The new Mac Pro: how many cores would one need when using 50-200 instances of Kontakt?

Steinberg Lounge
#1

Like the title says :smiley:

The new Mac Pro has arrived and I’m wondering what a futureproof (5 years minimum) config would be when using it with Cubase.
Most of the time, my track count is around 50-150 tracks. 200 tracks would be rare, but I want to have the headroom. I’m using Kontakt, Omnisphere and lots of modern plugins on inserts.

Anybody care to make an educated guess on what kind of configuration would be ideal? 8 core? 12 core? 16 core?

What amount of memory would be ideal? 32gb Would be an absolute minimum for me.

#2

In your setup, what looks kind off over processing on tracks (i use 16 tracks max).
You need lots lots lots op processors speed and cores!

#3

First of all Cubase is not compatible with the intel Xeon cpu in the new Mac Pro and the i9 cpu in the new MacBook Pro. Steinberg will not inform you of these things. You have to find out by yourself. Be very careful when buying new Mac computers to work specifically with Steinberg products. You need to make sure they’re compatible. It’s not like Logic Pro X which works with every new mac and performs better in some aspects, the more powerful the computer.

Actually Steinberg should put that information on their website. Because some people will simply buy a new Mac and take it home only to find out that it’s not compatible. Like in 2012 MBP Retina was not compatible. Now in 2019 it’s the CPUs in the new Mac computers.

Cubase is compatible with the 2018 Mac Pro, i7 CPU, about 50-100 instances of Kontakt but don’t expect the performance to double if you upgrade to a top of the line Mac Pro. Cubase is not programmed that way.

#4

Interesting.
I want to know if i can buy a mac pro 12 core 2019 and will it be a nice upgrade?

#5

Is there list of supported processors somwhere? How long does it typically take for processor compatibility to be added?

#6

They have a minimum system’s requirements page which recommends an i5 cpu or faster. But if you do a bit of research / google search. There are many links to this forum about customers who purchased Mac and Windows computers with intel i9 and
Xeon CPUs that don’t work with Cubase.

#7

AP - what specific information do you have that led you to the conclusion that Cubase is not compatible with the Intel Xeon CPU?

I spoke with Steinberg technical associates on three occasions to address this question. All three times, they informed me that there are several clients using Xeon processors to run Cubase without issue - and that they have not heard of any Xeon compatibility issues. i9 yes, Xeon no.

#8

Here’s one post:

https://www.steinberg.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=146287#p787181


But after doing a bit more research I saw this post:

https://www.steinberg.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=157498#p846669

This Cubase user is using a dual Xeon 6 core CPU computer but he’s not getting a major performance boost…

#9

It’s quite common to use Cubase with a Xeon processor. I do and have never had any problems. I see AP posted a couple of links, but I don’t see anything in those links that indicates any incompatibility.

#10

This post is specifically about the new Mac Pro which has only been out for about 1 month.
The Xeon CPUs range from 8-12-16-24-28 core.

Not the same as a PC or an older Mac Pro.

https://www.steinberg.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=283&t=160419

#11

The 2019 MacPro started shipping only 2 days ago. It hard to believe anybody has even tried Cubase on it yet, let alone reported anything about how well it works. The last post in the discussion you’ve linked is 7 months old, so it couldn’t possibly have any news on the 2019 Mac Pro.

The question AmbientPro asked is: “what specific information do you have that led you to the conclusion that Cubase is not compatible with the Intel Xeon CPU?”. I’d be curious to know the answer to that as well.

#12

The information that I’ve posted can be verified with some google search.

It’s a fact that the more cores will result in better performance for Logic Pro X and degraded performance for Cubase Pro…

As for the Mac Pro it’s been in the Apple Store app for many weeks and available for purchase and the CPU is a Xeon W.

Merry Christmas

#13

We’re already clear that you feel there is some kind of incompatibility between Cubase and the Intel Xeon processor, so there’s no need to repeat that. Our question is: Can you cite any references to prove that? The links you posted above make no mention of any such incompatibility. I use both Logic and Cubase with a Xeon processor and I can tell you there is no difference in the performance between the two.

P.S. Apple only started selling the 2019 MacPro on tuesday. It was in the news this past week everywhere. For example:

https://time.com/5748146/apple-desktop-mac-pro-cost/
https://www.anandtech.com/show/15218/apples-2019-mac-pro-tower-now-available
https://www.pcmag.com/news/372457/apples-new-mac-pro-costs-53-000-when-you-max-out-the-specs

#14

I hope somebody gets around to answering the question :mrgreen:

Anybody want to make an educated guess as to how many cores would be optimal?

#15

while on steinbergs FAQ page is written: better less cores with higher speed than more cores with less speed.
That was my experience with a 12core 5.1 mac pro as well. logic was very much better in handling more cores. we had a big topic for that in this forum. the end result was just: yep: a 12 core performs worse than 6 cores with higher speed.

now… a few versions of cubase later … check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=44&v=-qzJUxcBzsE&feature=emb_logo

It seems the mac pro 16 core can handle many tracks very good now and is able to equally use all cores instead of overheating only the first one.

Im looking forward for some more tests or a statement form steinberg

#16

I am interested in this as well as the iMac pro, which is probably due for a refresh in 2020.

#17

Regarding Xeon incompatibilities: I’ve been running Cubase on my 2013 6-Core Xeon Mac Pro since Cubase Pro 8 with no issues. I also ran Cubase Pro 9.5 and 10 in windows 10 (1803) bootcamp on the same Mac also without issues. It’s normal to have incompatibilities right after initial launches, that doesn’t mean it will last throughout the product’s lifetime.

#18

Sorry for bumping this thread. is it true that cubase is not compatible with the i9 in the new macbook pro? that would help me a great deal deciding between i7 vs i9 :partying_face: i cant seem to find any other source underlining this though…

#19

Hi,
This 16” 6 core, i7 MBP hardware configuration is working for this user:

https://www.steinberg.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=283&t=176572

#20

Thanks… pretty sure the i9 is fine too. Thats user wrote nonsense.