Change from Win XP to Mac

[12bbb]

Hi

I want to go MAC. I can purchase:

Power mac G5 2x2.0ghz 2gb Ram, 160gb HD firewire 400 et 800 superdrive etc. OSX 10.5.6 installed.

For less than 1000$ CND (800USD)

Is this worth the price?

Can I transfert my hard drives from my PC to the MAC?

ANd any recommendations, I'm on a budget.

[Obsidian Dragon]

Depending on what your Win XP system is made of, the switch to a G5 based Mac may or may not be an improvement. Apple has abandoned the G5 processors in favor of the Intel processors for quite some time. All software coming out will be primarily for the new processors. I understand the budget limitations. I strongly you wait ans save up for something more current. You may be better served with an Intel based iMac or even a Mac Mini.

Generally you can not simply slap the Windows formatted hard drives in a Mac (NTFS vs. HPFS formatting). Newer Mac Pros use SATA drives, but your drives may be EIDE.

If you take my suggestion and go with the iMac or Mac Mini, you'll need an external firewire drive (oops Apple discontinued firewire 400 on all their models and totally removed firewire alltogether on Macbooks and Mac Minis)

You'll need to either get the previous generation Mac's with Firewire 400 still or use Firewire 800 external drives with a USB based audio interface (Mbox, Mbox 2, Mbox 2 Mini).

If you have a firewire based audio interace (Mbox 2 Pro, Digi002. Digi002R, Digi 003, Digi003R, or Digi003R+), then you'll need a machine that supports Firewire 400 or will work with a Firewire 800 to Firewire 400 adapter cable.

[basslik]

Originally Posted by Obsidian Dragon

Depending on what your Win XP system is made of, the switch to a G5 based Mac may or may not be an improvement. Apple has abandoned the G5 processors in favor of the Intel processors for quite some time. All software coming out will be primarily for the new processors. I understand the budget limitations. I strongly you wait ans save up for something more current. You may be better served with an Intel based iMac or even a Mac Mini.

Generally you can not simply slap the Windows formatted hard drives in a Mac (NTFS vs. HPFS formatting). Newer Mac Pros use SATA drives, but your drives may be EIDE.

If you take my suggestion and go with the iMac or Mac Mini, you'll need an external firewire drive (oops Apple discontinued firewire 400 on all their models and totally removed firewire alltogether on Macbooks and Mac Minis)

You'll need to either get the previous generation Mac's with Firewire 400 still or use Firewire 800 external drives with a USB based audio interface (Mbox, Mbox 2, Mbox 2 Mini).

If you have a firewire based audio interace (Mbox 2 Pro, Digi002. Digi002R, Digi 003, Digi003R, or Digi003R+), then you'll need a machine that supports Firewire 400 or will work with a Firewire 800 to Firewire 400 adapter cable.

why did mac scrap firewire 400?

[flommer]

Originally Posted by basslik

why did mac scrap firewire 400?

It's not scrapped, per se, as FW400 still functions via an adapter cable.. Maybe just a push on Apple's part to get more devices running at FW800 speeds? Fast Sata drives can exceed FW400 limitations when installed in FW enclosures, for example...

Maybe the Digi 004 will be FW800 and have 36In/36out??

[sunburst79]

A G5 will give you a HUGE performance hit over your Quadzilla. A modern iMac will probably give you 3/4+ of your current power. I would also recommend saving for a iMac as its only a few hundred more.

See the HD threads for some recent tales of G5 woe. Basically Apple no longer stocks replacement parts for these and anything you get is going to be refurbed. Avoid the liquid cooled models at all cost as they are prone to leakage. If you must have a G5 (for example if you have PCI-X HD cards)than go for one of the more powerful air cooled dual processor models. I also beleive I read that Snow Leopard is dropping Power PC support.

Get a iMac or a MacPro.

[12bbb]

Even for 800$ you still recomend I save up for Intel based Mac?

[pierrot049]

A friend of mine picked up some serious issues with iMac and Digi hardware... apparently USB... so make sure you use firewire compatible digi hardware...
His iMac crashes with the Micro attached... all problems go when he removes the Micro...

[flommer]

Originally Posted by 12bbb

Even for 800$ you still recomend I save up for Intel based Mac?

$800 is right on the border, value-wise IMO. It would probably hold you over for a while and then make a decent non-PT machine..

A new Mac mini might be as powerful as the G5 though, with better forward software compatibility..

It's a tough call.. I look at the cost of a computer as something that I hopefully will only need to spend every 4-5-6 years.. The G5 will definitely not last that long for you.. Pay now (with less hassle) or pay later

Good Luck!

[flommer]

Originally Posted by pierrot049

A friend of mine picked up some serious issues with iMac and Digi hardware... apparently USB... so make sure you use firewire compatible digi hardware...
His iMac crashes with the Micro attached... all problems go when he removes the Micro...

One person's experiences with a particular set of hardware/software can, in no way, reflect others' experiences in general. I would say this is poor advice..

[12bbb]

Ok then, I'm going for the MacPro. I'll scrape more money for my Mac budget.

I have one last question:

Will I need to redownload PT 8 for Mac now that I won't be on PC anymore?