[Hg2491]

First off, I hope that this thread doesn't get such bad publicity as the last I created.

My ultimate Mac set up would have to be a 20-inch 2.66Ghz iMac for the desk, a 1.83Ghz MacBook Air for the road, and an 16GB iPod Touch or iPhone. I still have mixed feelings about having a phone with no replaceable battery, but I do get Internet everywhere*.

The iMac and the MacBook Air would have to be synched somehow -- probably by MobileMe or a better service, if available at that time.




So, what are your ultimate Mac set up's? I'm curious what you guys will come up with.


Hg+

[Paco500]

I am using my ultimate setup as I type. A shiny new MacBook Air 1.83GHz. I love this thing.

[Maflynn]

I really don't have an ultimate setup, mostly because I don't have the $$ for an ultimate setup. I'm content with my MBP and a 24" monitor.

[RAILhead]

I'm using mine already:

3.2GHz Quad Core Mac Pro with 16GB RAM, 1TB of internal storage, and an 8800 GT 512MB vid card — plus a MacBook Air and two 15-inch Mac Book Pros.

[Hg2491]

Originally Posted by Maflynn 

I really don't have an ultimate setup, mostly because I don't have the $$ for an ultimate setup. I'm content with my MBP and a 24" monitor.

But dreaming is free

[Hg2491]

Apparently I'm the only one who dreams of having many Mac computers. How materialistic of me.

*sigh*

[Big-C]

I'm lucky enough to have my ultimate setup too:

MacPro at home with a 24" monitor (from Dell), and a MacBook Air purchased by my work. I also have an iphone 3g, making my computing nirvana complete. Oh - and after converting movies on my macpro, I watch them over the network on the apple tv in the living room. Also entertain guests with the 3,500 photo's that are stored there. I think that photo slide show is more entertaining than people realize...

Wow, I haven't really felt like a geek in a good long time...

[abeato6]

My ultimate Mac setup would be:

-24' 3.06 Ghz iMac for my bedroom and all gaming and design needs

-MacBook Air for On-The-Go, no heavy usage, just Internet, chat, iTunes, iWork and minor activities. Therefore, no big need for ports like Firewire and/or optical drive.

-16GB White iPhone 3G. Pretty much talks for itself. Good for situations in which the MBA will not be necessary.


And since we're dreaming:

-1TB Time Capsule for network storage

-Apple TV connected to 46' 1080p Sharp Aquos LC-46D65U

[Laminar]

I'd like a ProSumer tower with dual 24" displays.

[abeato6]

Originally Posted by Laminar 

I'd like a ProSumer tower with dual 24" displays.

ProSumer?

[Hg2491]

Originally Posted by abeato6 

My ultimate Mac setup would be:

-1TB Time Capsule for network storage

I forgot this one. Back up, back up, back up

[SpaceMonkey]

Originally Posted by abeato6 

ProSumer?

Search for "headless iMac."

[SpaceMonkey]

A more interesting question would be the ultimate Mac set up of all time, for example a tricked-out Power Mac 9500.

[Hg2491]

Originally Posted by abeato6 

ProSumer?

ProSumer

[Hg2491]

Originally Posted by SpaceMonkey 

A more interesting question would be the ultimate Mac set up of all time, for example a tricked-out Power Mac 9500.

I think I was 4 when those came out.

[osiris]

I'm pretty happy with my computer (2x Quad Xeon MacPro), so I guess I could upgrade the 24" monitor to a 30", or something blindingly larger. But I'm pretty content with this setup as is.

What I'd like to see is a ProSumer minitower- something with the power of a tower, but without the weight or cost of one.

[lyanma]

My ultimate setup:
A 20-inch 2.66GHz iMac and a Wacom Graphire for work.
2.4GHz MacBook Pro, I wouldn't like a MacBook Air for the road, you never know when you will really need all those things the MacBook Air lacks. And I would use a LED Cinema Display at home, I really like big displays.
Also a Time Capsule, always back up! and an iPhone.

[Mabelusk]

A 2.53GHz 15" Macbook Pro, which I'm getting in a couple of months, a 2.8GHz 24" iMac, a 16GB purple iPod nano, an iPod nano armband to use when biking and my actual 500GB external drive.

[sek929]

I have one-third of my ultimate setup right now.

All I would ever want to compliment my desktop (currently Al iMac 20" w/second monitor)) is a cheap Intel Mini used as a media server to my TV and a cheap MacBook for portability. The current level of performance I get with the C2D and 4GB of RAM is plenty of punch for what I need a computer for. The 360 makes a decent media server but lacks support for several file formats in both audio and video.

