What type of machine do you work on?

[deceasar 0]

At work I'm running a Dual 3ghz quad core Mac Pro with 8 Gigs of ram and 30 inch Cinema Display.

 

I'm trying to decide what to get for side projects at home though. Part of me wants to get a new macbook pro. Then I think about the iMac. Then I think about a refurbished mac pro.

 

 

What are you guys running?

[Aaron Scott 0]

At work I'm on a 2x2.8 Quad-Core Mac Pro, 12gb ram. The difference between 8gb ram and 12gb is noticeable -- rendering on 5 cores is nice.

 

That said, if I was building a new computer for at home (and I am later this year), there's no way I'd buy myself a Mac for a workstation. I just find it impossible to justify -- you can build a kickass PC for literally 1/2 or 1/3 the price, and in my experience AE on Windows has been much, much more stable. I know a lot of it comes down to personal taste, though.

[deceasar 0]

At work I'm on a 2x2.8 Quad-Core Mac Pro, 12gb ram. The difference between 8gb ram and 12gb is noticeable -- rendering on 5 cores is nice.

 

That said, if I was building a new computer for at home (and I am later this year), there's no way I'd buy myself a Mac for a workstation. I just find it impossible to justify -- you can build a kickass PC for literally 1/2 or 1/3 the price, and in my experience AE on Windows has been much, much more stable. I know a lot of it comes down to personal taste, though.

 

 

When you weigh personal taste against the price, it's the price that usually wins.

[AromaKat 1]

PC

[dan_hin 0]

I've got a dual core PC with production premium cs3 on it for basic editing/encoding tasks; a "proper" 3D/AE Armari quad core workstation with 16gb ram; and a desktop machine for emails, illustrator/bridge/flash etc.

[RustyAce 0]

personally i think i will end up opting for the Imac, i have a duel 2.7 G5 right now, that i've used very infrequently after leaving college. I've had a pretty bad run with PC's and almost no issues with my mac. Granted that could be due in part to the fact that the mac was pro level and not all the pc's were.

 

I may not have as much luck in quality on the iMac as compared to my mac pro but the large screen and quad i7 processor is not a bad deal for the price. I also don't plan on doing a lot of heavy rendering, more photoshop and illustrator work and maybe a little C4D. But i am looking at it as being the device that best meets my personal needs. personally i am fine with paying an extra couple hundred for a solid machine that i don't have to trouble shoot to make work. which also best meets my needs and preferences.

[misanthrope. 0]

homebrew dual 2.8ghz clovertown quad cores, 16gb ram, 3x24" displays.

[misanthrope. 0]

Granted that could be due in part to the fact that the mac was pro level and not all the pc's were.

 

nope. the only thing that's any different between a pro and non-pro machine is the configuration you specify and support. otherwise, sticks of ram are sticks of ram, and video cards are videos cards. some manufacturers cheap out with cooling designs, and sometimes you just have bad luck.

 

there is no difference between a mac and a pc besides the OS.

[deceasar 0]

I've really thought about going with the 27 inch iMac..

[a2visual 0]

I ended up getting a 27" iMac for the house. I work on a 8 core Mac Pro with a 30" Cinema Display at the office. So far, I'm content. I've brought home a few projects and the iMac has handled it fine. You'll need to buy a full sized keyboard for the number pad, or an external number pad since it comes with a bluetooth keyboard without one. The screen really sold me. I got so addicted/used to a big screen, I wanted the same at home and I couldn't justify the price of a Mac Pro and 30" screen.

 

As far as the PC option, I thought about it, but the software investment held me back. I already own everything for a Mac and didn't feel like paying for crossgrades, etc.

[Aaron Scott 0]

As far as the PC option, I thought about it, but the software investment held me back. I already own everything for a Mac and didn't feel like paying for crossgrades, etc.

 

Yeah, opposite problem here. I shudder to think how much I'd have to spend to rebuy everything for a Mac. The Production Suite alone...

[deceasar 0]

I have a 2.2 ghz macbook pro at home. Part of me wants to sell that one and just upgrade to a new macbook pro and then have an external monitor.

