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A desktop with 3.2GHz Intel processor, 2Gig RAM, 2 Internal Hard drives (120 + 300 GB) Windows XP or

Powerbook 1.67, 120GB 7200 Hard drive, 2 Gig of RAM and external firewire/USB harddrive of 300 GB.

Which one would be efficient and fast to work with? Or would they be the same?

Comments

anonymous Tue, 10/25/2005 - 13:29

iznogood, you are right. I think I will make a lot more music now that I think about it. I'm just questioning the power of my brain for not thinking about it earlier! :-)

How is it that on desktop the horsepower more though? I have heard 1.67 Powerbook to have as fast a processor as a 3.2 desktop. (One guy at mac store told me that. My friend who runs a studio also told me the same).

maintiger, How is it different to mix on a laptop which is as fast as the desktop?

iznogood Tue, 10/25/2005 - 14:11

as a giant mac fan i must say that what they told you is dead wrong.....

although powerpc processors are faster pr. GHz it's not that fast......

but horsepower is not all that matters.....

my analogy is cars..... who wants a car with 900 hp that can't stand the weather?? and has to go and be fixed every other week??

someone needs a ferrari.... i need a mercedes.... 8-)

this one: http://www.kleemann.dk/site/Main/thecars/slkr171 to totally undermine my analogy!

maintiger Tue, 10/25/2005 - 16:22

swanmusic wrote:
maintiger, How is it different to mix on a laptop which is as fast as the desktop?

I have a 12" ibook that I use for remote only with a 7200 external hardrive- I don't really mix with it, when I bring the tracks back to the studio I plug the external drive in my G5 tower and i mix there-
The ibook just gives me the freedom to go and record on location and track drums in cool rooms, then I bring it back to the studio.

Another use I have for the laptop is as a playback engine for a musical we are presenting. I have the 17 songs of the musical set up as chunks in dp and I play them back through a motu 828mkii. that gives me the flexibility of stereo outs as well as 8 individual outs I route out to the pa and also to amps. For example the bass goes to a bass amp, the guitar leads to a guitar amp, the keys to a keyboard amp. Plus all the tacks go to the pa in stereo as well. This set up is similar to what some of the tours (like madonna's) are using. (Except I believe they use a G4 tower) It gives you the freedom of say muting the bass part if you have a live bass player, or the piano or guitar or whatever. In our particular set up so far (depending on the performance) we are using 2 live percussionist, a guitarist, a piano and a bassist playing live. The rest of the tracks reside in the ibook. So far it has worked like a charm.

anonymous Wed, 10/26/2005 - 04:33

Iznogood wrote:

my analogy is cars..... who wants a car with 900 hp that can't stand the weather?? and has to go and be fixed every other week??

I second That.

you will have much more time making and recording music rather then fixing your system... go MAC.

also if you decide to go MAC use firewire NOT usb for all audio related connex, soundcards HDs and the like... a nice powerbook running DP or Logic, firewire soundcard and firewire 7200rpm audio drive and you are dead stable up and running my friend....

happy making music.

Guest Wed, 10/26/2005 - 07:59

my analogy is cars..... who wants a car with 900 hp that can't stand the weather?? and has to go and be fixed every other week??

ok mac heads i have to say it

Bullcrap!

if you want to talk about win 98 vs mac os back then i would be inclined to say you have a legit comment.
(and win 3.1/98 is what made mac get in the lead and PT choosing it)

since win 2000 that has changed.
since XP (and a properly built for audio computer) windows doesnt crash anymore or less than OSX.

in fact OSX is more bloated then even windows XP (which is hard to believe)

there are issues with core audio, there were issues with firewire just recently.
never mind the power or lack thereoff.

truth is they both work very well.

now powerbook 1.6 please. fine for grabing a few tracks mobile
but not what i call a mixing box.

