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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

New 2018 MacBook Pro's and BlackMagic eGPU

Michael Lindsay said:
You are right.... if you can hold off ALWAYS hold off


Unfortunately a 2012 MacBookpro won't hit min spec for Redcine (GPU ram)... try reviewing 8k Monstro files and it is nearly useless. Also the one I am using at the moment (2013 I think) has had a few weird shut downs so I do need to change..
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I had weird shut downs on a couple of Cupertino 2.0 "BS in sexy wrapper" half-assed products including other fun stuff causing sleepless nights between larger shoots so don't expect changes in reliability dept if you decide to throw your money on a three hundred billion pile based on old glory. These products are not designed for heavy lifting and power users, regardless of the BS propaganda, they are designed to appeal to masses and clients and be sexy above all.

Throttling seems to be a new thing in Age of Idiocy so it's bazzilion gigahertz and more more more power, unless it doesn't work due to physics, because some braniacs prioritized slimness over reliability and slapped "Pro" on it. New MBP sure looks good though, so the sense in further support of incompetent posers who have evidently taken over the company really depends on whether one can live with the variables and roulette coming from a working tool, based on a switch of corporate priorities from "It just works" to "it just looks good".
 
Ben Scott said:
Apparently reports are it works..
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Yep single core i9 is faster than single core i7.

Multi-core i9(6 core) is slower than multi-core i7(4 core).

Just buy an i7 when you want to use it with software that runs on multiple cores and send apple an extra $ 1.000 so you won't feel bad.
 
Well my full spec 2017 Alienware R3 is an absolute pig of a machine to the point I'd probably take less performance if it was a better form factor and build.

Hot, heavy, awful battery life. Hate the bloody thing.
 
Mike Halper said:
Then you don't understand what the issue was.
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Well the way I understand it that it still can't run basic clock (2,9 GHz) and that it will only turbo on 1 core.
The good thing is that it won't get hotter than 97 C when running 2,8 GHz all-core and that the previous model with 4 cores is still faster when running on all cores for more than 3 minutes.
For content creators the i7 is the better choice, just transfer $ 1.000 extra to apple so you won't feel bad.
 
Where can I learn more about why multi-core i9(6 core) is slower than multi-core i7(4 core)?

As someone that doesn't have a lot of computer knowledge, this doesn't make sense to me without diving into why that is. Need to buy a new MacBook soon though.
 
Misha Engel said:
Well the way I understand it that it still can't run basic clock (2,9 GHz) and that it will only turbo on 1 core.
The good thing is that it won't get hotter than 97 C when running 2,8 GHz all-core and that the previous model with 4 cores is still faster when running on all cores for more than 3 minutes.
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No the issue that was fixed was that the computer was jumping to full turbo and having power issues doing so, which in turned caused it to drop down below base clock because of power. That issue is fixed and it now runs at base clock or higher. However, yes sometimes it will drop below base clock (throttling) due to thermal conditions. The throttling of the i9 (or even i7's) is nothing new and is not unique to Apple computers. Any thin laptop is going to have cooling/thermal issues, and there are other thin laptops on the market now that have similar throttling issues with the i9. I do wish Apple had an option for us of a thicker laptop with better cooling so there would be less throttling. Maybe one day it won't be an issue if Intel (or AMD or Apple with its own ARM CPUs) can get a handle on TDPs and smaller architecture, but right now we're kinda stuck. Buy Apple or a thin Windows laptop and deal with the throttling or buy a big thick heavy Windows laptop and get a little bit better performance because of less throttling. Personally, I can deal with the throttling as I'd rather run MacOS, and if I really need better performance I have a desktop computer I can use.

But yes, right now it probably doesn't make sense to get a MacBook Pro with an i9. By the time the thermal conditions stabilize (which doesn't take long) it's running not much faster than an i7 and in some case, yes the i7 will be faster due to better thermal conditions. i9 is known for running hot. Note that this is really for us who are rendering video. For casual users that aren't rendering video for several minutes straight or longer, or doing anything that really pushes the CPU load, the i9 probably will be faster. It depends on whether you're using it in a way that the thermals rise high enough that it won't use turbo or that throttling occurs.
 
AJ Aguirre said:
Where can I learn more about why multi-core i9(6 core) is slower than multi-core i7(4 core)?

As someone that doesn't have a lot of computer knowledge, this doesn't make sense to me without diving into why that is. Need to buy a new MacBook soon though.
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It's because the whole point of the i9 over the i7 is the higher base clock and the higher turbo. If the i9 is getting thermals that are so high that it can't go into turbo and even throttles, then the performance ends up being no better than i7.

The i7 option is 2.6GHZ with 4.3GHz turbo.
The i9 option is 2.9GHz with 4.8GHz turbo.

