# Logic X with 2 x Mac Slaves



## ThePrioryStudio (Oct 25, 2017)

Hi all, 

A subject that is fully covered here I know, and It works perfectly but just wanted to ask how many VEP instances I could expect with the below machines. 

I have 1 x 2008 3Ghz Mac Pro 3,1 running mavericks, 10.9.5. 32Gb RAM and 3 x 2Gb 7200 Drives Raided together as RAID 0. Just I'm not sure how far I can push it. Activity monitor says that with 6 VEP instances 10Gb is being used sometimes hitting 12-14Gb. 

I also have a late 2012 Mac Mini 2.5Ghz i5 Dual 16Gb with a 4 drive RAID ) connected via thunderbolt. I combine the two but don't get the instances from VEP I'd hoped with the Mac Mini. 

My plan is to get another 2nd hand 2008 3Ghz Mac Pro 3,1 with 32Gb hoping to get about 18 instances out of the 2 mac pros and leave the mac mini for some soft synths (Via VEP). 

My main DAW machine is a 2010 12 core mac pro with 48Gb RAM but I'm limited to using Pro Tools 10 HD so cannot upgrade in order to use a new version of Kontakt and VEP. At a later date I will upgrade to Pro Tools HD native and therefore be able to upgrade the OS and therefore Kontakt and use the DAW machine with local VEP instances to increase the count. What kind of instances could I expect from teh two slave machines and is anyone else running older intel machine in this config. 

Thanks


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## Jeremy Spencer (Oct 25, 2017)

I think you are confusing VEPro instances with actual VI's. How many VI's are you loading up in each instance of VEPro?


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## ThePrioryStudio (Oct 25, 2017)

Hey Wolfie,

For Instrument channels with aux's I load 1 x Kontakt into a single VEP instance. (Pianos, Synths and Loops)Up to 16 instruments in each Kontakt. 

For multi timbral, I may have up 4 x Kontakt in an instance with maximum 64 channels. I split strings into longs, shorts. Brass into Longs and shorts also so that's 4 VI's with 16 articulations each. I sometime use aux channels which gives me a 16 channel limit so that's when I use an instance per strings long, short, brass long, bras shorts so that when I return them into Logic I can bus them into an aux and compress, eq them.

Perhaps I need to revisit my template in order to remove some aux's, Instead using more multi timbral channels but would that mean I have to sub mix in VEP? Seems too complicated to have two mixers to tend with

Thanks,


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## Saxer (Oct 25, 2017)

It all depends on the instruments you load. And you have to find your bottleneck. Is it about RAM ot CPU? How much cores are in your slave MacPro? The MacMini dual core probably doesn't bring enough CPU power for a lot of voices.


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## ThePrioryStudio (Oct 25, 2017)

Hello Saxer, 

I'm loading all individual LCO articulations, all the Albion 1 strings, brass and woods ndividual articulations, both shorts and longs. I also want to load about 32 perc articulations. My Mac Pro slave machine is an 8 core 3.0Ghz with 32Gb RAM. I have the chance of an identical machine quite cheap so more RAM and cores to the party, right? 

Thanks,


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## fixxer49 (Oct 26, 2017)

ThePrioryStudio said:


> Hey Wolfie,
> 
> For Instrument channels with aux's I load 1 x Kontakt into a single VEP instance. (Pianos, Synths and Loops)Up to 16 instruments in each Kontakt.
> 
> ...


I get better performance in VEP with more instances of Kontakt, running fewer channels each. Also, even on Mac, VST Kontakt runs slightly more efficiently than AU Kontakt.


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## mc_deli (Oct 26, 2017)

ThePrioryStudio said:


> I have the chance of an identical machine quite cheap so more RAM and cores to the party, right?


I dunno... aren't you just adding more old underpowered hardware that's locking you in to soon-vintage software. Anecdotally and from the Logic benchmark tests the 2008 MP and i5 mac Mini are not popular for VIs. The 2010-2012 12 core MP and 2012 i7 Mac Mini are popular fro VIs. It's not just the amount of RAM, it's the bus architecture that puts these machines in a different league. 

I could see the attraction of another 2012 MP with max. RAM to replace the Mini and 2008 MP... 
On the flip side, if you have good workflow with the slaves and no problems with set-up, config, latency, start up time - and the general cost of your time to deal with so many slaves then why not


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## fixxer49 (Oct 26, 2017)

mc_deli said:


> The 2010-2012 12 core MP and 2012 i7 Mac Mini are popular fro VIs. It's not just the amount of RAM, it's the bus architecture that puts these machines in a different league.