Scott
ADK

iznogood Wed, 10/26/2005 - 08:24

i'm yet to experience a stable windoze system......

loads of my friends are pc builders and supporters......

every single time i sit down at a windoze machine (with someone who really knows it) something goes wrong..... i don't know why that is... and i don't care.... it always takes them hours and hours to get things to work...... and for some reason none of those machines were connected to the internet..... shouldn't ANY computer in the year 2005 be on the net?? imo they should....

just my experience.... if yours is different fine for you.... but don't call my experience bullcrap.....

let me ask you a question.... do you think there's ANY reason a mac costs more pr. horsepower..... or do you think all mac users are just idiots who want to pay more just because macs are more beautyful??

(6 years on the net without virus or protection... and counting)

dabmeister music Wed, 10/26/2005 - 09:11

Having gone through countless nights/days trying to figure out "what is going on with this piece of sh*t", I've become one of the fortunate few who's having quite a very pleasing experience with the "XP Pro" rig I currently have. But by todays standards, it's starting to show a little gray around the edges. But what really counts is its stablity & reliability. It holds up through the long sessions I might encounter over the weekends and that's been like that for the past year and a half. But looking ahead, I do see a slight advantage leaning towards Intel. Since the word is out about Macs incorporating Intel processor/chipsets (unless something's changed), that further strengthens my beliefs. However, I'd like to get my hands on one of the new cream of the crop Macs whenever they become available. So IMO, the bottom line is the most bandwidth. And between the 2 setups mentioned, of course I'd side with the Intel with the addition of a faster 10k to 15k HD.

Guest Wed, 10/26/2005 - 09:44

HI,

loads of my friends are pc builders and supporters......

it would seem not too good at it then.

but don't call my experience bullcrap.....

not calling your "experiance" bull crap
but i am calling your blanket statement of all pcs bullcrap.

no comment on the cost of macs.
cant wait to see how much they will cost with the Intel chips.
i am guessing less.

anonymous Wed, 10/26/2005 - 13:36

Agreed ADK! The Mac is still better than PC myth is exactly that... MYTH! Urban Legend!
Once upon a time that may have been true, but all that has changed forever with the Linux and XP OSes and Intel's Pentium 4.

Having been involved with computers since the earliest TRS Model I, and building machines since the APPLE II+.
I do know exactly what I'm talking about! In a previous life (at least it feels like that now!) - I had several very successful endeavors in computers including building, modding and overclocking PC's for government, engineering and aerospace applications. (And if you can believe it, it was MUCH more stress than the music industry! Now I'm back to my first love - music!)

The really BIG difference between the two platforms is this:

MACs and its components are manufactured to exact APPLE COMPUTER specs.
PC's on the other-hand are OPEN. There is no one company spec, there are only industry standards.

PC's can range in price from about $400 - $4000+, and up to millions for the really powerful multiuser systems!
Yet to the newbie these can appear to be equal machines. That is very incorrect.
Many factors affect computers and the 4 most common are SOFTWARE, EMI, HEAT and POWER (AC quality).

You have to look at it this way. Today, any Tiawanese businessman can buy assembly robots and parts
and set up a computer manufacturing plant in his garage. Literally! I am not joking or exagerrating.
There are quite a few that do this!

The problem with this is TESTING! Sure the individual parts are tested, but they are not tested in their
final assembled and installed form. Without the rigorous testing of the big name board manufacturer's they
are destined for trouble! Even these big name manufacturers apply varying degrees of quality control based
on the final retail price of their boards.

The facilities for testing heat stress and flex, Electro-Magnetic Interference, and various power purity levels are expensive and add to the cost of production. When it comes to PC's the addage "You get what you pay for" absolutely applies.

So back to where we were.

In general, stay away from the bleeding-edge in PC technology advancement! You need to wait at least 6-10 months for a new product to be used and experience its inevitable issues and bug corrections to get stability and reliability.

If you really know what you are doing when it comes to PC's, dollar for dollar you can easily have a machine that will SMOKE any MAC six ways to Sunday.
If you have access to a reliable and proven PC guy/store then you will enjoy trouble-free high performance from your PC. If you don't have such a guy for your custom machines or you don't buy server or workstation class and quality PC's from big name manufacturers (ie: DELL), then the simplicity and ease-of-use of the MAC is your best bet.

But never ever make the claim that MACs are better, more reliable or more powerful than PC's.
That claim is completely untrue!

