Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

is the mac pro still the fastest mac?

D

drachenfells

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 27, 2007
6
0
hi,
i need a new mac in january, and i need one that can have mac os 10.4 on it.
i was thinking about the 2 x 2,66 model.
I guess the new mac pro maybe coming out in the middle of january will just boot from 10.5, right?
so its not an opinion for me to wait.. (because i´m sure digidesign will take some time untill pro tools is ready for leopard..:-()

everybody here is talking like the mac pro is really outdatet.
thats not the problem for me, i maybe still have to buy one, because i need a fast mac for my work. but now heres a question:
is it still the fastest mac? i mean if the mac pro is so outdated, maybe a powerbook pro is faster, or maybe even the imac is?
maybe it makes no sense to buy an mac pro because ther are other macs which are faster?
i´m just speaking about performance, i know that the mac pro has other advantages, but for this thread i just want to know about the performance in comparison to other macs..

thanks in advance!

drachenfells
 
drachenfells said:
everybody here is talking like the mac pro is really outdatet.
Click to expand...

Some of the people here wouldn't be satisfied if Apple updated the Mac Pro with 4 64-core 256-bit chips. The Mac Pro is still a screamingly fast machine, which puts a lot of the competition in the dust. Get it and love it :)
 
If you are running Pro apps, that take advantage of the multi cores and lots of RAM, then the Mac Pro is king.

If you also need lots of HD space the Mac Pro will also rock.

Some apps that don't require that will be perfectly fine on the MacBook Pro and iMac.

If you want to play a game, you might be suffering with the machine a bit right now.

--- basically...

If you run multithreaded Pro apps, RAM hogs, or drive hogs you might like the Pro. Or something silly like SCSI, 10 eSATA drives, etc.

For most other stuff the iMac and MacBook Pro are fine, and the portability of the MacBook Pro might be worth avoiding the Mac Pro hernia operation.
 
I use my Mac Pro 2.66 with Logic Studio and lot of plugs, 3rd party etc.
Using many softsynths, 3rd party ones as well, I've never seen my machine go over 30% CPU. That's with email, safari and a bunch of apps open.
Unless you're doing 600 stereo audio tracks, the current machine has lots of balls for Audio work. If you really need Tiger still, it can be installed easily after the fact. The only 3rd party app I have that doesn't work in Leopard is Synthogy Ivory, all my others work just fine in AU Native in Leopard.
I have 4 HD's in her and 5 gigs of ram in her. ( I didn't buy Apple's).
No regrets. But ya sometime early Jan if not sooner there sounds like a new machine coming.
 
thanks for all the answers!
makes me feel much better to buy the mac pro 2x2.66 the next time..

@seclusion: good to hear that most audio plug ins are running under leopard,
but i use pro tools, and this is not supported from digidesign under leopard, and i think its not running either.. and i think digidesign will take some time to make it compatible. they are some kind of... slow:)

but you say that even when the new mac pro is just running under leopard there is a way to install 10.4?
 
For those not using Pro Apps that support the 4+ cores effectively, the 2.8 iMac comes damn close.
 
Just out of curiosity, how compatible are Tiger-compatible apps with Leopard? Will I be able to use my current Adobe suite apps etc on a new machine without any hitches?
 
Yes, it's still the fastest............











............but it's also the oldest.


DAMN YOU APPLE!!!! PUT DOWN THE DAMN IPHONE & GET TO WORK! :mad:
 
Even I want them to put down the iPhone and sort out the MacPro, mainly because even though I can't afford either, at least I'm not barred from buying a MacPro because of my age :mad:
 
Processor-wise, the Mac Pro is only "outdated" because Intel just (last week,) released the replacement chips and chipset for what is in the Mac Pro. Two weeks ago, the 8-core Mac Pro was still the fastest x86-based machine money could buy. And while the new chips are theoretically "released" right now, Dell is the only major CTO company I can find offering it, and they don't even have a model that is paired with the new chipset, only a model that works with the older chipset (same as used in the Mac Pro.) They also list a 3-week delay before shipping. HP lists two "coming soon" systems that appear to be based on the new chipset.

So, again, the current Mac Pro has only been made "outdated" within the last week. And the replacement processor and chipset aren't even readily available yet. If Apple updates in January, with immediate availability, they would still be among the first to ship the new chipset.

Although the graphics have been "obsolete" for months now, they are still plenty fast for every game out there except Crysis.
 
jnc said:
Just out of curiosity, how compatible are Tiger-compatible apps with Leopard? Will I be able to use my current Adobe suite apps etc on a new machine without any hitches?
Click to expand...

I have an Intel Mac and Adobe Photoshop CS3 runs amazingly fast on Leopard. I also have Macromedia Dreamweaver/Flash 8 (it's a PPC app) and it still runs the same as it did in Tiger.

