Considering Moving from Windows to Mac...

I've been a (relatively) satisfied Windows user for 25 year. But the new M3 Max machines are very appealing.

Will my DR project files "translate"? i.e., can I open an existing .drp file created on a Windows installation of DR on a Mac?

I'm running DR Studio 18.6

Thanks!

We are moving projects both ways all the time, both ways.

The only point to consider is how you store your media. There are three possibilities:

– You format your storage devices as exFAT, which both systems can read and write.
But not being journaled, it's not so safe.

– You keep your drives formatted as NTFS (which they probably are) and get an NTFS reading software for the Mac, like from Paragon.

– You format your storage as HFS+ and get the comparable software for the PC (Paragon is offering this too).

We are moving projects both ways all the time, both ways.

The only point to consider is how you store your media. There are three possibilities:

– You format your storage devices as exFAT, which both systems can read and write.
But not being journaled, it's not so safe.

– You keep your drives formatted as NTFS (which they probably are) and get an NTFS reading software for the Mac, like from Paragon.

– You format your storage as HFS+ and get the comparable software for the PC (Paragon is offering this too).

Thanks Uli - very helpful!

Just to add one point: since the path names are not identical on a PC vs Mac, you may need to re-link media.
This is normally a painless process if you are well organised.

For handling relinking, you can use a setting called Mapped Mount. It can be found in Preferences of DaVinci Resolve > Media Storage > Media Storage Locations.
You would add the location of the media on that computer and then in the Mapped Mount column, you fill in the beginning part of the differing path to the files. (You can also add the opposite on your windows so you can seamlessly plug your drive in on either and it will relink without having to relink on each system)
An Example:
You have a hard drive named "Projects" and it shows up as drive D:\ on windows. This is where your media exists.
Then on your Mac you would open or import the project and it will all be offline, before relinking, open Preferences and add the drive "Projects" to the list of Media Storage Locations. Then in the second column, type in the existing path on Windows which in this example would be D:\
Close preferences and if all worked well, all your media should come online.

So something like
D:\MyFirstProject\Media\A001C001.braw
would be automatically be translated by Resolve with the above mapping to
/Volumes/Projects/MyFirstProject/Media/A001C001.braw

You only need to do this once per drive, not per project.

Some extra info, if you want to use both your new Mac and Windows, I would take a look at the Project Server app from Blackmagic or alternatively Blackmagic Cloud service.

Hi,
I am considering a similar move for my next computer. My question though relates to the DaVinci Resolve Studio software. Will I be able to download and register the Studio version with my Windows Studio licence?

Hi,
I am considering a similar move for my next computer. My question though relates to the DaVinci Resolve Studio software. Will I be able to download and register the Studio version with my Windows Studio licence?

Yes use the same license. 2 can be active at the same time. iPad will need an in app purchase for the Studio version on the iPad though. I move between PC, Studio Max and iPad with a 2T SSD formatted exFat. Copy the project file each time after editing on any of them so that can be carried on with the next one.

As Uli said, forget exFAT. It's not reliable at all. Remember it's just an extension of FAT16/32. Just use NTFS or HFS+. NTFS read has a native support in Mac for 15 years.

exFat is fine. Remember its what most cameras use for the cards you record on for your source files. It is not for long term storage I agree. But for moving files around short term I have yet to be convinced it has issues. In my case SSD drive is formatted once project is finished. All source files are backed up from camera cards to a RAID 5 before I even start to use the SSD to go between the Studio Max, PC and iPad while editing.

Cameras use exFAT to allow read/write on every OS. The large USB keys are also formatted the same way in factory for the same reasons. Consumers would.complain about FAT32's 4 GB file size limitation.

If using exFAT be sure to format on macOS, since it is picky about cluster sizes, etc. Windows will read every exFAT drive, but a Mac won't.

Is there a bitter experience emoji?

If using exFAT be sure to format on macOS, since it is picky about cluster sizes, etc. Windows will read every exFAT drive, but a Mac won't.

Is there a bitter experience emoji?

I have formatted on Mac, Windows PC and my ATOMOS Ninja's and had no problems on any of the machines reading the other. They are all modern machines though with latest OS on all.

I've been a (relatively) satisfied Windows user for 25 year. But the new M3 Max machines are very appealing. Will my DR project files "translate"? i.e., can I open an existing .drp file created on a Windows installation of DR on a Mac?