[Maflynn]

One thing I would like to fill out my configuration is a mini. With only one Mac in my house now, I get a little nervous about the lack of a backup system to keep me going in case something goes wrong with my MBP.

[Jens Peter]

- Macbook 2.4 Ghz, 24" LED display, wireless keyboard & mouse.
- Sony 40" tv & apple-tv.

The Macbook will soon replace my old and beloved 12" powerbook, and hopefully I'll get the tv soon too The 24" display will have to wait for a while...

[MallyMal]

Well...

Mac Pro 8 core 3.2 or one of the unannounced Nehalem Mac Pros
32 GB of RAM
ATI 3870


2x HP DreamColor LP2480zx


Apple RAID card


AJA Kona 3x card


Sony BVM-A14F5U 14" HD Broadcast Video Monitor


Also would like large SSD drives for the Mac Pro.

Did I forget anything?

[Hg2491]

Originally Posted by MallyMal 

Did I forget anything?

keyboard, mouse and iSight

[angelmb]

I have to say my current set up,

Mac Pro & 30" ACD + Unibody MBP 15" + iMac 24" as "it's going to be a while until these became obsolete" set up.

Power Mac G4 MDD & 23" ACD as "ultimate nudiustertian" set up.

I would welcome a better mouse & keyboard. Oh well, phone is a BlackBerry instead of the iPhone, d'oh.

[ooninay]

My ultimate setup is ONE Mac - probably a new MBP 15 (or 17 when they come out). Right now I have 2: iMac aluminum 24 and MBP 17 from last spring. The problem I always have with two macs is keeping my files in sync. MobileMe is good for bookmarks, Address Book, calendar, etc., but doesn't work for documents, music, movies, or applications that keep important data in the Library. I use ChronoSync for all that other stuff now, but the computers have to be on the same LAN for it to work (doesn't work over the internet--e.g., if my MBP is in school and my iMac at home), and it's sensitive to one of the computers going to sleep or temporarily being disconnected from the network. Nothing serious, but enough of a pain that I'd really just like to have one mac and not have to worry at all about all this syncing! One of the new cinema displays would be a must in the single MBP solution (for me, anyway).

[Hg2491]

Originally Posted by angelmb 

I have to say my current set up,

Mac Pro & 30" ACD + Unibody MBP 15" + iMac 24" as "it's going to be a while until these became obsolete" set up.

Power Mac G4 MDD & 23" ACD as "ultimate nudiustertian" set up.

I would welcome a better mouse & keyboard. Oh well, phone is a BlackBerry instead of the iPhone, d'oh.

Please give us an insight on what you do with all the alum power

[0157988944]

I've got my ultimate setup, though if I had the $$ I'd upgrade it to the latest and greatest versions:

MacBook Pro 15", 23/24" Cinema Display, iPod touch. Best of all worlds, desktop, laptop, and ultra-mobile.

[ag0891]

I already own a Mighty Mouse (Bluetooth) so I'll leave that out.
I would love to own all of the above things with the best specs I could get.

Btw, the gold Macbook Pro is a joke.
Even if I could afford it, that computer seems to shout "STEAL ME, STEAL ME!" and that is not only because of the country I live in.
I would be forever terrified.

[Untitled member]

Hi all

I put my ultimate Mac Setup together last year when I opened my animation studio. Well, several Mac setups, actually and yes, it was as much fun as you think it'd be!

Edit room 1:

Mac Pro 2.8Ghz
30" Cinema display
10GB RAM
2x 1TB media drives
1x 500GB Time Machine backup drive
Kona3 video output card
Sony broadcast monitor (NTSC output)
Sony Bravia 52" HD monitor (HD output)
9 x 12" Intuos Wacom
Final Cut Studio
Adobe Production Premium CS4

Edit room 2:

Mac Pro 2.8Ghz
23" Cinema display
10GB RAM
2x 1TB media drives
1x 500GB Time Machine backup drive
Kona3 video output card
Sony broadcast monitor (NTSC output)
9 x 12" Intuos Wacom
Final Cut Studio
Adobe Production Premium CS4

Assistant workstation:

2.5Ghz G5
23" Cinema display
9 x 12" Intuos Wacom
Final Cut Studio
Adobe Production Premium CS3

I went with the 2.8Ghz towers over the 3.2Ghz, as the performance difference when running AE and FCP Studio was less than 8%, but the 3.2 was an extra $1500. Didn't seem worth spending the extra money.

2 further iMacs, one 20" and one 24", both with extra RAM. These are Photoshop/After Effects workstations and run CS4

This month we'll be installing a 10TB SAN, with 4Gb fibre to each edit room and Gigabit Ethernet for the iMacs so everyone's working on the same drive. We'll use the G5 as a SAN server and get a new intel mac for the assistant desk, so we can run CS4 on there.