KJ
------------------
Kyro Studios

anonymous Wed, 10/26/2005 - 14:22

KyroJoe wrote:

The Mac is still better than PC myth is exactly that... MYTH! Urban Legend!

that myth has made me and ALL of my collegs i have ever met in person or worked with making, producing and recording music since over 15 years for a living. without trouble.

which has not been a single case not a SINGLE one from people working on PCs, except on THIS FORUM.
i know several dozen musicians and engineers who swapped to MAC, NO one ever swapped to a PC, and they all did it because they where fed up with computer issues, i am talking people working on a daily basis with them as ENGINEERS OR MUSICIANS NOT AS "IT" GUYS like you scott (adk) this is not an offense, just it seems like you know how to fix and twiddle with PCs, i don't, for me it's no fun at all to twiddle on f*&ing comps, i twiddle rather on compressors or EQs or play an instrument, while you build computers, however it's actually a waste of time.. why should i convince someone to invest into quality??? there is no sense in it :roll: !!!

besides Logic and Peak are not avialable for PCs, so for me never a PC.

maintiger Wed, 10/26/2005 - 15:20

[quote=axel]KyroJoe wrote:

The Mac is still better than PC myth is exactly that... MYTH! Urban besides Logic and Peak are not avialable for PCs, so for me never a PC.

and don't forget Digital Peformer- since that is my daw of choice I have to stay with the mac- and damm happy I am with mac and DP! :D :D

anonymous Wed, 10/26/2005 - 15:39

Just like there are good ENGINEERS and MUSICIANS and lousy ENGINEERS and MUSICIANS, the same applies to PCs.
There are good PCs and lousy PCs.

And NO, the MYTH is a myth because of what you'll read in my last lines above. (ease-of-use)

And watch it with the "IT-Guys" label! Maybe Scott but not me.
I've been recording for about a decade I just have the knowledge in computers from education and experience!
As a business owner with good people I had that freedom to do what I wanted. When I used "NOW" above,
I didn't mean NOW as in any time recent or that this was just a weekend hobby for me!

Most recording engineers, other than a small number, have very little knowledge in the field of computers.
They want to spend their time making music not understanding computers.
Entirely understandable!
I don't blame them at all.
Even I defer to manufacturers these days, albeit with my spec and recommendations, or I'd never get my RE/ME work done!
I do however blame the ones who, without knowing about computers or understanding them, make untrue claims!

So I do agree with you that the use of MACs is wide.
But it's the old industry lemming route - the do what the Joneses do.
(Like NS-10's and U67's! Gotta have em cuz that's what is expected)
(You just know that some musician is going to walk in and ask where the hell those white coned speakers are that everyone else has and if you don't have them you have go through the long-winded hassles of explaining the benefits and superiority of whatever monitor is that you use. Same applies to PT on MACs in your studios!)

Does that make MACs a BETTER, more capable or more RELIABLE platform. NO! Absolutely not.
More common, but not better nor more reliable. I use both MACs and PC's at my studio and I'll tell you that my PC's outperform my MACs any day and are far more reliable!
Not my opinion, this is FACT.
I'll do all my work requiring any real "horsepower" on PC's!
(PC's also run the storage on the network)

Axel, there is a difference between FACT and OPINION!
In your, and maybe many more non-computer-savvy RE's OPINIONs MACs are better, this however does NOT make it a FACT.
It's effective marketing!
Pro-Tools on MACs are stacked in the industry and at the schools, so people continue to use what they are familiar with (I work with some guys that won't touch the PC's). BUT, this still does not make MACs any MORE RELIABLE, MORE CAPABLE or BETTER!! You might even take a moment to notice that I did say that if you're not the tech-head tweaker type then go for a MAC.

