imac al 24" 2.8ghz vs possible updated mac pro

[jatkins123]

hi all,

long time reader first time poster, looking for some advice re my next computer purchase if anyone wants to provide their 2 cents

just as some back ground so you know what im going from and plan on going to, Im currently running a very oldschool 1ghz PPC powerbook 12" using an external display as my monitor so practically a very old and weak desktop...i mainly use it for gaming, web browsing, music and all the usual junk nothing to do with video editing etc but i do some DVD burning and stuff occasionally...mainly play WOW but intend on playing other more demanding PC games and SCII when it comes out later...

pretty much i want to get a computer thats a little bit over the top but not ridiculous...i want it to last and be able to play the next gen games (pc and mac) fairly well and as you'll realise anything will be a major improvement for me...

im considering either the full specced 24" imac 2.8ghz extreme with 2gb of ram and 500gb hard drive (oh yeah i need a big hard drive for movies etc...) or when hte next revision of the mac pro comes out getting the basic model and getting a cheap dell 20" monitor...

before anyone tells me to only get a mac mini or a laptop i dont want either and im set on one of the above two options...i am leaning towards the imac purely because of the giant 24" inch screen without having the added cost...money is no real issue however, i am reluctant to go nuts as i said above...i really just want a more than acceptable cpu with good to awesome graphics...realistically im not going to spend an extra 2500 on a graphics card (im from Aus and thats what the top mac pro card costs) but i would be prepared to spend up to $4,000 AUD for the setup...about 3500 on the computer and 500 on the monitor...thats for the mac pro and the imac i could get away with 3300 flat..

obviously the current imac being a newer revision is more lucrative...but considering the talk about the mac pro possible configs what do people think?
remember i want it to be respectable for a few years of hard gaming...

thanks in advance everyone

 

[Lord Blackadder]

I'd go with the Mac Pro - if you plan on gaming the Mac Pro should be able to handle significant video card and CPU upgrades 3-4 years down the road that will keep it current. It will be expensive but I don't think the current 24" iMac is quite the right choice for gaming.

If gaming isn't a prime concern the iMac offers a good combination of hardware with a great screen at a competitive price.

 

[Father Jack]

Mac Pro, you can't go wrong ..

p.s. You don't need to worry about those reflections ..

 

[bluefiberoptics]

I'm in the same boat. Top of the line iMac or Base Updated Mac Pro?

 

[jatkins123]

I'm in the same boat. Top of the line iMac or Base Updated Mac Pro?

haha pretty much the same setup, i've even got that same mac mini hooked up to my bravia in my room...bit of a dilemma...plus my parents think im stupid for buying a top of the line computer just for gaming when i already have a ps3 but still nothing beats a mouse for FPS games

in regards to upgrading the CPU i thought this was hard/impossible in the mac pro's or am i grossly mis informed???

any solid dates as to when this mac pro rev is due?

thanks everyone such quick responses

 

[aLoC]

I have the 2.8 iMac. It can play the latest games (such as COD4 demo) but only at 800x600 resolution. If you want native res on the latest games the iMac can't cut it.

 

[RevToTheRedline]

I have the 2.8 iMac. It can play the latest games (such as COD4 demo) but only at 800x600 resolution. If you want native res on the latest games the iMac can't cut it.

Update the video drivers my friend you can then play it at 1920x1200.

 

[jatkins123]

anyone else recommend either setup? some direct gaming points about the imac would be awesome...

 

[liquidthunder]

anyone else recommend either setup? some direct gaming points about the imac would be awesome...

Personally, if I were in your position I would go with the Mac Pro. The mac pro with the radeon x1900 is still giving great numbers, and the upgrade ability can keep it new for atleast 5 years. As for the high end Nvidea Quattro I would not consider, it is too expensive and not a gaming card. You could always upgrade the Radeon x1900 when something better comes out. As for the new imacs I am a little cautious about them. I have read numerous posts about the new imacs having trouble with some games because of the ATI drivers not optimised for the new x2600. The imacs are nice though, if you could find the white 24" with the nvidea 7600 card that would be the best bet, and probably the cheapest too.

CHeers and good luck!

 

[marcg007]

My iMac has been doing great with games

While it's true that it won't handle everything at full resolution, it will handle more than most people are giving credit for. Also, I suspect that many things will improve with leopard. Here's hoping.

 

[liquidthunder]

While it's true that it won't handle everything at full resolution, it will handle more than most people are giving credit for. Also, I suspect that many things will improve with leopard. Here's hoping.

