# Need advice on a new computer



## allanidalen (Apr 8, 2018)

Hi, it's about time to upgrade my rig but I'm stuck between multiple choices and would appreciate help in choosing.

*Currently I work with:*
MacBook Pro 13" Early 2011
2,3 GHz i5
8 GB RAM
240 GB SSD (Boot, DAW & plugins)
PreSonus StudioLive 16.0.2, FW400

OS X 10.10.5
Pro Tools 11.3.2

2TB 7200 rpm HDD, FW800 (Samples)
1TB 5400 rpm HDD, USB 2 (Audio and sessions)

The FireWire devices are daisy chained; StudioLive->Samples->MacBook

*Some general thoughts I have include:*
I'm not particularly keen on subscribing to new PT, but since I have a license for PT11, I would prefer to continue using it due to familiarity and compatibility with old projects. However, PT11 does not support a later OS X than Yosemite (10.10.5).

On the other hand, since I'm sick of apples overpriced products and their unwillingness to letting me customize I'm on the fence about switching to PC. But, by switching to PC I'll have trouble finding an install file for PT11. My easiest choice here is to learn a new DAW and keep my MacBook with PT if I ever need to access older projects.

I do have an install file for PT11 for OS X, so I could buy PC parts that would support OS X and build a Hackintosh. The new problem is that I might have trouble finding hardware that supports Yosemite plus I feel rather stupid buying older hardware when buying a new computer. It might even be more expensive if I would have to order parts from many different places.

A new, or even used, Apple computer is out of the question because I don't think it's really worth the money.

I can buy a PC and VEP and use the PC as a slave and keep my MacBook as master. The problem with this is that the MacBook has really overstayed it's welcome. Some keys don't work, the screen has spots... so, yeah, it's about time.

I can combine these and buy a PC, with building a Hackintosh in mind, and use it as slave or simply switch to PC if the whole Hackintosh-business doesn't work out. Of course there is a but with this as well. I can get a better PC for my money if I don't have to take OS X compatibility into consideration (AMD instead of intel, for example) and even more if I decide to use it as slave. In that case I can save money on some parts (such as FireWire, wi-fi and bluetooth PCIe card, for example) and spend more on others (like CPU and RAM).

So the choices I'm between now is to go full slave and make due with my MacBook a while longer and replace it with a Hackintosh or PC later, or I can go for Hackintosh (with new parts, not necessarily compatible with Yosemite) and go PC if it doesn't work out. That way I can keep my MacBook if I need to access older projects if I switch DAW.

So, fellow composers, if you'd care to share any advice I would deeply appreciate it. I would like most bang for the buck while still keep as much of my current workflow as possible. I have suggestions of various builds for all of the scenarios above and can share them later since this post is long enough already.


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## burp182 (Apr 8, 2018)

If you are the registered owner of PT11, I believe you have the PC version available to you thru Avid. If I'm incorrect, the better informed among you are urged to set me straight on this. But that would allow you to continue your workflow nearly unchanged on a new platform. If Avid, in their infinite "wisdom" don't provide it for free, I would hope they'd offer a relatively inexpensive path to cross over. 
Seems worth a try.


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## allanidalen (Apr 8, 2018)

burp182 said:


> If you are the registered owner of PT11, I believe you have the PC version available to you thru Avid. If I'm incorrect, the better informed among you are urged to set me straight on this. But that would allow you to continue your workflow nearly unchanged on a new platform. If Avid, in their infinite "wisdom" don't provide it for free, I would hope they'd offer a relatively inexpensive path to cross over.
> Seems worth a try.




Ah, interesting info. Thanks for your response.
The license is not registered on my personal iLok account, unfortunately. The license actually belong to my former work. When I recently formatted my MacBook I had to sign up for a free trial for 30 days to get an install file and I don't seem to be able to download it again, nor any windows version from my Avid account.

My workplace were cool with me keeping the iLok, but since this was years ago I don't have access to their Avid account. But if you are correct then they might be able to hook me up with an install file. Otherwise I've got friends who should be able to access one from their account.

Hopefully the install file wont be a problem, so I could switch to PC. It raises one new question though. Looking at the PT11 requirements it seems like I would have to use Windows 7 or 8. I've been strongly advised to keep away from 8, is that something I should take to heart? 7 is getting pretty damn old so is it wise to use? From what I read there is no mainstream support anymore and the extended will end in 2020. Besides that, are there other known issues I might run in to regarding plugins and other applications.
I've been absent from the PC world since the XP era so any input from windows users would be incredibly helpful.


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## KEM (Apr 8, 2018)

Me personally I can’t stand Windows it’s a nightmare, really hard to navigate and it always has problems, OSX always works and auto manages files and that to me is enough to always stay on OSX, but a Hackintosh is a great idea, I’ve been thinking about it myself. You can have a really powerful computer with a great operating system, best of both worlds.


