What is best Mac Pro for photoshop for the money?

I need to purchase a mac pro to use for digital retouching and photography. Which machine will i get the best performance for my money, I am on a budget.

The best would be 6-core 3.33GHz 24GB RAM and would hold up best over time.
http://discussions.apple.com/messageview.jspa?messageID=12296219&stqc=true
MHz matter, and so too does RAM.
This article, and then browse how to choose Mac Pro, benchmarks etc on site:
http://macperformanceguide.com/blog/2010/20100905_HallofFameShame--macpro.html
http://macperformanceguide.com/Reviews-MacProWestmere-CoresExplained.html
There are always good buys from Apple Specials, from $2100 and up, just be careful or totally avoid any of the 8-core / dual processor models.
http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/specialdeals/mac/mac_pro

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Best Mac Pro (2013) configuration for photo editing/processing?

Hi all,
I couldn't find a reliable answer to this in my searching here or on google, hence I'm posting it here.
I'm going to buy and upgrade to the new mac pro when it's announced this month (Dec 2013). My primary use will be photo processing in photoshop.
Configuring it with 64gb RAM is the no-brainer part. And probably a 512gb or 1TB flash drive too.
The bit I'm unsure about is whether to opt for the 6 core processor option over the quad core? For photo editing (adding layers, filters, brushing in, multiple files open at times, running batch edits etc), does anyone have an opinion on whether the performance increase (if there is in fact any increase for photo work?) of the 6 core 3.5ghz would justify paying the extra AU$1300 difference over the quad core 3.7ghz option?
And from my earlier research paying the huge prices for 8 or 12 cores would simply be a waste for photo processing.
Thanks for the advice...

Mozzzaaa
I have the exact same requirements, here are my findings based on some observations from Activity Monitor and research based on how the hardware works.
Photoshop does not utilize multiple cores well for many standard editing ativities - therefore one core will be busy while the rest remain idle, however I have noticed over time that upgrades to Photoshop seem to take more advantage of multiple cores as Adobe updates the code. For example, appling filters utilize all of the cores while the filters are computing changes (smart sharpen for example). Try running CPU monitoring in Activity Monitor (double click the CPU graph to display all cores).
Lightroom utilizes all of the cores for Import, export and other activities that process multiple files. Being more modern code, it beter utilizes muti cores.
Keep in mind that each core handles two code threads, therefore a four core system is capable of processing 8 "streams" of code, the 6 core can manage 12 threads, etc.
Here is a screen shot of Mac Book Pro running PS CC Smart Sharpen:
All the new Mac Pro run at 3.9Hz Turbo Boost - they are all the same in that respect. This means that when the processers are not hot, at least one core will run at 3.9Hz - therefore on a relativly idle machine (just editing in PS for example) you would likley be running at 3.9Hz on all the Mac Pro 2013.
There are also the GPUs to consider. Apple as usual has not made enough information available to easly determine the cost benefits of the more powerful GPUs and I don't know if PS would utiliize the AMD GPUs well now, or perhaps better utilize them for the future. Perhaps someone could comment on that. Here is an interesting article: http://architosh.com/2013/10/the-mac-pro-so-whats-a-d300-d500-and-d700-anyway-we -have-answers/
Clearly the D500 that is standard with the 6 core seems a major bump over the 4 core D300 (therefore the costs of the 6 core reflect that). I don't know how much the D700 would cost - it would be helpful if this were published so I could consider my order.
There are two GPU in the new Mac Pros - but the purpose of the second one is not toally clear (thanks again to Apples's communication). It likley will be utilized for all sorts of things that don't really exist now and FCP X is scheduled for a new release better utilize the GPU for video (as nwaphoto mentioned video processing will be a major use of this equipment).
I was interested in your comment regarding 64 Meg ram. Yes that would be a hudge boost to PS performance, but would it be better to purchase from Apple or wait for OWC who offer RAM at major discounts over Apple. Once again, no info yet that I am aware of.
I believe the flash drive is upgradable but rumor has it that it uses a proprietary connecter. Makes me want to go with the largest size but once again OWC might be the way to go for an upgrade in a year or two.
In the past, the 6 core 2012 Mac Pro's were somewhat of a sweat spot in terms of horsepower vs cost. I will be considering that in my decession to upgrade. So I am considering a 6 core, will check out the Ram and Flash diIsk based on price - which is the infor I don't have. If you have anything please post
Thanks

Best Mac Pro 2013 Config for photography?