KJ
---------------
Kyro Studios

iznogood Wed, 10/26/2005 - 16:03

"But never ever make the claim that MACs are better, more reliable or more powerful than PC's."

i never said they were more powerful :lol:

kyrojoe.... did you ever have to mix records for a living?? just wondering....

for some reason the argument always turns to some genius pc builder who really knows what he's doing talking about .... well what kyro said....
but what you geniusses sometimes forget is that people (that buys pc's) mostly buy crap pc's.... cause they're not willing to spend the money on a quality machine....

and.... kyro..... you seem to know alot about computers.... maybe you can answer some questions for me....

why does all the programmer type geeks prefer linux if windoze is all that fabulous?? why do all (pc users) i know get spyware and viruses all the time.... while i'm surfing for porn in the middle of a session... with no problems.... and remember.... alot of software requires you to turn off virus protection.... why does macs hold their used prices better??

but anyway.... who cares..... it's not my job to save the world....

go ahead..... buy some "really powerful" crapheap for all i care..... then spend 1000+ hours/posts on rec.org on figuring out what motherboard/gpu/firewire card/blablabla..... and another 100 hours how to save 50$ on building it..... then you'll be able to write a post longer than the end titles of titanic bragging about it....

then i'll go ahead and make some money using my mac....

iznogood Wed, 10/26/2005 - 16:15

"Axel, there is a difference between FACT and OPINION!
In your, and maybe many more non-computer-savvy RE's OPINIONs MACs are better, this however does NOT make it a FACT."

"I use both MACs and PC's at my studio and I'll tell you that my PC's outperform my MACs any day and are far more reliable!
Not my opinion, this is FACT. "

:shock: :shock: :-? :-? :lol: :lol: :roll: :roll:

rofl :!:

kyro.... why was you're post edited four times?? regrets??

anonymous Wed, 10/26/2005 - 16:38

iznogood wrote: " i never said they were more powerful :lol:

Just replying to that 1.6 vs 3.2 BS.

iznogood wrote: "kyrojoe.... did you ever have to mix records for a living?? just wondering...."

For a living? Fuck no!
I admire the crazy bastards that do try!
I made all the money I'll ever need years ago and record and mix because:
I love it,
I've always been a musician (keys and guitar) so I needed to learn years ago to record my own shit,
I have great ears, musical and "end consumer" sense,
and I'm really fuckin good at it! :D

iznogood wrote: "and.... kyro..... you seem to know alot about computers.... maybe you can answer some questions for me....

why does all the programmer type geeks prefer linux if windoze is all that fabulous??

Because windoze is a Micro$oft product and from a coding perspective they keep the licensing agreements and hidden code locked up tight. Linux is open-source and you have access to all underlying code (for free!!! under the GNU licensing agreement)

iznogood wrote: "why do all (pc users) i know get spyware and viruses all the time.... while i'm surfing for porn in the middle of a session... with no problems.... and remember.... alot of software requires you to turn off virus protection.... why does macs hold their used prices better?? "

Viruses and spyware = lack of knowledge and many many many more home systems and programmers using PC's than MACs. Law of averages.

izzy, would you even know if you had spyware and viruses on your Mac? Those are detected by signatures. If no one finds the signature, software can't yet detect the infection. I know a couple of good programmers that I was in school with that could infect the shit out of your Mac and there's nothing yet available to detect it.

iznogood wrote: but anyway.... who cares..... it's not my job to save the world....

Nor mine! I could a give a shit less what anyone else does. Just stating the FACTs and clearing up the BS.

Too many cigarettes and too much coffee in the last 28 hours that I've been awake!

KJ
-----------------
Kyro Studios

anonymous Wed, 10/26/2005 - 16:45

Iznogood, I feel just like the picture of that monkey right now!

So much thinking and so much research to do before you can get what you really want. It's overwhelming and so stressful. PC/Mac (now that's ended for me), what software, what interface, etc etc. I just know about what plug-ins I need and about music. :-)

I really am sick of the PCs myself. Something or the other happens and I have to reboot. I have had all good quality components in my PCs and I have been working with PCs since 1991 (my first PC was a 486 w/ 16 mb ram, no Windows OS, mind you, just DOS). I'm hoping powerbook or powermac will allow me to concentrate on music more. I don't have a problem adapting to new software interface but I do definately have a problem when the software doesn't work as expected, computer hangs and I have to learn about the technical problems of a computer rather than thinking analytically about the music I'm working on.