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## dzilizzi (Apr 8, 2018)

I actually didn't have too much problems with Win 8 or 8.1 and PT 11. But you may have trouble finding it. I'm not a fan of Apple, but I know most Apple users find PC's frustrating to use 

If you are thinking of going to Hackintosh, you may want to go check out the computer discussion on Gearslutz. There are a number of guys there who have built or bought computers to use for Hackintosh and they can help you with the best specs. They are also great help if you want to build your own PC. There are at least 2 DAW computer builders who frequent the forum and give great advice.


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## Damarus (Apr 9, 2018)

Great info mentioned. Both OS's will do what you want, its more about preferences.

I don't believe I saw a budget here, but there are some things you want to keep in mind.

While a hackintosh sounds nice, it can be a nightmare and it may never be stable. I know there are a good amount of people are using them without issues, but there is that looming "what if" behind it. Cool option, but not the easiest in comparison.

iMac pro is the newest offering from Apple and would be your best out-of-the-box setup rig, and powerful enough (depending on what tier).

Custom PC is cheap, fast and fairly easy to deal with.

Take all the advice here and find the easiest option to fit your budget.


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## Killiard (Apr 9, 2018)

I’ve had this same conundrum recently. I spent a lot of time (weeks) on TonyMacx86 researching Hackintosh’s to replace my 2009 Mac Pro. 

I priced up a build through Pcpartpicker with parts I knew would work in a Hackintosh (about £1200). Installed Windows 10 to get things going...then never bothered with the Hackintosh bit. 

I may still try and install Mac drive just for giggles but actually Windows isn’t that bad and I’ve gotten used to it pretty quickly. 

I use Cubase so it makes sense to be in Windows. I use Pro tools a pretty equal amount of the time and that’s the only slight ‘meh’ thing about it all. Pro Tools doesn’t look quite as pretty on Windows. And the windows management is stupid. And by Windows I mean the edit window and mixer window. They’ll all stuck in the this general PT app window.


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## allanidalen (Apr 10, 2018)

Thanks for the info, everyone!

I've done some research on Gearslutz and TonyMacx86 and I've put together a build for a Hackintosh on pcpartpicker for about $2000 USD. My budget tops out at $2500.

Thing is, I highly doubt that my current setup with Yosemite would work on that build, so I would end up having to pay for a new DAW, unless I can get a Windows 7 or 8 system to work on it.
My plan is to dual boot on an M.2 disk and I could buy one with half the space (and half the price) if I'm only going to use one OS, which would be welcome if I have to buy a new DAW. Also, without Hackintosh in mind I can get more cores for my CPU and 128GB RAM instead of 64GB.

One more concern I've got is my Presonus mixer that uses FireWire. I'm not sure that the FireWire PCIe card is supported by the mobo I've chosen. I might have to buy a Thunderbold 3 PCIe card and use two adapters (TB3-TB2 and TB2-FW) instead, which would be about as expensive as buying a new audio interface... I'm losing my hair here.

For curiosity's sake, Killard, would you care to share your build?


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## Jeremy Spencer (Apr 10, 2018)

Just my 2 cents, but why not just save yourself some grief and go Windows 10 running PT12. If your budget is $2500, just cut back a bit on the parts and spend the remainder on PT (non subscription), and a decent, reasonably priced USB interface to get you going (ie; Steinberg UR22). Don't waste your time with old FW stuff with a shiny new PC.

I used Windows for 20+ years before jumping to Mac five years ago (slave is still PC). I love Mac, but Windows isn't as bad as some say, really.


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## Killiard (Apr 10, 2018)

I went with this...

https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/user/Killiard/saved/bj8gLk

I used the graphics card from my Mac Pro and already had all the drives except the NVMe m.2 which I bought for a boot drive.


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## Killiard (Apr 11, 2018)

Oh and my build with the coffee lake cpu only works with the Z370 motherboards, which only take 64GBs of RAM. I run a disabled tracks template in Cubase so I don’t need anymore than 64 really. 

I would avoid trying to use one drive to dual boot both OS’s though. You’ll just give yourself a world of grief. Get windows installed on a separate drive and working, then start thinking about the Hackintosh. At least then if you have trouble with the Hack drive you’ll have the windows drive to fall back on.

And really if you’re considering building a modern machine, I think you might really need to think about just letting that PT11 license die. Pro Tools 12 has some excellent new bits and pieces and if you don’t fancy buying that then maybe you could give Reaper a try? It’s free to try out for as long as you like and it’s really cheap. Learning curve can be a bit high but I know quite a few folk that use it instead of PT now.


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