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PowerMac G5 Upgrades Announced (Officially)

Radeon 9800 Pro Retail vs. Radeon 9650??

Hi all. I'm getting ready to replace my old 2000 Sawtooth G4 PowerMac with the new 2.7GHz G5 PowerMac, and have a question about the video card. Earlier in the year I upgraded my Sawtooth with a Radeon 9800 Pro (128MB) Retail video card. I see that the stock card in the new G5 is a Radeon 9650 (256MB) video card, and wonder whether I should swap it out with my 9800? I have a 23" Apple Cinema Display, which works fine on my Sawtooth running Tiger, so doubt I'll miss the 256MB in the 9650. However, will I notice a performance improvement in the 9800? I think I should, but it is an AGP 2x/4x card, vice the 9650's AGP 8x. Any advice?
 
I'd expect the 9800 to be superior to the 9650 in every way except one -- the 9650 can drive a 30" Cinema Display. Beyond that, you'll be better off with the 9800.
 
My First Post

I've been reading and absorbing as much as I can.

I've been a Mac person since the first 128k version.
I've owned a bunch of Macs and now I'm happily doing audio work on a Dual 800 G4 w 10.3.8.

I am amazed at the reliability of this system.
It doesn't crash! (After 15 years with Macs, this is amazing to me)

My DAW is wanting more power to run more plugins, but I am afraid to upgrade.

Do the G5s with Tiger have this kind of stability in an audio studio environment?

Is 2.7ghz a good place to jump back in?

Thanks
 
illustratorDavi said:
ah !!!

thanks i've got some details now - very confusing thought they expect it to be tuesday/wednesday aswell but that may be to arnhem :/

David
Click to expand...

Hi David! Now I can see some tracking info concerning my shippment in the TNT webpage, so finally I can say my PM is on its way home!! (the tracking in the Apple web hasn't changed at all, but that doesn't matter anymore 🙂 )
Is there something new with yours?
 
propropro said:
Hi David! Now I can see some tracking info concerning my shippment in the TNT webpage, so finally I can say my PM is on its way home!! (the tracking in the Apple web hasn't changed at all, but that doesn't matter anymore 🙂 )
Is there something new with yours?
Click to expand...

Hi propropro

Yeah I've got a new tracking code like you - presumably a TNT code.

Unfortunately the TNT uk site is down at the moment so i don't know where it is yet!!! :/ I think we could be getting our G5s by wednesday possibly

Thanks
David
 
Yes, mine has left from Arnhem (exactly at 16.30)
The site is now open.
If there is no problem it will arrive here wednesday or thursday. The problem is if it arrives on friday, I won't be able to get it, as that day I won't be at home and I will have to wait until monday 😡
If you have some doubt tell me.
I hope yours arrives soon at its new home. Good luck and short waiting!
 
Dave Marsh said:
Hi all. I'm getting ready to replace my old 2000 Sawtooth G4 PowerMac with the new 2.7GHz G5 PowerMac, and have a question about the video card. Earlier in the year I upgraded my Sawtooth with a Radeon 9800 Pro (128MB) Retail video card. I see that the stock card in the new G5 is a Radeon 9650 (256MB) video card, and wonder whether I should swap it out with my 9800? I have a 23" Apple Cinema Display, which works fine on my Sawtooth running Tiger, so doubt I'll miss the 256MB in the 9650. However, will I notice a performance improvement in the 9800? I think I should, but it is an AGP 2x/4x card, vice the 9650's AGP 8x. Any advice?
Click to expand...

I have a Power Mac G4 that i purchased September 2000, it's a dual 450 Graphite Model. Also thinking about a new G5.

With the large stable of Mac's that you have my advice would be to consider folding for our MacRumors team. See my signature for more information.

Thank you for your consideration.
 
Hi

I just thought I would let people know that this morning I received by brand-new 2.7Ghz G5 bto ordered about 28th April

Thanks for all the replies guys
David
 
illustratorDavi said:
Hi

I just thought I would let people know that this morning I received by brand-new 2.7Ghz G5 bto ordered about 28th April

Thanks for all the replies guys
David
Click to expand...

That is awesome news. Are you posting on that beauty at the moment? Do you have pictures of the opening and setup ceremony?
 
what kind of display are you running with your dual 2.7ghz G5, by any chance is it a 30"er

post some pics, it sound like a nice setup
 
Hi

I need to tidy up a bit before I can post a picture 🙂

and nah its a 20inch but it feels like a 30inch compared to my 15inch imac g4 screen 😀 -- no way could I buy anything bigger, i would be gutted if i broke it at the price of a 23/30

I was worried at first when I turned it on because it sounded like a kettle boiling with that liquid cooling sorting itself out - very strange

David
 
Tell me more about the gurgling sound, and does your power supply chirp as many have noted? Any anomalies with the fans running wild? I'm getting close, just waiting for the Jobs Keynote at the WWDC to pull the trigger. 😎
 
wdlove...

Hi, since I installed Tiger, my SETI screen saver no longer works. Bummer... So, I now have to run it as an app, which is really annoying. First off, it's cut my daily work units down to just under 2 (from over 3), and I have to quit it every time I want to use the Mac (since it consumes 100% of my CPU). Maybe with the upcoming G5 and its second CPU that won't be an issue, but for now it is. Anyway, I'm thinking about quitting SETI when I hit 1750 units if they don't update the screen saver. I see that Folding@Home also runs as a screen saver. Does it still work with Tiger? I'm happy to run these distributed apps in the background, or as a screen saver, to use idle cycles, but I'd like to just install it and forget it, and that's not working now with SETI. 🙁
 
Dave Marsh said:
Tell me more about the gurgling sound, and does your power supply chirp as many have noted? Any anomalies with the fans running wild? I'm getting close, just waiting for the Jobs Keynote at the WWDC to pull the trigger. 😎
Click to expand...

