Base Mac Pro Worth $1,600?

[MarkJames68]

Not dissing Threadripper at all. Love the fact that AMD is back in the game...I’ve been using AMD since the 386 days.

As a tool, I will stick to a “real” Mac, albeit with some non-standard parts (like the 960 Pro). If something doesn’t work I can get support from Apple.

As a project or for casual use I would be all over TR.

 

[neomorpheus]

Not dissing Threadripper at all. Love the fact that AMD is back in the game...I’ve been using AMD since the 386 days.

As a tool, I will stick to a “real” Mac, albeit with some non-standard parts (like the 960 Pro). If something doesn’t work I can get support from Apple.

As a project or for casual use I would be all over TR.

Funny you mention a “real Mac”. I’m actually selling my cMP 4.1.

Why? Simple, the limitations and hacks needed to have this updated drive me bac to windows and reasonable priced equipment.

Examples, originally, i had 2 gt 120’s, obtained a mac 5770 and it was good, but soon, when i needed more, i had the choice of either getting paying even more to MVC to mod a gpu or try to flash it myself. Or having to buy a second power supply or hack the included cMP power supply, etc.

Yeap, i still have that 5770 and the 120’s and they are also for sale.

Then, i added a renesas based usb 3 card, which first worked great with some drivers from LaCie, until a new osx release decided to make sure that this driver stopped working unless SIP was disabled. Next osx release killed the driver for good.
Yeap, that card will be included in the sale.

How about having to flash the bios so I could install a new version of osx, since apple didn’t want me to continue using my mac?

Or upgrade the cpu?

I can go on and on, so please tell me why shouldn’t i put the same effort and end up with a TR or newer xeon hackintosh for perhaps less hassle and money?

In reality, apple dont want our money nor our business, if we want an upgradable system, so we should make them happy and go somewhere that does want our business.

 

[MarkJames68]

Funny you mention a “real Mac”. I’m actually selling my cMP 4.1.

Why? Simple, the limitations and hacks needed to have this updated drive me bac to windows and reasonable priced equipment.

Examples, originally, i had 2 gt 120’s, obtained a mac 5770 and it was good, but soon, when i needed more, i had the choice of either getting paying even more to MVC to mod a gpu or try to flash it myself. Or having to buy a second power supply or hack the included cMP power supply, etc.

Yeap, i still have that 5770 and the 120’s and they are also for sale.

Then, i added a renesas based usb 3 card, which first worked great with some drivers from LaCie, until a new osx release decided to make sure that this driver stopped working unless SIP was disabled. Next osx release killed the driver for good.
Yeap, that card will be included in the sale.

How about having to flash the bios so I could install a new version of osx, since apple didn’t want me to continue using my mac?

Or upgrade the cpu?

I can go on and on, so please tell me why shouldn’t i put the same effort and end up with a TR or newer xeon hackintosh for perhaps less hassle and money?

In reality, apple dont want our money nor our business, if we want an upgradable system, so we should make them happy and go somewhere that does want our business.

You’re probably better off moving to Windows or Linux. Apple provides a closed system that in recent years has opened the way to Hack systems, but there’s even less of a guarantee than adding components to a 4,1 that come the next release that your chipset, CPU or video card will even work.

A 4,1 is over 8 years old now. By Apple terms it’s discontinued and obsolete.

 

[Naimfan]

I have an opportunity to purchase a brand new base config (Quad core / 12GB / 256GB / D300) Mac Pro for $1,600. I know it's a bit dated and is expected to be replaced at some point. However I think it would be cool to have such a unique (and controversial) Mac. I currently have a base config (Quad core / 32GB / 1TB / 5770) 2010 (genuine) Mac Pro which I do not plan to replace. My workload is not heavy with the most taxing work being Handbrake or iMovie. This 2013 will outperform the 2010 in every aspect. The only negative to the 2013 is the smaller HD size and the lack of internal expansion but I'm fine with that as I'll be retaining the 2010 Mac Pro.

