I still have the Logitech G900 Chaos Spectrum Wireless so will use that, Think I would have been better off with the apple numeric KB though for the larger arrow keys.
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Call for opinions: high-end 27" iMac with gaming in mind
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I still have the Logitech G900 Chaos Spectrum Wireless so will use that, Think I would have been better off with the apple numeric KB though for the larger arrow keys.
I too plan to get the top-of-the-line iMac with gaming in mind. I know a PC would be much cheaper, but I want macOS. I do some photography so the 5k display will be a treat.
I think this iMac will be good enough for gaming at 1440p. Down the road, I can still add an eGPU connected to a gaming monitor and play under bootcamp.
I think this iMac will be good enough for gaming at 1440p. Down the road, I can still add an eGPU connected to a gaming monitor and play under bootcamp.
Yeah, I flick between the magic keyboard and my corsair k70 mechanical with blue switches. I love the look of the apple keyboard but it is just not in the same league for actual work/gaming
Well that's unfortunate.
If I were to go the Windows route, I'd likely go the "boutique" approach and get a high-end machine the first time. As in, paying $4,200 for a Falcon Northwest machine with an i7-7700 and twin 1080 Ti cards in SLI with their Samsung M.2 drive. Not including peripherals or a monitor.
Pros being obvious. Cons being Windows only (not a "con" entirely, just that everything else in my home is Apple), deployment (tower, still need a monitor, cables, need peripherals), higher price tag.
The same machine with a single 1080 Ti card is about $3,500 without a monitor.
Alternative would be the ~$3,400 iMac approach discussed here -- but which includes an all-in-one design, 5K monitor, and the option to use macOS natively.
I realize this isn't an apples to apples comparison with that kind of graphics hardware, where from some quick research, we're talking roughly double the graphics performance.
When you hesitate between two options, assign them to tails or heads and flip a coin. If you're not satisfied with the result, go with the other option.
Hah! My go-to exactly. Think that's what it's going to come down to.
My other issue unrelated to this (partially related to this if iMac) is that I'm an extremely organized guy and enjoy having everything at my fingertips. Including a few hundred gigs of data. Probably not really cloud-able and haven't been doing NAS storage. Hmm. Don't like the idea of having data broken up between machines.
I'd have to agree. You can build an amazing machine for less than 1/2 the price of the iMac. And I'm a huge fan of all things mac (and will always own one).
We don't know yet. But in some WWDC session they recommended avoiding using the eGPU to accelerate a display that is not attached to it. So apparently, it may be possible (or else they wouldn't even have mentioned it).
EDIT: the iMac 5K display is not the best for gaming anyway. Resolution is just too high. You're better off with a 1440p 120Hz monitor that does free-sync. Having an eGPU is not much of a problem in that case. Of course, the 5K display would be a waste of money if you don't really take advantage of it.
100% agree. The right tool for the right "job." In this case, Windows excels. You've got a plethora of great parts to choose from, and you can build a screamin gaming rig for much less than an iMac gamer. I'm building an 8-core Ryzen machine now. It's a beast of a machine for what I want it to do. I still use a Mac notebook for my personal stuff. It's nice to have options.
If you want to game on a Mac, I suggest you wait until they announce the new modular Mac Pro. I have a hunch that the low end model will be a souped up Mac Mini, meaning it will be perfect for gaming with an eGPU.
The new iMac is a pretty good deal IMO.
Look, you get a 7700k, 5K Display, Decent Graphics and the ability to upgrade Ram, HD and even the CPU.
Its really attractive due to Thunderbolt 3.
Having a portable 1080ti or Vega card is awesome! This way when Im traveling I can use it with my MBP and when I get back home, back to the iMac.
Its actually pretty darn good considering that.
I have priced out a comparable PC with these features and its pretty close. (Little to no Apple Tax)
As a user if eGPU's for some time now, this is heaven sent.
Yes, you WILL get 100% of the GPU bandwidth with having it natively installed. However, I will take 90% and the ability to upgrade the card at will when one lands more powerful to push things even further.
Look, you get a 7700k, 5K Display, Decent Graphics and the ability to upgrade Ram, HD and even the CPU.
Its really attractive due to Thunderbolt 3.
Having a portable 1080ti or Vega card is awesome! This way when Im traveling I can use it with my MBP and when I get back home, back to the iMac.
Its actually pretty darn good considering that.
I have priced out a comparable PC with these features and its pretty close. (Little to no Apple Tax)
As a user if eGPU's for some time now, this is heaven sent.
Yes, you WILL get 100% of the GPU bandwidth with having it natively installed. However, I will take 90% and the ability to upgrade the card at will when one lands more powerful to push things even further.
I wouldn't wait. We don't even know when the next Mac Pro will be released. It could be 2019. Also, given how much the base iMac Pro costs, and given that Apple considers the next Mac Pro as the ultimate workstation, it's likely to be way too expensive for gaming.
Hackintosh is not for everyone. I would not recommend it for someone who wants a seamless macOS experience.
Bought a 27" iMac. Upgraded to 4.2 GHz i7, 1 TB SSD.
Used an institutional affiliation to get a discount on base price and upgrades. Paid about $3k "out the door," including tax.
Going to buy 32-64 gigs of RAM on Amazon and manually upgrade that before even turning it on.
Delivers in a couple weeks. Will post back before the end of the month with how it's been in my experience for anyone who's considering.
[doublepost=1497126774][/doublepost](Speaking of upgrading RAM, does anyone have any idea if this machine supports quad-channel memory, or just dual-channel?)
Used an institutional affiliation to get a discount on base price and upgrades. Paid about $3k "out the door," including tax.