Being the boss is fun

[lyanma]

Wow, amazing setups Untitled Member. I would really love to work in that place!

[Hg2491]

I so want to be you when I grow up

[abeato6]

gee Untitled Member. :O. that's an AWESOME setup

[Untitled member]

thanks, all. I've been working freelance for 9 years and we finally took the plunge last year and splashed out on a full studio. I'd always ben annoyed by management mis-spending in the companies where I worked, so it was great to be able to spec it all out myself.

Some pics under the 'facilty' tab here:

http://theuntitledproject.com

One word on the 30" displays. Once you get used to one, you just can't go back to anything smaller. It just feels tiny!

[abeato6]

I have to say, I'm amazed by your studio. It is a great studio! Congratulations on it

[B Gallagher]

Originally Posted by abeato6 

My ultimate Mac setup would be:

Add in an Airport to stream my music around the house and you've got mine too.

[abeato6]

Originally Posted by B Gallagher 

Add in an Airport to stream my music around the house and you've got mine too.

Doesn't the Time Capsule do that by itself?

[B Gallagher]

Originally Posted by Untitled member 

it was great to be able to spec it all out myself.

Curious - why do you have two Mac Pros with 2TB of storage, but only 500GB Time Machines? Or is the data on the media drives constantly changing?

Originally Posted by Untitled member 

Once you get used to one, you just can't go back to anything smaller. It just feels tiny!

That's what she said!

[Hg2491]

Originally Posted by abeato6 

Doesn't the Time Capsule do that by itself?

Nope, only the Airport Express has the music streaming function.

[Untitled member]

Originally Posted by B Gallagher 

Curious - why do you have two Mac Pros with 2TB of storage, but only 500GB Time Machines? Or is the data on the media drives constantly changing?

The Time Machine just backs up the system drive. The comp in edit1 is my own personal computer as well as an animation workstation - I keep all my photos, emails and other crap on there, so I need it backed up. We set up the same system on edit 2 just in case we left anything important on there!

The two main editing workstations have one 1TB media drive for media and one for backup. All projects go on one drive, and a Retrospect backup scripts runs every morning to mirror all the media onto the second 1TB drive. More reliable than a RAID, and as backup only happens when the comp isn't in use it doesn't degrade performance.

[Carla V.]

Hg2491, I'd agree with you set up, but if it's ultimate we're calling it, then I'd choose a 24 inch for desk and a MBP on the road...

[Hg2491]

Originally Posted by Carla V. 

Hg2491, I'd agree with you set up, but if it's ultimate we're calling it, then I'd choose a 24 inch for desk and a MBP on the road...

I've used the 24-inch iMac and I did not like it -- It's way too big.

[CreepDogg]

- An Aluminum MacBook (13") with a FireWire port
- 24" LED Cinema Display
- 64GB iPhone 3G
- Time Capsule (500GB would probably do, 1TB better)

Well, at least half of it exists!

[Hg2491]

Screw my last set up... I'm chaging the iMac and the MacBook Air for the following:

MacBook Pro 17" with the 256gb Solid State Drive.
[

Apple LED Cinema Display.


Oh, and the wireless keyboard and mouse.

[abeato6]

Well well Hg2491, why doesn't it surprise me? . It is a really good setup, but you are sacrificing portability I guess.

[Hg2491]

Haha. Now that I think about it, I'm a big man, so a big computer is only adequate

[abeato6]

well, I guess it's good if you don't need a lot of portability. But beware, sometimes my 15' MacBook Pro isn't the most portable thing there is. Anyway, it's all about getting used to it I guess. Some people that own 13' MacBooks say that they can't imagine having my 15' MBP because it's way too big. I say that the 13' MacBook is way too small for me.

My one cent. B.

[Hg2491]

I know for sure that the MacBook Pro is not a Toshiba Satellite, if you know what I mean

[abeato6]

true. Also, regarding the 17' MBP, given that the battery is bigger, there is the possibility of increased heat. That's just my opinion. I guess it makes sense for me that way.

[Hg2491]

They waited so long to get it out because they had found problems with it when they released the 15-inch version. I'm thinking they have gone through it all a couple (hundred) times. Also, it is not as if I'll be purchasing one right away. If anything I have learn from Apple is to never get a first-generation product.

They say on the new ad that the battery life should last around 5 years. That's a lot!

[abeato6]

As I thought. It's more probably you'll need to replace the actual computer before you'll need to replace the battery. Impressive, I sense this might be the beginning of a new era in laptop batteries