iMac vs Powerbook?

hambone1 · Post by **hambone1** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 1:42 pm

Time to upgrade. I don't need the portability (or the cost!) of a Powerbook. I'm running Live without effects or plug-ins (all pre-rendered), but also Arkaos VJ. Anyone doing anything similar?

buzzcock · Post by **buzzcock** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 1:52 pm

Not yet, but I'm seriously considering selling my MDD dual 1ghz machine and buying a 17" iMac G5 1.8ghz. My G4 is selling for $1000 or so on ebay, and I could probably get at least $500 for the 17" apple display. The iMac would cost roughly the same amount and I would expect to see performance improvements on all fronts.

Anyone want a used G4?

AdamJay · Post by **AdamJay** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 5:37 pm

the powerbooks are quite capable.
the 1.67ghz PB's are right on par with 1.6ghz G5's. and the 1.5ghz PB's aren't that far behind.

if you're running Arkaos, the video card in the powerbooks (even the 12") is more capable than in the iMacs

Rahlo · Post by **Rahlo** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 6:48 pm

AdamJay wrote:the powerbooks are quite capable.
the 1.67ghz PB's are right on par with 1.6ghz G5's. and the 1.5ghz PB's aren't that far behind.

if you're running Arkaos, the video card in the powerbooks (even the 12") is more capable than in the iMacs

Adam, dude, you are a MACHINE!!1

How do you know all this stuff?

btw, I for one, appreciate your platform impartiality. It's a refreshing change.

AdamJay · Post by **AdamJay** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 7:09 pm

rahlo wrote:
Adam, dude, you are a MACHINE!!1 How do you know all this stuff?

clever research is all....
xbench.com is a benchmarking application for Macs. hundreds of thousands of macs have been tested and you can upload your results so they can be compared against each other..

here is an average PB 1.67ghz vs. an average iMac G5 1.6ghz. Both have 1GB Ram.
L I N K
notice how the L2 cache on the G5 runs at 1.05ghz, where as on the G4 it runs at a full speed of 1.67ghz. This is one of the equalisers that helps the PB's smaller front side bus. Also notice how much more powerful the Altivec unit in the G4 is. If Ableton supported altivec instruction, the G4 would actually be more capable than the G5, rather than slightly less as the Live 4 Performance test has shown us.

DLuv · Post by **DLuv** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 7:41 pm

yeah AdamJay is on point as he helped me last week w/my decisions...

rah, what's good this is "vita_mind" checking in the forum

tobie · Post by **tobie** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 11:35 pm

Here's a quick attempt at starting anotherone of these PC vs Mac thread...:

Get yourself a PC!

(just kidding)

Rahlo · Post by **Rahlo** » Mon Feb 28, 2005 11:40 pm

DLuv wrote:yeah AdamJay is on point as he helped me last week w/my decisions...

rah, what's good this is "vita_mind" checking in the forum

same ol same ol bro. trying to make it happen!

what decisions did AdamJay help you with? you got a new computer?

hambone1 · Post by **hambone1** » Tue Mar 01, 2005 9:46 am

Thanks for all the info!

I'm leaning towards the 1.67GHz Powerbook option now. The Powerbooks also have a DVI extended-desktop output that the iMacs don't have. It would seem that DVI out straight into the DVI input of the projector would result in the cleanest, sharpest image. Also, since DVI doesn't have to do an analog video conversion, maybe it's easier on the computer. (Pure speculation on my part!)

My other option was to leave Live running on my current 400MHz Powerbook and build a super-duper PC (or maybe even a Mac mini or another Powerbook) just for running the video. It starts to get messy with MIDI cables & interfaces, etc, but you can get massive bang-for-buck this way with a PC.

Think I'll have to go down to the Apple Store in London this weekend armed with Live and Arkaos on an external drive, and pile on the video effects until the Powerbook chokes. All of my Live audio tracks are pre-rendered, so I don't need any effects or plug-ins. The only other thing Live does is run the MIDI files that trigger and control the video and lighting effects. The CPU meter even on my old Powerbook never goes above 10% this way.

Hope that helps someone else!

hambone1 · Post by **hambone1** » Tue Mar 01, 2005 11:42 am

Just checked prices.. can buy TWO 1.33GHz 12" Powerbooks for the cost of ONE 1.67GHz 15"! (Sound of cogs turning in head...)

Maybe keep 400MHz Powerbook for Live & 12" 1.33GHz for Arkaos?

Anyone doing anything similar?

Pitch Black · Post by **Pitch Black** » Tue Mar 01, 2005 2:08 pm

welll.... we run two Powerbook 500Mhz each running Live, outputting 8 audio outputs each to a Multiface, and a 1.33GHz 17"Powerbook running Modul8 for video.

The multiple computers approach works for us. If one goes down, the other keeps the gig running while we reboot. If your dedicated "audio" 12" crashed or whatever, you can push the volume up on the video machine and get... something...

I don't think PC's/Macs are quite there yet to handle heavy duty audio and video at the same time... especially in a live situation. You really have to "suck it and see" and torture-test any potential setup in as real-world conditions as possible.

happy browsing!

hambone1 · Post by **hambone1** » Tue Mar 01, 2005 5:41 pm

Modul8 looks so much more, er, 'professional' than Arkaos VJ. I downloaded the Modul8 manual, but it's pretty sparse. I'd be interested in knowing how you guys are using it.

Your point of computer redundancy is good, too. If the Live Powerbook dies, I can always have Live ready on the VJ Powerbook.

So the 1.5GHz 12 incher it is! I know it's small, but it's not the size of the wand, but the magic of the magician! (So I've heard!)

Thanks for the help!

AdamJay · Post by **AdamJay** » Tue Mar 01, 2005 5:53 pm

hambone1 wrote:Just checked prices.. can buy TWO 1.33GHz 12" Powerbooks for the cost of ONE 1.67GHz 15"! (Sound of cogs turning in head...)

or a G5 1.6ghz iMac and a 1.2ghz iBook both for the cost of ONE 1.67GHz 15"

commuter · Post by **commuter** » Tue Mar 01, 2005 7:29 pm

Hi guys,
I have the opportunity to buy an educational Imac G5 1.6 for 840 euros (without a combo/or superdrive and only with 40gb)instead of a 12" powerbook......
What do ya think of that deal...?
I already own 2 external 160gb harddrive and a USB DVD writer........
Me think it's good, no ?

AdamJay · Post by **AdamJay** » Tue Mar 01, 2005 7:36 pm

sounds like a good deal to me.
the hard drives are user replaceable so you can swap in one of your 160GB's for better performance.