[TBJBOK]

Hello,

I have an older MacBook Pro 17" and a newer Imac I plan on selling. I want something good for video editing via FCP.

I have been looking at the Power Mac G5 but I am no computer expert.

I can buy an older used one with the following congif.

The G5 is about 3 years old (I'm told) but was almost never used (I'm told).


Comes with 23" LCD
Has a total of 5.5 RAM (added to original 512 config)
Airport Extreme Card
Leopard OS
original box, manuals and disks
Original order number: Dual 2.5GHZ SuperDrive M9457LL/A
L2 Cache: 512K per processor
Frontside bus: 1.25GHz per processor
DDR SDRAM main memory: 512MB PC3200 (400MHz) Supports up to 8GB
8X AGP Pro graphics: ATI RADEON 9600 XT with 128MB DDR SDRAM
Hard drive: 160GB Serial ATA; 7200 rpm
Optical drive: SuperDrive (DVD-R/CD-RW)
PCI slots: Three open full-length PCI-X slots: one 133MHz, 64-bit slot and two 100MHz, 64-bit slots
Expansion: One FireWire 800 port, two FireWire 400 ports (one on front)
three USB 2.0 ports (one on front)
two USB 1.1 ports (on keyboard)
AGP 8X Pro slot with graphics card installed, including ADC connector and DVI connector
Bays: Two internal hard drive bays (1 occupied); one optical drive bay
Also Added

Hard drives: 250GB Serial ATA
Graphics: ATI Radeon 9800 XT with 256MB of DDR SDRAM
Wireless Internal Bluetooth module with antenna & Bluetooth Wireless keyboard & mouse
Display: Apple Cinema HD Display (23-inch flat panel) M9178LL/A

Question: Would this be a good computer for video editing?

What should I expect to pay for this complete configuration?

Thank you very much for you input!

Tammy

[StrongBad]

Assuming it is OOW (no applecare, and truly 3+ years old) and is good psychical shape (a quick visual inspection will reveal any major abuse) I'd say for the G5 Tower and Display you should stay around $1500.

Has the seller set a price?

[Big Mac]

Something's wrong with that description because it lists two different graphics cards, the 9600 versus the 9800. There is a substantial difference between the two. Most people around here are going to tell you it doesn't make sense to buy non-Intel hardware, but I disagree with that view. I wouldn't pay much more than $1500 for the setup, though. [edit: It seems SB and I think alike. Btw, I liked the newest sbemail, SB.]

[TBJBOK]

He was asking $1,800 but said he'd take $1,700. Sounds like it is still too high?

[Big Mac]

The other very important thing to consider is that that is a liquid cooled G5, and their liquid cooling mechanisms do fail (destroying most of the hardware). Since it's out of warranty and presumably there's no insurance on it, you'll have no protection from that fate. YMMV.

[StrongBad]

Originally Posted by Big Mac 

The other very important thing to consider is that that is a liquid cooled G5, and their liquid cooling mechanisms do fail (destroying most of the hardware). Since it's out of warranty and presumably there's no insurance on it, you'll have no protection from that fate. YMMV.

Every component of every computer will fail at some point. There is not nearly as much liquid in these units as people think. Additionally, while it is not a formal service exception (ala iBook logic boards), if your coolant leaks and causes additional damage to the unit (like ruins your RAM or vid card), AND you are a relatively nice person, you won't be up the creek.

No need to scare the girl with "no protection from that fate" and "destroying most of the hardware".

As for the video card, I assume the stock config was copied and the 2nd paragraph is the "upgrades". I expect it has the 9800. Not that it changes the estimate at all, I'd say $1500 is fair. I *good* deal would be in the $1300-$1450 range.

[StrongBad]

Also, Everymac shows a discontinued date of April 27, 2005. If it's not currently out of AppleCare, chances are very good that it will be within 3 months.

[Big Mac]

If that's true, SB, then why does my mother's ~26 year old Osborne still run if booted? Why does our 14 year old Quadra still run? Computers aren't meant to fail eventually. The solid state components *should* last indefinitely and usually do. But the liquid cooled G5s started failing a couple of years ago. Apple even says the parts are designed to fail far short of even a decade.

