Hot on the heels of yesterday’s Apple Mac Pro announcement, Digidesign has announced today they expect to release an Intel Mac-compatible version of Pro Tools HD 7.2 in September. Pro Tools LE and M-Powered are already available as Universal binaries for use with Intel Macs. The HD version lagged behind the lower-end releases because it requires a TDM card to operate, and the Mac Pro is the first machine from Apple with both an Intel chip and a PCI Express slot.
As for using LE and M-Powered with a Mac Pro, theoretically, you should be able to do that already. Digidesign has given it a shot:
Based on preliminary testing, Digidesign is also expecting that the current version 7.1.1 of Pro Tools LE and Pro Tools M-Powered software (already compatible with Apple’s existing range of Intel-based computers such as MacBook, MacBook Pro, Mac Mini and iMac) will function on the new Mac Pro without problems.
Official qualification for LE and M-Powered won’t come until the last quarter of the year, says Digidesign. That’s typical given Digidesign’s testing process; I expect some Mac Pro users will go ahead and take the leap. And, of course, there’s already broad Intel Mac support for audio hardware from M-Audio, Edirol, MOTU, and many others, plus support for software from Ableton, Apple, Propellerheads, and others. Mostly what we’re missing at this point is final support for Native Instruments products, Max/MSP/Jitter, and many plug-ins.
Note: while it’s not part of the official certification process, Digidesign does recommend that you equip your studio with lava lamps for maximum performance, as illustrated here.