Dual G4's or Imac g5

What kind of G4? If it's more than Dual 1-1.25 GHz, then it would be faster in video editing. Just be sure that sofware you would use supports dual processors

I would go with the G4 if it was dual 1.25 or 1.42 Gigahertz.
The G4 Towers are still very powerful.

carlos700 said:

I would go with the G4 if it was dual 1.25 or 1.42 Gigahertz.

Click to expand...

Thats what I meant. even Dual 1 GHz can beat Single G5 (1.6 or maybe 1.8) in video editing

Go for the Duals!

I dunno guys, the dual maybe faster in SOME video apps but the iMac will beat in others.

Personally, I know which I'd go for. You can't deny the design, ease, all-in-one ness of the iMac G5 is attractive. The iMac also comes with an Apple warranty, being a new machine, and user servicable parts, which saves a lot of time (than having to send off to dealer).

At the end of the day, even if the duals are slightly faster, its only a few extra minutes. The iMac just makes so much sense to me in design terms. It's up to you, sir.

For video editing, the dual G4 is the wisest choice. You can install 4 internal HDs and 2 dedicated firewire 800 ports for capture and storage. RAM expansion is greater. With software like FCP and Compressor, they simply work better on dual systems, and you most likely get smoother overall system performance. A wide selection of upgradeable video cards means you could span your editing desktop across multiple monitors.

To saty with a budget of approximattley $1,000, you might want to consider an Apple certified refurb. Either an iMac G4 or iMac G5.

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/73001/wo/GJ6Sl8Hr8K4M3pk7H0b1BZmsUsM/0.0.11.1.0.6.63.0.0.0.0.0.0.3.1.1.0?80,50

FF_productions said:

Well, by the time i max out my dual g4, I will pretty much have spent enough for a dual g5 (ram, graphics cards, monitors, hd's)...

Click to expand...

Well that doesn't make any sense.

If you were to get an iMac G5, you'd still need to upgrade those particular components. If you wanted to add extra storage, you'd need to buy the drives, PLUS the external firewire cases and firewire hubs. The G4 has all that upgradeability built into the tower.

I think if you were to get serious anyway, a refurbished dual G5 PowerMac is your best bet, but it won't be going for $1000 for at least several more years. It's good you spend the money on a high-end camcorder, as those will hold their value much longer than computers.

another vote for the g4. you will be able to have extra drive, pci cards & extra monitors. Your only problem is if you want to run motion or do a lot of rendering.

evil_santa said:

Your only problem is if you want to run motion or do a lot of rendering.

Click to expand...

I hardly consider this being a problem, because if he gets a decent GPU (Radeon 9800 etc) he'll be fine.

eXan said:

I hardly consider this being a problem, because if he gets a decent GPU (Radeon 9800 etc) he'll be fine.

Click to expand...

yeah but a 9800 is about half his budget. I just got a g5 as my old g4 733 wasn't good-enough to run motion!

and another thing, with the G4 & a DC30 video capture card using the driver from http://www.alfanet.it/squared5/dc30xact.html you can get real time video out to a pal/ntsc monitor from FCP or any QT movie. Is a shame the DC30 card does not fit into the g5!

evil_santa said:

yeah but a 9800 is about half his budget. I just got a g5 as my old g4 733 wasn't good-enough to run motion!

Click to expand...

No, not 500$. Even X850 is 400$. And you can fit 128 MB AGP4x Radeon 9800 in G4.

What video card did you have? If it supported CoreImage, it should be fine in Motion and he wants a dual G4, not single like one you had

I have a dual G4 1.25. Great for video editing.

My video Card (Radeon 9000) isn't good enough for motion.

fartheststar said:

I have a dual G4 1.25. Great for video editing.

My video Card (Radeon 9000) isn't good enough for motion.

Click to expand...

My dad had dual 1.42 with Rad 9000 and he said Motion didnt even want to install!!

eXan said:

My dad had dual 1.42 with Rad 9000 and he said Motion didnt even want to install!!

Click to expand...

That's right. you need a better video card - it's nothing to do with the speed of the processor in this case.