Mac For It Professionals

Two years ago, Apple did the unthinkable: The company gathered a select group of prominent technology journalists at its headquarters in Cupertino and essentially apologized for leaving its most powerful computer, the Mac Pro, to die a slow death over the span of four years.

I asked a range of professionals, from developers to video producers, to get a better picture of what they want to see in the new Mac Pro and, needless to say, it's basically the exact opposite of. Mac Pro Power to change everything. Say hello to a Mac that is extreme in every way. With the greatest performance, expansion, and configurability yet, it is a system created to let a wide range of professionals push the limits of what is possible. Explore the world of Mac. Check out MacBook Pro, iMac Pro, MacBook Air, iMac, and more. Visit the Apple site to learn, buy, and get support.

In the same conversation, Apple executives also announced they were working on a new Mac Pro, which we later learned wouldn't be launching until 2019. Well, we're just about midway through 2019, and Apple still hasn't said a peep about the Mac Pro.

Is it still coming out this year? What's it gonna look like? What kind of specs can we expect from it? How much will it cost? Apple might answer some or all of these questions at WWDC next week, but what do professionals — the people who've been waiting years and will pay top dollar — really want from a new Mac Pro?

SEE ALSO: What to expect at WWDC 2019: Power features for everyone

Despite its compact size, the two biggest complaints about the current Mac Pro is that its design greatly limits performance. During the roundtable with tech journalists in 2017, Apple Senior Vice President of Software Craig Federighi said they designed themselves 'into a bit of a thermal corner.'

Everyone wants a more PC-like Mac Pro that's easily upgradeable.

The challenge with designing the Mac Pro is figuring who its users are and what they'll need. Are they developers who create apps and need tons of RAM, but maybe not as much graphics performance? Are they podcasters who rely on CPU performance? Are they video editors who need to be able to upgrade their graphics cards for more powerful ones down the line? Are they 3D animators who need to max out both the CPU and GPU for their workload?

Obviously, every professional is going to be different. But after speaking with a bunch of them, it's clear what kind of Mac Pro Apple needs to deliver to satisfy them: a more PC-like Mac Pro that's easily upgradeable.

Nobody's expecting Apple to bust out the old pre-2013 Mac Pro 'cheese grater' tower design and call it a day, but a compact computer with lots of room for expansion slots seems to be on everyone's wishlists.

Internal expansion is a must

Stephen Hackett, the co-founder of Relay FM, an independent podcast network where he also uploads his own podcast, and chronicler of Apple devices at his 512 Pixels blog, says he wants to see Apple prioritize internal expansion.

'I think it’s clear the 2013 Mac Pro’s demands of all expandability being external, over Thunderbolt, didn’t really play out,' says Hackett. 'Even Thunderbolt 3 can’t match the speed of internal connections for things like audio and video capture cards, let alone GPUs. The old Mac Pros (and the G5 towers before them) could be upgraded over time with things like additional RAM and storage. In a world where even the mighty iMac Pro is glued shut, the Mac Pro can still make a name for itself in long-term upgradability.'

Several other professionals I spoke to also echoed Hackett's hope for a Mac Pro that's got more upgradeable options.

'For me, the ideal Mac Pro would be a machine that can be purchased once and upgraded in the future, when new CPUs and GPUs become available,' says app developer Guilherme Rambo, who also frequently publishes Apple leaks on 9to5mac. 'I should also be able to add more SSD storage if I need it, at any time, by myself.'

'The Mac Pro should go in the opposite direction of all other computers Apple makes, all of which are optimized for portability, thinness and beauty,' says Rambo. 'The absolute top priority should be delivering a beefy, customizable desktop for people who need that type of power.'

'I want something between the tower Mac Pros of the past and the trashcan,' says Kenneth Bolido, who leads video production at Overclock Media for the popular technology-focused Austin Evans YouTube channel. 'Ideally we get more modularity, being able to upgrade the CPU and GPU in addition to RAM and storage.'

Another popular tech YouTuber, Jonathan Morrison, also said he wants to see more storage on the Mac Pro.

'I want multiple storage slots,' says Morrison. 'I miss that from the cheese grater Mac Pro. I'm a fan of internal storage when I can get it, especially with music production libraries being huge, so if I could get 20TB of SSD internal storage that would be amazing.'

