Hack Pro?

[Telefunken]

What kind of hardware and at what cost?

 

A Mac Pro is beautiful and well made, but oh so expensive, starting at Euro 2500 or so.

 

What are the ingredients to build an equally powerful clone without the platform hardware restrictions?

 

I am looking into a powerful machine for HD video editing, so no gaming monstrosity, no overclocking etc, just power and reliability.

 

I need high clock speed and 2 - 4 GB memory, no fancy videocard, just a medium nVidia 7600GT with 2x DVI will do.

 

Can we run such hardware with our 1.4.8 OSx?

 

Thanks

Edited January 22, 2007 by Telefunken

[bliss]

if you really want to make a clone, buy a real mac - its cheaper really

[Ferret-Simpson]

Why not try and find a Mac Pro motherboard and build a system from that?

[Guest bikedude880]

I've tried building a Mac Pro on paper and came out with a nearly identical system for almost a grand more. In the case of a Mac Pro clone, just get a real Mac Pro. It's cheaper, easier to maintain and upgrade, and you won't have to worry about future upgrade breaking compatibility.

[Telefunken]

So a Mac Pro isn't overpriced then?

 

I thought a dual CPU workstation motherboard plus 2 3 GHz DualCore server CPU's (cannot recall their name right now) and 2 GB or RAM would be something like Euro 1200 - 1400?

 

I should start saving money then.

 

Thanks.

[Ferret-Simpson]

They're called XEONs.

 

And yes, $1200 is probably about right.

 

Now add:

 

Case, Power, Storage, Optical, Graphics, OS, Input devices (Apple Keyb/Mouse), Software, leads, case badges. . . and to be honest, I don't see the hardware restrictions.

 

You can add new graphics cards, Drives, PCI cards. . . Whether they WORK or not is down to the OS. . . Which is the same on a real mac and a jmac.

[poplars]

he said euro's, not dollars.

 

on another note, buy a mac pro, guaranteed stability and over all wonderful experience.

Edited January 24, 2007 by poplars

[Embio]

any idea what boards would work for such a project?

[x86now]

There's a reason Xeons are not used in hi-performance PC's. Because they are not good for the money. Same with FD-Dimms. The great thing about putting together a Hack Pro is you don't have to use ripoff components. Now you can buy 800 mhz ram at $20 a gig. How much are 1 gb FBDimms? LOL. Get your Quad Core CPU or be patient and get a decent Core 2 Duo for a fraction of the price now, use a great cooler like a high end Thermalright or Scythe Ninja and overclock it, and get the quad core when the prices drop in a while. With a Hack Pro, you're in control. With a Mac Pro you're at the mercy of Apple's insane marketing department. Try finding out how much a motherboard costs for the Mac Pro (if yours blows after the warranty period). I bet its 5 times or more the cost of a relatively equivalent Intel board in the PC world. BUT, you can get a great 965 or 975 board for less than $100 used, often under $50.

 

So if you want to get gang raped, go Apple. If you care about your money, go Hackintosh. Why support a company that has its head in the sand? If they would listen to the real computer users who aren't rich they would have an median machine between the Mini and the Pro, not some goofy, all in one toy like an iMac. What happens when your iMac motherboard or screen dies? Then Apple laughs all the way to the bank because they price the replacements so high people just buy a new machine. Great for Apple. But you get raped - again.

 

Ever look at the top Xbench scores and wonder why so many of the fastest machines aren't Mac Pro's?

Think about that.

 

To say a Hack Pro costs anywhere near what a Mac Pro costs just shows a complete lack of understanding of the computer components marketplace. Or somebody long on Apple stock.

 

Compare the cost of any component in the Apple store and then go to newegg for a laugh. Apple's prices are absurd.

 

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebO...cz13NbS3/2.?p=0

 

4 x 2gb 800 mhz ram = about $200 used

Apple wants $2099 for 7 gb more of ram for the Mac Pro!!! What kind of drugs do people have to be on to shop there? Are FBDimms really worth about 10 times more?

