Which powermac should i get?

Hi,

I am a long time Windows user and have decided to switch to Apple as I am using them more and more for my course and work.

I do not have a clue on which G5 Powermac to purchase. I would like to make a good investment and use it for many years to come.

The programs i am most likely to run on a regular basis are Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, Final Cut, Maya, Toast, Music stuff and various other multimedia design based software.

I do get an education discount and have been looking at the following specs.

1.
Single 1.8 GHz G5 / 512MB SDRAM / 160GB Serial ATA / DVD-R/CD-RW / ATI Radeon 9600 XT 128MB, ADC/DVI / Bluetooth Module / AirPort Extreme Card (£1050 ish give or take a few upgrades)

2.
Dual 1.8 GHz G5 / 512MB SDRAM / 160GB Serial ATA / DVD-R/CD-RW / ATI Radeon 9600 XT 128MB, ADC/DVI / Bluetooth Module / AirPort Extreme Card (£1325 ish give or take a few upgrades)

3.
Dual 2 GHz G5 / 512MB SDRAM / 160GB Serial ATA / DVD-R/CD-RW / ATI Radeon 9600 XT 128MB, ADC/DVI / Bluetooth Module / AirPort Extreme Card (£1525 ish give or take a few upgrades)

I have set aside around £200 for an LCD monitor so this is likely to bump up the combined cost of what i purchase. I would like to spend a decent/fair amount in order to get a good return of investment.

I am new to macs for homeuse. I would like the machine to run at good performance levels for the mentioned software that i am most likely to use. I would like machine to last for a long period of time.

Can you please help in recommending a system?

thanks in advance for any help given

id go for number 2 i think... it seems to fit the bill and youll still have some money for a few upgrades, you might consider doubling the ram for those programs... 512's ok, but 1024 would improve pshop ect quite abit...

2, then beef up the ram to at least 1GB, and think about putting at least another 160GB drive in as video editing uses lots of drive space..

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by mak_attack

Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, Final Cut, Maya, Toast, Music stuff and various other multimedia design based software.

---

The single 1.8 will be more than fast enough for Photoshop, Illustrator, Toast :), and music apps. Final Cut will like having more ram and will make good use of more horsepower - and Maya's a bit of a guzzler...

So, I'd suggest the Dual 1.8, stock, and chuck in a pair of 512Mb's from Crucial (just under £100)

If you ever fancy using Motion, though, you'll need something a little beefier than that 9600XT (my 9600Pro struggles), but Maya should be happy with it.

Why not just get the 1.8 iMac? Saves the £200 on TFT...?

IMO, the cost of third party upgrades for macs is huge, so...when its too slow, sell and buy a new one.

Just a thought!

hi,

i am now considering the 2.0 dual.

what do people think?

any dual 2.0 owners out there to give more information on the system?

thanks,