Cant Decide Which Mac to get....

[Ramedge]

Hey,

I am really stuck.

I record music and at the moment I am using my macbook pro with 4gb of ram which has been absolutely amazing and I can't believe how much it can cope with.

but any way, theres only so many tracks in logic it can handle of 96khz audio with Input monitoring at a reasonable buffer rate . Play back causes problems too especially when you need to do an over dub of vocals on a track thats already approaching 70 tracks without latency problems or CPU overload as soon as you press play.

So my needs have grown and I need something more powerful and a bigger screen. I know the obvious choice is a Mac Pro.
But I am also considering just buying an iMac 24" I know its not going to be expandable like the Mac Pro but with 4gb of ram inside I have heard they are pretty good.

With me being at Uni I get quite a good discount from apple, my mac book pro worked out costing me less than the price ex. VAT on their store (only by a tenner but still ) so I can get the top iMac for around £1200 or the standard 8-core MacPro for around the £1400 mark but with no display. I also do a lot of photography and I know apple screens are very good quality and you can really rely on them to be accurate. then again an apple cinema screen is going to be an extra £300 for a 20"

I can just about stretch to the mac pro without a display but i can hold out until i can afford one. I just want to know what people think. Would an iMac do me fine or is the Mac Pro what i really need?

I am producing a commercial album at the moment and have got to do something soon!

Thanks for reading, I hope I made sense

[Gordy]

The iMac is based on similiar technology to the mbp, so if you are struggling with the mbp I think the Mac pro might be your best bet. I would consider refurb macs as well as using quidco to bring your costs down.

[Ramedge]

I think the main advantages of the iMac are the faster processor core2duo extreme 2.8ghz and a faster HDD. I was wondering if the iMac was similar to the MBP because it takes the same memory which made me wonder.

Where is the best place for refurb macs?

[Gordy]

I don't think the faster cpu and hdd will make too much difference really.

For refurb mac's go to the uk store then there is a link down the bottom righthand side.

Though if you are getting the HE discount already you won't be saving too much. Also some of the older models on their are a rip off so look carefully and regularly as it changes every day.

[Stoo]

re apple screens.. they're okay, but they have quite a premium on them, and aren't stellar performers.. £600 for the 23", but my 24" Samsung cost me a fair bit less than that, and has far better colour accuracy and response times.

Shop around tbh

As Gordy says, you're not going to get much more out of the iMac than the MBP as they share similar components, so it looks like the mac pro is the direction you need to be headed in realistically.

Remember that many of the upgrades to the mac pro, such as disks and ram can be done much, much cheaper than speccing at the apple store at purchase time.

CPU's are another matter though, as you'll have a job speccing cheaper faster processors after market, especially as you'll also need to get rid of the original processors as well.

The good news is that even the more basic CPU's in the mac pro are *much* faster, so something like the dual 2.8 quad setup should run rings around an iMac

[Ramedge]

Okay well I am going to go for the Mac Pro then, I think thats settled.

Any advice on screens? Ideally I want a 24" that isn't going to be too expensive.
I was looking at Dells.
Needs as cheaper screen as possible with compromising quality


Cheers

Edit: mac pro ordered. need to find a screen quick

[Gordy]

Can't go wrong with the dell screens there are two main 24in models the E series is cheaper but doesn't have as many features.

Shop around too as dell aren't the cheapest to buy dell screens from ironically.

[shiato storm]

i got my 24" on fleabay for £300 spankin' new... so worth it! has usb connections and cf/sd card reader too

[Ramedge]

I looked at a dell 24" it was £450 shopped around but every else was selling it for pretty much around the same price, couple of sites have it for £420. would like to get it for a bit less than that.

ah well

[Gordy]

Look on ebay, that's where I got mine a while back.

[Ramedge]

Look on ebay, that's where I got mine a while back.

cheers, had a look pretty much similar prices on ebay.

Read a lot of good reviews about it and i trust dell screens. so i have gone ahead and got it.

its the DELL ULTRASHARP 2408WFP

can't wait now will be a very nice setup

[shiato storm]

nice one, I got the 2407 (last year's model) but they're pretty much identical. sounds like a good set up indeed

[Spud1]

You've made a good choice, the 8 core mac pros are truely amazing in terms of speed - just make sure you get your extra ram shipped from OWC in the usa - 1/4 the price of apples, 1/2 the price of crucials and its apple certified etc

The Dell screens are a great match too - I don't have one personally but a friend of mine also has a mac pro and has it coupled with a 24" Dell that cost him £300 off ebay..runs like a dream

[Ramedge]

You've made a good choice, the 8 core mac pros are truely amazing in terms of speed - just make sure you get your extra ram shipped from OWC in the usa - 1/4 the price of apples, 1/2 the price of crucials and its apple certified etc

I was looking at RAM from OWC Spud1, How much does it cost to ship it over to the UK? I am guessing I will have to pay some import tax on it.

I will need to get another 4gb atleast for the mean time.

[Spud1]

With shipping it works out as $250 for 4x1GB sticks which would give you a total of 6GB of ram including your stock ram.

There is no duty on computer parts, so all you would have to pay is 17.5% VAT - IF they inspect your package. It's still fairly random if customs take a look or not, and your best bet is to use the slowest/cheapest delivery service, preferably not a courier like Fedex.

Anyway assuming you don't get taxed, that comes to about £126 for 4gb of ram, or £146 with VAT, and a worst case cost of £160 if the delivery company adds on a handling charge for customs (some do).

Compare that wih £211 from crucial for 2x4gb - almost half the price without vat and still £50 cheaper with it Plus Crucial don't use apple certified ram afaik, whereas OWC do..but not sure how much of a difference that makes, it doesnt affect the warranty

[darrensen]

Hey Ramedge,

I've sent you a PM regarding the Macpro.