initially seem very fast. Thanks!

It depends on just how dependent on disk I/O your software is. Hard drives are still, by far, the slowest link in the performance chain for a computer. If your software is primarily CPU bound and goes to the hard drive very little, you won't notice the benefits of an SSD that much. I use Apple's Aperture, and Aperture is VERY sensitive to disk speed for the volume where your library file is. There are several key databases in the library package that are extremely sensitive to disk performance and particularly file fragmentation.
I have an OWC Mercury Extreme SSD that I use for my operating system and applications, and then I have a RAID 0 of three Western Digital Hard drives for my Aperture library. RAID 0 is striping with no parity. Since there is no parity and no protection from hardware failure, I back up with TimeMachine, manual copies and I also use Mozy.com for automatic offline backups.
The machine boots nearly instantly, and application launching is extremely fast. Most programs show a definite improvement and overall I am very pleased with the configuration.
However, Aperture's library databases are extremely prone to fragmentation. There is a noticeable and significant increase in performance every time I defrag my aperture volume with iDefrag, and if I have a really long editing session I can notice performance degrading over time.
Right now my workflow with Aperture is pretty sporadic, so defragmenting routinely isn't that big of an issue. However, I anticipate getting into Aperture more as I start photographing more projects. I think if that happens, I will probably get a second SSD and also finally convert my Aperture library from managed to referenced. Apple has added features in Aperture 3 so that referenced libraries aren't that big of a PITA, so I should be able to keep the Aperture databases on the SSD and reference my masters on my RAID drive. Best of all worlds.
Also do not buy the SSD from Apple. Right now the only viable SSD's are ones that do internal garbage collection like the OWC Mercury Extreme. See my other post here for the ups and downs of SSDs:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=11248829&#11248829

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Fcpx poorly optimised for the new mac pro?

'm experiencing low playback performance on fcpx 10.1.2 on my new mac pro:
I'm on a 8-core, 64GB, d700 (project and files are all on the main drive. Im on the latest maverick update.
Im working on prores 1080p and adding some effects to a clip and my playback really drops, so far I have been testing a few plugins such as hawaki "auto-split" or coremelts "track & slice X". I instantly need to render the effects to see the results, the funny thing is the same plugins runs smoothly on my macbook retina.. It made me wonder maybe the 3rd party plugin isn't optimised for the new mac pro but then I tried hawaki auto-split on Premiere cc 2014 and I was getting way better results than fcpx..
This may seem like a trival thing but paying this much money for a product and having a bigger project with different plugins this gets really annoying..
Anyone else experiencing any issues?

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Starting up problems from an old boot drive in a new mac pro

Just purchased a refurb mac pro last weekend through the apple store. I took my old drive my my first mac pro and was trying to usee it for the boot drive, That machine did not come with snow leopard. I did upgrade it to 10.6.6. When I start up from that drive in the new mac pro it was either starting up real slowly or starting up and would not give me a cursor or. On some occasion I would get a translucent blue huge on the screen. Or I could get a clear screen but nothing would happen if I clicked to open anything. I called support and we reinstalled the on the old drive. I seemed stable and was booting properly from the old drive. Then I upgraded to 10.6.6 again. We used the software the new machine came with for this process. I maybe used the new boot drive for maybe 50 seconds. Apple support wishes for me to go through the process of isolating elements. I've been running the new drive since yesterday. Everything is working well. Except after letting it run for a period of time yesterday got s grey screen after it went to sleep. We'll see what happens with that today. I do not know if it's coincidence or not but the old system went hicky after I started up Paralllels desktop.I'm using Parallelsto run Playon. I'm wondering if Parallels or the xp emulation machine I'm running with it is still trying to read the old macpro ? It did work however. I'm just curious that it's altering something in the Mac osx ? Another thing should I subtract other wirleeless choice devices on the old drive's system ? The old macpro had wireless but the module was installed aftermarket by a mac store.
Thanks

Hard to follow your steps and thoughts. Maybe re-read and cut it into actual steps.
Always clone a system so you have a bootable backup image.
Make sure your software and drivers are compatible.
2010s boot into 64-bit kernel mode by default.
Apple still sells 2009s also on Specials page.
Your old Mac Pro wouldn't come with 10.6 unless it came out in Sept 2009 or later.
Is Parallels current? Is it attached to Windows partition or VM only? does it care that it is running on new hardware? that usually is a non-starter.
New Mac is also a good time to do thorough spring house cleaning. Clean install all the applications and drivers.
Pull your old drive out. The only use for it would be to run Setup Assistant to import your home account prefs.
The "new" refurbished hard drive is still in same state it was in when you got it?
Sleep issue. you may have external devices or 3rd party drivers or bad cable somewhere.
Wireless?
At this point I doubt I can read between the lines.
+Break it into compartments and subjects instead of hash stew for us!+

I have an imac bought late 2013, can i use it as a display for the new mac pro? I also want to use windows 8 on it, would this work with parallels or bootcamp?