Keep in mind I'm not asking if I should or should not buy a 2013 Mac Pro (at all or versus something else)...I know all the pros and cons. I'm interested in people's opinions if $1,600 is worth the asking price for it.

So...what say the forum?

"Worth" is an entirely subjective term, which means only you can answer it.

From what you wrote, if you can write the check and not miss the money, then sure, go for it.

You could, however, also upgrade your 2010 to leave the 2013 for dead and have change left over. So it simply distills down to how much the "cool" factor means to you.

 

[neomorpheus]

You’re probably better off moving to Windows or Linux.

As I said before, OS's are part of a tool and its wise to learn how to use them as needed, instead of subjecting yourslef to only one because of the cult mentality.

Apple provides a closed system that in recent years has opened the way to Hack systems, but there’s even less of a guarantee than adding components to a 4,1 that come the next release that your chipset, CPU or video card will even work.

Seems like you just ignored how my "real Mac" stopped working here and there because of Apple, yet the same or better components can still be used on a hack.

A 4,1 is over 8 years old now. By Apple terms it’s discontinued and obsolete.

Nice backtracking, did you said you preferred that obsolete but "real Mac' instead of a hack?

Its ok, thats one of the things that is common with apple loyal customers, they cant see beyond the shinny logo.

 

[MarkJames68]

As I said before, OS's are part of a tool and its wise to learn how to use them as needed, instead of subjecting yourslef to only one because of the cult mentality.



Seems like you just ignored how my "real Mac" stopped working here and there because of Apple, yet the same or better components can still be used on a hack.



Nice backtracking, did you said you preferred that obsolete but "real Mac' instead of a hack?

Its ok, thats one of the things that is common with apple loyal customers, they cant see beyond the shinny logo.

Why are you getting snarky? As someone who has built hundreds of Windows systems since Windows 2 (and even had to write device drivers) I’m not any kind of a Apple bigot. If anything I’m late to the Apple game.

The facts are the facts. A nMP is still the current, supported Mac Pro. It’s valued appropriately. You can resell a used one on eBay for a large percentage of its original purchase price (at least the lower end).

A 5,1 seems to also hold up well, especially the 2012 models.

Even a 1,1 has value, more than the sum of its parts would indicate.

When a new MacOS release comes out, Apple states which systems are supported. No, it won’t guarantee 3rd party device support.

If you build a Hackintosh, it will likely outperform a nMP. No question. But it’s still a Frankenstein creation, outside the boundaries of Apple support, and in a gray area for license compliance. Legal issues aside, you can’t resell that system except for spare parts. It has no assurance that it will work for other releases.

If it works for you, awesome. But for some people that use their systems to earn, they would prefer to have a fully supported system.

I use a nMP for audio work, and use Windows machines for audio slaves as they are much cheaper. Best of both worlds for my use.

 

[neomorpheus]

Why are you getting snarky? As someone who has built hundreds of Windows systems since Windows 2 (and even had to write device drivers) I’m not any kind of a Apple bigot. If anything I’m late to the Apple game.

The facts are the facts. A nMP is still the current, supported Mac Pro. It’s valued appropriately. You can resell a used one on eBay for a large percentage of its original purchase price (at least the lower end).

A 5,1 seems to also hold up well, especially the 2012 models.

Even a 1,1 has value, more than the sum of its parts would indicate.

When a new MacOS release comes out, Apple states which systems are supported. No, it won’t guarantee 3rd party device support.

If you build a Hackintosh, it will likely outperform a nMP. No question. But it’s still a Frankenstein creation, outside the boundaries of Apple support, and in a gray area for license compliance. Legal issues aside, you can’t resell that system except for spare parts. It has no assurance that it will work for other releases.

If it works for you, awesome. But for some people that use their systems to earn, they would prefer to have a fully supported system.

I use a nMP for audio work, and use Windows machines for audio slaves as they are much cheaper. Best of both worlds for my use.

No snarky, just wanted to see when the line confirming the cult would show.

In your opinion, a nMP is worth that money, just because of the OS and in mine is not and i will end it there.