Close to making purchase of Mac Pro

[NanetteK]

Hey there ~ I am pretty close to pressing the order button on the 8 core basic model Mac Pro. I have a few questions...as this is our 1st Mac.

We do video and animations and photoshop and illustrator and music and other things. Here goes the questions - and they may sound untechnical - that's because I'm not a technician - ha! So please- keep the answers simple...if possible.

1. I read that I should buy memory at OWC. Is that correct - and how much memory- are they just in sticks?

2. I also read to get drives at OWC. What kind of drive(s) are good for video?

3. And what about a video card? Does this depend on which software I use? Is the installed card any good?

4. And speaking of software, I had a filmmaker tell me to just use Imovie. But what about adobe premier or Final cut - I heard the FinalCutX is disappointing?

5. I'm sure there are more points I should consider...like backup storage and who knows what else? Any tips that will point me in the general direction would be much appreciated.

I am trying to put all this together to make sense of it all without becoming a computer genius - I guess I need to dig in and research all the wiggle waggles, but I really wish I could just start using the tools to make the videos, etc.

Thanks in advance!

 

[robbie12345]

Don't buy it.

The refresh is expected very soon and should have double Performance for the dollar with the sandy bridge processors

Also if you need one right now and it's important then you should get ram from Owc and it should be around 16gb for your needs which is cheap and will leave you room for upgrade

For video card I personally think the card it comes with is pretty good but very old it isnt that great for gamig but you probably don't need a better card for what yu do for drives off of newegg get 3.5 inch Sata 3 drives I would reccomend ssd but it is very pricey if you get it make sure sata 3 and not 6

The computer can't handle 6 and would just be a waste. If you get a new one then get 6 also hard drive prices are up and ssd are down good luck and congrats on your new mac

 

[derbothaus]

The refresh is expected very soon and should have double Performance for the dollar with the sandy bridge processors

Uh. No. Not double for the dollar at all. Have you looked at the i7-3960X benchies? Only if they offer an 8-core 3.1GHz for base would it be double. Maybe. And that circumstance only. The new stepping on the Xeon variants will be nice but it will not push it up that much further. The 6-core SB-E's are about 5-20% faster, usually less, than 6-core Westmere/ Gulftown. Apply that to all the various combo's and it will be faster, yes. Not double. We already have Hyperthreading since Nehalem.
OP- I'd still wait. Never pay top dollar for 1.5 year old parts. Just feels bad to do it.

 

[Loa]

Hello,

First off: if you need the Mac Pro now, as a work computer, don't wait. There's alway a new somthing that's just around the corner. At worse, if you find that the next Mac Pro update (if it even happens, as some people fear) is significantly faster for you, you'll be able to sell it. Macs hold a great resale value. In fact, you could even consider getting a refurbished 2009 Mac Pro from Apple, as the differences between the 2009 and 2010 are not all that great.

1. I read that I should buy memory at OWC. Is that correct - and how much memory- are they just in sticks?

Ya, sadly, Apple charges ridiculous amounts for their memory, and OWC is a great vendor. How much do you need? 16GB would be a great starting point. From there, you'll be able to tell if you need more.

2. I also read to get drives at OWC. What kind of drive(s) are good for video?

There are a lot of vendors that will offer drives, just shop around for the best prices. Ignore the earlier sata 3 or 6 comment earlier. Most people use the SATA 2 or SATA 3 terms. As far as regular mechanical hard drives, sata 2 or 3 doesn't make much difference. Caviar blacks are considered the best compromise in terms of performance/price. If you have a bigger budget, go for SSDs, a new type of storage that will eventually replace most mechanical hard drives. They're a lot more performant, but also cost a lot more. For SSDs, sata 2 or 3 won't make much of a difference on your 2010 Mac Pro, as they can't handle the faster drives. So getting a sata 2 SSD for a good price might be a good idea. On the other hand, if you plan on keeping the SSD for a long time, and eventually getting another Mac Pro (that possibly could handle the faster sata3), it's worth considering.

3. And what about a video card? Does this depend on which software I use? Is the installed card any good?

Can't really help you there, sry.

4. And speaking of software, I had a filmmaker tell me to just use Imovie. But what about adobe premier or Final cut - I heard the FinalCutX is disappointing?

Depends on your needs. iMovie can do an amazing amount of things, but it is not an app made for professionals who do this all day and need to have control over every last detail. If you're not sure about which app to use, you're probably not an old hand at digital video editing. My advice: start with iMovie (it's free!), and make your way from there.

5. I'm sure there are more points I should consider...like backup storage and who knows what else? Any tips that will point me in the general direction would be much appreciated.

The rule about backing up is simple: always have more than one copy of any data that you would hate to lose. It's that simple. Ideally at least 2 back-ups, one of the stored off-site (just bringing the drives to a friend's house will do), that is updated frequently.

Good luck, and enjoy your first Mac!

Loa

 

[toxic]

1. you can buy memory anywhere, OWC just caters to Mac owners. any DDR3-1333 unregistered ECC SDRAM will work.

2. get whatever drives you want from wherever. any SATA drive will work. SSDs are faster, but wherever they actually boost productivity depends on what you use them for. for example, having an SSD for a boot drive is nice and snappy but gains you nothing in actual productivity.

3. depends on the software. the stock one will probably be fine.

4. what are you using now? if there's a Mac version, why not just stick with it?

 

[monokakata]

Hello,
For SSDs, sata 2 or 3 won't make much of a difference on your 2010 Mac Pro, as they can't handle the faster drives.
Loa

Loa, I know what you mean, but the OP might not. "Can't handle" doesn't mean "won't work," OP.

Certainly the current Mac Pro can "handle" SATA 3 drives. They will work just fine, but what Loa means is that they won't transfer data at the faster SATA 3 speed, because current Mac Pros don't have that interface internally.

You'll lose nothing by getting the SATA 3 drives, either SSD or mechanical, and most likely later you'll be able to take advantage of their speed.

I'm writing this from a 2006 1,1 Mac Pro with three (mechanical) SATA 3 drives, operating at SATA 2 speeds. Too bad about the speed, but it's all working properly.