Support for NVIDIA graphics cards

Beyond easily upgradeable components, the most-asked for feature every professional I spoke with wants is better graphics card (GPU) support. Specifically a Mac Pro that works with NVIDIA's GPUs.

While I wouldn't go as far to say the AMD discrete graphics chips in Macs are bad at all — the iMac Pro's Radeon Pro Vega GPU is a beast — NVIDIA's are considered the best in the business as they offer better performance and compatibility with a wider range of professional software.

Mashable Senior Motion Designer Malik Yusuf who's using a 2013 Mac Pro at work to animate videos told me NVIDIA support would greatly improve his workflow. 'Nearly all modern third-party 3D renderers such as Octane and Redshift for the 3D program I use, Cinema 4D, require NVIDIA cards.'

'A lot of 3D motion designers have been moving to PCs over the years as a result,' says Yusuf. 'I think I might have to eventually as well if i get more into 3D stuff.'

When asked, most video creators and animators were fine with a Mac Pro supporting the latest NVIDIA RTX 2080 GPUs, but for true workstation performance, Bolido says he thinks Apple should support even beefier NVIDIA GPUs, such as the Quadro series that starts at $4,000.

'I think it would be cool to see options for NVIDIA Quadro cards,' says Bolido. 'Especially for workflows in Davinci Resolve and other programs that can utilize graphics, having internal GPU support — especially with workstation class — would be killer.'

Beefy, but reasonably priced

We're calling it now: the new Mac Pro will be expensive. How do we know? Because the trash can Mac Pro has a hefty price tag with a starting price of $2,999 and a maxed-out configuration price of $6,599.

Also, the iMac Pro is extremely pricey, too. It starts at $4,999 and balloons up to $15,699 with every upgrade option checked off.

Sure, the new Mac Pro won't come with a 4K or 5K display, which will save you a couple of hundred or thousand dollars, but anyone who buys a new Mac Pro is probably gonna want whatever color-accurate-Retina Mac Pro Display Apple creates for it.

'I'm most excited for an Apple display,' says Morrison. He said LG's 4K and 5K displays, which are sold from Apple, are 'great, but just don't truly do it.'

Still, there's nothing stopping professionals from wishing for a Mac Pro that won't break the bank.

'Personally, for a long time I've wanted Apple to offer a viable desktop tower that isn't a $4000+ workstation,' says app and game developer Steve Troughton-Smith who's long been one of the most vocal about Apple neglecting Macs and professionals.

'What I need most is expandability, upgradeability and replaceable parts — an NVIDIA-class GPU, removable storage, and slots that let me upgrade the device to take advantage of hardware that hasn't yet been invented,' says Troughton-Smith. 'So much of what I need would be served by Apple merely putting an Intel CPU in a box and calling it a day, and it's so frustrating that they feel like they need to change the world with their design instead.'

The dream Mac Pro

Like I said, every professional is going to have an opinion on what kind of Mac Pro they'd like from Apple. Specs will vary based on each person's line of work, but the general consensus is that they should be comparable to the iMac Pro at the low-end and blow past it at the high-end.

'In terms of performance, the new Mac Pro will have steep competition from the iMac Pro, which to date is the most powerful Mac ever sold,' says Troughton-Smith. 'I have to imagine there will be overlap in both price and power between these two machines, but I think that’s fine. Some users will want the all-in-one design and will be willing to trade upgradability and expandability for that, and others won’t.'

If anything, here's a Mac Pro wishlist for what based on the conversations I had:

'Modular' design with user-replaceable components
Swappable CPU
More powerful Intel Xeon processors with at least 18-cores at the highest-end
Swappable graphics cards
NVIDIA graphics cards support
Boatload of internal storage (preferably all flash-based for insane read/write speeds)
Tons of RAM options with configurations more than iMac Pro's max 256GB
Lots of I/O ports for accessory expansion such as eGPUs
A bomb-ass new Apple display
Pricing that won't cost a fortune

Apple: If you're still open to ideas, here's a good list of features to consider for the Mac Pro.

If you are looking for good audio recording software, our blog here has listed some of the most popular and top recording software for macOS.

Known for its performance, ease of use and stability, Mac is the most preferred platform for audio and video professionals. Although a Mac comes with built-in audio recording software it cannot support high-end recordings like podcasts and music production.