FWIW, don't do it. I've done this in both directions over the years. Quite aside from the project format question:

GPUs available for Windows can be infinitely more powerful & customisable than anything found on a mac. Apple don't support Nvidia for staters & their AMD option prices would make your head spin. Of course all the new silicon stuff doesn't support ANY 3rd party GPUs, only their own 'system on a chip' & in terms of GPU power, I've found this to be atypical Apple hyperventilation ...

The File Format change can be a right PITA, not just for DaVinci, but for everyother app & format there. Be prepared to waste a great deal of time.

Apple's OS, everytime they force a major update, this tends to break a lot of third party tools. Not just the main apps but also items such as drivers, plugins, VIs etc. This is the complete opposite to Win & which aims for excellent backwards compatibility. Apple only really care about their stuff, not yours.

GPUs available for Windows can be infinitely more powerful & customisable than anything found on a mac. Apple don't support Nvidia for staters & their AMD option prices would make your head spin. Of course all the new silicon stuff doesn't support ANY 3rd party GPUs, only their own 'system on a chip' & in terms of GPU power, I've found this to be atypical Apple hyperventilation ...

100% agree.

Apple doesn’t sell any AMD GPUs any more, your info is slightly outdated.
And Windows is breaking your system by updates just as often. It’s very easy to stop automatic updates on either system, lean back and watch the early adopters crying.
Our Macs are still on Monterey and stable as a rock.
OTOH, if a desktop machine is OK for you, find a system integrator or a knowledgeable friend (if you are not) and get a system configured for DR under Windows. You’ll get better performance per buck (or whatever currency you use).
If you need something to lug around, get a Mac or wait until the PC world catches up. They will sooner or later.

I was a Windows only guy until I got the Studio Max when it came out. For me it was close to the price of a GPU upgrade to my PC that was not available then either. My previous issue of not being able to upgrade a Mac faded when the price of a complete Mac was about the same as a NVIDIA 3090 ( which was not available anyway ) I would not be able to upgrade that either than buying something new anyway !!

I have since upgraded my PC with a 4070Ti and for most things the PC is faster at encoding than the Mac and more versatile. Having both is great. Since got an iPad too. Not bought into the Apple way as both only have the same applications on them. Resolve, Affinity Photo 2 and Chrome for both Studio Max and iPad but also Topaz Ai ( also on the PC of course ) for the Studio Max. Nothing else Apple ecosystem is really used as the rest of the household is all Windows and Android phones.

I like the Studio Max because it is silent and can edit my GH6 10 bit files with no problems realtime. This becomes the difference between Studio Max and PC. Realtime editing on the Studio Max is fluid however the PC is much faster with Fusion titles etc probably indicating the 4070Ti is more powerful than the M1 Max by quite a bit. For a long multi font credit scroll the M1 Max will encode at around 7or 8 fps but the PC is closer to 24 a lot of the time. Combination of having both is great I would not chose have both.

10bit 4.2.2 HEVC has been supported by Intel laptops for four years. Desktops for three. That's a non issue. An I5 paired with a decent GPU will handle 8K60 in real time.

And Windows is breaking your system by updates just as often.

That's why LTSB version exist. For people like us.

My opinion on moving to Mac: viewtopic.php?f=21&t=183015&start=50#p1002821

10bit 4.2.2 HEVC has been supported by Intel laptops for four years. Desktops for three. That's a non issue. An I5 paired with a decent GPU will handle 8K60 in real time.

neither AMD or NVIDIA have HEVC 4:2:2 10bit hardware decode for any of the models. Only Intel with QS or Apple silicon M1,M2,M3 have hardware decode. My Threadripper 12 core with 4070Ti will not decode my GH6 (and that is really HEVC 10bit 4:2:0 that is supposed to have a decode) or for that matter GH5S files in Multicam. Just about plays at 60p for one track. So in this case the only appropriate GPU is an ARC from Intel.

OK, but if you had an intel laptop with quick sync and a decent GPU, your footage would play successfully? I'm assuming QS is available for some laptops?

Biggest downside of an intel laptop for Resolve is the restricted amount of VRAM for GPU processing (something the Mac with its unified memory does not suffer from). Plus, the current Intel and AMD laptops use so much energy that they are impractical for mobile computing unless you have an power source.

OK, but if you had an intel laptop with quick sync and a decent GPU, your footage would play successfully? I'm assuming QS is available for some laptops?

