My Situation, your advice

[Standard]

I have two Macs from 2008;

a Mac Pro 2.8Ghz, 8 Core, 2GB RAM (yeah, I know..), 8800GT
a MacBook Pro 2.4GHz C2D, 2GB RAM, 9400M/9600GT

I haven't really looked at hardware since thing..until now. My performance is starting to lack. I use these machines for heavy graphic work and web development, with the occasional gaming.

This is my dilemma, do I sell both these machines for whatever they are worth, and get something new?

Or do I just upgrade the GPU in my Mac Pro to the 5770 and the RAM to 6GB for now?

 

[Hellhammer]

Your Mac Pro is still very powerful so I would just bump the RAM (maybe even more than 6GB) and get a new GPU.

 

[Standard]

Your Mac Pro is still very powerful so I would just bump the RAM (maybe even more than 6GB) and get a new GPU.

That's what I was hoping...heh..Is this true? The base model Mac Pro of today uses my same Processor of 08?

One 2.8GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon “Nehalem”

 

[steeex]

What are you using the computers for?

Anyway, in my opinion they are still very good machines. Invest in ram, definitely, and perhaps a ssd for the MBP?

 

[Hellhammer]

That's what I was hoping...heh..Is this true? The base model Mac Pro of today uses my same Processor of 08?

One 2.8GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon “Nehalem”

Nah, it's not the same. The current Mac Pro uses "Nehalem" CPUs (Xeon 3500-series) which are much faster than the old "Harpertown" (Xeon 5400-series) CPUs used in your Mac Pro (clock speed and cores aren't everything). However, the current base Mac Pro only has one CPU and four cores while your Mac Pro has two CPUs and eight cores. Depending on the task, your Mac Pro might still be faster.

It's definitely not worth it to buy a new Mac Pro at least. 15" or 17" MBP would be a different case but I still wouldn't upgrade. Take the full advantage of your current machines first by upping the RAM.

 

[Standard]

Nah, it's not the same. The current Mac Pro uses "Nehalem" CPUs (Xeon 3500-series) which are much faster than the old "Harpertown" (Xeon 5400-series) CPUs used in your Mac Pro (clock speed and cores aren't everything). However, the current base Mac Pro only has one CPU and four cores while your Mac Pro has two CPUs and eight cores. Depending on the task, your Mac Pro might still be faster.

It's definitely not worth it to buy a new Mac Pro at least. 15" or 17" MBP would be a different case but I still wouldn't upgrade. Take the full advantage of your current machines first by upping the RAM.

Thank you kindly.

On my machine would it make much of a difference upgrading between the 5770 and 5870?

 

[Hellhammer]

On my machine would it make much of a difference upgrading between the 5770 and 5870?

What apps do you use? 5870 is about twice as fast as the 5770 so if you're doing something that can user the power of the GPU, then 5870 should be worth it.

 

[Standard]

What apps do you use? 5870 is about twice as fast as the 5770 so if you're doing something that can user the power of the GPU, then 5870 should be worth it.

Adobe CS3 religiously - will be upgrading to CS5 once this machine is faster.

Casual gaming includes SC2, WoW and possibly some new shooters.

 

[Hellhammer]

Adobe CS3 religiously - will be upgrading to CS5 once this machine is faster.

Casual gaming includes SC2, WoW and possibly some new shooters.

From what I've heard, Creative Suite can't take that huge advantage of the GPU so I think 5770 will be fine. It should also run games adequately.

 

[Standard]

From what I've heard, Creative Suite can't take that huge advantage of the GPU so I think 5770 will be fine. It should also run games adequately.

Perfect, thanks again.

I've read around that you can install non apple ram in the intel mac pros, non ECC.

Do you know anything about that?

 

[silentnite]

These Mac's are very powerful. I use one to run a lot of USB & FW midi controllers with a lot music productions software. no problems what so ever. Just push your ram to the max. Save your money until you really need to upgrade.

 

[Hellhammer]

Perfect, thanks again.

I've read around that you can install non apple ram in the intel mac pros, non ECC.

Do you know anything about that?

You can install non-ECC RAM but then all your modules must be non-ECC. I would just get 3rd party ECC RAM to avoid issues, check eg OWC.

 

[Transporteur]

Perfect, thanks again.

I've read around that you can install non apple ram in the intel mac pros, non ECC.

Do you know anything about that?

Your Pro requires ECC RAM, it doesn't have to be registered, though, so unbuffered is fine.

I strongly advice to buy certified RAM for the Pro. You can get those from OWC for example. Their prices are very good and the RAM works 100%.

And make sure you buy enough RAM. 2GB is absolutely insufficient these days. No wonder you aren't satisfied with the machines performance.

My upgrade advice:
12 - 16GB RAM
120GB SSD for boot and apps
AMD 5770

You will be surprised how fast that machine really is!