Oh o...my post became long. Well, I still am a PC user so far! ;-)

maintiger Wed, 10/26/2005 - 17:05

seems to me that in order to get a pc that is comparable to a mac you either have to have a- lots of pc knowledge to put one together or b- spend more money than for a mac and buy a pc optimized for music

seems that if you get a mac you have a machine that will work for your music right out of the box without to have to worry about computer issues

and if you look around you can find macs lots lots cheaper than pcs optimized for music-
and you don't have to worry about it not working for your application.
I bought a 2.0 dual G5 and a 1.2 ibook in the last 6 monts. I paid $1519 online for the G5 and $800 for the ibook. they were both open box but who cares- After I spent an extra $300 for more ram I have 2 machines that are perfectly optimize for me to make music. A dual G5 for the studio and a laptop for remote. the best of both worlds. All for about $2600 complete.

I've seen pcs optimized for music that go for far more than that- just go to sweetwater and look.

I am not really knocking pcs. I am sure that if you know what you are doing you can put together a great system and maybe save a couple of bucs. But if you don't know what you are doing with computers, like most musicians, when you get a mac you get something that will work out of the box everytime. Isn't making music what is all about?

dabmeister music Wed, 10/26/2005 - 17:28

Well guys, IMO & from experience, I've found that if you're gonna DIY (build a PC), start w/ a firm foundation. Meaning, look for a MB w/ an Intel chipset. This is where I've had the most success. Even the budget brand "DFI" w/ the 865 chipset I purchased for my girl from Micro Center a few months back, kicks ass. I will admit that I've encountered issues w/ the other brands in the past (called the learning curve) but lately, it's been all thumbs up. If you know what you're doing & understand what's available to you, there's no excuse for not putting together a very decent P.C. The resources are out there. So the keywords here are: research, understanding & know-how.

anonymous Thu, 10/27/2005 - 01:21

KyroJoe wrote:

notice that I did say that if you're not the tech-head tweaker type then go for a MAC.

you could have saved your long writing, by coming straight to the main point i did!

that's whatt is one of many reasons, and of course i forgott the brilliant DP...

and also no offense about the "IT" label I DON'T MEAN TO LABEL ANYONE HERE, just appears that you are apparently PC tweakheads

also KyroJoe if you have to explain to customers why you don't use or use acertain gear, then i have to say you do something majorly wrong here...

anonymous Thu, 10/27/2005 - 06:43

MAINTIGER WROTE:

when you get a mac you get something that will work out of the box everytime. Isn't making music what is all about?

that's my and everyone elses experience (and not just an opinion, a FACT), speaking of the engineers and musicians i know!! who have ever swapped, or bought in the first place a MAC.

happy making music...

Guest Thu, 10/27/2005 - 07:53

this thread needs to die.. i hate mac/pc threads but the original question was a good one.

so to answer a few posts.

1) people buy compters... and they wont pay for a good one so they buy a crap PC.... hmmm

well they desserve what they get, i am guessing you mean Noobs
because once someone has bought a "store bought" (best buy, dell etc)
thier second computer (if they dont give up on computer recording) will come from a Daw builder or they DYI.
as to the store bought i would agree 100% your better off with a MAC. entirely less to go wrong.

2) pricing a MAC VS Pro DAW.

Apple.com:
2.3G Dual
4 gig Ram
2 x 500G Sata all the drives you can add...?
6600 video
DVD-RW
$5123

please bear in mind i am not trying to sell something just a comparative~

me:
rackmount or lian-li tower (looks like a MAC)
Dual Opteron 2.2G (much faster than mac)
4 Gig Ram
80G oS
4 x 300G Sata in 2 raid 0 arrays
DVD-RW
wireless kb and mouse
$3944

what was that about price?

so faster, less money and no crashes. not to mention a whole lot more software runs on it (other than Logic/DP )

and any one who wants to know our client list feel free to look at the beginners in audio :wink: on our website

i think those guys would be complaining if MAC worked better.

Scott
ADK

Cucco Thu, 10/27/2005 - 11:10

I LOVE Mac vs PC threads. No SERIOUSLY, I REALLY love them!!! :-?