The powerful macOS together with the best audio recording software will satisfy all your requirements smoothly. So without wasting any more time let’s have a look at some of our picks.

Best Audio Recording Software For macOS 2020

Here, we have listed the best bunch of sound recorder software that will work perfectly on your Mac device. You can refer to our list and choose one as per your desire.

1. WavePad

Wavepad tops our list of best audio recording software for Mac for fairly good reasons and is loaded with an array of professional features. It is a great tool if you want to edit and update your audio in a hassle-free manner.

Read More: 15 Best Free Video Player Apps For MacOS in 2020

With its huge basket of editing tools, you can cut, copy, delete, paste compress tour recordings along with pitch shifting. Apart from this it also supports various other audio effects like amplify, reverb, equalizer, and many more.

This incredible recording software for Mac you can also princess batch files and enjoy noise removal techniques. WMA, VOX, AIF, MP3 are a few of the file formats supported by WavePad.

2. Apowersoft

Suitable for both beginners and professionals Apowersoft is great audio recording software for various sorts of sounds. OCG, WAV, AAC are a few file formats supported by it.

It is an indisputable winner in creating and editing HD audio recordings and can also work seamlessly well as a CD ripper and audio converter tool. It is even capable of recording radio, VoIP calls, and streaming audio files.

It can support audio recording for up to 3 minutes in a go and allows you to download music from online music platforms. Apart from this, you can also use it to add music files to iTunes.

3. Adobe Audition

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If you are looking for multi-purpose audio recording software for your mac that can help you in recording, editing, and creating background score then there is no better option than Adobe Audition. Its high-end recording and editing capabilities make it a perfect pick for not only home users but also for digital audio stations.

Its restoration tools, audio clean-up feature, and a massive array of plug-ins make it a highly powerful tool. Use its various plug-ins to add audio effects, remove noise with precision, and much more.

A great waveform editing environment powered with audio ducking features and AI-enhanced tool is perfect for making your audio recording life easy. Its clean and convenient UI also deserves a mention.

4. Audacity

Next on our list of best sound recorder software for Mac is Audacity. It is an open-source freeware tool. In addition to expert features, it is also loaded with live recording capabilities and multi-track editing. If you want to do the audio recording in CD’S, convert various types of audio files and enjoy a hassle-free digital recording experience, then there is no better tool than Audacity.

Use it to cut, copy, paste, and track various audio tracks within seconds. FLAC, MP2, MP3, WAV, WMA, AAC are few file formats supported by this stunning Mac audio recording software.

5. GarageBand

Powered with a professional and convenient user interface, Apple GarageBand surely deserves a spot on our list of best audio recording software for mac in 2020.

Read More: 13 Best Audio Recording Software For Windows PC

It is a great tool for music enthusiasts if you want to learn online piano and guitar. Enjoy class-apart free artist lessons and instrument classes with this incredible tool. It comes as an in-built feature with every mac device and can be used by both beginners and professionals.

Use it to record and mix audio music with ease. Apart from all the features mentioned above it also supports third-party plug-in along with a 24-bit recording.

6. Record Pad

Developed by NCH Software, RecordPad is an ideal choice for all your audio recording needs. It works seamlessly with Mac devices and is fully compatible with Android, Windows, and Linux.

It is a great tool for recording music and audio files which can be saved in your hard drive as mp3 and AIFF files. You can also share your recordings with others via email. Burn your recording on CD with its built-in express burn feature and use its massive basket of editing features for noise reduction, editing silence, and equalize your audio clip.

It’s clean and convenient UI along with an easy to navigate design also deserves a fair mention. It is compatible with multiple music formats including FLAC, MP3, AAC, and WAV.

7. Ardour

If you are a musician, track editor, or a composer, then look no further, Ardour is the ultimate tool for all your audio recording and editing needs. It is highly suitable for MIDI projects and multi-track recording.

The tool is compatible with a wide range of formats and systems and adds the utmost ease to tour audio recording experience.

Time to Make a Good Choice For Yourself

The audio recording software mentioned above are some of the best available options for both beginners and professionals.

Mac For It Professionals Job

We hope that our list of best audio recorder tools for mac has been of great help to you and have been able to answer your questions around “What is the best software that you can use to record audio on your Mac device ”.