Mac Pro

[flynntargart]

Hey all, I'm a college student - senior in graphic design.
I'm also ex-co-sci, which has caused me to live primarily in Windows and Linux, unfortunately that means Vista.. which I have been beta testing and frankly, I think I'm done. Not that Vista is some great beast or anything, it's just bloated and slow and a far prettier and more convenient pile of the same problems, restrictions, and aggravations. (and never mind all the parts of Vista that need to talk to MS servers, not that I'm some evil person hiding plans for world domination, but I don't need 'the man' watching my every move... it's creepy.. )

Anyway, I digress and rant...
My point is that the Mac lab at school is kinda slow (old iMac's) but I really enjoy OSX, and now with boot camp / parallels I can still use my Win only software *cough*Half-Life*cough* so I'm thinking of A MacPro and a couple 20" Cinema displays :
Specifications
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* Two 2.66GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon
* 1GB (2 x 512MB)
* 500GB 7200-rpm Serial ATA 3Gb/s
* 2 x NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB
* Two 16x SuperDrives
* Bluetooth 2.0+EDR module
* Apple Wireless Keyboard and Apple wireless Mighty Mouse - U.S. English
* Mac OS X - U.S. English
( I'll buy a few gigs of extra ram from kahlon )

I'm very computer literate, I just want some input from folks that already use Macs to kinda set my mind at ease.
This should be a good enough set up to last a few years right?
And is there anything coming up with the Mac Pro's that might make it smart to wait a month or so, new CPU's or something?

Thanks everyone.

 

[MRU]

I dont understand WHY do you need two 7300's on your config when 1 will drive 2 displays anyway ?

If you want a better GFX card and your willing to pay bto prices - go for the X1900 XT

other than that sweet machine

 

[Abulia]

Ditto what MRU said; invest in a X1900, especially if gaming is your interest. You only need another video card if you plan to output to more than 2 20" displays.

(And to save some scratch, check out the Dell 20" LCD. Much better value.)

 

[flynntargart]

thanks guys, I was under the impression that having the extra card would increase video performance and speeds in Maya and Final Cut etc.. was thinking along the lines of SLI, but I guess it's not the same deal eh.
And I heard from a couple of people in the graphic design dept, that the Dell's were a paint to configure to press standards. While I know I could do it, basically a scholarship is buying the system for me, so I figured that I could save myself that hassle (doing my best to get away from being a techie) but if those Dell's are on par, then cheers!
Appreciate the input!

I just checked over at Wacom, won't I need another DVI to use a Cintiq 21UX?

 

[bearbo]

do you feel the NEED of bashing windows before you can feel like you are fit in this forum? pathetic.

 

[Abulia]

do you feel the NEED of bashing windows before you can feel like you are fit in this forum? pathetic.

Yes. Oh, and call it "Winblowz" 'cause that's cool.

Don't forget M$ while you're at it.

 

[bartelby]

do you feel the NEED of bashing windows before you can feel like you are fit in this forum? pathetic.

And there was me thinking he was only explaining his situation.
How f**king stupid am I?

 

[trueheart78]

Did I miss something? Saying windows XP is bloated etc etc, if he's actually been using the stuff and he feels it's that way, what's the problem of expressing it, it wasn't like he was pushing it down our throats?

Lay off him and let him get accustomed.

 

[MRU]

I just checked over at Wacom, won't I need another DVI to use a Cintiq 21UX?

that's it I'm not talking to you anymore

sulks off because I'm so jealous. I really really want a Cintiq 21UX!!!

 

[budugu]

I dont understand WHY do you need two 7300's on your config when 1 will drive 2 displays anyway ?

If you want a better GFX card and your willing to pay bto prices - go for the X1900 XT

other than that sweet machine

I would second that ... 2x 7300 is much worse than getting the X1900XT. Other than that it is a pretty cool machine!

 

[Lemieux66]

\And I heard from a couple of people in the graphic design dept, that the Dell's were a paint to configure to press standards. While I know I could do it, basically a scholarship is buying the system for me, so I figured that I could save myself that hassle (doing my best to get away from being a techie) but if those Dell's are on par, then cheers!
Appreciate the input!

I just checked over at Wacom, won't I need another DVI to use a Cintiq 21UX?

All monitors will have to be calibrated using an external device if you're serious about it. The panels used are not unique to the Apple 20" and aren't above color problems...ask some of the 23" display owners about the pink tint they've got. Both the Dell and the Apple 20" uses the same LG / Phillips LCD panel but different backlights. If you want to read more you can read the comparison at Anandtech.

Yes you'll need another DVI port, and for Half Life the 7300 should be fine. If you plan on playing any current/future games, the X1900 will be a better purchase. Sounds like you're stuck with the 7300, but if money isnt an object in the future you can always upgrade later. Or you could use a DVI switch and switch between 2 monitors and 1 Monitor and the Tablet...but that would sort of defeat the purpose of 2 monitors.

 

[solvs]

do you feel the NEED of bashing windows before you can feel like you are fit in this forum? pathetic.

Er, it's not bashing if it's based on his actual experiences. Have you used Vista? It ain't great. Anyway...

Get the Radeon, unless Apple releases a better Nvidia card to update to in the near future, because that's your best bet for gaming and high end stuff. It'll make the graphics in Vista run smoother (or just turn them off). No SLI on Macs (yet). And get the single DVD drive, you can upgrade to a better second one yourself for less than Apple charges. Same with an secondary hard drive, for Windows, as a scratch disk, Time Machine, whatever. Careful with the RAM though, get good stuff.

 

[flynntargart]

hey all, thanks for the tips! And I didn't mean to bash Windows, I actually rather enjoy my PC's, and will likely keep them, it's just time to make the change, sorry for the confusion.

Anywho, I really appreciate the link to the comparison site, I'm printing the article and putting up in our lab on Monday (we have a in-box thingie for computer stuff to share things we find, deals, info etc). I'll go with the Dells, it seems like they even have a faster refresh rate, and those USB's are nice

I think I'll go with the Radion, thanks for the input! I was wondering, if I head over to newegg and get a 2nd one, they should work together ya?

Anyway, I really wanna thank you all for the input, it's helped me a lot and you were all very cool about give'n the newbie a hand. THANKS!!!!

 

[Lemieux66]

I think I'll go with the Radion, thanks for the input! I was wondering, if I head over to newegg and get a 2nd one, they should work together ya?

No they wont. It has to do with the EFI used by Mac Pros.