I have an imac bought late 2013, can i use it as a display for the new mac pro? I also want to use windows 8 on it, would this work with parallels or bootcamp?

Yes, it supports target display mode. Windows can be run with either Parallels or Boot Camp.

I have an imac bought late 2013, can i use it as a display for the new mac pro running windows 8 through bootcamp?

I have an imac bought late 2013, can i use it as a display for the new mac pro running windows 8 through bootcamp?

No. Target Display mode is only supported when connected to a Mac running 10.6 or later.
It cannot be used with a PC, bootcamp, gamaing console, cable box, DVR or PowerPC Mac.
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht3924

Suggestion for Apple: MacBooks as terminals for the new Mac Pro

Suggesting Apple to enable using MacBooks as terminals for the new Mac Pro if connecting through the thunderbolt.
I am planning to get a new Mac Pro this month and use it as a 'portable' workstation since it weighs only 5kg.
I am working on scienctific research which requires travels quite often.
I want to have a workstation with me when I'm off-site so that I can work without worrying about the network connection.
It would be great if I can use Macbook Air as a display, keyboard and touchpad for the Mac Pro.
I will be fully geared by taking a Mac Pro and a MacBook Air with me where ever I travel.

I don't know much about Thunderbold connections.
Especially how does it combine PICe and DisplayPort signal together.
I would like the MacBook serve as an external screen and an external PCIe video card to the Mac Pro, together with its touchpad and keyboard connected to the Mac Pro as an external USB keyboard and touchpad.
In this case, one may not even boot into the OS on the MacBook side, just need proper drivers in the Mac Pro side for the 'external PCIe video card', keyboard and touchpad.

QX 10 – optimised for the new Mac Pro?

I recently upgraded to a new Mac Pro.
So am now considering going back to QX (I am a pro graphic designer).
They have a deal offering special pricing for upgrades from version 3 (AUD $399)!
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Any designers (having previously used / using InDesign) out there with QX 10 experience?
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I'm in the market for the new Mac Pro.

I'm in the market for the new Mac Pro. I've been waiting for it to be released and have some cash set aside for this. I am a video editor and use Premiere Pro CC, and After Effects. My primary content is simple documentary films - so nothing too intense, but always HD (1080) video. I don't see 4k in my future but it's always a possibility so I want to future-proof my purchase for the next 3 years or so. With respect to storage space and RAM, I can make that decision myself based mostly on cashflow (since they are likely both user-expandable). However, with the basic configuration of the number of cores and video graphics card, I could use some advice. I think they are both set for the life of the computer, so important to get it right.
My current thinking is to start with the 6 core model (I guess I have no real reason for this decision, except that I feel like the 4-core base model is put there to make the price feel lower, while the real advantages in performance start at the 6 core - am I way off on this one?). But, I wonder if I should spring for the 8 core or even the 12 core? Probably overkill for me - out of my budget anyway.
The other decision is the graphics card - is the D500 enough? Will it be limiting factor in the future? Or should I move to D700?
Here are the cost differences:
from 6 core to 8 core is $1500
from D500 to D700 is $600
Which is worth it? (neither, both?)
Thanks.

Whether it's worth it depends more on you and what your current and future needs are.
The good news is that Adobe's CC apps can already take advantage of the AMD FirePro GPU's in the Mac Pro, and offer hardware acceleration of the Mercury Playback Engine, which you'll see in Premiere, After Effects, and Media Encoder. According to the Adobe staffers I've talked to, even the FirePro D300's will see a big benefit, in fact they say you won't see a big bump by upgrading the GPU. As far as Adobe's apps are concerned, their OpenCL use is all single precision, and the D500/D700 upgrades put a lot of weight in double precision performance (which is unused in their apps). Their recommendation - put the bulk of your budget on cores and RAM.
How many depends on how elaborate and complex your work is. Simple documentary films with the odd effects, transitions, titles, and grading.. you'd be fine with a 6-core IMO. If you're leaning towards getting into really layered comps and effects, you'd shorten those long render times down a lot with the 8-core. As for memory, I'd recommend at least 4GB per physical core.
Good luck!

