Choose your cores: 4, 6, 8, or 12.
The new Mac Pro offers two advanced processor options from Intel. The Quad-Core Intel Xeon “Nehalem” processor is available in a single-processor, quad-core configuration at speeds up to 3.2GHz. For even greater speed and power, choose the “Westmere” series, Intel’s next-generation processor based on its latest 32-nm process technology. ”Westmere” is available in both quad-core and 6-core versions, and the Mac Pro comes with either one or two processors. Which means that you can have a 6-core Mac Pro at 3.33GHz, an 8-core system at 2.4GHz, or, to max out your performance, a 12-core system at up to 2.93GHz.
The single-die advantage.
Many multicore processors are composed of two separate dies, which means some cached data has to travel outside the processor to get from core to core. That’s an inefficient way to access information. Enter the Quad-Core and 6-Core Intel Xeon processors. Their single-die, 64-bit architecture makes 8MB or 12MB of fully shared L3 cache readily available to each of the processor cores. The result is fast access to cache data and greater application performance. Combine that with the other technological advances and you get a Mac Pro that’s up to 1.5x faster than the previous generation.
Fast memory. And lots of it.
System memory is often connected to a processor through a separate I/O controller. But Intel Xeon “Nehalem” and “Westmere” processors feature an integrated memory controller. By connecting memory directly to the processor, the new Mac Pro processors have faster access to data stored in memory, and memory latency is reduced.
The integrated memory controller, along with fast DDR3 ECC SDRAM at either 1066MHz or 1333MHz, gives Mac Pro an increase in memory bandwidth over previous generations. More bandwidth allows for more data to be fed to the processor faster, helping each core spend its time processing data, not waiting for information to arrive. And Error Correction Code (ECC) corrects single-bit errors and detects multiple-bit errors automatically. That’s especially important in mission-critical and compute-intensive environments.
Power when (and where) you need it.
The Mac Pro features Turbo Boost, a dynamic performance technology that automatically boosts the processor clock speed based on workload. If you’re using an application that doesn’t need every core, Turbo Boost increases the speed of the active ones, up to 3.33GHz on a 12-core Mac Pro, and up to 3.6GHz on a 6-core system.
Up to 24 virtual cores.
The Intel Xeon processors support Hyper-Threading, which allows two threads to run simultaneously on each core. So, for example, a 12-core Mac Pro presents 24 virtual cores that are recognized by Mac OS X. Performance is enhanced because Hyper-Threading enables the processor to take better advantage of the execution resources available in each core.
Path of least resistance.
A bidirectional, point-to-point connection - called QuickPath Interconnect - gives the Intel Xeon processors quick access to the disk, I/O, and other Mac Pro subsystems. In dual-processor Mac Pro models, there’s a QuickPath Interconnect between the two processors as well. This connection acts as a direct pipeline, so processor-to-processor data doesn’t need to travel to the I/O hub first. It’s another way the Mac Pro boosts performance across the board.
Powerfully efficient.
The Mac Pro meets the stringent low power requirements set by the EPA, giving it ENERGY STAR qualification. ENERGY STAR 5.0 sets significantly higher efficiency limits for power supplies and aggressive limits for the computer’s typical annual power consumption.2
Up to 5x faster standard graphics.
All-new high-performance graphics cards from AMD make Mac Pro graphics technology up to 5 times faster than ever before.1 Perfect for motion graphics, 3D modeling, rendering, or animation, the ATI Radeon HD 5770 with 1GB of GDDR5 memory comes standard. It not only provides faster performance compared to previous Mac Pro standard graphics cards - it’s also faster than the top-of-the-line graphics cards in the previous generation.
Give your graphics a turbo boost.
For even more graphics horsepower, upgrade to the ATI Radeon HD 5870 with 1GB of GDDR5 memory. An ideal choice for the most demanding applications, this card features a wider memory bus and higher-performance GPU, resulting in up to 70 percent faster performance compared with the ATI Radeon HD 5770.2
Don’t keep those pixels waiting.
The foundation of the Mac Pro graphics architecture is the latest generation of GPUs connected to the system via a fast and wide PCI Express 2.0 16-lane bus. Couple that with Core Animation, Core Image, and Core Video technologies in Mac OS X Snow Leopard. The result is a graphics platform that allows applications to seamlessly tap into a teraflop of graphics power.
Graphics on display.
Every new Mac Pro graphics card features three display ports for maximum workspace flexibility. Two Mini DisplayPort outputs connect to a pair of Apple LED Cinema Displays with ease. And a dual-link DVI port connects a 30-inch Apple Cinema HD Display or other DVI display. And with support for two ATI Radeon HD 5770 cards in the Mac Pro, you can connect more displays - up to six total.
Massive storage.
The Mac Pro comes with four 3.5-inch drive bays for an enormous amount of internal storage - up to 8TB when you install four 2TB Serial ATA 3Gb/s drives.1 Each bay provides its own independent 3Gb/s channel for fast access to data. And thanks to the cable-free, direct-attach installation system, adding (or replacing) hard drives is a surprisingly simple process.