I am a pro photographer who is interested in getting maximum performance for the task of editing still images, mostly large files in the 100- 200 MB range . My go to apps are Lightroom5 and Photoshop6. My number one priority is speed/effeciency. Cost is important but secondary. In other words I want the best possible system for the task at hand but I don't want to max out on cost for options that will offer little or no performance benefit for what I will be doing. Thanks in advance for any insights.
John

I think you will find the answer from a like minded user blog
http://www.macperformanceguide.com
The 6-core nMP Late 2013 model with whatever you can afford in 3rd party RAM (32GB at least). And some good solid storage and SSDs. And start with at least 500GB SSD. The base model with BTO.
http://www.macperformanceguide.com/blog/2013/20131219_1-MacPro-whatIOrdered.html

Best Mac Pro Setup for Photoshop CS5

I've read around that it's not needed to have the fastest (and costliest) Mac Pro to run Photoshop CS5 at it's best.
However, there doesn't seem to exist any discussions involving the latest models (Feb 2012).
Which would be the optimal Mac Pro available today for running large files (1GB and up) in Photoshop CS5?

LOTs of RAM, fast 6-core 3.33GHz for starters.
Mac Pro Photoshop CS5 and Lightroom 3
Optimize Photoshop CS5
Optimize CS5 CS4 Mac OS X
http://www.macperformanceguide.com

Best Mac Pro Configuration for LR?

For various reasons I'm planning on migrating from my home desktop pc ( 4 year old core2 2.4 ghz xp pro sp 3 32bit accessing 2.93 out of 4 gb ram) to a new or (lightly used recent) Mac Pro desktop. The Mac Pro is available in a lot of different configurations and I would appreciate advice on how many cores and how much ram I actually need to comfortably run LR3x and its eventual upgrades (within reason) and PS3 for now and later probably whatever is current. I'm a reasonably advanced amateur photographer; I shoot what interests me and now use LR for 90-95% of my post processing of my raw Leica and Canon image files. I do use some add-ons (SilverEfex Pro2 and such).
I understand from reading some articles that too much muscle in the Mac Pro can actually slow down LR, so if this is true I'd like to stay svelte; also economic issues are somewhat a concern.
I have already considered a laptop or an iMac and decided the Mac Pro is what I want. The question is just 'what will work best for me'?
Thanks in advance, and if you need more information just let me know.
--Bob
p.s. Is the Search Function disabled in this Forum? I couldn't get it to work.

