I'm rather bummed

LizardKing

New member
I was two seconds away from pulling the trigger on
Mackie 1220i
Mackie Control Universe
iMAC 27inch
Logic Pro X

All the rest of the gear I have from years of VS recording in my home studio.

I look over the specs on the Apple product and find that both the iMAC and MAC Pro only have USB3 and Thunderbolt cable ports. No longer do they have Firewire.

They have FireWire to Thunderbird adapters, but using an adapter on music production is a bad idea. Those adapters get very low ratings online because they don't seem to work worth a damn.

Now what the heck do I do. I want to stick with MAC since "It just works" and not be dogged down with a PC constantly trying to upgrade. The outboard gear manufacturers are slow at producing Thunderbolt ports, so I'm kinda in a holding pattern.

Any Thoughs?
 
They have FireWire to Thunderbird adapters, but using an adapter on music production is a bad idea. Those adapters get very low ratings online because they don't seem to work worth a damn.

The only possible drawback I'm aware of is in power supply limitations.
If your interface is mains powered, you're golden. :)

It's not some dodgy aftermarket conversion or anything like that...
Thunderbolt hubs break out to hdmi, firewire, usb etc. That's kinda what thunderbolt is all about.

Here's one reference from a manufacturer.

That said, I'd just get an '09 2.93(8core) or a '10 12 core model. ;)
You'll save a bundle and have firewire.
 
How helpful.

I thought it was helpful.

Someone complains about a product, then states another product is worse because of the reason they are complaining about. The point was, maybe it is time to change for him to change his logic. I thought that was helpful.
 
I thought it was helpful.

Someone complains about a product, then states another product is worse because of the reason they are complaining about. The point was, maybe it is time to change for him to change his logic. I thought that was helpful.

Hmm..I'm not sure you understood the OP.
 
I can't imagine any reason that a Thunderbolt to FireWire adapter wouldn't work just fine. It's just a Thunderbolt to PCI bridge and a Firewire controller, which shouldn't be substantially different than having it on the motherboard.

Some people have complained about insufficient power for some bus-powered devices on some machines, so it might be a good idea not to use a bus-powered interface. (This is probably caused by devices that don't comply with the stricter inrush specs introduced in FireWire 800, but I can't be certain.)

The biggest complaint seems to be people who think it can make a Thunderbolt hard drive work with a FireWire-only computer (it can't, because the TB hard drives don't know how to control a FireWire chip).
 
Adapters are one concern, but another issue cropped up. Only a small group of control and audio interface folks has complied to Yosemite 10.10. Mackie is dragging the rear ends making new drivers. I may just have to get the iMAC and store it until Mackie catches up.
 
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Adapters are one concern

Honestly, I don't think they are.
Someone will correct me if I'm wrong, I'm sure, but having firewire broken-out from thunderbolt shouldn't be any different than having it right there on the motherboard. The computer still sees the same path and chain of events.

Only a small group of control and audio interface folks has complied to Yosemite 10.10. Mackie is dragging the rear ends making new drivers. I may just have to get the iMAC and store it until Mackie catches up.

Do you need Yosemite? Just installed Mavericks (which is free), or any other OS X you can lay your hand to. :)

the older mac pros have firewire inputs...just get one of them

If you're convinced thunderbolt 'adapters' and Yosemite are a problem then, yeah, and older mac pro would still kick ass.
I think I listed my specs earlier in this thread.

Just be very aware that they aren't all made the same. An '08 8 core will get trounced by a macbook air or something equally silly.
An '09 8 core is still a beast. ;)
 
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