Upgrade RAM or new MBP for video streaming?

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Hi,
I'm using an early 2011 MBP for YouTube Live video streaming, and it's taxing my CPU. I'm wondering if upgrading my RAM from 8GB to 16GB will help, or if I should just spring for a new i7 quad-core MBP. I also have a hybrid internal HDD. Thanks!
 

pigoo3

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I have two 2011 MacBook Pro's (one of them has 4gig of ram)...and I have no trouble streaming You-Tube videos.:)

Taxing the cpu and/or gpu...is just what internet videos do.:) I don't think that a ram upgrade or spending $1000+ for a new computer to "better" stream You Tube videos is the solution.

- Nick
 

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Nick, you misread what he said. He's not watching videos, he's broadcasting!

Ahh…ok. If the OP is broadcasting video…that's certainly a different situation.

- Nick
 
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Yep, I'm sending it out, not getting it in. So, any ideas on what I need to have good, smooth webcasting?

I'm currently using an old Canon SD tape camera that has FireWire output, but hope to move to an HD camera soon - probably using BlackMagic device to capture HDMI video out from an HD Canon camcorder and feed this into my MBP. Thanks!
 

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Yep, I'm sending it out, not getting it in. So, any ideas on what I need to have good, smooth webcasting?

Can give us the exact specs on your 2011 MacBook Pro? I know that you said it has 8gig of ram and a hybrid HD…but that was about it.;)

- Nick
 
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Yes - sorry -

13"
Model Identifier 8,1
Intel Dual-Core i5, 2.3 GHz
L2 Cache per core: 256 KB
L3 Cache: 3MB
Intel HD Graphics 3000 512MB
Running OS X 10.9.5
512GB Hybrid internal HDD
Memory is DDR3 1333, 2 x 4 GB in two slots
Max memory per Apple is 8 GB
Max memory per 3rd parties is 16 GB

Hope this helps - What other specs would be useful?

Thanks
 

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I'm not a live video broadcasting expert. But if this activity takes a lot of computer horsepower…this one spec in your MacBook Pro that I would call the "weakest link" is the Intel HD 3000 video hardware.

Since this MBP model was released there has been:

- Intel HD 4000 graphics
- Intel HD 5000 graphics
- Intel Iris graphics

These are all integrated graphics. For the best graphics performance…dedicated graphics is usually the way to go.

If you got to have a laptop computer…currently…only the top end 15" MacBook Pro has dedicated graphics hardware ($2499). But with this being said…the integrated Iris graphics offered in the other MacBook Pro's is supposed to have some pretty darn good performance.

This all assumes that what you are doing (live video broadcasting)…relies heavily on the computers graphics hardware.

I think that one other thing that may help us to help you is…let us know what applications you are using for the video broadcasting?

- Nick
 

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By the way (just in case you are able to use a desktop computer for what you are doing). The lowest cost Apple computer with dedicated graphics hardware would the top-end 21.5" iMac @$1499. Which also has a quad-core i5 cpu.

- Nick
 
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Hi,

I'm currently using UStream, but hope to switch over to YouTube Live soon. With YouTube Live, I'll be using Wirecast as the encoding software.

It's UStream that's saying that I'm maxing out my CPU - the program interface has a little Usage % figure that turns very red when it gets above 85% or so.

Thanks for the iMac suggestion - unfortunately, I have to use a laptop because of the location.

Thanks again,

Tim
 
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chas_m

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Isn't Ustream flash-based? If so, that could well be the culprit right there. Make sure your Flash is up-to-date.
 
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Chas - Good catch!

I thought I had set to auto-update, but I just checked manually and found an update.

Still, would more memory help with this kind of work, or is it more dependent on the graphics processor and the number of cores in the CPU?

Thanks for all your time and thoughts,

Tim
 

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I thought I had set to auto-update, but I just checked manually and found an update.

Still, would more memory help with this kind of work, or is it more dependent on the graphics processor and the number of cores in the CPU?

Why not install the update first…and see if it helps.:)

Also…even though I am not a video broadcasting expert. If I was doing what you are doing (a pretty specific task that not many folks do). Like any topic on the internet…there has got to be a "topic specific" forum for this sort of thing. Or…visit the "UStream" website…and see what they say.:)

Just some thoughts,

- Nick
 
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I've installed the update, and am doing a UStream webcast tomorrow, so we'll see how it goes.

Couldn't find any information on the UStream forum, but will look again.

Thanks,

Tim
 
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chas_m

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Still, would more memory help with this kind of work, or is it more dependent on the graphics processor and the number of cores in the CPU?

Yes. :)

If you're dependent on Flash, then I'd say more CPU horsepower is primary, followed by graphics, followed by RAM. Flash is woefully unoptimized for OS X.

Other streaming systems would probably tax the graphics card more, since OS X and some other software (like Boinx for example) offload a lot of the processing formerly handled by the CPU to the GPU.

Bottom line is that video webcasting on a high-quality level is a computer-intensive activity and needs a pro-class machine with a lot of all three, like the MacBook Pro, the iMac or the Mac Pro.
 
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Did UStream webcast today, with no overtaxing of the CPU. I think that updating Flash did the trick!

Thanks guys - you saved me a bundle of money and improved the quality of a live Buddhist webcast!

Tim
 

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Congrats! The low-cost (or no cost) fixes are always the best ones!!!:)

- Nick
 

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