thewhitedog wrote:
@ Bob: I think you may be have acquired some misinformation somewhere. There is no such thing as "too much muscle" in a Mac Pro in relationship to Lightroom - or any other program. OS X allocates resources to applications as they need them. Unused resources remain idle or are utilized by other applications.
Adobe posts the minimum system requirements for their applications, but these should just be taken as a starting point. In my opinion you should buy the best Mac Pro your budget can handle - and maybe a little bit more. The computer is an investment, after all, not a luxury. That said, what you need to run Lightroom efficiently and what Jay needs to do video editing are not necessarily the same. For video rendering more cores are better. For Lightroom the question of the number of CPU cores is less critical. Whereas, CPU speed is more relevant. For both, the amount of RAM can make a big difference.
I recommend as a starting point, at least a quad-core Mac Pro with 4GB of RAM. That would do if you were looking at an iMac as well.
I can understand, though, how looking at the current line-up of Mac Pros can be confusing. The older Nehalem powered Mac Pros look faster for less money, but this is now old technology. The new Intel Westmere CPUs offer significant improvements in performance. Unfortunately, they are also much more expensive than any previous Mac CPU upgrade. But if you want to "future proof" your new Mac, one with a Westmere CPU is the better way to go. The 8 core model Jay went with seems to be the best value, with two quad-core 2.4GHz Westmere CPUs. However, for just $200 more you can get the 6 core 3.33GHz Westmere CPU. For the purposes of Lightroom, the faster CPUs in the 6 core model will make more of a difference than the two extra cores in the 8 core version. And the 6 core version will handle just about any multi-tasking job you throw at it; that it, using Lightroom in conjunction with Adobe Photoshop, for example.
To confuse the issue a bit more, however, if using Lightroom is your primary concern, a Mac Pro may be overkill. The new iMacs, which came out since you started this thread, are excellent machines. You could get a lot more for your money with a 27" iMac, BTO with a quad-core 3.3GHz Intel Sandy Bridge CPU, 8GB of RAM and a 2TB hard drive for roughly $1,000 less than the Mac Pros you're looking at. Along with a capable computer you get a beautiful 27" screen on the iMac. I'm not sure why you think you need the Mac Pro. The iMac can now take up to 16GB of RAM. If you were to get one with 8GB factory installed by Apple - as a BTO option - there would still be two empty RAM slots available for a future upgrade. You could add an SSD to the iMac and still pay less than you would for the Mac Pro.
And the new iMacs have a Thunderbolt port; in fact, the 27" models have two Thunderbolt ports. These offer much better throughput and greater flexibility than any previous I/O connection. With an appropriate adaptor you can use almost any external device, including eSATA, FireWire 400 and 800, USB 1, 2 and 3 and even Ethernet and an external monitor. Of course the iMac still has a Firewire 800 port and four USB 2 ports, and an SDXC memory card slot. For what it may be worth, I suggest you give the iMac another look. Your budget will thank you.
TheWhiteDog,
Kinda, Sorta, Maybe... :-) The cost differential between the 8 and 6 cores is $200 when comparing new to new. I picked up the 8 Core Westmere 2.4 for under $3000 because it comes up on the Refurbished side... So now we're talking $700 difference. the difference in price can be used for memory (I got 4GB for $50 at OtherWorldCmputing's "Garage Sale), a drive.. any number of things. Since Apple treat refurbs as new for warranty purposes (including AppleCare), I didn't see any reason not to go with the refurbished model..
I agree a higher clock speed is better, but as you said, I also do video so more cores helps (amazingly helps).. Yes, for LR 6 3.33 cores may outperform 8 2.4s, but the 8 core machine flies with LR.
As for iMacs vs. Mac Pro.. the biggest difference is that you find with any desk top vs. a "fixed" machine like the iMac. The upgrade as far a internal (and external) drives on a Mac Pro is so much better as well as to upgrade video if I want to in the future as well. As for Thunderbolt, clearly a lot of potential, but it is a daisy chain design and the slowest device in the chain can slow down everything if not done right. There's also not a lot out there for Thunderbolt yet.. and I'm not 100% sure that there won't be an PCI card for Mac Pros for Thunderbolt (although it could be a system board feature only).
At under $3000 with 6GB of memory and a 1TB 7200 drive, combined with growrh potential and the Mac Pro I think has a longer shelf life vs. the iMac. Without those Thunderbolt adapters in the market place, you're stuck with FW800, which is a lot slower than even eSATA for external drives. Since most all the LR recommendations are to split the catalog away from the cache and away from the images themselves, it's a trickier and more costly venture on the iMac.. The 27" screen in nice, but I'm not a big fan of glossy screens. I don't think any of those allow you a matte finish option like on the Macbook Pro.
Bottom line Bob is there are different choices for different budgets... Heck I went with a 17" Macbook Pro for a long time, using an inexpensive Expresscard 34 to hook up external eSATA drives and a second 24" Dell monitor.. Great combo and I always had the portability aspect of the 17" for client work, being tethered, etc..
Jay

What's the best mac book to have for someone who is going to study for the next four years

Best mac book to use for study etc essays

Four years is a long time. Your needs can change as studies progress from "general classes" to "deep core of your major".
What will you be studying? How much do you now (or in the possible future) play games? What is your budget? How sensitive are you to screen size or computer weight? Do you use a DVD drive often?

What is best all in one printer for my new MacBook Pro ? Needs to make very high quality photos.

What is best all in one printer for my new MacBook Pro ? Needs to make very high quality photos. Using USB connection.

That's a difficult one but I'd always go for HP as they make so many excellent models that you'll always be able to buy the cartridges from almost anyone. Theyre darn good printer too. I have four in the office here and one of them is a very neat flatbed with exceptionally high tonal qualities. One of their cheaper models is the HP 5520 A4 inkjet all-in-one - CMYK. Good value at £70 and 4800 x 1200 DPI.