Mac owners will tell you how much PCs suck and PC owners will only ever defend themselves. (You can't do much else when people are hurdling crap at you...)

I do have extensive experience on both and I'll say that this whole argument is full of crap. PCs Suck and Macs Suck. PCs rule and Macs Rule. They both have their advantages and disadvantages.

IMO, here's where IBM/INTEL/MS went wrong -

They pack their PCs full of junk to help lower the price. (Free software and advertising - such as free copies of AOL and Compuserve on every windows PC...come on, we don't need that crap. And don't forget when Encarta and the Digital Doctor's Office came with all PCs too!)

Then, they outsource of they're manufacturing to make it even cheaper. Back in 1994, Microsoft said they wanted a computer in every home. Now, Microsoft wants a PC for every person in your home, on your cellphone, in your watch, hell, even on your refrigerator!

Where Mac went wrong -

Keeping everything proprietary for so long. They saw that the PCs were quickly becoming crap, so instead of regulating their outsourcing, they simply didnt do it at all. That's not very effective for keeping costs low.

Personally, I use a PC for my audio work. Why? Because Sequoia doesn't work on Mac (nor does Pyramix. BTW - SADiE - also PC(ish) based - PC parts, not windows though...) It doesn't crash - ever. If it did, I'd be screwed. In the middle of the Wagner Ring Cycle, if my computer crashed, I couldn't simply walk up to the conductor and ask him to give me 3 minutes to reboot and then to start from where I last saved!!! :-?

I DON'T have it hooked up to the internet simply because you cannot control some of what is automatically downloaded to your computer. This is true whether it's a Mac OR a PC. (Now, that's a partially false statement, as when I log onto the internet, particularly on THOSE sites, I turn off all Active-X and Java-Scripting. That keeps me safe from viruses, but restricted in what I can do.)

As for my home PC - it NEVER gets turned off. EVER. I run Win 2K professional on it and it has been on for a little over 2 years. (I lost power for 4 days about 2 years ago from a hurricane. It was shut off then.) From time to time, perhaps once each 6 weeks, or when I add new software, it will get rebooted, but that's it.

BTW - yes, all of my computers are DIY. I've always built my own computers ever since in 1995, Compaq changed from using OEM parts to using crappy outsourced parts. UUUGGGGHHHH...

When I built my first computer, I was no computer wiz! I simply ordered all the parts I thought it would take to build a computer, sat down one night and figured it out.

My current DAW machine is:

Antec Aria case, custom engineered by http:// to include a dead quiet power supply and externally mounted 120 mm fan controlled from the front panel. (The external fan blows directly over the processor - the processor I use is not designed to work in an Aria - too closed in.)

2 GB dual channel RAM - Kingston

80 GB Samsung Quiet Drive (7200 RPM, EIDE)

120 GB Samsung Quiet Drive (10000 RMP, SATA)

Intel P4 Extreme edition 3.0 GHz with Hyperthreading

Asus board (I don't recall the exact board - I'm not THAT big of a nerd)

Matrox Dual Head video (don't recall model - see above...)

Lynx AES 16

With all of the above, 2 Samsung LCD monitors and a Pelikan 1610 case to transport it all for remote recordings and including Windows XP Pro, I spent a grand total of $2300! Bear in mind, the 2 LCDs and the Lynx card set me back about $1300 of that! Then, factor in the OS, I spent less than $900 for the PC itself!

Oh, if I factor in the $2500 for Sequoia - my WHOLE DAW costs less than the Mac that Scott spec'ed. And I dare say, it would hold its own against it fairly well.

BTW - I didn't mention the external Plextor CD/DVD Burner simply B/C I already had it. Otherwise, factor in an additional $250.

The fact is, it's reliable. If it weren't, I couldn't keep business.

So, different strokes for different folks, but neither is inherently better. They're just different.

If you're comparing a $2500 Mac to a $500 E-machines, no wonder the PC sucks.

Compare apples to apples (no pun intended...) and you'll see that you'll be satisfied with either device. Use whichever your DAW of choice supports!

