[badtz]

I was wondering ...

Out of all of the Dual 1.8ghz revisions that have been available up until this point ...

wouldn't the original one be the best one?

are there any cons to that first version, versus all the updates since?


[it has 8 RAM slots instead of 4 on the rest]

??

[Lateralus]

Yes, it is still the most expandable of the Dual 1.8s. Only complaint I hear is that some models 'chirp'.

[badtz]

by 'chirp' do you mean the powersupply issue that affected audio streams via firewire? ?

[Agent69]

I would say that you don't suffer anything in the updated version if you know that:

1. you will not need PCI-X slots
2. you know that you will not need more than 4GB of RAM.

[mousehouse]

Originally Posted by Agent69

I would say that you don't suffer anything in the updated version if you know that:

1. you will not need PCI-X slots
2. you know that you will not need more than 4GB of RAM.

of which 2. can be solved in the near future by using 2GB DIMMS (which are still insanely expensive but reported to work)

[t500]

I'm using one of the orgional 1.8 x2. I bought it the day it came out and never looked back. I did indstall a second HD, internal BT and 2 GB of ram, and upgraded the video card to ATI 9600.

I believe the only difference is the PCI X, Ram Slots and Front Side bus speed.

[mousehouse]

if you bought the original dual-1.8 you've probably got the best "bang for the buck" of any PM. the current midline model is still "only" 2.3 GHz, about a 30% speedup compared to the 1.8 without any additional features!

[jasonsRX7]

Originally Posted by Lateralus

Yes, it is still the most expandable of the Dual 1.8s. Only complaint I hear is that some models 'chirp'.

Don't let that stop you. I've got a June '04 dual 1.8, and it chips like a bitch. And by chirp, I mean the power supply chirping under processor load.

If it had more than 4 ram slots, I could put some of the extra ram I have laying around to use. I say go for the original model, if you can.

[lilrabbit129]

I want to respond to the "not need more than 4GB of memory..." a benefit of 8 slots is that... you have more slots.

1. You can buy smaller capacity sticks, which are sometimes cheaper than the bigger sticks (2x512 instead of 1x1GB)

2. You can upgrade you ram incrementally without having to replace modules. Have 2x512's now, later on add another 2x512s, another few years another 2.. blah blah

umm that's all the reasons.

[mousehouse]

Originally Posted by lilrabbit129

I want to respond to the "not need more than 4GB of memory..." a benefit of 8 slots is that... you have more slots.

1. You can buy smaller capacity sticks, which are sometimes cheaper than the bigger sticks (2x512 instead of 1x1GB)

2. You can upgrade you ram incrementally without having to replace modules. Have 2x512's now, later on add another 2x512s, another few years another 2.. blah blah

umm that's all the reasons.

of course you're completely right, but even when buying 512MB sticks you get 2GB now - and when the 2GB sticks are readily available but 1GB sticks "cheap" and get a full 4GB. (or go beyond that by buying 2GB sticks). you loose flexibility compared to an 8-slot model but i prefer buying a new Mac instead of refurbished or second-hand. a 4-slot model may be all that the wallet permits

[lilrabbit129]

mousehouse: You are also absolutely correct. Cheers =)

[Agent69]

Originally Posted by t500

I'm using one of the orgional 1.8 x2. I bought it the day it came out and never looked back. I did indstall a second HD, internal BT and 2 GB of ram, and upgraded the video card to ATI 9600.

I believe the only difference is the PCI X, Ram Slots and Front Side bus speed.

I believe that both dual 1.8ghz G5s have a 900mhz FSB.

[t500]

I believe only the fist 1.8 and Dual 1.8's (when they were the middle tier model) had the 900 mhz bus. When the model dropped to the lower tier they dropped with bus speeds along with the PCI X and 8gb ram limit....

[macintologist]

I swear, the people that bought the original 2ghz dual g5s in august 2003...

2 years later and it's still an amazing ****ing machine. wtf is with that. 2 years and it hardly got old??