I hope so too. I am looking forward to finding out if Leopard will double OpenGL applications like I read last night. I am actually a proud owner of a 15 inch MBP and drool everytime I see the new 24" iMacs. I just hope that ATI and Apple get on the ball and fix those drivers for the x2600 card. There is no reason why older video cards should run faster than newer ones.

 

[jatkins123]

oh and another question...regarding the whole 2x, 4x video cards...what sort of improvement in graphics would i be looking at or does is this purely for multiple tasking of rendering etc? noob question really but im guessing 2x video cards doesnt directly translate into 2x graphical performance...

 

[liquidthunder]

oh and another question...regarding the whole 2x, 4x video cards...what sort of improvement in graphics would i be looking at or does is this purely for multiple tasking of rendering etc? noob question really but im guessing 2x video cards doesnt directly translate into 2x graphical performance...

From my understanding, the Nvidea 7300 is SLi capable. And it does double the performance of rendering games. A aquaintance of mine had 2 Sli Nvidea cards and the way he described it is one card rendered the top portion of your display while the 2nd card rendered the bottom half. It sounds awesome. I would love to see the benchmarks with 2 7300 GT SLI's going head to head with the x1900.

 

[liquidthunder]

Not sure if Mac Pro can take advantage of Nvidea SLi

Upon further review on both Apple and Nvidea website, the 7300 GT for Mac is not advertised as SLi capable. So my guess is SLi technology is only available to PC users. However, the x1900XT smokes compared to even the high end Quattro. I would go with the Radeon with Mac Pro for sure!

Here is a quote from Nvidea website: "You can fill your Mac Pro with as many as four GeForce 7300 GT graphics cards each driving an independent display for the ultimate in visual real-estate."

So Mac Pro is not SLi capable. Don't get the 7300.

 

[jatkins123]

wow thanks for all the research, much appreciated, i guess ill have to see if there is a revision coming up soon...i've waited this long lets see if apple has a mac pro update up their sleeve before year end...thanks again

 

[aLoC]

Update the video drivers my friend you can then play it at 1920x1200.

I am using the Boot Camp driver. I tried to install the latest Catalyst driver from the ATI site but the installer said "no compatible hardware found." Can anyone give me a link to an ATI driver which is known to install?

 

[Sun Baked]

wow thanks for all the research, much appreciated, i guess ill have to see if there is a revision coming up soon...i've waited this long lets see if apple has a mac pro update up their sleeve before year end...thanks again

All depends on if Apple jumps on the Intel's next generation workstation chipset quickly.

 

[RevToTheRedline]

I am using the Boot Camp driver. I tried to install the latest Catalyst driver from the ATI site but the installer said "no compatible hardware found." Can anyone give me a link to an ATI driver which is known to install?

I've written a tutorial how to install the catalyst driver. It's in the 2600XT thread.

 

[Lord Blackadder]

So Mac Pro is not SLi capable. Don't get the 7300.

The 7300 wasn't suitable for gaming when it was new, so it most certainly isn't now. Also, if you check out Tom's VGA charts you will find that even in an SLI configuration the 7300 is not a good performer.

If you plan on gaming, you need the X1900XT (or the Quadro, if you must have an NVIDIA card and have more money than sense).

When the new Mac Pros arrive expect a Radeon 2900-class or GeForce 8800-class high-end card to shore up gaming performance...it will be worth the wait if gaming is high on your priority list.

 

[jatkins123]

The 7300 wasn't suitable for gaming when it was new, so it most certainly isn't now. Also, if you check out Tom's VGA charts you will find that even in an SLI configuration the 7300 is not a good performer.

If you plan on gaming, you need the X1900XT (or the Quadro, if you must have an NVIDIA card and have more money than sense).

When the new Mac Pros arrive expect a Radeon 2900-class or GeForce 8800-class high-end card to shore up gaming performance...it will be worth the wait if gaming is high on your priority list.

thanks lord blackadder, i guess i'll just have to see what the new cards are if they update them, based on everyone's advice i may as well wait...no point waiting this long and then selling out for an imac a month before mac pro updates...ill definately be back on here asking about gaming cards after that seeing as i've got no real idea about which cards are good for gaming and which ones arent...thanks again

 

[aLoC]

I've written a tutorial how to install the catalyst driver. It's in the 2600XT thread.

Ok thanks, I'll give it a try.

 

[KJdanReuben]

I've written a tutorial how to install the catalyst driver. It's in the 2600XT thread.

Is the catalyst driver only for the 24" iMac and BootCamp? Or should I also get it for my 2.4ghz 20" model with the ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO with 256MB memory? I will be doing a little bit of gaming through BootCamp, but not too much. Just got the iMac and was wondering. Thanks for the help!