When to purchase a Mac Pro

[k03pg01]

Hey all - first of all thanks for all the information you've provided in your other threads, they've been very helpful in making my decision in switching from a PC to a Mac.

The question I have is as follows: I know that Leopard is coming out in late October and there are also rumors for an update for the Mac Pro. I myself don't do anything highly professional as a career - such as rendering, HD movie making, or anything of the sort - however I am a huge gamer and figured that the Mac Pro would be the best to offer in terms of what I am looking for in a gaming computer. So, my question is, should I wait until November, when a supposed release of a new Mac Pro is to come out, or should I just go ahead and get a Mac Pro now? Here are the specs of the Mac Pro I want/could purchase now:

# Two 3.0GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon
# 4GB (4 x 1GB)
# 500GB 7200-rpm Serial ATA 3Gb/s
# 4 x NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB
# Two 16x SuperDrives
# Bluetooth 2.0+EDR module

Would these specs suffice to play the newest games out now, such as Bioshock, Medal of Honor, WoW, etc.? Lastly, instead of getting 4 NVIDIA cards, since they themselves are not the best, can I simply get a high-end video card and just install that into my Mac Pro, or are there certain limitations as it is a Mac?

Thanks a bunch and I look forward to your responses!

 

[jerrah]

It would really depend on how soon you NEED the computer. I am waiting for the rumored new machine.

Why are you going for 4x 7300GT's if you want to play games? What screen(s) are you going to connect to it? You would be better off with the ATI x1900XT at least.

x1900XT is the best bet for videocard until Apple releases soemthing new. You can install any videocard you like, but it won't work in MacOS (you can use it under bootcamp though)...

 

[k03pg01]

Why are you going for 4x 7300GT's if you want to play games? What screen(s) are you going to connect to it? You would be better off with the ATI x1900XT at least.

Yeah, I guess that was a stupid mistake on my part - not really sure about that actually! I'm planning on getting either 2 20" or 1 30". In terms of whether I really NEED it now or not, I probably could wait, but I guess I'm not sure as to whether waiting for 2 months for the next processors is really going to make a difference - is there going to be a drastic difference in the performance or only a slight one, cause if it's not too dramatic, I'm satisfied with the processors they offer now

 

[Mr.Noisy]

Hey all - first of all thanks for all the information you've provided in your other threads, they've been very helpful in making my decision in switching from a PC to a Mac.

The question I have is as follows: I know that Leopard is coming out in late October and there are also rumors for an update for the Mac Pro. I myself don't do anything highly professional as a career - such as rendering, HD movie making, or anything of the sort - however I am a huge gamer and figured that the Mac Pro would be the best to offer in terms of what I am looking for in a gaming computer. So, my question is, should I wait until November, when a supposed release of a new Mac Pro is to come out, or should I just go ahead and get a Mac Pro now? Here are the specs of the Mac Pro I want/could purchase now:

# Two 3.0GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon
# 4GB (4 x 1GB)
# 500GB 7200-rpm Serial ATA 3Gb/s
# 4 x NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB
# Two 16x SuperDrives
# Bluetooth 2.0+EDR module

Would these specs suffice to play the newest games out now, such as Bioshock, Medal of Honor, WoW, etc.? Lastly, instead of getting 4 NVIDIA cards, since they themselves are not the best, can I simply get a high-end video card and just install that into my Mac Pro, or are there certain limitations as it is a Mac?

Thanks a bunch and I look forward to your responses!

Realistically if your after a gaming machine the Mac Pro isn't what you want, A purpose buit Gaming PC would be better & cheaper, The Mac Pro is a pro system for high end graphic/video/music work.

4 x 7300 G/cards ?? Are you connecting 8 monitors ?
As Mentioned get the x1900 if you wanna play on the MP.

 

[Dreadnought]

Or wait until the new Mac Pro's are unleashed, which isn't long now. I'm pretty sure Apple will give us a top end graphix card, probably the 8800.

 

[Evergreen]

Macs have a pretty dismal record in the games arena. The MacPro is designed for media professionals, not gamers; it went without a video card refresh for one year. It sucks, but that's the way it is. Wait and see what the next update will bring. You can buy a PC for gaming and a mid to upper range iMac for the cost of a maxed out MacPro.

 

[jerrah]

Who would purchase a new graphics card for gaming more than once per year? My 7900GTX was purchased over a year ago and still has excellent performance. Mind you it cost more than $1000AUD back then.

Whilst I want a better videocard than the x1900XT in my new Mac Pro it's hardly a poor performer.