Anyone using a Xeon (Nehalem Core i7, bla bla) Mac Pro, etc?

[Chazz]

About to put an in an order for one. I'm thinking the base 8 core unit , maybe with the ATI Radeon HD 4870 512MB (which adds US $200 over the stock NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 512MB). I've been waiting for some online reviews but have not seen anything yet.

And when I say "put in an order" I mean with our IT department, not Apple itself. We'll see if they approve it. I was approved for the last generation 8 core machine but this one (which I've been holding out for) is a fair bit more expensive.

Any experiences? Any opinions?

[Eduardo Rolon]

Intel's new architecture specifies that RAM be installed in threes for optimum performance. Therefore 3 is faster than 4 and the recommended pattern is 3, 6, 9.

[David Maudlin]

Chazz wrote:
The most startling discovery I've found in researching this is that some people are saying that putting RAM in is 3 of the slots is faster than populating all 4.

ejrolon wrote:
Intel's new architecture specifies that RAM be installed in threes for optimum performance. Therefore 3 is faster than 4 and the recommended pattern is 3, 6, 9.

I had wondered why the standard RAM (3 Gig) and upgrade option (6 Gig) on Apple's site filled 3 of the 4 slots, now I know. Thanks for the information.

David

[Anonymous]

Karl said:

"... there are extremely brief moments when I can see AC 12 use 8 cores - like for 1 to 2 seconds tops when generating a hatched, shaded elevation. (So, with 4 cores, it would 'cost' you an extra half second to second for those elevations.) Most of the time, only 1 or 2 are being used - sometimes 3+. So, at least with 12 (no idea about the future), 2 to 4 cores are adequate for ArchiCAD.

and

If AC is your main thing, then fewer faster cores may make sense..."

I would like to reopen this discussion now that it has been a month since the new MacPros have come out.

I have a 5 year old G5 PowerMac desktop, running 10.5.6 and I use ArchiCAD 12 all day, and do some rendering with Piranesi. My present machine only has one processor, so I am sure I will be thrilled with whichever new MacPro I buy. Anything will be light years faster, but I like to own my Macs for 5 years before I buy new ones.

Looking into the future, does it make sense to buy the dual 2.26 (8 core) processors or the single 2.93 quad core MacPro?

Is it likely that ArchiCAD will be using more threads in the future? I will be upgrading the RAM in any case.

Looking at the internet on other programs, there are wildly differing opinions on whether or not to pay for 2 slower processors, or one fast one, if you can't afford the next jump up. (to dual 2.66 8 core)

I would like to hear especially from people who have purchased either of the systems I am considering and have been using it for ArchiCAD.

I am also interested in whether it is really worth it to purchase the ATI Radeon as an additional video card or go with 2 of the GeForce cards (as I have 2 monitors)?

Thanks for any help and advice you can give me... I am poised to buy, but which? That is the question.javascript:emoticon(':?')

[Anonymous]

"Anything will be light years faster, but I like to own my Macs for 5 years before I buy new ones.

Looking into the future, does it make sense to buy the dual 2.26 (8 core)...."

Yes, I think so, with special consideration for the length of time you want to own this machine. Buy for the last third or quarter of your estimated system life. I think that the 8-core processor will become standard equipment in another year to two. Then 2, maybe 3 years after that, some new processor will have gained ground and displaced that. However, it sounds like at that time _you_ will still own the system you're about to buy, and will want it to last another year or so.
Conversely, imagine your situation then re: computing requirements for income production: you may have something 2 generations old. You might consider not maxing out the memory slots now, in anticipation of giving your machine a new lease on life 4 years hence.