wich G5???

[Jo-Kun]

hey

I want to buy a G5 dualprocessor

the specs I want is:

2x1.8 or 2x2 G5, 2GB ram, 1x or 2x250GB SATA, SuperDrive, BT, AirPort Extreme, radeon 9600 or 9800 (I will hook up 2 19" LaCie Monitors)

is the pricedifference between 2x1.8 and 2x2 worth paying or is it better to settle for the 2x1.8

I'm using it for Scanning an Photoshop, sometimes using files of 750mb (thats why I need the SuperDrive to get them to my clients)

thnx J

 

[dbauer]

1.8 is the best value

Although most on this forum would tell you to get the 2.0Ghz, I would save the money and go with the 1.8Ghz. You can get one in the Apple refurb store for $1999 and add the 9800 Radeon when you get it and still come out cheaper than buying it new without the card. I don't think you would notice the speed difference in the real world anyway.

There is also talk of Apple updating these G5's in the next week so you might want to hold off and see if you can get a better machine for less money next week.

 

[Jo-Kun]

Although most on this forum would tell you to get the 2.0Ghz, I would save the money and go with the 1.8Ghz. You can get one in the Apple refurb store for $1999 and add the 9800 Radeon when you get it and still come out cheaper than buying it new without the card. I don't think you would notice the speed difference in the real world anyway.

I can't buy these US refurbished ones in Belguim, and we don't have stores that sell them :-s
and since I'm selfemployed I need to buy it in a store not 2nd hand trough eBay or anything like that, because then I cant put them into expenses for taxes...
and idd the speed issue is something that I tought about like not being such a deal since my progs are more ram-dependend

There is also talk of Apple updating these G5's in the next week so you might want to hold off and see if you can get a better machine for less money next week.

I don't know how long I can wait on the RevB to be released... but if its next week ok I'll get that one instead if the prices remain the same :-D

thnx J

 

[evil_santa]

I can't buy these US refurbished ones in Belguim, and we don't have stores that sell them :-s

can you buy from apple france

http://promo.euro.apple.com/promo/refurb/fr/

or germany?

http://promo.euro.apple.com/promo/refurb/de/

 

[jihad the movie]

Barefeats.com says the dual 1.8 is 17% slower than the dual 2.0. Just to let you know.


I had the option of getting a dual 2.0 or dual 1.8, and I went with the 1.8, just because I could save a few (700) extra dollars, and if i really needed to upgrade speed wise, I could always just get some CPUs from an apple repair store.

 

[blue&whiteman]

Barefeats.com says the dual 1.8 is 17% slower than the dual 2.0. Just to let you know.


I had the option of getting a dual 2.0 or dual 1.8, and I went with the 1.8, just because I could save a few (700) extra dollars, and if i really needed to upgrade speed wise, I could always just get some CPUs from an apple repair store.

i'm not 100% sure about this but I don't think apple will sell just a cpu chip alone.

 

[wPod]

id save a little cash and go for the dual 1.8. you are already getting a good machine by buying a mac (everyone knows that) and in a month or 2 it will no longer be the fastest (if you got the 2) if you are running LOTS and LOTS of super processor intense apps then the '17%' might be worth it, otherwise save the money.

 

[Jo-Kun]

I know that Photoshop is a ram-killer so the 17% loss won't be that bad since I've heared that Photoshop CS tends to run 80% faster on a dual G5 than on Dual Intel Xeon systems...

My scanner is in need of a fast harddisk more than processor or ram capacity, so maybe I have to think about adding a 10000rpm SATA Raptor as bootdisk... (for instance scanning to my external FireWire drive for a 750Mb file it takes 30min, doing the same on my rather slow internal PowerBook drive takes 20min... so I guess scanning to a fast internal SATA drive would change that allso for the better!)

thnx for all the advice!

PS: the processor busspeed is different between the 2x1.8 and the 2x2 (900mhz for the 2x1.8 and 1Ghz for the 2x2) so I'm not sure if this would work even if you can get the processors (for too much money allso I guess)

PPS: in the end this one has to go 4 years before buying a new one, so I don't think I would mind the speedloss (17%) seeing the upgrade I get in comparison to my G4 400Mhz

 

[Dreadnought]

You can always get an ex demo machine from an apple reseller near you. You save a couple of hundred Euro's. I see them all the time in the Netherlands. I have a dual 1.8 and went for this one for the value for money. The dual 2.0 is a bit overpriced! Save yourself some money, get the dual 1.8 and spend the saved money on RAM. You probably need that when you are working with those huge files! Also two harddrives in it and configure it as a raid. Two of those SATA drives working as one is a lot faster (and cheaper) then one 10000 RPM drive (or go crazy and put two 10.000 rpm SATA drives in there!). Also get a G5 system with the standard 5200 Nvidia and buy Ati 9800 with 256mb of ram from a retailer. Then you get a faster graphicscard with twice the amount of ram (which you need!) for about the same price Apple is selling the 9800.

Furthermore, you can't upgrade from a 1.8 to a 2.0 processor (YET!!). But what I read about this systems is that the systembus is software related. The hardware is probably the same. So I think that within a year we'll see G5 processorupgrade kits!

For now, I would say wait a month or so if you can. The G5 is getting updated very soon. After that the G5's that are now on the market will be a lot cheaper!

 

[blue&whiteman]

its a good rule of thumb that most computer companies offer the best bang for your buck with mid range machines. the dual 1.8 would be the one to buy out of the current models.