New hardware

[slowtiger]

So finally I had the money for a new Mac. It's a Mac Mini M2pro, and it's so light that the cables pull it from the table. Have connected my new Cintiq, installed Moho 14 and TVP 11.7, I'm up and running again. For all this money I expect the hardware to run for 20 years. And why not? My oldest Mac and my first Cintiq are from 2006 and still working (running wuldn't be correct). In 20 yrs I will be 81, let's see which of us runs longer ...

[mikdog]

That's good value from your equipment!
Pleased to hear you're still using Moho - am curious how or if you use it in conjunction with TVPaint?

[slowtiger]

It's still the same workflow as 10 yrs ago!

I do all FBF work and BGs in TVP. Most scenes are rendered from TVP and go to FinalCut. Those with camera movements get exported in bits, like BG, Character 1 (on transparent) Character 2 and so on, and get assembled in Moho. I also do this with scenes where the timing isn't final yet so I can easily shift around stuff. A typical result is this: https://vimeo.com/683946372


2 yrs ago I had a too large project and had to whip up a solution fast. It was very dialogue-heavy, (talking heads), so I used Moho's automatic lip sync (the simple one, opening a mouth by volume). In one story I did head turn bits in TVP and out them into smart bone-controlled switch layers. In another I designed the heads directly in Moho, getting smooth head turns and stuff. Worked out pretty well although it was the first time I used this.

Last year I prepared a setup for "endless zoom" - not really a zoom but a camera tracking along Z. I used it extensively for my music videos. I wrote about it (with links) here: viewtopic.php?t=15645

[mikdog]

It's still the same workflow as 10 yrs ago!

I do all FBF work and BGs in TVP. Most scenes are rendered from TVP and go to FinalCut. Those with camera movements get exported in bits, like BG, Character 1 (on transparent) Character 2 and so on, and get assembled in Moho. I also do this with scenes where the timing isn't final yet so I can easily shift around stuff. A typical result is this: https://vimeo.com/683946372


2 yrs ago I had a too large project and had to whip up a solution fast. It was very dialogue-heavy, (talking heads), so I used Moho's automatic lip sync (the simple one, opening a mouth by volume). In one story I did head turn bits in TVP and out them into smart bone-controlled switch layers. In another I designed the heads directly in Moho, getting smooth head turns and stuff. Worked out pretty well although it was the first time I used this.

Last year I prepared a setup for "endless zoom" - not really a zoom but a camera tracking along Z. I used it extensively for my music videos. I wrote about it (with links) here: viewtopic.php?t=15645

Ah cool! I love that animation you posted!! So rad.
I have a question please - I'm also considering a Mac Mini M2 setup with my Wacom Cintiq. How's it working for you? I'm using a Macbook Pro 16" 2019 Intel and the CTG colouring is a liiiiiittle bit slow and painful. I'm hoping a Mac Mini will speed up this process significantly, but no idea where I'd find this out. Your thread came to mind to ask.
Thank you.

[slowtiger]

I must confess I didn't use the new machine for anything serious yet, since my old setup (Mac Pro 2006) behaves again, after frankensteining the GPU. But now I ordered the Wacom stand (they only sell it separately now for a whopping 500 to 650 € here), I found a used one for 400 €, this may change my reluctance.

The Mac mini is very fast. Keep in mind that the M2 only has 2 USB jacks, but the M2 Pro has 6 of them, which was the reason I chose that.

[mikdog]

Thanks for the input. Yeh, I think it's the amount of jacks that'd make me choose the M2 Pro. They seem to be sold out here in South Africa but I'll keep an eye out. Deciding whether to wait for the M4 Mac Mini but apparently might not be a huge upgrade, maybe patching a security flaw. Any idea if your M2 Pro works well with TVPaint 11? I'm hoping it speeds up the live preview of working with CTG layers, I have to wait a second or two every time I add a stroke to a CTG layer as it calculates what's happening and would love to know if the silicone chip speeds that up.

Re Wacom stand, I'm using a Cintiq 22" HD from a couple of years ago. I didn't like the desk stand the Wacom came with, I ended up hurting my back a lot, so I got an Ergotron LX arm years ago and it's been fantastic, still using it (and the Wacom) today. Very sturdy, can move it to any angle and it has the right resistance when drawing, one of my best purchases ever. Did a little review on it ages ago: https://youtu.be/ek97VT8n27U

As always, thanks for the help.

[D.T. Nethery]

I've been very happy with my Mac Mini. (it's not one of the new ones, but is one of last Intel chip Mac Minis from 2018).

My old warhorse Cintiq 21UX (that I have had since 2006) quite suddenly died. Well, 18 years was a good run ! To replace it I purchased a XP-Pen Artist Pro 19 (Gen 2) 4k. The 19" screen is slightly smaller than the 21" Cintiq, but so far I like it. (I've only had it for 2 days) . At 4K resolution -- 3840 x 2160 -- with 16,364 levels of pressure it is much more responsive and a real pleasure to draw with compared to the old Cintiq 21UX which had resolution of 1600 x 900. Seems to work fine with TVPaint. I haven't noticed any issues yet. I am not currently working on a project in TVPaint , so I'm eager to see how it functions when I get into some heavy duty work (soon, I hope). I was thinking about getting a larger 24" XP-Pen 4k or 24" Huion 4k , but the price of the XP-Pen Artist Pro 19 was too good to pass up (a "Black Friday" deal on Amazon) . Also , the desk space I have now since my move earlier this year would have made the larger 24" tablet feel a bit cramped in the space available. This XP-Pen tablet is so thin and lightweight compared to the old Cintiq 21UX ! My Ergotron arm which creaked and groaned with the heavy Cintiq attached can easily support the XP-Pen tablet. The surface of the XP-Pen Pro 19 feels good to draw on (not slippery) especially when using the "felt tip" nibs.

It comes with two pens and a bluetooth mini-keyboard with programmable keys.

[slowtiger]

18 yrs is exactly the age of my cintiq too - should I look out for any signs of failure? Creaking joints, a higher demand of tea, forgetting which room it is in? Fortunately I've already a new one (bought when I had the money).

[D.T. Nethery]

18 yrs is exactly the age of my cintiq too - should I look out for any signs of failure? Creaking joints, a higher demand of tea, forgetting which room it is in? Fortunately I've already a new one (bought when I had the money).

The only sign I noticed were that for the last few months small clusters of dead pixels had appeared around the outside edge of the screen (which did not impede my drawing at all). Then with no further warning , one day I turned on the tablet and the screen would no longer function, just a dead black screen.

I wanted a new, higher-res. tablet , but was just trying to squeeze every bit I could out of the old Cintiq . I feel fortunate that it gave me 18 years of service.