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flukewurm · Sep 1, 2004, 12:57 PM

is the dual g4 by and far a more powerful machine?

im thinking of picking up an imac g5 to cure my yearning for an apple desktop - but horsepower is a concern. i make computer music with logic, reaktor, pluggo, waves fx... etc..

i plan on upping the ram to at least 1ghz. and an external hd for recording audio.

help? thanx.

solbo · Sep 1, 2004, 01:09 PM

Originally posted by flukewurm:
is the dual g4 by and far a more powerful machine? im thinking of picking up an imac g5 to cure my yearning for an apple desktop - but horsepower is a concern. i make computer music with logic, reaktor, pluggo, waves fx... etc..

i plan on upping the ram to at least 1ghz. and an external hd for recording audio.

help? thanx.

I would think that give the fact that most apps don't take advantage of DPs then it might trounce the DP G4 on those that don't. But on those that do it just depends on how optimized they are for DPs. Have to wait for benchmarks on that one though.

I would also definitly go with more RAM if you are going to be doing high resource work.

You can max out the RAM in the iMac for 300ish.

flukewurm · Sep 1, 2004, 04:54 PM

oh?! so most appz cant even USE dual processors?!?! i wasnt aware of that (havent done a whole lot of reseach on DPs) --- hrmm. anybody else wanna chime in? ive heard that DPs only boost performance 30% -- does this only mean speed or does it mean workload too?

thanx all.

solbo · Sep 1, 2004, 05:23 PM

Originally posted by flukewurm:
oh?! so most appz cant even USE dual processors?!?! i wasnt aware of that (havent done a whole lot of reseach on DPs) --- hrmm. anybody else wanna chime in? ive heard that DPs only boost performance 30% -- does this only mean speed or does it mean workload too?

thanx all.

Well you might get an overall performance increase because OS X does load balancing. But if the application isn't specifically coded for DPs then it isn't going to be any faster. But the overall system will be, say logic is using 100% of one CPU then OS X can direct other apps to make use of the second processor.

d0ubled0wn · Sep 1, 2004, 05:51 PM

Dual processors are absolutely great for multitasking. Juggling between several apps in most cases won't noticeably slow down a dual proc Mac. But like the other guy said, most software can't utilize more than one processor. The only software I use that appears to take advantage of dual procs is iDVD.

I have a dual 1.25 and I'm undecided whether to upgrade to the new iMac. In the end, I'm guessing the iMac G5 will trounce the dualie in nearly every respect. Except video.

The 5200 isn't much of an upgrade over the R9000. Doesn't concern me though.

Eug Wanker · Sep 1, 2004, 06:12 PM

If you're running several apps simultaneously the dual 1.25 might actually feel faster.

If you're running one app to the max, the G5 1.8 might feel faster.

In your shoes, I'd probably consider saving up and getting a refurb dual 1.8 Power Mac, esp. if you already have a nice monitor. If I had to choose though, it would really depend on the apps and the usage pattern. I'd lean towards the iMac G5 though, since it's simply a much nicer machine.

flukewurm · Sep 1, 2004, 07:44 PM

yup. thats the thing. i dont have a nice monitor right now. a couple of cheapie flat screen crts...

right now my desktop is a windows machine. i want to move to all mac. i have a 1ghz 15" Al Powerbook. it fairs fairly well for most tasks - but it just doesnt have enough oomph and snappiness to work as a MAIN music making machine. and i want my MAIN music making machine to be a mac.

until now ive been thinking dual 2ghz g5 with a 23" monitor. but holy balls thats a lot of $$ for me now. so maybe i could make due with a dual 1.25 g4??.... but now this new g5 imac looks like a really reasonable solution.

MrForgetable · Sep 2, 2004, 12:12 AM

keep in mind that if you want airport for the PM DP 1.25 that you need to find one off ebay or some of those refurb/used places because Apple doesn't sell them.
supply < demand = $$$
sure, it's only like less than a 100 bucks difference but it's something to consider.
maybe a dual processor 1.8 G5 with a 17 inch screen?

Peter753 · Sep 2, 2004, 12:24 AM

Sure they do. The MDDs use Airport express.

deboerjo · Sep 2, 2004, 12:55 AM

Originally posted by solbo:
Well you might get an overall performance increase because OS X does load balancing. But if the application isn't specifically coded for DPs then it isn't going to be any faster. But the overall system will be, say logic is using 100% of one CPU then OS X can direct other apps to make use of the second processor.

Just about any application these days is multithreaded and WILL benefit from multiple processors. Even the very few that are not will still see a huge performance improvement in load times and running alongside other programs. Multiple processors make a big difference in most cases.

That said, a single G5 is going to be faster than a dual G4. On the other hand, the G4 tower has more upgrade potential.

MrForgetable · Sep 2, 2004, 01:01 AM

Originally posted by Peter753:
Sure they do. The MDDs use Airport express.

what does that have to do with the airport card?

davidflas · 10:52 PM

Rev. A Dual 1.25 MDDs use regular airport, Rev. Bs use airport extreme. The best way to tell if you have a rev B. is that it has firewire 800, while the Rev. A machines do not.

flukewurm · Sep 2, 2004, 01:01 PM

with SO many people bitching about the 5200 graphics card. will this be a consideration for me at ALL since i dont game on a mac?

any other guesstimates one whether a single 1.8 g5 machine will be faster than a dual 1.25 g4?

capetown · Sep 2, 2004, 05:22 PM

Noise. Won't the imac be much quieter. I am thinking of getting the iMac as my main machine and server, and downgrade my powerbook 17" to the 12" ibook. I do love the 17", but it is not that quick. And that win2k server is noisy...

Busemann · Sep 2, 2004, 06:26 PM

Originally posted by flukewurm:
with SO many people bitching about the 5200 graphics card. will this be a consideration for me at ALL since i dont game on a mac?

any other guesstimates one whether a single 1.8 g5 machine will be faster than a dual 1.25 g4?

http://www.barefeats.com/g5

It will be faster on some things and slower at others. Anyways, I currently have a Dual 1,25 and will probably get the 20" iMac.

flukewurm · Sep 2, 2004, 06:53 PM

cool cool cool. thanx for that link. i was kinda looking for something like that. looks pretty favorable. ill probably wait till the thing ships - and maybe see one in person before i purchase. but its looking better and better for the 20" imac in my future. unless i can talk myself into taking the plundge and getting a dual G5.

Skypat · Sep 2, 2004, 07:23 PM

I was at Apple Expo Paris on the first day. And while playing with an iMac I asked the Apple guy next to me how fast the 1.8 Ghz would be compared with my dual 867 G4. Well he (and one mac vendor I know) wasn't sure. He told me he think my dual 867 might be actually faster because of its 2 processors.

Apple had a list of "2 processors" optimized apps. There were many : iTunes, iPhoto, iDVD, Photoshop, Final Cut ...

flukewurm · Sep 2, 2004, 07:29 PM

and the plot thickens