J.

maintiger Thu, 10/27/2005 - 11:12

I don't see a mac costing $5123- The top of the line model is around $3000- add an extra sata drive and ram and you are talking maybe another 6-7 hundred- total well under $4000

I have a dual G5 2.0 I bought about 6 months ago for $1519 plus shipping (about $1600)
I got another sata drive and extra ram for another $600 or so. Total cost ; $2200

I installed my Digital performer, plug ins and VI's, hooked up my interface and in a less than a day i was ready to roll again making music. I had no issues with incompatibilities, bios, or whatever other things you have to deal with in the pc world. As far as I'm concerned the computer is a tool that enables me to make music and I have no desire to bog down with computer issues at all. It aint broke and I aint gonna fix it! If you do enjoy fiddling with computers then by all means do so- not me.

Guest Thu, 10/27/2005 - 12:12

Hi maintiger

go to Apples website.

choose the power mac middle one dual 2.3 starts $2499
add ram until you have 4 gig ECC in 1 gig sticks
add the 2 500g sata
and the apple care.

Subtotal $5,123.00

Estimated Ship:
2-4 business days

Free Shipping

Click "Update Details" to reflect changes to system price and shipping.

Specifications

2.3GHz Dual-core PowerPC G5
4GB 533 DDR2 ECC SDRAM- 4x1GB
2x500GB Serial ATA - 7200rpm
NVIDIA GeForce 6600 256MB SDRAM
16x SuperDrive DL (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Apple Keyboard & Mighty Mouse - U.S. English
Mac OS X - U.S. English
AppleCare Protection Plan for Power Mac (w/or w/o Display) - Auto-enroll

iznogood Thu, 10/27/2005 - 14:12

or buy a dual 2.0.... for 2k

and add some ram and a hd for your local pc store.... 500$....

it's really a cheap trick to list an expensive machine with expensive option to "paint a brighter picture" :-?

why didn't you just pick:

powermac quad 2.5
16GB ECC RAM
1TB HD (2x500)
512MB graphics
2x30 inch cinema displays
bluetooth and wireless
modem
fibrechannel card
wireless keyboard and mouse
final cut xpress and motion installed

grand total of $24,127 :shock: :-? :shock:

really useful for this "conversation"

my newfound respect just plummeted... :oops:

maintiger Thu, 10/27/2005 - 16:14

ADK audio wrote: Hi maintiger

go to Apples website.

choose the power mac middle one dual 2.3 starts $2499
add ram until you have 4 gig ECC in 1 gig sticks
add the 2 500g sata
and the apple care.

Subtotal $5,123.00

Estimated Ship:
2-4 business days

Free Shipping

Click "Update Details" to reflect changes to system price and shipping.

Specifications

2.3GHz Dual-core PowerPC G5
4GB 533 DDR2 ECC SDRAM- 4x1GB
2x500GB Serial ATA - 7200rpm
NVIDIA GeForce 6600 256MB SDRAM
16x SuperDrive DL (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Apple Keyboard & Mighty Mouse - U.S. English
Mac OS X - U.S. English
AppleCare Protection Plan for Power Mac (w/or w/o Display) - Auto-enroll

Hey Scott,

Just like you won't buy your pc from Sweetwater I won't buy my mac from the apple store- I'm gonna look around and get a better deal, so please don't quote prices from the apple store as a bechmark- especially not for ram and hard drives.

I got my duAL 2.0 g5 from mac mall, open box for $1519. With shipping and tax it was 16 something... Then I added ram and another sata hardrive and not from the apple store. I shopped around and paid like $600. Total cost, about $2200. For a machine that has worked like a charm right out of the box, that lets me make music, not worry about compatibility, bios and who-know-what else.

I am sure you can get pcs that are just as good as the mac for music but you have to be computer savy or you'll have that compatibility monster bite you. And no, macs are not necesarily more expensive, just look around and get a good deal, like everything else in life.

What I am saying is that for a musician that has no interest in becoming a computer type guy it is a lot simpler to buy a mac and just make music. It will work just right out of the box everytime.
now if you are into putting computers together then it may make a lotta sense to go pc. Its just like getting an old Aston-Healy: you'd better like working on cars and have mechanical knowledge if you get one of those or you'll never get it running right.

