What Mac To Buy?, I am wondering if a quad intel is necessary or whether a dual g5 can c Options

[JonRaven]

Hello there,

first time visiter, first time poster here...

I am currently using a powerbook 1.25 and I want to move into the ability to use some robust virtual instruments like toon track's "ezdrummer" and spek's "atmosphere", along with interested in the new east west quantum leap app called "gypsy" and the like.

My powerbook just wont cut it of course so I am thinking about getting a desktop mac.

Can anyone tell me from real world knowledge whether I could do everything I want with a used dual g5 or whether I really need to bite the bullet and get the new quad 2.66 intel?

I know ram is a big thing so I will upgrade either machine wiith atleast 4 gig ram.

I will be looking to do realistic backing tracks for my songs with virtual instruments and then adding say 16 tracks of audio tracks as well to the track.

Any ideas? Of course the music stores and the mac store are just out to sell the newest greatest of everything so you can't really get any honest opinions based on personal experience so I came here.

Can anyone discuss this with me?

Thanks and glad to be part of the group.

[hahaworld]

Hello, everyone!

HaHaWorld here. I'm the guy who's been living in G5 Quad hell for the past year and a half. Thanks to all who gave me advice. I just wanted you to know that I've been to the Genius Bar 4 times in the past month. I took my entire MIDI setup with me and demonstrated the slow disk errors and dropouts that have been plaguing me from day one. Each Genius (save one), made me feel like I was an intruder, even though I have a ProCare card. A great Genius named Charles is the only one who gave me undivided attention and did not keep reminding me that my fifteen minutes were almost up. Here are the steps I have taken in the past month, per the Apple Store Genius Bar instructions:

The first visit: Re-install all your audio software, samples and loops (I did this, and the problem persisted)

The second visit: Do an archive and re-install (I did this, and the problem persisted)

The third visit: They checked it in for a diagnostic. They called me and said, "It must be your RAM. We took out the additional 6G of RAM you installed yourself, and GarageBand and Logic Pro 8 are running fine now!" (I picked up the machine and tried to start Logic 8 with only the original 512MB RAM. Logic 8 will barely run without 1024, so that didn't work either. I don't know what the guy who took my RAM out was smoking, but 512MB just ain't enough, folks.)

The fourth visit: Here's the (partial) good news: They finally agreed that my G5 Quad is a lemon, and are replacing it with a 2.66GHz Dual Core Intel machine. It's only partially good news, because I'm trading a Quad for a Dual (albeit a Quad that isn't worth the cardboard it came in).

I just wanted you all to know what's been going on. I'll keep you posted and let you know how the Dual Core fires up. I hate to say it, but I'm not optimistic. This is the first time in my life I've been tempted to move into the world of PCs.

HaHaWorld

[lepetitmartien]

512 MB of RAM is a laugh, OS X to start being alive needs 768 MB, then the more the better with a definitive sweet spot starting at 1.5 or 2 GB.

On the RAM diagnosis, if the RAM is bad, the test tells it, You can do the tests by yourslef with the Apple Hardware Tools on the original install DVD, or by using AppleJack with Memtest, or Memtest alone.

At which applestore you went? Geniuses are supposed to help, especially when it's difficult.

The most important is still you can work now ! I'm happy for you haha

And Apple is one of the best companies in records for reliability still… (for what this kind of surveys are worth…)

[rcross73]

And actually, your dual-core 2.66 Intel machine? That's a MacPro dual-core Core2Duo -- so it's still four processors, just two on each chip. It will run circles around what your Quad Core G5 would have been able to do had it not been so much of a, shall we say, citrus rather than pomme.

[hahaworld]

Thanks for the good words, friends! I'm picking up the replacement Dual-Core on Monday. Like I said, I'll let you know how it goes!

Yours Truly,
JtO

[Mac Daddy]

hahaworld,

Bravo! Hurray! Yippeeeee! Great! Your experience with the Quad has finally been resolved. Whew! Damn!

It will be great for you to create music once again, you are much too good a player and composer to have to waste your time with faulty EXPENSIVE gear... I remember the first day you Posted you had just purchased the Quad. I told my partner: "One of the 440 Members just got a Quad"!

It was cool that Macintosh Replaced it for you, it was the RIGHT thing to do. I'm really happy for you. If it was me I think I would have been serving time in prison for throwing it through my Mac Retailers Front Window or punching Steve Jobs in the nose. "I get crazy when my 'Blue Tooth' acts up! (I really need to learn to "Chillax". Must be a New York Thang.)

You have chosen the right name for certain: "hahaworld" mine should be: "bigasscrybaby".

Congratulations.