Choose solid-state for ultimate performance.
New to the Mac Pro is the option to add up to four 512GB solid-state drives - or any combination of solid-state and hard drives.2 Solid-state drives have no moving parts and are capable of accessing data at speeds up to 230MB per second, which is up to twice the speed of hard drives. The result? Incredible performance on a range of data-intensive tasks, including up to 2x faster ProRes video encoding using solid-state drives compared with hard drives.3
Ready to RAID
For data protection and enhanced SATA hard drive performance, add the Mac Pro RAID Card with 512MB of RAID cache, a 72-hour cache-protecting battery, and hardware RAID levels 0, 1, 5, and 0+1.2 A cableless connection and intuitive Apple software make it a snap to install this optional card. It’s the perfect solution for workgroup servers, video pros working with high-bit-rate assets, or anyone who wants to protect critical data.
Even without a RAID card, Mac OS X lets you stripe two, three, or all four drives - either solid-state or hard drives - in a RAID 0 array to increase performance and create a massive volume for tasks such as video editing; or create a RAID 1 mirror to protect digital media assets from a drive failure.
Double-layer burner times two.
Sure it’s great to have one 18x SuperDrive at your disposal, but think how much more productive you could be if you add a second optional SuperDrive. Imagine backing up your data to two double-layer DVDs at once. Or burning Aperture projects to one DVD, while importing music from a CD into your iTunes library. With two optical drive bays in every system, the Mac Pro lets you do exactly that.
UNIX compliant.
What makes Mac OS X a powerful operating system is the technology behind it: a fully certified UNIX foundation. With a rock-solid UNIX infrastructure, it’s one of the most secure and stable operating systems on any platform. Developers will appreciate Mac OS X even more because it’s fully UNIX compliant. That means it compiles and runs all your existing UNIX code, so you can deploy it in environments that demand full conformance. The result: Software performs exactly as it’s meant to. And because the powerful tools built into Mac OS X improve application performance on multicore processors, the new Mac Pro is the ideal workstation.
64-bit power.
Mac OS X is to the new Mac Pro what a skilled driver is to a car with a powerful engine - a perfect match. Since the Mac Pro runs Mac OS X in 64-bit mode, you can take full advantage of the 64-bit architecture of the Intel Xeon processors inside your new Mac Pro. Add to that the 32GB of memory available for the Mac Pro, and Mac OS X performance is even better than before. Mac OS X also enables developers to build complete 64-bit applications using the Cocoa, Quartz, OpenGL, and X11 GUI frameworks. And because Mac OS X supports 64-bit and 32-bit applications, you don’t need a new set of devices or drivers.
Multicore. Multitask.
At the heart of the new Mac Pro are one or two quad-core or 6-core Intel Xeon processors with an incredible amount of processing power. Optimized for multicore technology, Mac OS X provides powerful tools that make it easy to reap the benefits of the Mac Pro. The scheduler in Mac OS X, for instance, is very efficient at allocating tasks across multiple cores and processors. So Mac OS X spends less time managing tasks and more time performing computations. As a developer, you can build applications that execute with the same efficiency, thanks to NSOperation, a breakthrough API that optimizes applications for multicore processing.
Core Animation.
From the cascading windows of Time Machine to the smooth animation of the reflective 3D Dock, stunning visual effects truly set Mac OS X apart. Behind all that beauty is a technology built into Mac OS X called Core Animation. The performance of Core Animation benefits from the multicore processors and advanced graphics hardware in the new Mac Pro. For developers, Core Animation easily opens up the power of Apple’s graphics technologies. You can create animated user interfaces and visualizations that simultaneously layer different media types, such as text, 2D graphics, OpenGL rendering, and QuickTime video, all in real time.
Xcode developer tools.
Xcode is the graphical development environment that comes with every Mac. It’s the same software used by Apple to produce Mac OS X, and it’s packed with tools and features, including a powerful graphical debugger, a code editor supporting dozens of languages, and the amazing Instruments tool to visualize your application’s performance. Xcode is optimized to take advantage of the multicore Intel Xeon processors and system memory in the Mac Pro. It works fast, supports multiple languages (both computer and human), and offers developers everything they need to make stunning Mac OS X applications.
Voilà. Instant server.
The multitalented Mac Pro can also act as a powerful small-workgroup server. Just add Mac OS X Server. The resulting solution combines Mac ease of use with flexible configuration options and server-class hardware. With multicore Intel Xeon processing power, up to 32GB of ECC memory, an optional RAID card, and dual Gigabit Ethernet ports, a Mac Pro workgroup server has everything you need - and then some.
1. Testing conducted by Apple in July 2010 using preproduction Mac Pro 12-core 2.93GHz units and shipping Mac Pro 8-core 2.93GHz units, all configured with 6GB of RAM. Based on render performance of Maxwell Render 2.0.3 using Benchwell's sculpture.mxs. Performance tests are conducted using specific computer systems and reflect the approximate performance of Mac Pro.
2. Mac Pro systems configured with a Fibre Channel card do not meet ENERGY STAR requirements.