Are the graphics cards offered for the new mac pro HDCP compliant??

hi are the graphics cards offered for the new mac pro hdcp compliant??

See if this helps
http://macperformanceguide.com/index_topics.html#MacPro2013

I cannot install Lion to a backup drive for my new Mac Mini

I just bought the new Mac Mini with an i7 processor last week. I wanted to format a backup drive for it. When I tried to use the Lion Recovery partition on the new Mac Mini, I keep getting an error message that says it's incompatoble with the current model.
I also tried to use the Lion thumbdrive I purchased from Apple to see if that can be used, but it also give me the incompatible message.
Is there a special version of Lion that's only for the new Mac Mini's?
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Read this, it will explain it: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4905
Mac mini (Mid 2011), MacBook Air (Mid 2011): Use Lion Recovery instead of OS X Lion USB Thumb Drive
Last Modified: September 01, 2011
Article: HT4905
Summary
Learn about using Lion Recovery or the built-in OS X Lion recovery partition rather than OS X Lion USB Thumb Drive with computers released after OS X Lion.
Products Affected
MacBook Air (13-inch, Mid 2011), MacBook Air (11-inch, Mid 2011), MacBook Air (Mid 2011), Mac mini (Mid 2011)
Use Lion Recovery to restore Mac computers released after OS X Lion. If you attempt to use the OS X Lion USB Thumb Drive, a message will appear stating that you cannot install this version of OS X on your computer. This is correct behavior to make sure you install only the correct and most up-to-date version of Mac OS X on your computer.
Note: You can also use the Lion Recovery Disk Assistant on your Mac to create a bootable image to make sure you recover the correct version of OS X Lion. To use the Lion Recovery Disk Assistant, you need to have your own USB drive.
Additional Information
If you have a network connection, you should receive the appropriate version of Mac OS X when using the built-in Recovery HD partition on Macs running Lion.
Learn more about Lion Recovery.

Can video cards for the new Mac Pro be installed in the field?

Current Configuration of the new Mac Pro is as follows:
ACES MacPro Workstation Seat
Processor
6-Core/3.5GHz/Xeon E5
Memory
32 GB
Graphics
2X AMD FirePro D500
Hard Disk
1 TB
Display
24" LED / HP
Media Player
2GB FIPS USB Drive
Mouse
Apple Magic Mouse
Keyboard
USB
Ports
4-USB 3.0;
6-Thunderbolt
1- HDMI
Netwk Interface
Ethernet/802.11n
Card Reader
NIST SP 800 Compliant
My question is can the Graphic Display cards be removed and replaced in the field by an experience Mac Technician?
Any special tools required?

Now here is the back, showing the heatsink paste still in place, and the thermal pads used to cool the RAM chips to the central cooler:
note that the two cards are not interchangeable -- they have their power lugs on opposite sides. One card has chips to support actual display output to the thunderbolt Busses, the other card has none, but has the custom micro-PCIE slot for the PCIe SSD "stick".
One reason for this design is that to make a leap forward, you would have to water-cool the slots for a traditional form-factor PCIe slot Mac pro. Then do it again to include a second GPU. In my opinion, this model Mac Pro is about conquering the cooling problem of this much CPU and GPU compute-power in one box.
NVIDIA graphics card replacements? maybe eventually, but not at this writing.

What is the best storage solution for the new Mac Pro

Hi All,
With limited funds when purchasing the new Mac Pro, I'm starting to look at storage for music/pictures/video etc - I'm thinking of storing this data externally and connecting via Thunderbolt or Firewire or USB3 to access the data... Not sure what type of storage to use, upgrading to 1TB PCIe-based flash seems excessive for costs and I would like at least 2TB, anyone have any suggestions?
What are the alternatives for storage... (single disk Raid) I've recently had to replace my internal WD hard drive (lost everything) and the backup time capsule failed, again knackered disk (looks like WD format error with Maverick OS bug), don't want to format them just incase..
With the new Mac Pro coming with 256GB PCIe-based flash storage, I'm reluctant to upgrade the storage because of costs and would like some redudancy when it comes to storage.
Any suggestions?
Many thanks
Russ

