Members Billster Posted October 14, 2008 Members Share Posted October 14, 2008 So if I upgrade the computer, I have to get a new audio interface? GAAAAHHHH!!!! Looks like I'll grab a previous generation on closeout. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members spokenward Posted October 14, 2008 Members Share Posted October 14, 2008 You might want to check it out before you buy. There was a controversy about the firewire chipset that they recently adopted. You might be better off with an ExpressCard solution that works with your preferred interface. So a better question is where will the eSATA go then? :poke: I can't understand why they left that out. I don't see any FireWire on the MacBook??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members amplayer Posted October 14, 2008 Members Share Posted October 14, 2008 So if I upgrade the computer, I have to get a new audio interface? GAAAAHHHH!!!! Looks like I'll grab a previous generation on closeout. Are FW800 interfaces backwardly incompatible with FW400 devices. I thought they were backward compatible, but I could be wrong. It's hard to imagine Apple would be willing to alienate all the people with FW400 devices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ed A. Posted October 14, 2008 Members Share Posted October 14, 2008 You're right. According to Apple, there is an adapter so you can use FW400 devices with the backward-compatible FW800 port. That's an inconvenience, but what really annoys me is that there is no matte screen available on both the MacBook Pro and Macbook (which, BTW, has NO FW port now). There is only the glossy screen, which drives videographers (including me), photographers and graphics people nuts. There is also no BluRay drive. Not even one for playback, let alone recording. So I can't distribute any high def projects I do unless I get an external BluRay drive. Also, the price points stay the same. There was rumor that Apple would drop prices to be more competitive with other companies, and even that didn't happen. I'm not upgrading my old MacBook Pro anytime soon if this is all they have. Very disappointing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bp Posted October 14, 2008 Members Share Posted October 14, 2008 Just use an 800 to 400 cable. No 17" model?? When it's announced I hope they have the good sense to have an eSATA connection on it. Time to check out the refurbs if you want the older laptops. Some good deals may be available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Billster Posted October 14, 2008 Author Members Share Posted October 14, 2008 The thing with the 800 to 400 adapter is that I use an FW800 external drive, so the bus gets crowded. I didn't notice the lack of matte screen. Those glossy screens are horrible for general purpose, not even considering graphic arts work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mewithoutlouie Posted October 14, 2008 Members Share Posted October 14, 2008 no firewire on the macbooks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted October 14, 2008 Share Posted October 14, 2008 Maybe I'm missing something, but it looks to me like they did lower the entry price - from $1,099 to $999. But the lack of a firewire port on the MacBooks is a deal breaker for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author MikeRivers Posted October 14, 2008 CMS Author Share Posted October 14, 2008 Are FW800 interfaces backwardly incompatible with FW400 devices. I thought they were backward compatible, but I could be wrong. It's hard to imagine Apple would be willing to alienate all the people with FW400 devices. It's supposed to be backward compatible, but you know what that means. It's backward compatible for what they test it for, and they test it for what most people use it for, which is not audio interfaces. I'll bet it works just fine with a video camera at either speed, and maybe a disk drive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members deanmass Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 Lighted KB is goodLED screen is goodDouble Video GPU's are good.. Everything comes with trade-offs. I think the Firewire 800 staying in light of USB being MUCH more popular is a plus. I hate USB for anything performance based, so I am glad they have not dumped FW all together. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Duddits Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 But the lack of a firewire port on the MacBooks is a deal breaker for me. Yeah. I guess more and more of the general pop is USB, but the lack of firewire w/o jumping up to the MBP line is a shame because it'd be nice to get a "no big deal" Apple laptop that can deal with our interfacae. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Geoff Grace Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 No SCSI either. I guess I'll stick with my Quadra. Best, Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Anderton Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 What am I supposed to do with my NuBus cards? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members STFU NOOB! Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 How is My ADB trackball supposed to work? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members blue2blue Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 I hate glossy screens. In my opinion, they're for rubes who see them in the store and think, Oh, wow, how new and shiny it looks! I've got to have one of these! Get them out in the world and they are a real annoyance... I've talked to a lot of people who regret having got one. Usually, they didn't even think about the glare before hand. And the number of people complaining is increasing, as they sell more of them. I've talked to people who say they have to pull the shades to use their glossy screened laptop indoors. How pathetic is that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dreabfly Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 I'm a very long-time Mac user ('91) and I have to say - they are pissin' me off lately. I'm getting tired of the no support for this and no support for that - and that fact that they stuff THEY sold us on not too long ago is now all stuff they don't plan on supporting anymore. And then there is the constant upgrade/money suck problem. In this last Leopard go 'round, between my studio and my video system - I ended up dropping close to $1500 on software just to keep my system running. Bollocks! If you ask me - in this economy - Apple will be either be totally threatened or do a huge 180 - especially if this economic "recession" lasts anywhere close to the 5 years some analysts are quoting. Apple has become WAY too big for their britches - mostly based on the success of the iPod and the iPhone. They got used to people having money to burn and quickly abandoned their hard-core long-time users who financed all these other low-end projects. Personally, I'm a little sick of wasting my money on them and getting very little in return. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members amplayer Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 I'm a very long-time Mac user ('91) and I have to say - they are pissin' me off lately. I'm getting tired of the no support for this and no support for that - and that fact that they stuff THEY sold us on not too long ago is now all stuff they don't plan on supporting anymore. And then there is the constant upgrade/money suck problem. In this last Leopard go 'round, between my studio and my video system - I ended up dropping close to $1500 on software just to keep my system running. Bollocks! If you ask me - in this economy - Apple will be either be totally threatened or do a huge 180 - especially if this economic "recession" lasts anywhere close to the 5 years some analysts are quoting. Apple has become WAY too big for their britches - mostly based on the success of the iPod and the iPhone. They got used to people having money to burn and quickly abandoned their hard-core long-time users who financed all these other low-end projects. Personally, I'm a little sick of wasting my money on them and getting very little in return. As a user of both PCs and Macs, I mostly agree with you. The biggest issue I have with Apple is that in the name of forward progress, they keep forcing users to abandon their older hardware and software. I have long stated that it is this policy that makes Macs way more expensive in the long run than PCs. Besides that, if you buy an Apple desktop machine, they are not upgradeable, meaning you just have to sell or give them away if you want/need to get a faster processor. In this respect, Mac desktops are just like Mac laptops. Like our 2 party political system here in the USA, we have a 2 party computer system. It's too bad there is no viable 3rd party computer candidate that audio/video companies could/would support. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Geoff Grace Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 I'm a very long-time Mac user ('91) and I have to say - they are pissin' me off lately. I'm getting tired of the no support for this and no support for that - and that fact that they stuff THEY sold us on not too long ago is now all stuff they don't plan on supporting anymore. And then there is the constant upgrade/money suck problem. In this last Leopard go 'round, between my studio and my video system - I ended up dropping close to $1500 on software just to keep my system running. Bollocks! If you ask me - in this economy - Apple will be either be totally threatened or do a huge 180 - especially if this economic "recession" lasts anywhere close to the 5 years some analysts are quoting. Apple has become WAY too big for their britches - mostly based on the success of the iPod and the iPhone. They got used to people having money to burn and quickly abandoned their hard-core long-time users who financed all these other low-end projects. Personally, I'm a little sick of wasting my money on them and getting very little in return. This reminds me of a post I made about the release of Omnisphere last month: Originally TARGET='_blank'>posted by Geoff Grace: It used to be when I wanted a new program, I went out and bought it. But with the house of cards that is the plug-in world, the process has become something akin to swallowing the spider to catch the fly. In order to use Omnisphere, I must first update my OS. If I update my OS, I must then upgrade my Pro Tools. If I upgrade my Pro Tools, I'll have to update or upgrade who knows how many of the plug-ins I use with it. And this hassle is just to use Omnisphere with a minimum requirements level computer. If I want to use Omnisphere with a recommended system, I must first buy a new computer and then upgrade ALL of my software -- not just my music applications and plug-ins. In the end, I could spend what I might buy a used OASYS for and wind up with nothing more than Omnisphere and new and improved versions of what I already have. And software is supposed to be cheaper than hardware. Well yes and no. I'm sure I'll eventually give in and do all of the above anyway, but it'll be on my terms and timetable. At that point, I'll happily spend the "VIP" $149 upgrade price to buy Omnisphere. Then, I'm sure the price will be a steal; but not before. In the meantime, have fun early adopters! Best, Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Duddits Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 Like our 2 party political system here in the USA, we have a 2 party computer system. It's too bad there is no viable 3rd party computer candidate that audio/video companies could/would support. There's Linux, but... what is it that you want to do that you can't do? What do you find lacking that another OS would add? PC and Macs have more than enough good, affordable software, and both continue to evolve, so I'm not sure what development advantage there would be for another a/v platform. 3rd party platforms (e.g. Silicon Graphics, NeXT) have tended to be nichey and expensive. If anything, current platforms provide a breeding ground for multiple DAW "political parties." Sick of the Republicans (ProTools), sick of the Democrats (Logic), you could always support your local Libertarian (Reaper). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Geoff Grace Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 As for longevity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bp Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 The 17" is now announced. No eSATANo one piece constructionSlower processors than the 15"???????????????????????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Duddits Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 The 17" is now announced. No eSATANo one piece constructionSlower processors than the 15"???????????????????????? That's not the new 17". The new 17" is delayed. That's a stopgap, an upgrade to the existing model before the new one is released in a month or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Duddits Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 I'm all for the march of progress and I don't blame anyone for moving ahead. It's just that there are a lot of extra costs in moving ahead that need to be factored in before you buy. When I bought my G4, it meant also buying a new printer and MIDI interface because Apple no longer supported serial peripherals. If I buy Omnisphere, I'll also have to buy a lot of other software and I probably should even buy a new computer as well. So the question becomes not "Is Omnisphere worth the $149 VIP upgrade price?" but "Is Omnisphere worth the $149 VIP upgrade price and the additional time and thousands of dollars it'll cost me to upgrade my entire system?" The answer for me is no; but when I'm ready to incur that cost anyway, then Omnisphere will be more than worth the $149 VIP upgrade price. Everything you say makes sense, as does the notion that Omnisphere shouldn't run on a G4. I have a feeling Omnisphere isn't all that happy on any pre-intel chip, but will put up with G5s. It's the latest greatest soft synth, and anyone buying it wants it to fully exploit their latest greatest processor. Backwards compatibility over several generations of chips would hobble it in the present and future for the sake of the past, which would be worse for their customers overall. Hardware and software always dance back and forth, egging each other on to upgrade. At any point, if you're happy, you're free to stay where you are. But if you have hardware that's several years old or older, it's reasonable to expect it to not be able to drive the latest software, making even a free software upgrade carry a potentially large cost in hardware upgrades. BTW, does everyone who owns Atmosphere qualify as a "VIP" or do you have to be, you know, an actual VIP / VIC? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nwtsnma Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 you really should have seen this coming when apple switched to cpus made by the inventor of usb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members scud133 Posted October 15, 2008 Members Share Posted October 15, 2008 ehh... you can get a better-equipped iMac now for around $800 less (faster processor, more memory, more storage, more firewire/usb ports, bigger screen)--- why even bother with a laptop? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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