# New Mac Pro--8 Core vs 12 Core for Logic Pro X



## stillcd (Jun 3, 2014)

Hello,

So today is an awesome day! Apple employees now get the Mac Pro for the same 25% off discount that they get on all other products. I don't work for Apple anymore, but I have friends who are willing to give me their discount! 

With Logic Pro X now updated to support 12 cores, would the 12 core be the best option to go with for large orchestral scoring and trailer music templates? I've already decided on 64GB ram and 1TB of flash storage. I'm willing to pay for the 12 core, but I certainly don't want to buy it when the 8 core version could maybe perform better?

The 8 core version would presumably get better single core performance over the 12 core. Could this play a factor given logic's single core spike bug?

Any help and advice would be much appreciated!
(and I'm not considering PC as an option)

Thanks,

Cody


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## stillcd (Jun 4, 2014)

For the sake of longevity, and being able to work on a single machine, I have decided to spring for the 12 core model. I'm sure I'll need VE Pro 5 to optimize performance across all cores, but it just seems like too much of an omen that logic is optimized for 12 core support right before I'm about to buy. I'll take it as a sign from the gods of epic music!

The discount I'm getting is taking almost $2500 off the price tag. Plus the whole purchase can be a tax writeoff anyways... 

For those interested, Apple does 18 month financing for "personal" purchases, or you can do 24 month financing as a "business" customer. I had to do it as "personal" in order to qualify for the Apple Employee discount. 

I'll be sure to post results once I've got it. Should take a week or two to arrive. This is an upgrade from a 2009 iMac 2.8GHz Quad core with 16GB ram. I've been choked long enough with that machine. It's been such a crutch in my writing. Looking forward to having a professional setup to help support this crazy career choice!

Cody


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## holywilly (Jun 4, 2014)

the 12 cores MP should be more than enough for the audio work. You need a good strategy to load up virtual instruments and plug ins to take advantage of the multicore efficiency.

My personal preference will be loading up the instruments you need for your music instead of creating large orchestral template to avoid of waste any tracks.

I'm also in the market for the new Mac Pro, I also have read couple articles stating that the sweet spot for audio would be either 6 cores or 8 cores; they all have good clock speed and enough cores.

Just my 2 cents


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## Craig Sharmat (Jun 4, 2014)

normally i buy the biggest baddest comp I can and had 12 core 2010 Mac Pro. I was going to the same this time but the friendly people at Apple suggested I do 8 because for music production they did not think it would be an advantage, the 12 was needed more for video. Whether they really I know is up to debate but I went with the 8.


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## stillcd (Jun 4, 2014)

Craig,

Do you operate off of a single machine or do you have slaves working for you as well? 

I was decided on the 12 core, but more research has pointed me to evidence that the 8 core with a higher clock speed may actually be better for audio work. I'm a trailer composer with projects utilizing anywhere from 50 to 200 (mostly midi) tracks. If I could pay less for a "better" machine, then I would assume do so... 

Regarding the recommendation from Apple, I used to work for Apple (for 4 years) and I have to say that most Apple reps aren't worthy of making a solid recommendation for pro audio, especially film composers. Most Apple reps are gonna assume that your recording a 5 piece band or "making beats." Just my two cents on that...

Thanks for the replies!

Cody


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## samphony (Jun 4, 2014)

I went with the 6core this time. I recommend you the 8core if 12 and 8 is your only option. I just watched 2 videos over at WWDC 2014 Media lab. One was called "Harness the power of the new Mac Pro" the second one is called "what's new in core Audio" there is a lot the Apple developers are doing for the coming release. One thing is customizable tagging for audio units. So Mac OS X 10.10 will introduce such a system where the user will be able to tag audio units like Drums/ Mastering etc. 

The Logic Devs just need to implement that. Another interesting thing in that Media Lab session was new AV Audio Foundation classes regarding low latency audio buffering. It all sounds techy but what I understand they're improving Core Audio and also they are aware of their new power machine called Mac Pro and encourage developers to take advantage of its power.


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## stillcd (Jun 5, 2014)

Ok, Thanks for the info, Samphony!

After much more research, I have now eliminated the 12 core as an option. Originally I thought, "it costs more so it should be better!" But it appears that the 8 core or even the 6 core might provide better performance for the purposes of composers. I have decided to go with the 8 core Mac Pro with 64GB RAM, 1TB Flash Storage, and the basic D300 GPU. Thanks for everyone's advice!

Cody


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## Brobdingnagian (Jun 5, 2014)

Cody - what did you discover about the new version of Logic X and the use of 12 cores?

Same here with the giant template, etc.

I was leaning towards just getting the 12 core, but now this thread and some words from others working here in town are pulling me back towards 8 cores....


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## rgames (Jun 5, 2014)

DAW performance has more to do with real-time performance than CPU performance. So the 8-core might very well be better for DAW use if it is a better real-time system.

You need to look for benchmarks that measure what you care about - number of plug-ins, number of streaming voices, number of tracks, etc. I've not seen any correlation between the standard CPU benchmarks and DAW performance using those metrics.

rgames


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## stillcd (Jun 6, 2014)

Brobdingnagian @ Thu Jun 05 said:


> Cody - what did you discover about the new version of Logic X and the use of 12 cores?
> 
> Same here with the giant template, etc.
> 
> I was leaning towards just getting the 12 core, but now this thread and some words from others working here in town are pulling me back towards 8 cores....



Brobdingnagian,

I really could not find any info on the how the 12 core would perform with the latest LPX 10.0.7 update... Searched everywhere, but couldn't find anything. I guess it's been too soon for people to post results?... or maybe there just aren't all that many 12 core nMac Pro owners out there who use logic?...

Whatever the case, I found numerous threads on gearslutz discussing daw performance as it pertains to the CPU. And almost unanimously, the conclusion was that 6 to 8 cores is about the "sweet spot" for pro audio. It seems to give a good balance between number of cores and clock speed. But who knows if this conclusion will change with the new Logic update...

I actually am still conducting research on this. I'm not able to place my order until my "BarclayCard" comes in the mail (for the 0% financing). So I'm still prone for (yet another) decision change if I can find the right source. If anyone finds some clear evidence one way or the other, I'm sure many VI members will benefit.

Thanks,

Cody


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## samphony (Jun 7, 2014)

I still suggest go eight core. What are you doing with this machine? Mixing? Composing? Sound Design? Tracking?


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## holywilly (Jun 7, 2014)

I'm eyeing on the new Mac Pro also, I compose for film, TV and games.

Should I get the 6 cores or 8 cores?


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## proxima (Jun 7, 2014)

holywilly @ Sat Jun 07 said:


> I'm eyeing on the new Mac Pro also, I compose for film, TV and games.
> 
> Should I get the 6 cores or 8 cores?


My $0.02: The $1500 price difference between 6 and 8 cores could go a long way towards a slave, which is probably more useful in offloading the load from your main system.

Keep in mind that the Mac Pro's processor is upgradeable, so 2-3 years down the line you can upgrade to a faster 8 or 12 core processor for a lot less than right now.


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