Biggest downside of an intel laptop for Resolve is the restricted amount of VRAM for GPU processing (something the Mac with its unified memory does not suffer from). Plus, the current Intel and AMD laptops use so much energy that they are impractical for mobile computing unless you have an power source.

Oh yes, I have a laptop with an i9-13950HX and a RTX 4080, which is a little faster than a MacBook Pro M3 Max, but only when plugged to the power. Forget DaVinci on battery for hudge tasks, it's way too slow. That's a significant disadvantage but it cost me less than $2000. No HDR screen either.

Our Macs are still on Monterey and stable as a rock.
OTOH, if a desktop machine is OK for you, find a system integrator or a knowledgeable friend (if you are not) and get a system configured for DR under Windows. You’ll get better performance per buck (or whatever currency you use).
If you need something to lug around, get a Mac or wait until the PC world catches up. They will sooner or later.

So is my system!
Dirk PEL

Apple's OS, everytime they force a major update, this tends to break a lot of third party tools. Not just the main apps but also items such as drivers, plugins, VIs etc. This is the complete opposite to Win & which aims for excellent backwards compatibility. Apple only really care about their stuff, not yours.

Apple never force major update if you not use Finalcut pro x, you can stay on old is as you want, I have different old is running fine.
Windows you cannot stop update, also if you disable on control panel, also if you change with registry the value, somewhen windows update. Today my workstation with windows 11 pro decide to upgrade and I loose the 22% of speed of processor
I just did install three weeks ago win 11, did install all software what I need on (resolve, adobe video suite premiere, media encoder, after effects and photoshop, cinema4d, cinebench, zbrush, Firefox. No more. Did all update (also if I installed from latest image from ms website) and after some reboot I did benchmark cinebench. Many times
Today I did the same many times after update and cpu bench go down from 529 to 346…
Format pc, install again all, all work fine 527 cb
Update win11 pro go down to 351.
Please don’t tell me that windows not force you. I use windows from windows 3.1, and after Seven I saw a big go down about stability and performance. Especially if I can install Linux on the same machine.


Inviato dal mio iPhone utilizzando Tapatalk

Peter, it would appear your concerns about using existing Resolve projects has been addressed. In 2004, I made the switch to PowerPC, driven by the onslaught of viruses and other Windows garbage that affected my productivity and enthusiasm for Windows. Yes, that PowerPC didn’t long with the switch to Intel processors. Intel did last for many years, until Apple’s M-series processors. Still our household enjoys the high quality screens Apple has promoted with iPads and iPhones and recently MacBook Pros displaying gorgeous video. We have the iPhones and iPads and will likely add an OLED screen when available on the iPad Pro. But our MacBooks are still Intel.

Until M3 Max was introduced. I’d say it’s a good time to take Apple more seriously in spite of its limitations and overall high costs. We have a couple of boxed high-end MacBook Pros with M3 Max to unwrap in about a week.

We’re not gamers, we’re not seduced by the thrill of installing the baddest NVIDIA GPU (only to learn every few months there’s a new definition of ‘baddest’). But we do like producing work that we hope is artistic on machines that are designed to be energy efficient while supporting gorgeous displays.

Change is inevitable but the rate of change isn’t constant. The M3 uses 3nm chips and apparently TMSC plans to release 2 or 1.5nm chips, but I’m not holding my breath. M3 Max is a lot of capability for a SOC. I suspect the next Mac Pro will used M3 Ultra. But the Mac Pro 2019 was so highly priced for the higher-end configurations, it’s blunted my financial capacity to upgrade to a better machine and what I have is working very well and will do for many years. So Apple’s pursuit of change may slow as customers are no longer replacing equipment every two years like we did in the past.

You just need to decide about your priorities and ambitions and expectations and pathways. Perhaps those elements are changing for you and align with a switch to the most recent Apple gear and the things that they offer to creatives. And if you don’t switch now, that’ll be the best decision too. Best wishes to you.

I like my current way of working in Windows with PC workstation, but it seems like Blackmagic have favored Apple, for example you can do HDR on the same screen with Apple but with Windows I have to use a Decklink card for HDR monitoring and second display for the user interface. I don't understand the favoritism to Apple. Other Windows apps are supportive of HDR enabling, media players, browsers, gaming but not Resolve Studio? Why not?

Tom, I can’t answer that and understand that it does cause some consternation. But thank you for pointing out an important advantage of the Apple platform for Resolve Studio.

