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Need help making a decision...by tomorrow morning!

C

Crevice

macrumors regular
Original poster
My fellow mac users...I am having a very hard time deciding on what mac pro to purchase. My journey here started with 2 defected iMac's, and me turning to a mac pro instead. The reason of course was not just me giving up on the new iMac, but me wanting a slightly smaller monitor, and a much more powerful rig for work on the mac side AND on the windows side for gaming.

The reason this decision is so hard, is that I get 25 percent off on this computer (work) which I only get to use once. So I figured I need to make the best of it. The reason I need to choose by the morning is I sent in my iMac last week and told apple I wanted another new iMac sent to me, which I have now decided against. So I need to call apple in the morning and ask for a full refund toward a new mac pro..so by morning I need to know which config to get:

Choice 1: 3.2 ghz Quad, 8 gig ram, 5870 graphics (after taxes and discount= $2,836)

Choice 2: 3.3 6 core, 8 gig ram, 5870 graphics (after taxes and discounts=$3,489)

My uses are hardcore gaming on the PC side, and pretty heavy usage on the mac side (pro tools, logic, reason, photoshop, after effects) The choice was the quad, until I realized how much I would be saving if I got the six core now. I guess I am also thinking about the future. What do you guys think? And now building a PC rig and get a cheaper mac is not a route I want. I don't have room for 2 rigs.
 
How much is tax? My calculations would both make them quite a bit cheaper if you really get 25% off . . .

Go for the hexacore for the apps that you use
 
I put in my NY zip code and those were the prices, I am guessing its the NY tax thats more expensive.

How would the 6 core help on the gaming side? Drastic or not really?
 
Crevice said:
I put in my NY zip code and those were the prices, I am guessing its the NY tax thats more expensive.

How would the 6 core help on the gaming side? Drastic or not really?
Click to expand...

right now it wouldn't make much difference but in a few years it sure will. pretty much what it comes down to is do u want to invest in a system that will last longer or do u just want to purchase something for less money now so you can make a bigger investment next time? will you be in more demand now or later?
 
Crevice said:
I put in my NY zip code and those were the prices, I am guessing its the NY tax thats more expensive.

How would the 6 core help on the gaming side? Drastic or not really?
Click to expand...

Wouldn't really help.

Some games I've seen, like Starcraft II, can make minor use of all your cores, but nothing drastic.
 
definitely go 6 core. The mac pro is a computer that tends to last for 3+ years as one's main computer and the 6 core will outperform the 4 core at a noticeable clip years from now. Most also believe the 6 core mac pro will have the greatest resale value years from now if you are interested in going that route.
 
auditdirox said:
The Quad is CRAZY fast so i would say that BUT just for the sake of futureproofing your rig, go for the Hexa-core.
Click to expand...

would the quad core mac pro, be a drastic boost from the quad core imac I would be coming from? Also how easy is it to install a SSD drive in the mac pro down the road? Thanks guys/gals for all the replies.
 
SSD storage will make way more difference than two additional cores. If it was me, it would be the Quad and a pair of Sandforce SSDs in RAID0... Hands down.

I mean let's face it, the whole reason for getting a Mac Pro is so you can run a balls to the wall storage solution (eg Multi disk RAID)... Right?

😀
 
You will want to avoid the imac if you have any aspirations for gaming, as the gfx card in the imac is a mobile gpu (meaning a graphics card designed for laptops primarily). That more or less means the gpu performance will be insanely gimped in contrast to the gpu you will receive in your mac pro. Regarding the installation of a ssd drive, this process is insanely easy with a mac pro, and a borderline nightmare with an imac (you literally have to removes the glass, screen, panel, and unhook the mobo from it before you get to the internal slots).
 
I think I am going with a mac pro, 6 core, and I will throw in an OWC SSD or other kind of SSD in the next few months for my boot drive. Now this is going to be a really stupid question, but can I add ram to my mac pro, without removing the original ram if it is a different brand? So if I get 8 gigs of ram from apple, can I add another 8 later but just another brand that is cheaper? Or do I have to get 16 gig of the same brand?
 
Crevice said:
I think I am going with a mac pro, 6 core, and I will throw in an OWC SSD or other kind of SSD in the next few months for my boot drive. Now this is going to be a really stupid question, but can I add ram to my mac pro, without removing the original ram if it is a different brand? So if I get 8 gigs of ram from apple, can I add another 8 later but just another brand that is cheaper? Or do I have to get 16 gig of the same brand?
Click to expand...

The QUAD/HEX machines ONLY hold 4 sticks of ram. So, there are 2 ways to put in 8GB . . . 2 sticks of 4GB (only using 2 of the 4 slots available) or 4 sticks of 2GB (using all slots). Once you fill them up, thats it, no more. So I don't understand what you mean "add another 8gb that is cheaper" . . . but, don't buy RAM from Apple, it is horrendously overpriced. You can buy 16GB from Transintl.com for $550 or so.
 
sboerup said:
The QUAD/HEX machines ONLY hold 4 sticks of ram. So, there are 2 ways to put in 8GB . . . 2 sticks of 4GB (only using 2 of the 4 slots available) or 4 sticks of 2GB (using all slots). Once you fill them up, thats it, no more. So I don't understand what you mean "add another 8gb that is cheaper" . . . but, don't buy RAM from Apple, it is horrendously overpriced. You can buy 16GB from Transintl.com for $550 or so.
Click to expand...

Ya i guess what i said made no sense, because I forget it only had 4 ram slots. What I was trying to say is if I could add ram on top of the ram apple gives me, if it was another brand. But in my case that wouldnt really work, I would just have to toss the ram that came with it.
 
I guess the ram question depends on how many slots the default ram configuration uses? I would also say to get the six core, don't worry about any raid with SSD drives as they are fast enough as it is and will only impact game load times, but I would look into crossfire because I think the mac can support it? Then you can have 2 ati cards linked together and that will give you a massive boost to your game frame rate. But only if you can do it on a mac pro.
The mac pro is a good choice because you can upgrade it as you go with drives and ram and graphics cards.
 
Why do you only have around 650 dollars difference between the two computers? It is exactly 800 dollars more for the 6 core. If you are getting discounts on the options, it's the first time I have ever heard Apple doing that. Normally they give discounts only on the base price and then add options. In this case normally it would be off of the 2.8GHz machine and then add options. If you have a secret then please reveal it.
 
6-core is the better choice in the long run. I'm assuming it won't be a budget issue or you wouldn't be considering it.
 
Only $600 for more than 50% more performance? Not a very tough decision if you ask me.

Definitely 6!
Cheaper now than upgrading to a hex later since the Xeon parts don't really fall in price.
 
allupons said:
You will want to avoid the imac if you have any aspirations for gaming, as the gfx card in the imac is a mobile gpu (meaning a graphics card designed for laptops primarily).
Click to expand...

This is no longer true. As of the last revision, it's a desktop GPU.
 
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