I am going to be buying one of the new Mac Pros shortly, but I cannot decide on what exact specs to get. I was wondering, how big of a difference does each processor upgrade make? I mean, would I really notice the difference between 2.8 GHz and 3.0 GHz? It seems like an awful lot of money ($700+) for 200 MHz. But I don't know, maybe it really does make a difference. And then the RAM; is 2 GB enough or would 4 GB be better? Someone told me that if I am going to have a 32-bit system, then 2 GB is enough. If I am going to do a 64-bit system, then I would want 4 GB. How would I know if I am getting a 32 or 64 bit system? In case it helps, I am mostly using this computer for everyday tasks as well as some video making and photo stuff.
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Mac Pro performance questions
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acearchie
macrumors 68040
Now I dont want to insult your computer intelligence but if you are asking those sort of questions then it would probably be better to get a 24" imac?
From what you have already stated 2.8GHz would be ample, not many people would be able to tell the differance!
The great thing about pretty much all macs is that you can upgrade the RAM (and fairly cheaply from 3rd retailers) so start of with the basic (2GB) and see if it suites your needs, and if it doesn't an upgrade is only a few internet clicks away to purchase!
Hope this helps!
From what you have already stated 2.8GHz would be ample, not many people would be able to tell the differance!
The great thing about pretty much all macs is that you can upgrade the RAM (and fairly cheaply from 3rd retailers) so start of with the basic (2GB) and see if it suites your needs, and if it doesn't an upgrade is only a few internet clicks away to purchase!
Hope this helps!
You best bank for the buck is the 8-core 2.8 base and then if you see yourself needing more RAM purchase it after the fact from OWC or similar retailer. Same with Harddrives.
The base system packs a lot of punch and is an awesome platform to upgrade upon.
The base system packs a lot of punch and is an awesome platform to upgrade upon.
Get the 2.8, Forget the iMac its a laptop on a pedestal. If you want real performance nothing beats a real nice tower.
Oh buy with the lowest ram possible and order the memory from a reseller. you can get 8GB for under 400 bucks.
Oh buy with the lowest ram possible and order the memory from a reseller. you can get 8GB for under 400 bucks.
OWC has 8GB RAM for 400, and you can pick up some really nice hitachi 1tb drives for $250-$275 or $150 for some nice 750GB drives
acearchie, I understand what you are saying; It might sound stupid on my part but I just want a real computer with a detached monitor instead of an all-in-one, even if that costs me a bit more money.
I had no idea Apple ripped you on the memory that badly. I think I'd just do the 2 GB.
And does anyone know what my friend was talking about when he said it depends on whether I would be running a 32- or 64-bit system? Is that an option or is that just a factor of Apple OS X? I don't really understand that.
I had no idea Apple ripped you on the memory that badly. I think I'd just do the 2 GB.
And does anyone know what my friend was talking about when he said it depends on whether I would be running a 32- or 64-bit system? Is that an option or is that just a factor of Apple OS X? I don't really understand that.
OSX is 64-bit, if you need to run XP, stick with the 32-bit version as 64-bit supported apps and drivers are not always available. The two ways to run XP would be with virtualization using Parallels or VMWare, the other would be to run it in BootCamp but that requires rebooting and does not allow simultaneous access of OSX and XP.