Life’s not perfect though on the 10bit 6K Apple Pro Display XDR due to its small number of local dimming zones (~500) causing some image blooming, but those new MacBook Pros have over 10,000 local dimming zones so I can’t wait to compare images on a laptop that look even better than the Mac Pro. And when the iPad Pro goes to OLED in 2024, no more blooming, and I’ll use that to judge my HDR grades since I still don’t have the resources for a QD-OLED 4KTV. Maybe those hideous intensely saturated RGB stage lights will even look a little better.

I didn't say they were hideous or intensely saturated, but one thing I would point out in favor of using a Decklink card with the Windows platform is that it frees up more of that 24GB of video ram of the NVidia RTX3090 for processing instead of display, meaning that when I render out 8K HDR with NR, stabilization, and OFX it renders 300-500% faster because the Decklink is handling the chore of local graphics display, the NVidia speeds up and doesn't error out on memory full overflows.

I like my current way of working in Windows with PC workstation, but it seems like Blackmagic have favored Apple, for example you can do HDR on the same screen with Apple but with Windows I have to use a Decklink card for HDR monitoring and second display for the user interface. I don't understand the favoritism to Apple. Other Windows apps are supportive of HDR enabling, media players, browsers, gaming but not Resolve Studio? Why not?

usually is related due Os support.
Under WIndows is very difficult to have a complete controlled color chain, instead under MacOs it's easy for developer to have access to Os color control.
Me too under windows also if i can have HDR output from Gcard i should buy additional card for... and after some test on same machine under windows and under mac (it's an hackintosh computer) i understood why.

If you try to test many nle and many software with the same clips, you can see a slitly difference of hdr output, difference on color, difference of gamut.
Most of people don't be aware, and in many task like gaming and social media it's not important, but if you record signal or check with external tool, you can see.
if i reboot under MacOs the same computer, the same tools give me the exact same result.

i think that Bmd people choose for a color software to have color fidelity, and then if they can (os Related), they allow you to manage directly, or give you the ability only for external cards.

like you pointed later, the advantage of external card to output video signal it's not only the color fidelity, but the freedom of main card to be used to render instead to split resources between color, gpu render, video output and more.
I had a second computer only for 3d rendering with many different nvidia cards and i use the intel iris video card to manage display to give free nvidia to be used for 3d render (octane render) all memory avaible.

If using exFAT be sure to format on macOS, since it is picky about cluster sizes, etc. Windows will read every exFAT drive, but a Mac won't.

I have formatted on Mac, Windows PC and my ATOMOS Ninja's and had no problems on any of the machines reading the other. They are all modern machines though with latest OS on all.

My experience comes from years of teaching in a 36-computer lab where students might have every different make and configuration of computer. 99% of the time you might not see a problem. But the other 1% of the time you will be out in the field with an external drive that won't function.

safe > sorry

For handling relinking, you can use a setting called Mapped Mount. It can be found in Preferences of DaVinci Resolve > Media Storage > Media Storage Locations.
You would add the location of the media on that computer and then in the Mapped Mount column, you fill in the beginning part of the differing path to the files. (You can also add the opposite on your windows so you can seamlessly plug your drive in on either and it will relink without having to relink on each system)
An Example:
You have a hard drive named "Projects" and it shows up as drive D:\ on windows. This is where your media exists.
Then on your Mac you would open or import the project and it will all be offline, before relinking, open Preferences and add the drive "Projects" to the list of Media Storage Locations. Then in the second column, type in the existing path on Windows which in this example would be D:\
Close preferences and if all worked well, all your media should come online. I recently stumbled upon an enlightening article that delves deep into the lifespan of MacBooks, shedding light on their durability and factors influencing their longevity. Whether you're a seasoned Mac user or considering investing in one, this article https://setapp.com/how-to/how-long-do-macbooks-last provides invaluable insights into what to expect in terms of performance and longevity. Say goodbye to uncertainty and make informed decisions about your MacBook journey with this illuminating read

So something like
D:\MyFirstProject\Media\A001C001.braw
would be automatically be translated by Resolve with the above mapping to
/Volumes/Projects/MyFirstProject/Media/A001C001.braw

You only need to do this once per drive, not per project.

Some extra info, if you want to use both your new Mac and Windows, I would take a look at the Project Server app from Blackmagic or alternatively Blackmagic Cloud service.

I've tried it, but it's not working properly on my Mac.