So its simple: if you like tinkering with computers get a pc. invest your time on it and I am sure you'll eventually end up with a great
system for your music and maybe even save a couple of bucs over the mac. 8-)

If you just want to make music and don't wanna be bother with tinkering with computers, get a mac. It will work right out of the box and you won't have to tinker with it. (y)

anonymous Fri, 10/28/2005 - 03:14

maintiger wrote:

It aint broke and I aint gonna fix it! If you do enjoy fiddling with computers then by all means do so- not me.

If you just want to make music and don't wanna be bother with tinkering with computers, get a mac. It will work right out of the box and you won't have to tinker with it. RO

well, that's the point, of pure experience (NOT JUST AN OPINION!) over the more then 15years making a living out of music, not comps.

and the mentioned price for a mac from scott, is a whole lota rubish, even here in slovakia where i live since a while... prices are comparing to US or Europe by far higher (stupidly higher!) and i am still able to get a system (dual 2.3 with extra drive 250mb and 2gb ram) for around 120.000 slovak crowns which is about 3800 dollar and this is a totally overprised apple shop (slovak ripp off price!!) deal no one would ever buy you can get it by far cheaper....

by all means of the battle of what is better, one thing is for shure you are not going to save (except pennys!) anything as soon as you buy / build a decent PC with real quality parts...
i really can live with any kind of argument, but not saving money...

also, i do have two friends over here who are IT technicians one for for HP and one for IBM over here, who take care of big business companys Comp systems, they both have macs at home, and they say both that they would be without a job, if there clients would run macs, cause there ain't not AS MUCH to fix...

a.

Guest Fri, 10/28/2005 - 06:38

So its simple: if you like tinkering with computers get a pc. invest your time on it and I am sure you'll eventually end up with a great
system for your music and maybe even save a couple of bucs over the mac.

thats been my point all along, get one from us or another good daw dealer and there is no fiddling, works right out of the box

i went to mac mall, cant add squat to it. the base unit is the same price as the apple store.
so if you want to add to it it looks like you WILL be fiddling with it.
so much for out of the box experiance.

Alex,

as to the IT statement, thats debateable, however the average office user isnt the brightest bulb in the pack.
and every IT guy i know uses a PC. however most run Linux, or a dual boot linux/xp for games.

Scott

anonymous Fri, 10/28/2005 - 07:09

I've built a few dozen DAW's over the years, both PC and Mac based. Screw the debate. It's all about the end user and which OS they are most comfortable with.

There are PC's that work straight out of the box...and there are PC's that don't. The EXACT SAME THING can be said for macs. Trust me.

The pro's of a mac/con's of a PC:
More robust Quicktime features...if you're using pro tools.
A very user friendly Mac OS (typically).

The con's of a mac/pro's of a PC:
Quite a bit weaker than a PC of equal cost (as it pertains to native audio processing...not necessarily the case with other tasks).
A complete and utter lack of professional audio disc authoring programs. (That's a real biggie...)
PC OS's are much easier to fix if HEAVY problems arise...not so with Mac in my experience. (Has more to do with fewer true experts existing with in depth ability to troubleshoot the mac os, not that it can't be done. With PC's...an email to a techie forum will usually result in a personalized step by step easy as pie to follow fix within minutes. Try that on a mac forum and you could be waiting weeks, months, maybe forever.)

For my money...it's a PC. For my clients and colleagues money who seek my advice in building a setup, the first question I ask is which OS they prefer...that's the deciding factor.

anonymous Mon, 10/31/2005 - 08:29

Chriscavell, Very interesting point about support. But does the Mac OS have major problems which can't be fixed quickly? Being Unix based OS, I thought it must be really stable but I have also heard people having trouble with Macs.

Hmm.....confusion!!

You know what?...I got my ipod on Saturday, my first Apple product ever. Within 30 minutes of my using it, it hung!!! I went to apple.com and within 3-4 minutes, I could resolve the problem. Well, there's 2 perceptions to this, one is that the ipod broke within 30 minutes and the second was that tech support was excellent. I don't know how to judge now......

more confusion!!