Purple Puppy Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 I have a few questions regarding the latest Mac Pros, because I'm contemplating whether or not to buy one. 1) Is Mac Pro 800MHz RAM from OWC good? Does it have any problems such as insufficient heat dissipation, etc? 2) If I buy a Mac Pro from the Apple Store configured with 2 x 1GB of RAM, and then buy 4 x 2GB of RAM from a third party vendor like OWC, then will it cause any decline in performance such as memory latency? Is it OK to have RAM of different sizes? 3) Just how quiet is the Mac Pro? I've heard that it is extremely quiet, but all reviews have compared it to the PowerMac G5 (and I don't know how quiet the PowerMac G5 is). So just how quiet exactly is the Mac Pro? 4) Do you think that the Mac Pro has good bang for the buck? If not, what are some alternatives? 5) Is it worth it to buy the Apple Cinema Display? Link to comment https://www.insanelymac.com/forum/topic/89997-mac-pro/ Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThExSenatoR Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 Hi there! I wouldn't recommend using 800mhz FB-DIMM ram. I bought 667MHz FB-DIMM from Kingston its designed for the macpro QUAD (not for the OCTO core), its item number is: KTA-MP667K2/2G. This is 2x1gb kit, if you want 4gb the item number is: KTA-MP667K2/4G. I have these rams with the factory rams (4x512mb hynix) working, and have no problems at all. The Mac Pro isn't that quiet at all, especially not with 4 500gb disks. You have to bump up the fans with smcfancontrol, otherwise you northbridge can top at 60-70 celsius under leopard, which i don't think is healthy for the computer. I think the Mac Pro (mine is 1.1) is a great machine, if you can afford it go for it. I bought a 30" Dell Display, didn't like the 30" Cinema Display's price and specs, but you'll need an ATI1900 for a huge display like that because of the dual-link dvi connection. Link to comment https://www.insanelymac.com/forum/topic/89997-mac-pro/#findComment-642332 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Synaesthesia Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 2) If I buy a Mac Pro from the Apple Store configured with 2 x 1GB of RAM, and then buy 4 x 2GB of RAM from a third party vendor like OWC, then will it cause any decline in performance such as memory latency? Is it OK to have RAM of different sizes?It will be fine because you are installing all your memory in pairs. The new one needs the more expensive 800mhz fb-dimms, AFIAK.4) Do you think that the Mac Pro has good bang for the buck? If not, what are some alternatives?If you can use the horsepower, yes. It's great especially for heavy-duty Video and Audio work. Otherwise it can be overkill. The new iMac 2.4ghz or 2.8ghz is fine for many users, and still really fast. It's very quiet too, if that's what you're after. The single quad-core Mac Pro, or older Mac Pro are still really good. I take it you are asking specifically about Macs here...5) Is it worth it to buy the Apple Cinema Display?If you don't mind the Dell, it is just as good quality as a cinema display and cheaper...Just not as sexy. Link to comment https://www.insanelymac.com/forum/topic/89997-mac-pro/#findComment-642601 Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomazzzi Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 Do you think that the Mac Pro has good bang for the buck? Definitly Build the same computer with pc parts it will be more expensive & not as good looking Link to comment https://www.insanelymac.com/forum/topic/89997-mac-pro/#findComment-642621 Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThExSenatoR Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 Ok, forgot there is a newer mac pro, so Synaesthesia is right if you buy a brand new mac pro. Link to comment https://www.insanelymac.com/forum/topic/89997-mac-pro/#findComment-642844 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purple Puppy Posted February 26, 2008 Author Share Posted February 26, 2008 Thanks everyone for the replies... they were quite helpful. I'm only intending to buy one 500GB or 750Gb hard drive, so will it still be noisy? I occasionally do some 3D modeling and rendering, and I was extremely fed up with the slow rendering times for my current desktop (see sig). The rendering speed is quite proportional to the number of cores, I've read. So I'm expecting at least a 4x increase in rendering speed if I get a Mac Pro. I expect the Intel Xeon cores to be far more reliable since they were designed for workstations. My current Core 2 Duo's performance had been gradually declining, and the Windows Vista Experience Index dropped from 5.3 to 4.8 (Even though it claims that the scores never change for the same hardware). I've decided to buy a Mac because with a Mac, setting up dual boots is so easy with Boot Camp (unlike all that hassle with Hackintoshes... -___-). The Mac Pro's Boot Camp supports 64-bit Windows, right? Will using a bootloader-type Windows Vista activation crack screw over Boot Camp? Link to comment https://www.insanelymac.com/forum/topic/89997-mac-pro/#findComment-643413 Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThExSenatoR Posted February 26, 2008 Share Posted February 26, 2008 I never got a bootloader-type cracked Vista installed on my MacPro. I had to activate it with bios emulation hack. Link to comment https://www.insanelymac.com/forum/topic/89997-mac-pro/#findComment-643803 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts