[protyne]

Hi,

Got 3 question to ask you guys for a Mac Pro video editing rig...

1. CPU - Is there any BIG difference between the 2.0Ghz and the 2.66Ghz DC Xeon? Price difference: S$500

2. Hard Disk - Can I buy my own 3 x 500GB hdd from local stores at S$378 and RAID 5 them on my own rather than getting it from Apple at S$682 each.

3. Display - Any big difference between Apple Displays and normal LCDs we can find at local stores? Thinking of getting 2 x 19" for S$800 instead of S$1748 for a 23" APP

Thanks for advicing!

[gcox18]

Originally Posted by protyne

Hi,

Got 3 question to ask you guys for a Mac Pro video editing rig...

1. CPU - Is there any BIG difference between the 2.0Ghz and the 2.66Ghz DC Xeon? Price difference: S$500

2. Hard Disk - Can I buy my own 3 x 500GB hdd from local stores at S$378 and RAID 5 them on my own rather than getting it from Apple at S$682 each.

3. Display - Any big difference between Apple Displays and normal LCDs we can find at local stores? Thinking of getting 2 x 19" for S$800 instead of S$1748 for a 23" APP

Thanks for advicing!

1) There is a big difference, not huge, but big. The 2.0Ghz isn't a great deal financially either, its actually a little more expensive than PC equivalents. The 2.66Ghz is a steal compared to the PC equivalents. Go with at least the 2.66 machines. - Definately worth it

2) Yes, buy your own HDD's, don't let Apple rip you off on HDD or Memory upgrades, they are horribly overpriced. I just got a 320gb Seagate SATA drive for $94 from NewEgg. It tops out at about 75megs/s, where as the HDD that came with my Mac Pro tops out at about 60megs/s - Definately buy your on HDD upgrades.

3) Apple Displays are pretty high quality devices. The 20" resolution is 1680x1050, the 23" resolution is 1920x1200 and the 30" is a whopping 2560x1600 (that's a lot of desktop area!). They also give you a few USB ports that most other monitors don't give you, just a convenience thing, not a big value. - This is a toss up in my opinion, personally, I think the Apple Displays are fabulous, if you have the money I'd get the 23" or the 30". There are, however, plenty of decent non-Apple displays out there.


Even though you didn't mention it, if you want to add memory to the standard 1GB that comes with the Mac Pro, I wouldn't suggest buying it from Apple unless you just have money to burn. MaxUpgrades.com is selling a 2GB kit (that I just starting using yesterday) that comes with some fantastic heat sinks and is only $399 (Apple is charging about close to $300 per gig right now).

Just my 2 cents

[protyne]

Thanks gcox...think you pretty much answered my queries...

Checking to see if my local area as FB-DIMM with decent heating, do not want to end up ordering overseas and the cost might equal Apples....

[gcox18]

Originally Posted by protyne

Thanks gcox...think you pretty much answered my queries...

Checking to see if my local area as FB-DIMM with decent heating, do not want to end up ordering overseas and the cost might equal Apples....

Yeh, if you're not in the US, no telling how much your shipping costs might set you back. Make sure you get FB-DIMM's with the big fat heat sinks, not the flat ones.

[all2ofme]

Originally Posted by protyne

2. Hard Disk - Can I buy my own 3 x 500GB hdd from local stores at S$378 and RAID 5 them on my own rather than getting it from Apple at S$682 each.

As far as I know you can't use Disk Utility for RAID 5 in the Mac Pros. You'll need third party software (if it exists - I think OS X Server does it) or hardware, and if you go for hardware you'll need to work out a way of plugging the drives into the controller and not into the bays Apple's provided.

I'm trying to work out a good way of setting up my disks too...will keep an eye on this thread in case something great happens

[spice003]

i use new egg for everything, great prices. get hard drives from newegg, monitors up to you where you get them