I don't think you will have any problem unless the apps are way outdated.
 
ehurtley said:
Processor-wise, the Mac Pro is only "outdated" because Intel just (last week,) released the replacement chips and chipset for what is in the Mac Pro. Two weeks ago, the 8-core Mac Pro was still the fastest x86-based machine money could buy. And while the new chips are theoretically "released" right now, Dell is the only major CTO company I can find offering it, and they don't even have a model that is paired with the new chipset, only a model that works with the older chipset (same as used in the Mac Pro.) They also list a 3-week delay before shipping. HP lists two "coming soon" systems that appear to be based on the new chipset.

So, again, the current Mac Pro has only been made "outdated" within the last week. And the replacement processor and chipset aren't even readily available yet. If Apple updates in January, with immediate availability, they would still be among the first to ship the new chipset.

Although the graphics have been "obsolete" for months now, they are still plenty fast for every game out there except Crysis.
Click to expand...

At lease SOMEONE on this forum gets it. Kudos to you!

Apple cant release what isn't available. The MacPro is hard from outdated.
 
RichP said:
At lease SOMEONE on this forum gets it. Kudos to you!

Apple cant release what isn't available. The MacPro is hard from outdated.
Click to expand...

I don't see what there is to get or why you feel you and this guy are the only ones that "get it." Yes, they aren't available in quantity... Do you want a cookie for pointing out the obvious?

Yes we know Apple can't release what isn't available. It does not follow however that the Mac Pro isn't outdated, because it is indeed. Regardless of availability (although newegg has them: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Description=harpertown&x=0&y=0), the existence of something that is indeed better and when we know they are out there (not vaporware), it follows for one to say that the old kit is indeed outdated based on the existence of that technology and its "official-ness."

If it makes you feel better at night to think that it isn't outdated, suit yourself.

I personally don't care if the X1900 can run Crysis. It is outdated, end of story. There exists something that can run it better. Is it supposed to be some sort of comfort or nudge for action? Some people want value for their money and they choose not to be an absolute idiot with their money, which buying a Mac Pro at the moment would be just that, being an idiot.

And again, I don't understand why you and clearly others feel the need to defend the current Pro. It has seen 16+ months without a single revision while the rest of the Apple has seen multiple revisions within that same time frame. Even the Mac Mini.

The only someone(s) who don't seem to get it are you and those others who feel the need to stroke Apple and defend them in their lack of attention to the Pro line in what is clearly and attempt to defend your purchase. I will say this, I don't care if you love your Mac Pro. I don't care if it can play Crysis. I don't care if you does everything you need it do. I don't care if you think it is plenty fast for anyone. I don't care to hear one word about your opinion on the current Mac Pro. It is irrelevant. It is outdated and I am not going to buy it. So please, give it a rest. You can see your way out of these threads as they clearly do not pertain to you. You are welcome to start the "I love my outdated Mac Pro/Blind Apple Fan Boy" club. You will get a few members I am sure.
 
ehurtley said:
Although the graphics have been "obsolete" for months now, they are still plenty fast for every game out there except Crysis.
Click to expand...

I beg to differ. The x1900xt was EOL'd by ATI OVER a year ago. The x1900xt is THREE YEARS OLD. The 7300gt is TWO years old. I don't know how old the quadro card is but I know it has been obsolete for QUITE some time. ALL of those video cards are at least two generations behind.

If you insist on defending an outdated (and highly neglected by Apple) product, get your facts straight first. :rolleyes:

I don't care how "capable" these OLD, OUTDATED, OBSOLETE cards are of playing "every game out there except Crysis". They have NO place in a machine at this price point.:apple:
And defending them is beyond absurd.

RichP said:
Apple cant release what isn't available. The MacPro is hard from outdated.
Click to expand...

Give it a rest. Both these statements are completely FALSE. Processors and video cards ARE available. Get off your high horse.
 
Also, since some of us like to lie/pull things out of their asses to legitimate their claim. I just called Dell to confirm the chipsets in the Precisions. The 690 uses the Greencreek chipset, while the T7400 does in fact use the Seaburg chipset.

You are more than welcome to call their business line to confirm.
 
I've just bought a MacPro the fastest one - and have 13 gig of ram and the X1900 video card. I am older than any of these components and older than most if not all of you here and I don't care about my graphics card being EOL three decades ago. It's still the fastest machine I could buy and it is NOT anything Apple are doing that makes it 'obsolete' I'm creating 3 pictures for a company that add up to 100 feet long by 7 feet high, but with all my 13 gig of ram, bloody Photoshop can only use a fraction of it, same for scratch disc. It's Adobe who need to get up to date not Apple.

Of course if anyone knows how to assign more ram to CS3 under 10.5 . . . . .

Maybe this board should have a section so everyone else who wants to actually have constructive discussions about Apple's brilliant hardware can do so.
 
Synthabusion said:
You would have to buy 10.4 from a third party & just do a fresh install.
Click to expand...

No, the retail version of Tiger is PPC only, so you won't be able to install it on a mac pro. Also, all models that are updated after a new OS release are incapable of running previous versions of the OS(which causes endless consternation for corporate users, but....) so if you wait till the model refresh, you won't be able to install Tiger on that machine officially.

Theoretically there could be some hacks to do so, but they would be unsupported, lacking drivers for whatever new hardware is in there, and probably not worth while.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back