[2009059]

Avoid liquid cooling at all costs. I speak from experience .

@StrongBad
actually the video card would never be harmed by a liquid cooling leak, neither would the ram. The processors, PSU and lower logic board are all in the direct flow of the liquid, which is almost impossible to notice until it is too late (unless you are constantly monitoring temperatures, etc.)

[OreoCookie]

Your MacBook Pro might actually be faster (when you use an eSATA adapter and external SATA drives) than the G5. I don't think it's a good idea to buy one. If the newer iMac has an Intel cpu, this alone might be faster, too, than the G5 you're proposing.

[StrongBad]

Originally Posted by Big Mac 

If that's true, SB, then why does my mother's ~26 year old Osborne still run if booted? Why does our 14 year old Quadra still run? Computers aren't meant to fail eventually. The solid state components *should* last indefinitely and usually do. But the liquid cooled G5s started failing a couple of years ago. Apple even says the parts are designed to fail far short of even a decade.

I said: "Every component of every computer will fail at some point."

Which is very true. Anything that has power running thru it will fail. You can't argue with that. I didn't say "in 10 years" or "in 80 years". I said "at some point". It's fact, get over it. You are being unreasonable and fooling yourself if you buy a computer and expect that it will outlive you.

actually the video card would never be harmed by a liquid cooling leak, neither would the ram

I have seen busted pipes in these that have indeed soaked the RAM, and one that ruined the optical drive (yes, the optical drive, clear at the top of the machine). The liquid cooled G5 gets a bad rap, but it's not that bad. I've seen every other mac have just as bizarre failures. Accept the fact that every machine is susceptible to 100% failure and life is easier. My favorite. often quoted line: "There are two types of computers in the world. Those that have failed and those that will."

Apple even says the parts are designed to fail far short of even a decade.

Where? If they published such a fact they would be in court right now.

[SierraDragon]

Originally Posted by TBJBOK 

...I have an older MacBook Pro 17" and a newer Imac I plan on selling. I want something good for video editing via FCP.

Question: Would this be a good computer for video editing?

Tammy-

The short answer is that although a solid choice when new, today NO that would not be a good computer for video editing to purchase. Video editing is among the most hardware-challenging of desktop computer tasks, and the G5 you describe is from a now-defunct generation. Even at US$1500 (quite a fair price if the display is perfect) IMO it would be a poor expenditure (today) for a desktop video editing box.

Allowing for the fact that all testing is somewhat arbitrary, you can find performance comparisons at these sites:
Primate Labs Blog : Mac Performance (February 2008)
Real World Speed Tests for Performance Minded Mac Users (Info is there but you need to look for it)

IMO when buying new hardware we should look forward to the life of the box, e.g. 2008-2009-2010. App vendors have not designed to optimize for G5 for years now, so new app versions will really shine on MacIntels and lots of RAM, not on defunct PowerMacs.

For video editing IMO you want a Mac Pro; just look for bargains, especially refurbished, used and/or 2006 models. The lowest end Mac Pro you could configure (except you will want the X1900XT or better still the 8800GT graphics card or the Radeon HD 2600 XT 256MB GDDR3; Barefeats has tests) will be more than twice as fast as that G5. As to how best to configure a MP for video editing I suggest that you go to a forum for the specific software you will use (e.g. FCP at Apple - Support - Discussions - Final Cut Pro).

Anecdotal reports on the Photoshop forums and elsewhere suggest that G5s towers indeed generally are less reliable than other Mac towers have been.

Good luck!

-Allen Wicks

[2009059]

Originally Posted by StrongBad 

I have seen busted pipes in these that have indeed soaked the RAM, and one that ruined the optical drive (yes, the optical drive, clear at the top of the machine).

seriously?? either the powermac defies the laws of gravity or the guy didn't know which way was up

[Big Mac]

Originally Posted by StrongBad 

Where? If they published such a fact they would be in court right now.

I may have been thinking about this discussion:

G5 2.5's lifespan is 2 years - Mac Forums