+1 for the 4-core 2012 i7 Mac Minis.


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## VinRice (Oct 26, 2017)

Ooh


fixxer49 said:


> +1 for the 4-core 2012 i7 Mac Minis.


Ooh, I have one of those running my email and bits. I didn't know they were viable VEP machines. The 16MB limit is a bit of a shame though (seemed like such a lot when I bought it)


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## fixxer49 (Oct 26, 2017)

VinRice said:


> Ooh
> 
> Ooh, I have one of those running my email and bits. I didn't know they were viable VEP machines. The 16MB limit is a bit of a shame though (seemed like such a lot when I bought it)


They are pretty nifty, esp with 1TB SSDs. The only issue to speak of is some funkiness w/ third party displays. (which is not really an issue for a VEP slave.)


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## ThePrioryStudio (Oct 26, 2017)

fixxer49 said:


> I get better performance in VEP with more instances of Kontakt, running fewer channels each. Also, even on Mac, VST Kontakt runs slightly more efficiently than AU Kontakt.



So more VEP instances (Tabs) and less instruments in Kontakt> Interesting, I just assumed that loading up 16 instu in kontakt was the most efficient use of space.


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## ThePrioryStudio (Oct 26, 2017)

mc_deli said:


> I dunno... aren't you just adding more old underpowered hardware that's locking you in to soon-vintage software.



Well, the slaves (I do hate that word).. The secondary machines that run VEP and Kontakt are fully up-to date with the latest and greatest. My 12 core mac on the other hand running Logic x and Pro Tools is running mountain lion as my soon to be vintage pro tools 10 cards won't run on anything later than Pro Tools 10 and mountain Lion.



mc_deli said:


> The 2010-2012 12 core MP and 2012 i7 Mac Mini are popular fro VIs. It's not just the amount of RAM, it's the bus architecture that puts these machines in a different league



Good to know, thanks. 



mc_deli said:


> I could see the attraction of another 2012 MP with max. RAM to replace the Mini and 2008 MP...
> On the flip side, if you have good workflow with the slaves and no problems with set-up, config, latency, start up time - and the general cost of your time to deal with so many slaves then why not



Oh yeah, I would love that, but alas budget isn't there. My preferred workflow would be to use the 2008 MP as a door stop, the 12 core as a VEP secondary, buy another 12 core cheese grater mac for a 2nd VEP machine. Get a mac pro dustbin for my main DAW mac, but my decision is driven by cost unfortunately.

At £400 vs £4000 I think it's worth a punt.


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## VinRice (Oct 26, 2017)

Checking eBay I was surprised how many 12core upgraded cheesegrater MP's there are out there for sale. Serious machines. What a great chassis that MP was. (I've got two defunct ones in storage somewhere). I hope the new one in January is as solid and versatile.


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## ThePrioryStudio (Oct 26, 2017)

VinRice said:


> Checking eBay I was surprised how many 12core upgraded cheesegrater MP's there are out there for sale. Serious machines. What a great chassis that MP was. (I've got two defunct ones in storage somewhere). I hope the new one in January is as solid and versatile.



Yeah, loads of usable machines for sale. I find the cheesegrater to be more road worthy. The little dustbin thing with all the crap hanging out the back... Man, I know the sonnet thing is decent and has drive space and PCIe, but another £1500 on top of an already eye watering cost is just way out of my league. 

If you saw the handles off top and bottom, they fit perfectly upturned in a rack. Great machines.


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## ThePrioryStudio (Nov 5, 2017)

mc_deli said:


> I could see the attraction of another 2012 MP with max. RAM to replace the Mini and 2008 MP...
> On the flip side, if you have good workflow with the slaves and no problems with set-up, config, latency, start up time - and the general cost of your time to deal with so many slaves then why not




So I've just completed an upgrade to OSX Sierra on my 2,93Ghz 12 core, ditched Pro Tools 10 and used an old AES16e card for an upgraded version of Logic X. Pro Tools 12 runs far far better, Logic X runs like a dream and I have some extra CPU in the 2008 machine. Currently performing percussion duty. 

So maybe not an upgrade per sé more a side step.


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