But I doubt the macbook pro could handle c4d or AE better than one of the new iMacs.

[yoni bendor 0]

I have a 2.2 ghz macbook pro at home. Part of me wants to sell that one and just upgrade to a new macbook pro and then have an external monitor.

But I doubt the macbook pro could handle c4d or AE better than one of the new iMacs.

a PC enviroment without some graphic cards/ram/motherboards/hd's around is fictional, if you're using a PC, soon, sooner, or soonest you're gonna end up replacing one these thingies inside your puter, thats how it goes.

MAC based enviroments are tidy, most MAC users don't need to worry about these things.

the CONS are that if you want to play some video games, you might aswell go for a PC

[ctarroza 0]

At work:

2 x 2.8 Quad Core

4 GB Ram... I have been BUGGIN' for more RAM. So far to no avail...

 

At home:

1st Gen. 13-in." Macbook Not-Pro... 2Ghz Intel Core Duo! Wo0t!

2 GB RAM

 

As you can see, I'm not catching any breaks here.

 

I'm planning on upgrading my Macbook to the iMac i7 to do some work on the side in hopes of getting out of my current employer. I know the limitations of those iMacs but I don't see doing a lot of work on the side as of yet... and Mac Pros are way out of the budget right now.

[Duder 0]

If anyone is thinking of getting a MBP -- don't.

 

New i7 versions are coming soon. Wait for that.

[parallax 0]

a PC enviroment without some graphic cards/ram/motherboards/hd's around is fictional, if you're using a PC, soon, sooner, or soonest you're gonna end up replacing one these thingies inside your puter, thats how it goes.

MAC based enviroments are tidy, most MAC users don't need to worry about these things.

the CONS are that if you want to play some video games, you might aswell go for a PC

 

As said before, this is a load of BS. Mac's and "PC's" are identical safe for the OS. As a matter of fact, i've had more problems with my Mac's then with my PC. How's that.

 

Note: obviously, comparing homegrown systems with off the shelf hardware is not a proper comparison.

[Duder 0]

People still have Mac vs. PC wars?

 

Jeez.

[Trione 0]

Yeah, they both seem like good options. I'll probably go with a PC when I upgrade just because they are cheaper. I would like to customize it, but my knowledge of computer innards is lacking.

Edited March 8, 2010 by Trione

[Leo 0]

People still have Mac vs. PC wars?

 

Jeez.

 

That's like... So 1999.

[AromaKat 1]

That's like... So 1999.

 

And Mac won.

[jayfaker 1]

the CONS are that if you want to play some video games, you might aswell go for a PC

 

No longer true.

 

 

I have an octo mac at home, only 2g or ram, and a 24 inch Dell display. I really wish I had more ram, of course, but even still it makes taking work home a breeze. And I've had to do that a lot recently...

Edited March 9, 2010 by jayfaker

[Beaver 1]

If you're not familiar with windows, and you get a PC, get a friend that can help you remove all the useless software you're bound to have preinstalled. That, IMO, is the biggest drawback to buying from major PC retailers. Once you get rid of the trash, windows 7 is a great OS. And like others have said, major cost/performance advantage over mac. I just got an Dell XPS 16 (with i7) laptop, and it's an amazing mobile workstation for $1500.

[stutts 0]

If anyone is thinking of getting a MBP -- don't.

 

New i7 versions are coming soon. Wait for that.

 

Good call on that.

 

MacRumors has an up-to-date buyer's guide running at their site - useful for telling when to buy.

http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/

[SaintEfan 0]

Building your own pc is by far the cheapest option.

That said I wouldn't personally do it again for anything other than casual home use.

My primary home workstation was a home-built PC for a while and I was having constant problems with this or that.

Maybe it was just the windows gremlins. Maybe Windows 7 has fixed all that, but I've had my mac pro for 3 years and it's never needed a reformat or any major tech support. I'm sure everyone has different experiences.

[Duder 0]

Illustrator, Photoshop are more speedy under Windows for some reason than under OS X.

 

I hope the move to 64bit fixes all these issues.