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eMac reliability

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DDorian

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 1, 2007
20
0
Hello,

I am in the market for an older mac that I can run Garageband, Sibelius, and digital performer on. I have an old 400mhz Powermac G4 but upon installing these applications, it is clear that this sad old sawtooth will not run them at a desirable speed.

That being said, a 1.25 USB 2.0 eMac fits my budget and software needs wonderfully. I have found a couple good deals on Craigslist and the like. Other than scuffed up screens, is there anything specific I should watch out for? I have not heard much either way on eMac reliability. I only will need the machine until I go off to college and purchase a Macbook.

Thanks
 
D

DDorian

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 1, 2007
20
0
The eMac still looks like a good fit for me, but are there other models I should be considering?
 
Hrududu

Hrududu

macrumors 68020
Jul 25, 2008
2,299
627
Central US
DDorian said:
The eMac still looks like a good fit for me, but are there other models I should be considering?
Click to expand...
The eMacs are great computers. We've had one for about 4 years now and its still going strong running 10.5. A friend of mine has had one for about the same time period and its been running nearly 24/7 for the past 2 years without a glitch. They really do have probably the best CRT displays I have ever seen. My only other thought would be to check out some iMac G4's, but I really don't think you'll be dissapointed with an eMac.
 
zmttoxics

zmttoxics

macrumors 65816
May 20, 2008
1,020
1
I just got my girlfriend that exact same model (the 1.25 usb 2.0). I upgraded the ram (super easy) and the harddrive (hardest hd upgrade I have ever done) to 1gig and 200 gig respectively out of spare parts. Completely free.

Its been on solid for 2/3 weeks that we've had it now with no issues and the previous owner (hes a good friend of mine) had 0 issues with it too.

Leopard has some slight chokes on it, i think its spotlight related or video card related but its still pretty fast for what it is. Stuff like ms word 2008 and firefox don't have issues so Garage band should be ok.
 
11800506

11800506

macrumors 65816
Oct 31, 2007
1,060
1
Washington D.C. Area
I just recently (June) purchased a used eMac, same model that you are looking at, from eBay for $200 with shipping and I absolutely love it. I actually swapped out the Ram from 768 Mb to 2 GB which I had lying around and added an Airport card and so far have had no problems. The previous owner had installed iLife 08 on it and I can tell you that Garageband is a bit slow but not unusable (which is to be expected). I would also recommend upping the Ram as well to at least 1 Gb although I would go for 2 if you can because it does work in that model even though it is technically not supported. I'm also going to install Leopard on it too and overall it's a great machine. I would definitely recommend getting one.
 
onegirlcreative

onegirlcreative

macrumors member
Mar 3, 2008
95
0
Colorado
My daughter's eMac is a little older and slower—700 MHz, but aside from the fan starting to be noisy now, it's been a dream. It was MY computer before I purchased the Intel iMac back in January, so it's now hers. It has an amazing CRT—nice & clear. I am a graphic designer, and that was my computer for 4 years doing nothing but graphic design work. So having one that's 1 GHz or faster would be ideal.

Check out eBay, but be weary of eMacs that are being sold/pulled from schools, etc. I find that those are horrific with scratches and cosmetic issues. If you want something that is almost flawless cosmetically, just make sure the seller has good, clear pictures. Otherwise, Craig's List might be limiting as they mostly sell newer Macs, or the older iMac G3's.
 
D

DDorian

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 1, 2007
20
0
I picked up the eMac yesterday and I love it! It's in absolutely perfect condition with not a scratch on it. The screen is perfectly clear and everything is running wonderfully. Thanks for all the help, guys! :D
 
onegirlcreative

onegirlcreative

macrumors member
Mar 3, 2008
95
0
Colorado
DDorian said:
I picked up the eMac yesterday and I love it! It's in absolutely perfect condition with not a scratch on it. The screen is perfectly clear and everything is running wonderfully. Thanks for all the help, guys! :D
Click to expand...

Out of curiosity, where did you find one in such pristine condition?

Congrats! I hope you got a good deal on it. Regardless of what anybody says, it's a great computer for a fraction of the cost—even when they were brand new.
 
D

DDorian

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 1, 2007
20
0
onegirlcreative said:
Out of curiosity, where did you find one in such pristine condition?

Congrats! I hope you got a good deal on it. Regardless of what anybody says, it's a great computer for a fraction of the cost—even when they were brand new.
Click to expand...

I bought it from a High School Senior whose school had an experimental eMac lab which they used for photoshop, final cut, and other Audio/Visual programs. They are upgrading to intel iMacs and all of the macs were kept in extremely good condition because they were only used in advanced classes where students had demonstrated exceptional computer knowledge.

I got the USB 2.0 eMac with 512 mb of ram and a wired apple keyboard and mouse for 120 USD. :D

One of the best investments I've made all year.
 
H

hudm

macrumors newbie
Jan 2, 2009
4
0
eMac CRT dim after upgrades

I bought a new eMac in 2005--1.42 GHz for the family. Worked great for 3 years. After 3 years, the hard drive crashed 2 weeks after 3 yr warranty expired in Sept. 2008.

I replaced the HD with a 250 gig Western Digital HD and added another 500 Mb of Ram (1 gb now). I also upgraded to Leopard OSX 10.5. It seems to be working fine, except I am noticing the it is slower to boot up and the crt seems to take a longer time to warm up and become bright.

I am hoping to get two or three more years out of it, but I am concerned about the monitor lasting. Not sure if I damaged it during the HD replacement or if it is a function of upgrading.
 
R

riker1384

macrumors regular
Jun 29, 2007
198
20
West Coast
My eMac hard drive died after 5 years, some of which had very heavy use. I can still use the computer if I boot off of an external Firewire drive, though.

The fan started making noise a while back. I bought a new fan on Ebay expecting the old one was dying, but it didn't die and it stopped making the noise.

The screen was pretty nice, with very nice color, but I noticed when I switched to another eMac that hadn't been used as much, that my main eMac's screen was more blurry. Both are blurry compared to an LCD.
 
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