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Where is ProTools for X ???

post #1 of 9
12/21/01 at 4:51pm
Thread Starter 
Apple has established itself as the leading platform for audio production. The biggest friend Apple has in the audio industry is digidesign, which is a division of Avid. Digidesign sells ProTools, the absolute industry standard in music production and audio for film.
There is a list of extremely important apps for professionals / consumers on the mac:

Word Processing/Presentations/Spreadsheets : Microsoft Office

Graphics Publishing : Adobe Photoshop

Audio Production: Digidesign ProTools

ect...

Now being such an important application, Digdesign hasn't said a single word on the development of ProTools for OS X. <img src="graemlins/bugeye.gif" border="0" alt="[Skeptical]" /> . I own a home studio and record on a digital workstation built around ProTools. I refuse to upgrade to OS X until ProTools has been carbonized, just as graphics professionals refuse to because there is no Photoshop for X yet.
I'm not alone on this, studios running ProTools (basically every proffessional studio with a digital hard disk recording rig) will continue to run 9.x even if future mac hardware isn't supported by it as a result of ProTools not being X-native. Any comments <img src="confused.gif" border="0">

[ 12-21-2001: Message edited by: SameOldSht ]</p>
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post #2 of 9
12/21/01 at 5:31pm
My bet is that you'll see ProTools for OSX only after we've already seen Digital Performer, Logic and Cubase for OSX. Pro Tools may be an important pro audio standard, but I don't think Digidesign is known for quick upgrades to new OS & hardware standards.

As far as I know, Pro Tools still isn't multi-processor-aware, for example.

Not only that, Digi will probably require ProTools X to use a floppy-disk-based key authorization.... I know more than one Pro Tools user who had to buy a USB floppy drive JUST to authorize their Pro Tools installation.
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post #3 of 9
12/22/01 at 4:01pm
Pro Tools X is a huge undertaking. If they could ship it will full support for Core Audio and MP I'm sure many of you would say it was worth the wait as long as the quality is what you would expect from Digi.
He's a mod so he has a few extra vBulletin privileges. That doesn't mean he should stop posting or should start acting like Digital Jesus.
- SolipsismX
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He's a mod so he has a few extra vBulletin privileges. That doesn't mean he should stop posting or should start acting like Digital Jesus.
- SolipsismX
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post #4 of 9
12/23/01 at 1:45pm
Thread Starter 
[quote]Originally posted by sizzle chest:
<strong>My bet is that you'll see ProTools for OSX only after we've already seen Digital Performer, Logic and Cubase for OSX. Pro Tools may be an important pro audio standard, but I don't think Digidesign is known for quick upgrades to new OS & hardware standards.

As far as I know, Pro Tools still isn't multi-processor-aware, for example.

Not only that, Digi will probably require ProTools X to use a floppy-disk-based key authorization.... I know more than one Pro Tools user who had to buy a USB floppy drive JUST to authorize their Pro Tools installation.</strong><hr></blockquote>

Protools is neither Altivec nor MP aware, 2 of the largest flaws in the program. Doesnt seem to have an effect on how it sells though.

I believe the audio industry is moving torwards hardware key authorization. The first we've seen of that is Wave's new plug-ins require you put a physical usb device (shaped like a key laff...) into your computer or a hub for the plug-ins to load. I think we can see this kind of thing appear in ProTools itself.
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post #5 of 9
12/23/01 at 10:07pm
I use MOTU's Digital Performer & Composer's Mosaic, & I asked MOTU when will their products be ready for os x. The general tone of the reply was that they are waiting for Apple to make the os ready for digital audio production. I questioned if their products will run in clasic mode, & they strongly suggested to stay away from classic-just run 9.x. There is also no mention of any osx plans on their website. This means I, too, will stick with 9.x for a while.

Bub
Watch it, bub.
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Watch it, bub.
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post #6 of 9
1/1/02 at 1:33pm
Thread Starter 
Yeah im not too sure OS X can handle surround sound and thats where music is going in most of these programs (5.1)

Anyone else know about the surround sound capabilities of OS X???
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post #7 of 9
1/2/02 at 8:30am
OSX's CoreAudio can process an unlimited number of floating point based channels with 2 ms latency (of cause dependent on cpu power. Downmixing x channels into 5.1 or 7.1 should be peanuts.

Regarding Protools on X, you better think mid 2003-2004.
As Protools is VERY dependent on the Digidesign hardware and uses the TDM Audio protocol there is a LOT more problems to be solved than ex. Carbon Cubase.

CoreAudio wont do shit as long as the hardware boards uses TDM!

Nuendo from steinberg probably will be the first PRO audio finishing solution on OS X, as its allready carbonised.
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post #8 of 9
1/2/02 at 9:27am
I know something about this from the horse's mouth ... I had a chat with the PT product manager (I've been an audio professional in a previous life) while in San Fran in last year ...

Me: Core Audio rules, n'est-ce pas? Why not PT for OS X?

Him: Well, there's no way a PC can deal with the throughput needed for multichannel DSP without hardware. PT won't be using Core Audio.

Reading between the lines, Digi don't like the fact that when processors get horsepower, their platform will be obsolete. However, it's true that for all the wonderful latency etc. on Core, the are H U G E problems for real-time audio DSP on OS X. Developers are having major problems, and carbonisation ain't enough. 90% of issues are solved on the platform by kick arse processing power.

And on that note, my next meeting was over in Cupertino. I won't say who I met, nor which department, nor about what. Nope, I'm going to that really fsking annoying "insider" who knows something but says too little for anyone to even make a judgement on his / her veracity.

I can say OS issues relating to audio are going to be around for a while (but if you know the issues you know that too). Other issues are getting solved on a roadmap that is very cool INDEED.
meh
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meh
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post #9 of 9
1/2/02 at 2:40pm
Digi is in serious trouble anyway, once CPU power get sufficient that people don't need TDM outboard processing power for DSP. When the el-cheapo Waves Native Power Pack runs just as well as the Waves TDM pack, Digi is looking at people buying MOTU or other interfaces. Obviously the TDM interfaces are where Digi makes all their money.

In a few years, the average gaming computer will have enough horsepower to run multiple DSP filters on every track of a 16 track recording of 24/96 audio.
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