New mac pro (2014) specs for production company help

Hey guys new to the forum!
I work for a production company that makes mainly online corporate video and motion graphics, lots of character animation, typography pieces and bits and pieces of 3D work with cinema 4d r14. We currently work on 2009 mac workstations which have the following specs:
Model Name:          Mac Pro
Model Identifier:          MacPro3,1
Processor Name:          Quad-Core Intel Xeon
Processor Speed:          3.2 GHz
Number Of Processors:          2
Total Number Of Cores:          8
L2 Cache (per processor):          12 MB
Memory:          16 GB
Bus Speed:          1.6 GHz
Chipset Model:          ATI Radeon HD 2600
I've been asked to get some specs because we plan on buying the new mac pro and I have been reading some articles regarding performance with After Effects but in all honesty i really don't understand what sort of specs i need because i'm good at designing and animating but it when it comes to CPU, GPU talk it's all very confusing!
My boss wants faster previews, faster render times and an all round better performance than what we have now, and with the possibility of outputting 4K in the near future i have to bear that in mind as well.
If you guys could give me a helping hand choosing a new mac pro i would be eternally grateful!
Thanks,
Mark

The new Mac Pros are, without a doubt, amazing machines. But are they value for money?
A significant cost in these machines is the high end AMD GPUs, which is utilised very well by Apple in their own software like Final Cut Pro X, Compressor and Motion. If you use those a lot, it's a no brainer. Place your order.
Premiere Pro CC has support for the GPUs (one GPU during playback, but can utilise both during renders.)
There has been no pledge from Adobe for After Effects support. AE's ray-traced 3D render engine has been virtually abandoned by Adobe, so there will never be support for AMD CPUs for it. They are now more focussed on integration with Maxxon's Cinema 4D as a 3D alternative, but Cinema 4D exclusively renders with the CPU – no GPU benefit.
The AE team are hinting about substantial multi-processing enhancements in the next major update, so it seems After Effects users will continue to be better off with faster multi-core CPUs, rather than expensive GPUs. With more CPU cores comes the need for more RAM.
Some third party vendors of AE plugins, like VideoCopilot's Element 3D and Optical Flares, have pledged support for the Mac Pro GPUs. But the problem with intertwining CPU-dependent software with GPU-dependent plugins is you need to turn off multi-processing to get the best results, negating the value of your powerful Mac Pro CPU.
Photoshop and Indesign rarely need the balls of a machine like the new Mac Pro. The new high-speed SSDs will certainly make them run faster than your average iMac, but it's not a HUGE leap for the cost difference.
The benchmarks I've seen on media encoding for the new Mac Pros are a little underwhelming, to be honest. They're fast, yes, but not twice as fast as a $4000 iMac, despite a high-end machine being twice (or more) expensive.
So, as a primarily Adobe user, I'm a bit torn. Personally, I think my money will be better spent buying a high-spec iMac for now. I can always on-sell it in 6 months if Adobe prove they are really coming to the party with Mac Pro support. But right now I'm not seeing proof of the benefits (from Adobe) in buying a $6K+ machine.
If you are determined to buy the new Mac Pro, and After Effects and C4D are your primary tools, get the most powerful CPU you can afford, make sure you have at least 3-4GB of RAM for each CPU, and keep the lowest-specced GPUs.

What is the best mac pro combination considering price

what is the best mac pro combination specs considering price

Huge downloads of e-mails is a function of your internet provider. Most give you asynchronous communication, which means the sending of information back to them is slower than the receipt of information from them. Thus simultaneous two-way communication will in fact slow you down even more.
Presentations can be a function of the display technology used. Old VGA display based projections can be slow and cumbersome. Newer ones with HDMI, DVI and Mini-Displayport are far better and require less conversion.
What kind of workbooks?
Different programs have different requirements. Again, you have not distinguished if you are interested in buying a desktop, or a notebook computer.
Desktop = Mac Pro or iMac or Mac Mini (Mac Mini can be functionally as portable as a notebook, except it does not have battery for being powered on when off the mains).
Notebook = MacBook Air or MacBook Pro

Hello can mac pro be used for gaming wow in ultra and battle field 3 in ultra

Hello are the mac pro good for gaming and can it run wow in ultra with no lagg. and i have: 2,93 ghz 6 core intel Xeon "Westmere" and 64 rams and if i have 2TB in hard drive 1,2,3 and 4,and To ATI Radeon HD 5770 1GB, and AppleCare Protection Plan for Mac Pro - Auto-enroll in the mac pro. will it lagg?.
Regards Oliver

