Upgrading to new mac and Pro Tools 10 from LE 6.7

[Peter Morley]

Hi, It's been a while since I've been here!

I have an old and cranky G4 powerbook using Pro Tools 6.7. I've kept it away from the internet and it's been working great until recently. Now I'm getting a ridiculous amount of fan noise and it keeps falling over. The time has come to upgrade.

I'm looking to get a 27" iMac (not the most powerful one but the second most powerful) and Pro Tools 10. I have some questions.

1. It looks like I can upgrade (cross grade) for less money than the full Pro Tools 10 package. I assume that after download, at installation I will need to enter the serial number of my Digi 002 rack unit. Is that right? Would I then be able to swap out my interface for a different one (seeing as Pro Tools is now native)?

2. Will I be able to open old Pro Tools 6.7 sessions on Pro Tools 10?

3. I'm assuming that 6 or so years of computing advances means that I should no longer have problems with latency and that I should be able to route out and back in through external gear and that shouldn't be a problem for latency. Is that right?

4. Do I need a different interface? If so, why? I've read about the Focusrite interfaces having effects built in and that they have processors built in to deal with effects and pre amp modelling. However, they seem cheaper new than Digi 002s are going for on ebay second hand. What gives?

5. Will the 27" iMac be able to record 16 channels of 32 bit, 192hz audio at the drop of a hat with Pro Tools 10? Am I looking at newer software being more processor intensive?

6. Are there any pitfalls that you can think of to warn me about.

Thanks guys. I look forward to hearing from you.

Peter

[Phil O]

1. It looks like I can upgrade (cross grade) for less money than the full Pro Tools 10 package. I assume that after download, at installation I will need to enter the serial number of my Digi 002 rack unit. Is that right? Would I then be able to swap out my interface for a different one (seeing as Pro Tools is now native)?

You usually enter the serial number of the software not the interface.An iLok effectively replaces the need for an Avid interface acting as a dongle.

2. Will I be able to open old Pro Tools 6.7 sessions on Pro Tools 10?

Yes.

3. I'm assuming that 6 or so years of computing advances means that I should no longer have problems with latency and that I should be able to route out and back in through external gear and that shouldn't be a problem for latency. Is that right?

You might be able to run lower buffer settings (and thus achieve less latency) but I doubt you can eliminate it altogether. That is if you continue with an interface that uses software monitoring as against something direct from hardware

4. Do I need a different interface? If so, why? I've read about the Focusrite interfaces having effects built in and that they have processors built in to deal with effects and pre amp modelling. However, they seem cheaper new than Digi 002s are going for on ebay second hand. What gives?
Peter

002's are qualified with PT10.

5. Will the 27" iMac be able to record 16 channels of 32 bit, 192hz audio at the drop of a hat with Pro Tools 10? Am I looking at newer software being more processor intensive?Peter

I think the 002 is limited to 96K.

6. Are there any pitfalls that you can think of to warn me about.

A new machine might ship with Mountain Lion so you need to check compatibility with any third party software.

[Scope]

Not sure if your version is too old for a cross-grade, best to ask Avid.
The 002 is limited to 96K, but to be fair I have never found this to be a limitation. ( I own an 002 too! )
The iMac will eat 16 tracks and with an i7 quad core CPU, you will have plenty of power for plugins.

Be aware that PT is quite heavy on the CPU. Unlike every other sequencer, PT plugs are built around quality, not quantity.
The Mini Grand is sublime, I can play it all day. Hybrid and Xpand both offer huge sonic depth and a sense of stereo space that to my ears, is laking in Cubase and Logic.

As mentioned above, make sure you get a 10.8 compatible version.
Again, check with Avid before you buy.

[Iain_TC]

I'm in a vaguely similar situation - I've been running LE 7.3 on a Mac Pro (having changed computer a couple of years ago) and I was stuck on OS 10.5 because if I moved to OS 10.6+ then I'd have to replace my M-Box (1) interface.

Some things I'd suggest:
the iMac is due an upgrade soon, there are rumours of faster processors and Retina displays; if that is an issue to you then you might want to wait if you can;

Pro Tools 10.0 isn't qualified to work with Mountain Lion, but the recently-released 10.3 update is. You'll probably want the update;

Once you've installed PT and all your main plugins, clone the drive if you can (either via Apple's Time Machine or something like Carbon Copy Cloner) so you can revert to that if you have to later on.