Computer Ideas

[Mr.X]

Which one does he get for under $1k like he asked?

Plenty...if he goes the refurbished, fully Apple-supported route. Some of the recent Aluminum imacs are a deal. Nice 20' screen. That being said the latest imovie HD program is weird. Luckily Imovie 06' is a free download. The Apple Store (U.S.) Perrone - don't get cute.


X

 

[PerroneFord]

Nothing to be cute about. The guy posted for advice about buying a Dell and trying to stay under $1k because that was his budget. You offered advice to buy a Mac. I am certainly no Mac expert, but nearly all the Mac editing machines I have seen are at least twice that much.

Apparently by your answer, your solution was to have him buy a used machine. And I am guessing that the iMac is not on the cutting edge so you're recommending a used, older machine that would likely be quite a bit slower than the new Dell he's currently shopping.

He'd also need to buy Final Cut Pro if he wanted to be compatible with anyone because Final Cut Express uses Apple Intermediate Codec internally, and converts (and downgrades) everything to pull it in. Would be far better if he could stay in ProRes, or use Cineform.

The guy is looking for serious help. I am just trying to help him out by giving solid advice.

 

[Jimmer]

Expanding somewhat on what PerroneFord said:
Dump the graphics card: Look for something with at least 256mb, preferably more. I have had very good luck with the Nvidia Quadro FX. ( I am currently using the Quadro FX 5600)

I'll agree that the Quadro FX cards are the cat's ass, but adding one to his machine would take a big dent out of his budget.

 

[Empty V]

Plenty...if he goes the refurbished, fully Apple-supported route. Some of the recent Aluminum imacs are a deal. Nice 20' screen. That being said the latest imovie HD program is weird. Luckily Imovie 06' is a free download. The Apple Store (U.S.) Perrone - don't get cute.


X

Sorry but this is some really poor advice. PF is correct, a refurb iMac is not the way to go and $1K for a mac, don't think so. As for the HP laptops, I've never used them I only buy their desktops. For PC laptops I either go with Toshiba or Panasonic Toughbooks but I wouldn't edit on a PC portable, only on a MacBookPro.

Billy

 

[Mr.X]

What Apple offers is a product that allows entry-level videographers/editors an inexpensive route into multimedia video production. If you're going to go pro., then you get and pay for an expandable pro Mac. with all the bells and whistles. The refurbs., are good product (albeit a tiny bit older than the newest versions), but we well know everything gets antiquated within months. So in my eyes apple vs. oranges.

In my experience you get more bang for buck from an Apple with regards to multimedia vs. Windows which tends to be problematic, and costlier with regards to add-ons, and piss-poor customer service. I have had enough frustrations with HP's, Compaq's, Dells to say bye-bye for now. My last dealing with an HP lap cost me well over 3k (includes programs) for a custom lappie, multimedia-capable that did jack compared to my older Powerbook. In short, my decision comes from which OS/product leaves me less pissed off at the end of the day, while getting the job done for the least amount of money.

BTW - as per Toshiba...I don't like the way they do business.

Also Empty...I like what you did with your Equinox housing. Very, very cool! I wish I had that kind of ability to mill and engineer a solution!

 

[PerroneFord]

Ok,

My experience has been different. I have two Dells in my editing suite. One 3 years old, the other brand new. Both have been rock solid. The older one has had memory upgrades, a raid controller put in, etc. But it gives me zero trouble. They are business class machines though, not the normal cheapie consumer line.

It has been my experience that if you keep your editing machines for editing, and keep off the games, various internet garbage, etc., that problems are minimized or eliminated. I also consider laptops unsuitable for editing simply because of the tremendous heat they have to deal with.

So I guess for me, I see buying a new machine that's faster and allows one to move from "entry level" to pro editing FAR more cheaply a better bang-for-buck than a refurb iMac. Simple differences of opinion I suppose. But I gotta tell you. After watching how Final Cut works, I'd take my chances on XP/Vista and Vegas any day.

 

[Mr.X]

Ok,

My experience has been different. I have two Dells in my editing suite. One 3 years old, the other brand new. Both have been rock solid. The older one has had memory upgrades, a raid controller put in, etc. But it gives me zero trouble. They are business class machines though, not the normal cheapie consumer line.

It has been my experience that if you keep your editing machines for editing, and keep off the games, various internet garbage, etc., that problems are minimized or eliminated. I also consider laptops unsuitable for editing simply because of the tremendous heat they have to deal with.

So I guess for me, I see buying a new machine that's faster and allows one to move from "entry level" to pro editing FAR more cheaply a better bang-for-buck than a refurb iMac. Simple differences of opinion I suppose. But I gotta tell you. After watching how Final Cut works, I'd take my chances on XP/Vista and Vegas any day.

What ultimately makes the difference here is user experience & capacity. I think technically-savvy folks can make the leap to whatever system, or config. gets the job done. In the end, it's all about getting the job done with the least amount of hassle. That's why I like the Mac. My last round with a dedicated PC lap for multimedia left me ticked off. Mostly, it was product, crappy engineering and overall Windows "weirdities."

As per editing. I liked AVID. Final Cut is pretty powerful program, but at the same time ramping up to use it takes some familiarization. Not too hard if someone is up on their Adobe Premiere. That being said I'm no engineer and cannot comment on how, or why it does what it does.

For entry-level folks Imovie can have teens, adults editing HD in a matter of minutes at no extra charge. They can also create their own soundtrack using Garageband, and insert photos and other media using Iphoto and Itunes. This integration is pretty sweet for someone who just wants to make a decent movie without having to read manuals, or have someone stand over their shoulder. When I taught UW videography classes MAC's made my life simple from an instructional standpoint.

I've never seen Vegas. Then again, I don't venture in Windows territory unless I have to.

X

 

[bfisher]

Mr. X,

Much as appreciate your opinion I am not going to go the Mac route. I've got too much money wrapped up in software right now that is not MAC compatable.

That being said, gentlemen, I'm very close to a decision. I'm going the PC route. My original question was basically about what components to get that I can afford and will do the job.

I'll let everbody know what I plan very soon.

Barry

 

[Empty V]

Just to reiterate what PF said, RAM and a solid 256MB or 512MB video card will be your most important assets. Good luck and congrats in advance on your new purchase!

Billy

 

[cfelliot]

I just bought a Dell XPS 420. My tolerance of Vista last 3 days. Although I sort of liked the new interface, I had too many problems with drivers to stay with it. My HP2015's Laserjet drivers wouldn't even install and the printer is only 6 months old.

I installed my copy of XP and with a bit of searching found the XP drivers for all the other parts of the system. Tricky, but doable!

I did this on a separate hard drive leaving the original in the system un-powered in case I needed support from Dell. They will not support XP.