JEShort01 wrote:
That's not a bad setup at all to get started with small projects.
We all have different budgets and patience. You may be OK with what you have. And if it seems too sluggish - your rig would be for me , the following would help Premiere Pro performance:
- increase RAM to 16GB (about $140 per eBay pricing from a seller with high ratings a few minutes ago)
- add another drive; my favorite choice with your laptop would be a Seagate Momentus 750gb drive installed in a NEWmodeUS.com optical bay caddy (slips into your laptop)
Regards,
Jim
Exactly what I have done, and it is great.
You can get the caddy here:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2nd-Hard-Drive-Caddy-Adapter-Asus-N55-N73-N43-N45-N53S-N53SV-G73Jh -G73Jw-G73Sw-/320881591179
I had this setup for my old HP and have a caddy ready to install for my new Dell Precision as well. You can either get an external house for your DVD drive, or get an external one - they are quite cheap.
Ulf

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 kind of mac would I need for Nexflix, basic search and email? Also, sounds silly, but can I connect an HDMI from Mac to tv?

What kind of mac would I need for Nexflix, basic search and email? Also, sounds silly, but can I connect an HDMI from Mac to tv?

Just an FYI. The Macs named PowerMac date from early 2006 and before. Use this tip to discover where to post once you get your Mac:
Site map of Communities and Categories
The cheapest Mac available new is a Mac Mini. It is no bigger than many an external hard drive. But the screen and keyboard and mouse must be purchased separately. They support USB and Bluetooth keyboards and mice, and pretty much any DVI, HDMI, or displayport display. Although the iMac is certainly an attractive option if all you want to deal with is deciding on a printer. I still recommend getting an Apple USB keyboard for the occasional times you may need to troubleshoot startup issues. Normally not a problem, but as it gets older some issues can be fixed at startup or diagnosed at startup.

Hello . I hope to get a solution to my problem: ( I bought a laptop Mac Pro, a user But the seller was not the Secretary Laptop after arriving I've worked for almost an hour When connected to electricity Nour appears very faint, I do not see it quickly ht

Hello
. I hope to get a solution to my problem: (
I bought a laptop Mac Pro, a user
But the seller was not the Secretary :" ( !!
Laptop after arriving I've worked for almost an hour
* When connected to electricity
Nour appears very faint, I do not see it quickly
http://www.3rabart.com/up/download.php?img=38472
When separated from the energy, light shows intermittently and then disappears fast
http://www.3rabart.com/up/download.php?img=38473
I need urgent help please.
Thank you

Please ، How Email for a company ? I want to communicate with them about my problem "(

Yahoo Mail: on Mac Pro (keeps asking for my password and then doesn't work)

I have used Yahoo Mail through my Mac Pro Mail Account for years and enjoyed fine service.
For the last few months, the Mac Mail says I have the wrong password, and it won't allow me to access
mail.
If I change the password, it will work for a while (days) and the cycle starts all over again.
Sometimes, I stop using Mac Mail and use Yahoo off the web, and then suddenly Mac Mail will start working
on its own again.
I read a thread for earlier in the year and tried every single thing suggested - this still happens
I have used Yahoo mail for 22 years - but maybe it is time to switch?
Gmail never has this problem...but I use the Yahoo mail for my business, my friends, and groups.
Anyone with a working solution?
PS: My Yahoo email ALWAYS 100% of the time works on my iphone, and ipad...this only happens on my Mac Pro.

You don't have a Mac Pro (*65lb tower) but a notebook.
There is a support page and setup wizard to help plus links to support articles and community.
you may have to rebuild mail index or see if you can export, (re)move the existing mail folder and setup a new one and import old mail. Mail does and can have its issues for sure.
Mail support and Setup Wizard
http://www.apple.com/support/mail
MacBook Series Forums
https://discussions.apple.com/community/notebooks?view=discussions
Mac OS X Forum
https://discussions.apple.com/community/mac_os?view=discussions
http://www.apple.com/support/macbookpro

My brand new Mac Pro shuts down for no reason

My two week old Mac Pro shut downs for no pparent reason. Using the wireless, not plug in to an outlet but battery fully charged. Both times happen within 15hrs. apart.

Take it back to Apple and ask them to fix it.
Allan

What is best Mac Pro for photoshop for the money?

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