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Mac Pro 5.1 with VW Architect 2018


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Is anyone running VW Architect 2018 Vectorworks on a 6 or 12 core Mac Pro 5.1 with 4GB graphics card?  I am single-family residential architect that primarily draws in 2D, however I am looking to do more 3D rendering mostly for kitchen design. I am currently using VW 2017 on my 2008 Mac Pro 2 x2.8 Quad Core and it works fine for 2D drawings.  I am not a big fan of the iMac (graphics card overheating, difficult to fix) as I prefer a computer that I can tinker with and upgrade on my own.   Any input on this would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks!

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Hi Robert,

 

I don't use Mac Pro, but as long as you have 64-bit Intel Core i5 (or AMD equivalent) or better processor with 4GB or more RAM

OpenGL 2.1 compatible graphics card with 1GB of VRAM or more Graphic Cards

(Some integrated graphics cards such as Intel Iris graphics are acceptable for simple models/drawings, but a dedicated graphics card is preferable).

Min. display resolution is 1440 x 900 or higher

and  Hard Disk has to be 10GB free disk space is required for the installation. 30GB or more is required for a full installation with all libraries.

 

you'll be okay. I used Imac 2012, 3.1GhHZ inter Corei7 with 16GB DDR3 memory for VW2018 and for a simple 3D kitchen rendering working extremely well. However, when it's a bit complex, the VW program will become slower than usual and take quite a time to render as well.

 

Hope this help

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As far as I know still many people use these cMac Pros from 2012.

These can be at least as good as my nMac Pro 2013, which is

Apples current Mac Pro offer :P

 

At the Moment I use my old cMac Pro 2.1 from 2007 with VW 2015

and it still works decent for not too complex projects.

The only thing that keeps me from installing VW 2018 on it is that

it can run max OSX 10.7.5 and VW >2016 refuses to install there

and a very weak GPU.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi - I use an upgraded 2009 Mac pro, basic specs as screenshot below.

 

It seems to cope fine. 99% of issues I have running 2018 seem to be software rather than hardware related.

 

I think you should be fine ... happy to answer any specific questions if you like.

5ab968dfdcdc3_ScreenShot2018-03-26at22_40_03.thumb.jpg.679ba84c1409fa0e9eb9ed3af8194dc1.jpg

Edited by line-weight
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  • 1 month later...

I use my 2010- 5,1-6 core cMac Pro for product design and retail display development. My cMP has been updated with a 3.46 mhz processor and 1tb SSD on a pci card.The gpu has been updated to a mac edition EVGA 680 but I understand that there are other GPUs availible that can be flashed to work. My set uo works great for Vectorworks 2018. I also run VW on an old IMac at my office which I runthe same files on their system. VW is very efficient and I have not noted major issues with either set up. However when the 3D files get big with lots of lights and hundreds of symbols or glass the screen redraws are sloooow. Even though both systems work I dont use or turn on any of the advanced rendering features. It’s just not time efficient in a fast paced work environment.  In addition the non Apple updates can be problematic when running updates to the OS. So I am preparing to update to a IMac Pro and just use my cMac as a backup incase of  equipment failures. Time is always short and when I am working I need fast screen redraws and you will never get that with an vintage mac of any kind.

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