Hi Dave

I hope he has no news about new powermacs at wwdc - but thats just me being selfish 😀

I think the gurgling sound was just really the recovery from transit - it seemed to have been tossed around alot (box looks like its been treated with sandpaper) - anyway i haven't heard it since.

The fans turn on and off all the time - quiet loud but not bad, they kind of sound like a wind .... whoooo... whooo. .. whoo

Yeah i get the chirping sound from the power when i turn it on at the plug and turn it off - i've never come across this before although this is my first G5

Thanks
David
 
I Had To Pull The Trigger Last Week - Fans A Little Breezier. But not bad.

illustratorDavi said:
Hi Dave

I hope he has no news about new powermacs at wwdc - but thats just me being selfish 😀

I think the gurgling sound was just really the recovery from transit - it seemed to have been tossed around alot (box looks like its been treated with sandpaper) - anyway i haven't heard it since.

The fans turn on and off all the time - quiet loud but not bad, they kind of sound like a wind .... whoooo... whooo. .. whoo

Yeah i get the chirping sound from the power when i turn it on at the plug and turn it off - i've never come across this before although this is my first G5

Thanks
David
Click to expand...
I know what you mean. It was tough buying so close to the WWDC speech. But the dual 2.5 refurbs @$2299 were too cheap to pass up. And I noticed that the same thing (when they appear for a moment) is now priced at $2699 on the refurb page - and even at that price they were gone in minutes. I guess someone at Apple figured out that the number 2.5 is larger than 2.3.

Mine arrived 3 days after ordering with ONE GB of RAM instead of the 512 MB promised and a 4x Sony A10U NOT "Super" Drive made in September of 2003. Of course I called Apple when I discovered this yesterday (was too busy to run it until then and wanted to wait for my two 1 GB sticks to arrive) and arranged for an exchange for a Pioneer DVR 108 or maybe a 109 if the dealer asks nice. No biggie. DVR-109's now cost $56 including free shipping and sales tax in California.

Anyway, yes the fans have a tendency to accelerate more often than they do on the Dual 2 I am leaving behind. But the speed is noticably faster and well worth the upgrade. A year ago I bought the Dual 2 for $1999 the same way. It arrived with a DVR-107 8x SuperDrive, ONE GB of RAM and a 250 GB Hard Drive. Now for $300 more I have 25% more speed. All I had to do was swap out the hard drives, add my two 1 GB sticks and I still have a 3 GB PowerMac G5 that's a lot snappier expandible to 7 GB while leaving all 3 GB of 512 sticks in the dual 2 for resale. 😉
 
Dave Marsh said:
Hi, since I installed Tiger, my SETI screen saver no longer works. Bummer... So, I now have to run it as an app, which is really annoying. First off, it's cut my daily work units down to just under 2 (from over 3), and I have to quit it every time I want to use the Mac (since it consumes 100% of my CPU). Maybe with the upcoming G5 and its second CPU that won't be an issue, but for now it is. Anyway, I'm thinking about quitting SETI when I hit 1750 units if they don't update the screen saver. I see that Folding@Home also runs as a screen saver. Does it still work with Tiger? I'm happy to run these distributed apps in the background, or as a screen saver, to use idle cycles, but I'd like to just install it and forget it, and that's not working now with SETI. 🙁
Click to expand...

Hi Dave Marsh

With folding it's actually better not to run it as a screen saver. Mine is running in the background. My processors can run 100% folding while I'm not using my Mac. The folding automatically decreases when a processor is needed for a user program running. Just install and not give it another thought.
 
Hi all. I don't really expect Steve to announce any tower upgrades at the WWDC, but I just can't buy until I confirm that negative.

I have a Dual 2.5GHz G5 at work and have crawled around on the floor trying to hear these sounds everyone is talking about. We're in an industrial park building and the sound from the air conditioners in the ceiling creates a lot of white noise that effectively blocks out any but the loudest, most obvious sounds. That said, placing my ear about five inches from the front of the tower at the bottom of the case nearest the power supply, I could barely hear the occasional beep/chirp that I suppose others are talking about. If that's all it is, it won't be a problem for me, even at home.

And yes, I'll probably switch over to Folding@Home when I get my new Mac. I'm happy to share the clock cycles when I don't need them, but I'm not going to give the application a lot of attention after I set it up. Is Folding multiprocessor aware, i.e., when I'm not using the Mac will it make use of BOTH processors?
 
Dave Marsh said:
Hi all. I don't really expect Steve to announce any tower upgrades at the WWDC, but I just can't buy until I confirm that negative.

And yes, I'll probably switch over to Folding@Home when I get my new Mac. I'm happy to share the clock cycles when I don't need them, but I'm not going to give the application a lot of attention after I set it up. Is Folding multiprocessor aware, i.e., when I'm not using the Mac will it make use of BOTH processors?
Click to expand...

I'm also hoping that Steve will announce an upgrade to the Power Mac at WWDC. That is why I'm holding off on a purchase also.

Happy to hear that you have seriously considered folding with our team. Yes, whey you aren't using the Mac it will utilize both processor. Once installed there is a need to pay any attention, runs quietly on its own. When you need active processing power folding will automatically decrease.

Just be sure that your download and install the program for dual processors.
 
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