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Buying my Mac Pro

V

vder

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 19, 2007
9
0
I am one week away from buying my first mac. I am a windows switcher and can not wait to get a Mac Pro

I have not decided weather to by the machine from the online Apple store or the local store. Can the local store configure the machine the same as the online?

I am considering going with the single CPU. I have read all the treads on the forum and for the most part there has not been shown to be a major performance decrease. Feel free to correct me.

The video cards is there a big difference between the ATI standard card and the 8800?

As far as ram and hard drives go it seems far better to buy Them from other vendors and not Apple.

If I have missed something or have misinterpreted anything please let me know it would be greatly appreciated.
 
The retail store only offers fixed configurations; if you want a custom build configuration you will need to order online.
 
Config

Hi-

I crossed over in March and am very pleased with my Mac Pro. I still use the PC but mostly for Quicken stuff. I am hoping the new version due out this fall will eliminate that need as well.

I would consider getting the dual processors. At the present, not many applications take advantage of this but I feel it will give your box more longevity. I think more applications will come to take advantage of 8 core in the next few years (I like to use my boxes for 6 or 7 years).

I chose the 8800, it's not much more (and the price may be down now) but the 2600 seems fine for all but games (I'm not a gamer but wanted the pop).

I am very happy with memory I purchased from Other World Computing. OEM from Apple is just too outrageous.

Best,

John
 
John Jordan said:
Hi-

I crossed over in March and am very pleased with my Mac Pro. I still use the PC but mostly for Quicken stuff. I am hoping the new version due out this fall will eliminate that need as well.

I would consider getting the dual processors. At the present, not many applications take advantage of this but I feel it will give your box more longevity. I think more applications will come to take advantage of 8 core in the next few years (I like to use my boxes for 6 or 7 years).

I chose the 8800, it's not much more (and the price may be down now) but the 2600 seems fine for all but games (I'm not a gamer but wanted the pop).

I am very happy with memory I purchased from Other World Computing. OEM from Apple is just too outrageous.

Best,

John
Click to expand...

Not being disagreeable, but what kind of "pop" are you getting from the 8800 as opposed to the 2600?
 
Congrats are your future Mac Pro purchase.

I made the switch from Wintel machines to my Mac Pro back in January. This is the first time I've owned a computer that felt like could handle anything I throw at it.

If you haven't already done so, I would suggest adding more ram to the stock config. I added 4 GB to mine for a total of 6 GB and I typically sit with around 1 or 2 GB not used (my wife and I both stay logged in with multiple apps open).

If you haven't purchased it already, I would highly suggest buying The Missing Manual for OS X Leopard, but skip the switchers version. I bought both books and the larger of the two is much better.
 
musicforme said:
...If you haven't already done so, I would suggest adding more ram to the stock config. I added 4 GB to mine for a total of 6 GB and I typically sit with around 1 or 2 GB not used (my wife and I both stay logged in with multiple apps open).
Click to expand...

I agree you should upgrade the RAM but as others have said, buy it from either OWC or Crucial, and not from Apple. Apple's prices are far higher than other companies.

I too am going to be changing my PC desktop to a Mac Pro at some point during the summer but I'm waiting for the Mac Pro to be updated :)
 
vder said:
I am one week away from buying my first mac. I am a windows switcher and can not wait to get a Mac Pro

I have not decided weather to by the machine from the online Apple store or the local store.
Click to expand...

If the local store is very close to you, I'd go for that.

If there's any problem with the machine, you will get
an exchange done quicker there. And you'll eliminate
the risks involved with a 3rd party delivery.

I don't wish to sound too negative, but these problems
are not unheard of.
 
Infrared said:
If the local store is very close to you, I'd go for that.

If there's any problem with the machine, you will get
an exchange done quicker there. And you'll eliminate
the risks involved with a 3rd party delivery.

I don't wish to sound too negative, but these problems
are not unheard of.
Click to expand...

yeah, and they do stock some different configs, and if you're only upgrading the GPU, it might be at least checking to see if they have one in stock...
 
I'm in the market of buying Mac Pro myself - for the first time ever :) but can't decide either to wait for the update or buy it now.

I believe that Mac Pro should be (will be) updated soon - at least one more time before switching to Nehalem processors in early 2009.

what are your thoughts on this?
 
kosin said:
I'm in the market of buying Mac Pro myself - for the first time ever :) but can't decide either to wait for the update or buy it now.

I believe that Mac Pro should be (will be) updated soon - at least one more time before switching to Nehalem processors in early 2009.

what are your thoughts on this?
Click to expand...

And what do you think that update will bring to the current Mac Pro?
 
Mac Pro Buying Advice

Hey congrats on your planned purchase! My advice is as follows:

0. Just get the 2.8 8 Core. Cannot justify $1400 for a moderate performance boost.
1. Get the 8800GT it is a great card.
2. Just get the stock Apple drive and purchase more drives from NewEgg. Make your boot drive a WD10kRPM drive. The new velociraptors won't fit the mac pro (hope WD fixes that as a Velociraptor would be blazing fast)
3. I got 8GB ram from NewEgg the iRam brand. It was cheap and works flawlessly. I recommend keeping your stock 2GB ram from Apple because if you take it in for warranty service you can pop out the old ram and just have the stock in there.
4. Be sure to have your cable modem/high speed internet running through an RG59/6 surge suppressor. Could be coincidence but my ethernet ports on the logic board stopped working day after a lightning storm. Had to have it replaced under warranty. Just popped out the ram and took it to the Genius Bar. Got a belkin suppressor and ran the cable line through it to the cable modem.
5. Put the Windows Boot partition on a separate drive from your Mac Boot drive. Just keep Windows stuff off your boot period. :)

Good luck and enjoy! It is a wonderful machine...
 
I ordered mine from macmall.com. They do have one that ships with the 8800 installed. It was $2999.00. Shipping was $40, but they gave a $40 rebate. And no tax. That's the main reason why I wanted to order online and not directly from Apple. Saving on the tax money was a few hundred I could put towards more memory and a 2nd hard drive.
 
go refurbed, if you can get it

I bought my Mac Pro from the refurb department of the Apple Store. good savings, plus the warranty, and it's flawless.
- hope this helps.
best,
Ted.
 
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