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cgmpowers · Dec 1, 2005, 06:22 PM

I am in the process of narrowing my purchase of a G5 Quad 2.5Ghz machine. I already own a 22" Cinema Display (2 yrs old, but still in good condition, not HiRes though)..so I am not sure if I should buy a new monitor and purchase less RAM or more RAM and just 'live' with one display (and the older one at that).

My first thing is, I am not convinced I would enjoy a 30" display, as its very large and I sit with the screen close to me as it is. I use 23" displays at school and it seems plenty large for me (as does my 22" display at home).

I'm a soon to be graduated graphic designer...here's the specs I am considering..using the education discount..

G5 Quad 2.5 Ghz
8 GB Non-ECC RAM
GeoForce GT 7800 GT
two 500 GB HDs
Bluetooth & Airport
AppleCare
NO DISPLAY (use my older 22" cinema display)
$5,739

OR use less ram & get a new 23" display (adding hidef & using dual displays)

G5 Quad 2.5 Ghz
4 GB Non-ECC RAM
GeoForce GT 7800 GT
two 500 GB HDs
Bluetooth & Airport
AppleCare
23" Cinema Display
$6,118

There's a $379 difference. Would you spend less to get more memory or spend more for a second display but have half the memory??

Christopher Powers

p.s. This is driving me crazy which would be best for me..

crooner · Dec 1, 2005, 06:47 PM

I think you'll be better off with the dual display setup. You're a graphic designer and you'll love the extra display to hold palettes, etc. thus allowing you to devote your main display to the files you have open.

As for the memory and drives, I strongly urge you to get both from third parties. Even with an edu discount, Apple's prices for these items are insane. Buying from Crucial, you may very well be able to get 8GB of RAM for what Apple charges for 4GB. Even so, 4GB is nothing to sneeze at and may very well be fine for you.

For the drives, check out newegg.com or zipzoomfly.com as they'll undoubtedly have great deals.

So what I'm basically suggesting is to order your Mac with the minimum RAM and drives available and fill 'em up yourself. You'll save money and likely still be able to get that 23" Apple Cinema Display as well.

On a side note, before I got my 30", I, too, was actually concerned over whether it would be too big to work with in comfort. Lemme tell ya... I'd use THREE of them if I could. They're exquisite.

mduell · 07:09 PM

You're a graphic designer... still or video? Can you give us an idea of what filesizes you work with? I'm trying to gauge if you really need more than 4GB RAM.

mduell · 07:26 PM

*mduell invents option 3*

G5 Quad 2.5 Ghz
512MB Non-ECC RAM
GeForce GT 7800 GT
500 GB HD
Bluetooth & Airport
AppleCare
$3872

500GB HDD
$352

24" HD Dell LCD
$959

8x 1GB Crucial
$118

Total: $6,127

Ok, $9 more, but you get an HD LCD (which readily rotates into portrait mode... some graphics people like that) and 8GB RAM (while staying with quality components). Plus you can sell the original 512MB from the PowerMac for ~$50.

SSharon · Dec 1, 2005, 07:16 PM

I agree with mduell. Get everything from 3rd parties that you can and go for the dell monitor.

brokenjago · Dec 1, 2005, 07:29 PM

Photoshop has a limit of 3 GB RAM usage, IIRC. 4 GB should be fine, unless you're running a whole slew of other RAM hungry Apps at the same time. And you can always upgrade!

I'd go with the cinema display simply because it looks nice... they match :-P.

Cadaver · Dec 1, 2005, 09:04 PM

Originally Posted by mduell

Ok, $9 more, but you get an HD LCD (which readily rotates into portrait mode... some graphics people like that)

The screen rotates, but PowerMacs with nvidia cards do NOT support screen rotation.

mduell · 10:59 PM

Originally Posted by Cadaver

The screen rotates, but PowerMacs with nvidia cards do NOT support screen rotation.

Lame

Someone needs to write some better drivers.

Mister Elf · Dec 1, 2005, 10:07 PM

nVidia write nVidia drivers

cgmpowers · Dec 4, 2005, 11:31 AM

Thanks...

I have come to the conclusion that 4 GB of Ram will be plenty. I will do video from time to time but rarely for professional purposes. After Effects but small projects for the web.. Nothing drastically intensive by any means.

I am convinced another display will be nice; I will be using Appreture and it utilizes it...as will be nice in several other pro apps.

I didn't throw in the idea of getting a 30" instead of a 23"; I spoke with someone whose sat behind it for about a year now and he actually thinks its overkill for him. I guess that's my next poll question..

Again Thanks for Everything!!
Christopher Powers

p.s. GeoForce 7800 GT is no longer shipping 6 to 8 weeks; so I may have this soon after I order it... I'm probably going to wait to order until the Mac Expo (just good karma).

Cadaver · Dec 4, 2005, 11:41 AM

Originally Posted by cgmpowers

I didn't throw in the idea of getting a 30" instead of a 23"; I spoke with someone whose sat behind it for about a year now and he actually thinks its overkill for him. I guess that's my next poll question..

My 30" isn't overkill at all. In fact, I now find it difficult to use anything smaller! I feel completely claustrophobic using my wife's 17" iMac.

cgmpowers · Dec 4, 2005, 01:35 PM

I guess what I am concerned about is having the 30" next to the 23" would be overkill.

Cadaver · Dec 4, 2005, 11:48 PM

Originally Posted by cgmpowers

I guess what I am concerned about is having the 30" next to the 23" would be overkill.

[dr.evil]Mmmwaahhhhaah![/dr.evil]