If the i9 temps are high enough that it won't turbo, then it's running at 2.9Ghz. The i7 on the other hand is running at 2.6GHz (when not in turbo). Not a huge difference between 2.6 and 2.9, but if the i7 turbos to 2.9 or higher, then it actually ends up running the same or faster than the i9. And if the i9 throttles to below the 2.9 base, then the i7 at 2.6 is faster also. With rendering video, it's pretty much guaranteed you'll throttle with the i9, so it's not worth it unless you want to spend the extra $300 to be able to brag about having an i9 laptop. You might even throttle with the i7 in a MacBook Pro.
 
Awesome, well that was super informative. Thanks Mike, I get it now.
 
I really feel that the answers to all our processing issues lay with Software - not more powerful Hardware. Seems as if lazy, bloated code always exceeds that next new chip. We need more elegant code which doesn't require Watson to render fucking 4K GoPro footage in realtime!
 
I was considering one of these new MacBook Pro's but Apple do seems to be dropping the ball a lot these days.

My head says, buy a PC but our business is now 100% Mac and overall our IT systems have run much more smoothly over the years since we abandoned PC's. I've also always been super impressed with apple's customer support...just try talking to anyone at Microsoft!

Assuming they have sorted these current throttling issues, I would consider either the 2.6 or 2.2 i7 models as I don't see the i9 version ever being able to run at decent speed without turning the machine into a toaster!

The DDR4 RAM move seems smart but I'm wondering if it's worth paying the extra for 32GB or whether 16GB would suffice? This laptop will be mainly used for field editing using FCP X.

The BIG let down for me is the graphics - the Radeon Pro 560X is not a fantastic option and is now relatively old tech. Surprised they didn't use one of AMD's new mobile Vega graphics cards?

Wonder why Apple passed on Intel’s other new chip: Kaby Lake G. The 65-watt Core i7-8705G or the 100-watt Core i7-8809G basically combine a custom AMD Radeon RX Vega M graphics chip and 4GB of HBM2 RAM with a quad-core Core i7. This only offers 4 cores but the graphics would have been way faster and heat would have been less of an issue.

Scott
 
Antony Newman said:
@Mike,

Random thought - you can buy adhesive pyrolytic sheets that are about 7 x Times as effective as aluminium:
https://docs-emea.rs-online.com/webdocs/1181/0900766b811810f2.pdf

Here is a link to the 2nd best : (PGS 25um)
https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/prod...3yCl7rWDQe-x1_tDnYRoCcoIQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

The PGS 17um is lighter still - and would give off 8 x the heat of an aluminium finish...

AJ
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Isn’t the CPU soldered to the board on these MacBook Pros?
 
BMD:
1. Write bloated software which requires intensive GPU power
2. Sell a GPU accelerator to fix that problem
3. Take the rest of the day off for job well done

;-)
 
Zeb B said:
BMD:
1. Write bloated software which requires intensive GPU power
2. Sell a GPU accelerator to fix that problem
3. Take the rest of the day off for job well done

;-)
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Zeb B:
1. Buy's overpriced under powered laptop with weak GPU and crappy keyboard.
2. Uses software that relies on GPU power and starts complaining.
3. Doesn't use possible solutions(eGPU) for his overpriced under powered laptop "that looks really great from a design point of view", see he can keep complaining.
 
Misha Engel said:
Zeb B:
1. Buy's overpriced under powered laptop with weak GPU and crappy keyboard.
2. Uses software that relies on GPU power and starts complaining.
3. Doesn't use possible solutions(eGPU) for his overpriced under powered laptop "that looks really great from a design point of view", see he can keep complaining.
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1. Should have known about the 'crappy keyboard" since I was integral to the Apple Design team responsible
2. Should know to expect near frozen performance editing GoPro footage after purchasing the full Studio version of software
3. Should STFU and buy the mush the Glorious Providers are offering since they know best for us

You are their target market. Bet you think Comcast is awesome as well
 
Zeb B said:
1. Should have known about the 'crappy keyboard" since I was integral to the Apple Design team responsible
2. Should know to expect near frozen performance editing GoPro footage after purchasing the full Studio version of software
3. Should STFU and buy the mush the Glorious Providers are offering since they know best for us

You are their target market. Bet you think Comcast is awesome as well
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I'm never an early adopter and try to inform myself before I try and buy, we're not rich so we always try to go for value for money.
 
Misha Engel said:
I'm never an early adopter and try to inform myself before I try and buy, we're not rich so we always try to go for value for money.
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Wow! I’ll keep that awesome advice against being so eager to jump on brand new technology and being so learned up about keyboard defects and crap code before it’s publicly known . . .
Davinci Resolve: V15
MacBook Pro: 12 years after introduction
GoPro: 16 years after introduction

Or maybe we are too impressed with expensive gadgets that don’t perform the basic tasks they are designed for. If your washing machine was designed by Apple / BMD / Comcast, it would take 6 hours and $100 to do a load of clothes. Not including the call to tech support, forum searches and the required firmware updates, which seem to randomly delete the Hot Water option when not completely crashing mid-cycle
 
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