Going to buy 32-64 gigs of RAM on Amazon and manually upgrade that before even turning it on.
Delivers in a couple weeks. Will post back before the end of the month with how it's been in my experience for anyone who's considering.
[doublepost=1497126774][/doublepost](Speaking of upgrading RAM, does anyone have any idea if this machine supports quad-channel memory, or just dual-channel?)
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I used to have a nMP with D700's and as a gaming platform it was crap - easily beaten by an average PC with a good graphics card (i3770k with GTX 980 Ti), both in terms of performance and stability. It was a very good VM platform and not bad as an every day workstation. It did however cost over £4k. I recently sold it and with the spare change left over built a 6-core i7, with 128GB RAM as my 'workstation'. This machine is quicker in every way than the Mac at roughly 2/3rds price.
The point is you can go spend a fortune on Mac hardware and it will always be beating by PC hardware that costs much less. And the PC has the advantage that you can swap parts out to increase the performance and lengthen the life of the PC, there's not need to swap the entire box because one part is slow. This isn't a Mac vs. PC debate btw, but simply saying that games require fast hardware and this is one application where the PC wins. Every time.
You can game on an iMac, but it will cost you more and the lifespan of the machine will not be as long as a gaming platform - in a year or two titles will come out that will be too much for the GPU, even scaled down to full HD. If you must have an iMac for your daily stuff then don't max it out, just spec it for your daily stuff and spend the extra cash on a gaming PC or a console.
If you have money to burn and don't mind swapping the machine every couple of years so you can play the latest games at full resolution then go for it. Personally I think you'd be better off gaming on that PS4 you have and just having a reasonable spec iMac.
The point is you can go spend a fortune on Mac hardware and it will always be beating by PC hardware that costs much less. And the PC has the advantage that you can swap parts out to increase the performance and lengthen the life of the PC, there's not need to swap the entire box because one part is slow. This isn't a Mac vs. PC debate btw, but simply saying that games require fast hardware and this is one application where the PC wins. Every time.
You can game on an iMac, but it will cost you more and the lifespan of the machine will not be as long as a gaming platform - in a year or two titles will come out that will be too much for the GPU, even scaled down to full HD. If you must have an iMac for your daily stuff then don't max it out, just spec it for your daily stuff and spend the extra cash on a gaming PC or a console.
If you have money to burn and don't mind swapping the machine every couple of years so you can play the latest games at full resolution then go for it. Personally I think you'd be better off gaming on that PS4 you have and just having a reasonable spec iMac.
Certainly -- something similar to (edit -- Amazon link substitution breaking links? Kingston's 260-pin DDR4 2400 in a 2x16 configuration). Can't imagine the iMac is quad-channel and am aware the difference is negligible.
(Apple's own iMac memory specifications are here.)
I'm not sure how an egpu can be used to send video to the screen of a new iMac. How do you get from the graphics card video out to the iMac screen? Is an external monitor necessary to use an egpu for gaming? Maybe Apple could bring back the Target Display mode to allow the use of an egpu for gaming.
Mhm they are not so cheap. probably because it's DDR4.
There is no huge difference in the UK between them (for 16GB) and Apple.
There is no huge difference in the UK between them (for 16GB) and Apple.
Right, not so cheap. But huge difference here in the US as well. Paying $250 for a quality pair of sticks for 32 gigs of RAM isn't bad at all -- much less what Apple charges.
FWIW, I tried to spec a similar PC with an i7 7700K, 512 GB M.2 SSD, 8GB DDR4, 2 speakers, a motherboard with 2 TB3 ports, wifi and bluetooth, a decent case, apple wired keyboard + magic mouse 2, and the mighty LG ultra fine 5K. It came with roughly the same price as the equivalent iMac. Of couse, the monitor represents most of the cost.
EDIT: I forgot to add the OS to the cost! The Mac is now cheaper if you stick to macOS. (For gaming on a PC, you need Windows 10.)
EDIT: I forgot to add the OS to the cost! The Mac is now cheaper if you stick to macOS. (For gaming on a PC, you need Windows 10.)
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Interesting. Wonder what the details are of the upgraded SSDs in the new iMac.
I posted a separate thread about this, but do we think response time / input lag is a big deal on these iMacs? If I'm paying $3k for a top-shelf all-in-one, I'm going to be awfully annoyed if there's input lag or ghosting on the panel during fast movements or rendering during games. Unsure if a function of the wireless mouse (easy enough, already have a Razer mouse in my Amazon cart) or the panel/system itself. Of course, gaming will be in Windows 10 via Boot Camp.
32 GB Kingston's kit costs £273.79 + 8GB from Apple in standard = 40 GB
32 GB Apple kit £540 but
16 GB Apple kit £180.
So, the difference is about £90 and you get twice as much 32 GB + additional 8 GB, but you have to spent almost £100 more.
I don't know I can do this. Maybe I will take 16GB from Apple and add this Kingston's 32 GB later.
The configuration I want is £3,149.00 with 16GB from Apple - 10% edu discount = £2834.10
OR
£2,969.00 with 8 GB RAM - 10% = £2672.1
32 GB Apple kit £540 but
16 GB Apple kit £180.
So, the difference is about £90 and you get twice as much 32 GB + additional 8 GB, but you have to spent almost £100 more.
I don't know I can do this. Maybe I will take 16GB from Apple and add this Kingston's 32 GB later.
The configuration I want is £3,149.00 with 16GB from Apple - 10% edu discount = £2834.10
OR
£2,969.00 with 8 GB RAM - 10% = £2672.1
You will probably need an external display, but that may not be a bad thing. Most people are not going to want to run at 5K even with a top-end video card and using an external display would allow one to get a 144Hz display that seems to be all the rage now for gaming.