 

965 motherboard = around $50 used

CPU - pick your poison and overclock to get close to the Xeons for a tiny fraction of the cost.

Dual layer DVD burner = $20

 

Case = pick your poison $30 for a cheapie that a thief might ignore in a breakin or go to an Antec P180/182 - a far better designed case than the Mac Pro, which was great for cooling, but terrible for noise. Imagine 4 10k drives in there.........grab your earplugs if you want any sanity. Or get a properly designed case like the Antec.

 

Hard drive = $100 for 500gb. How many do you want?

Apple wants $329 for a 500 gb drive!!!!

 

Go with Apple's 23" for $899, their 20" for $599 or get a used 22" for $150 - $170 used. Gee - that's a hard choice.

 

And we all know video cards are dirt cheap these days.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList....amp;x=0&y=0

for some some prices that are a fraction of Apple's $149 for a NVIDIA GeForce 7300 (a low end card). Here's one for $57

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16814121021

 

When Windows people start shopping for Mac Pro's to run only Windows, THEN Apple can say its priced competitively. There's a reason why that doesn't happen. Think about it. If Macs were such great deals, PC people would buy them to run Windows!

[eclau]

This is the specs of mac pro at RM9,999:

Processor Two 2.66GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon processors

Memory 1GB (2 x 512MB) of 667MHz DDR2 Fully-buffered DIMM ECC

PCI Express Graphics Nvidia GeForce 7300GT 256MB single-link DVI/Dual-link DVI

Hard disk drive 250GB Serial ATA (3Gb/s); 7200 rpm; 8Mb cache

Optical Drive 16x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)

Wireless Optional

Hardware accessories Apple Keyboard, Apple Mouse, USB keyboard extension cable, DVI to VGA adapter, Power cord.

 

This is the specs of my hackintosh mac pro at RM4802:

Processor 2.4GHz Quad-Core Intel processors, oveclocked to run at 3.0GHz

Memory 4GB (4 x 1GB) of 667MHz DDR2

PCI Express Graphics Nvidia GeForce 7600GS 256MB single-link DVI/VGA/S-video

Hard disk drive 320GB Serial ATA II (3Gb/s); 7200 rpm; 8Mb cache

Optical Drive 18x Pioneer DVD Drive with double-layer support (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)

Wireless Netgear wireless g

Hardware accessories Apple Keyboard, Lexma 2000 dpi laser mouse, USB keyboard extension cable, Power cord.

Display Samsung 22" widescreen TFT LCD

[weaksauce12]

if you really want to make a clone, buy a real mac - its cheaper really

 

Whoa, speak for yourself! That's simply not true - I saved $3,800 over a Mac Pro by building my own Hackintosh using almost the exact same parts. The main difference was the processor (Quad-core Q6600 instead of two dual-core Xeons), but mine was FASTER at the same price and got a better Xbench score than the real Mac Pro did. Cheaper my eye!

[x86now]

Whoa, speak for yourself! That's simply not true - I saved $3,800 over a Mac Pro by building my own Hackintosh using almost the exact same parts. The main difference was the processor (Quad-core Q6600 instead of two dual-core Xeons), but mine was FASTER at the same price and got a better Xbench score than the real Mac Pro did. Cheaper my eye!

 

You said it well. As I revist this page I notice that things in the last 8 months have not changed. Apple's prices are still ludicrous, they're still praying on the blinding ignorance of the average lobotomized Apple cultist. Its really pathetic. Its like all these bright, creative people have a brain fart when they enter the Apple store or visit the Apple website. Would they also pay $10 a gallon for gas if it came packed in a attractive container? One wonders how long Apple can keep up this charade? Wouldn't be great if Apple just focused on nothing but the OS, (OK have the ipods and other toys going to make money), not bother with their lousy attempts at apps, and just released it to the world. What a day that would be. It could actually make a significant difference in the productivity of the entire world. The average Windows user just groans with agony when they think of how much time they spend on their horribly designed OS. And actually, the truth is many Windows users only upgrade because software problems become insurmountable.

[haroldc]

Very interesting discussion...