landing page at OWC for Thunderbolt products.
Helios enclosure (the new dual-slot Helios PCIe chassis) and moving various hard drives into Thunderbolt cases (in time) but mainly into my favorite USB3 hard drive enclosure.
For those without eSATA enclosures, a simple eSATA to USB3 adapter might do the trick.
USB3 is plenty fast to house two hard drives.
If you can, I'd try to order with 500GB to get started and have more room for system and default for scratch or even for Aperture/iPhoto or Lightroom.
Always take the precaution and zero a drive before use. Want a solid enterprise ideal for RAID, then look no further than Seagate Constellation series. 128MB cache doesn't hurt and fine for RAID5, NAS or whatever you want.
There should be retail PCIe-SSD products in 2014.
Large storage, http://macperformanceguide.com/topic-thunderbolt.html

How to use hard drives with the new mac pro

A few quick questions about upgrading to new Mac pro desktop
I currently have 4 internal hard drives for a total of 8T
What will the solution be to add storage to the new desktop?
I assume it will be thunderbolt options?
Lets say I wanted at least 8TB of storage to add to the computer
and attached the storage via thunderbolt will it be as fast data throughput
as the harddrives in my current computer hooked up to the external bus?
I also have a pci card running my audio plugins for Universal Audio how will those pci
cards work on the new mac pro?

Also will the transfer rate with the pegas be as fast as if the drives were connected to the bus in the machines like the old mac pro?
To answer that, think of this as a Bottleneck problem. The overall performance is as slow as the slowest device.
At this writing typical rotating drives can produce a momentary burst at 125 MBytes/sec or 1,000 Mbits/sec. Only FireWire 800 is starting to be a limit for that -- EVERYTHING else is faster. Thunderbolt-1 is 10,000 Mbits/sec -- ten times faster.
The best SSD can produce a burst at maybe 800 MBytes/sec or 6,400 Mbits/sec. There is not a big speed difference in an SSD RAID, because the latency is already low. But the 10,000 Mbits/sec of ThunderBolt-1 is still plenty fast enough for that as well.
If ThunderBolt-2 devices really can run a single data stream at 20,000 Mbits/sec, that does not make ANYTHING faster -- it just moves the ceiling (potential bottleneck) a bit farther away.

2nd Optical-Drive for Early 2008 Mac Pro: Suggestions Required

I am hoping to add a second optical-drive to my Early 2008 Mac Pro. I notice that there are various SATA ones available for Early 2009 Mac Pro's onwards (e.g. the LG GH24NS90) but according to OWC (Other World Computing) these ones are apparently unsuitable for earlier Mac Pro's.
The current optical-drive in my Mac Pro is a Sony AD-7170A.
Can anyone suggest a suitable optical-drive that is still available as new (preferably available in the UK).
Thanks,
Yan Lee

The SATA optical drives will work fine in a 2008 Mac Pro. I just installed this model:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136259
I already have a Blu-Ray SATA drive in my other tray, so I've done this a couple of times now.
You have to run a SATA data cable through to one of the two ports on the motherboard - it involves removing the first two drive trays and the front fan. The cable goes up behind the top left corner of the compartment, together with the black cables feeding the optical ATA connectors. You CAN use an L-shaped (90 or 270 degree) SATA cable, but I've found that a regular straight cable works OK too - it is a tight fit behind the fan, but it should fit. The trouble with the L-shape is that it blocks the other SATA port. You can also look for low-profile SATA cables, which have slightly smaller heads.
You'll also need a molex-to-SATA power adaptor. Don't forget to remove the front bezel from the drive - I do this by attaching everything to power, don't slide the optical enclosure back into the space yet, power up the computer, eject the drive using its eject button, and then slide the bezel up and off. You can then slide the enclosure into the space. Turn the computer off to put the fan and drives back in.
Matt

Possible to re-use G5 serial-ata drives in a new Mac Pro?

I am getting ready to retire a Power Mac G5 Quad and am wondering whether I can take its two serial-ata internal hard drives and install directly into two of the empty slots I have in a new Mac Pro? Any issues that I should be aware of?
Thanks in advance for your assistance.
Brymer

FWIW and just in case, guide to migrating.
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=435350
And the Quad G5 seemed to be the only G5 that could actually use GPT format (probably preparing for transition to the Mac Pro I'd guess). Was also able to use NCQ and some other SATA II (2.5) features and specs.

Is a SSD drive for a new Mac Pro "worth it"?

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