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Used Mac Powerbook - what should I look for?


Calumet

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So, I want to get a Powerbook to run some music apps (Pro Tools, Reason, B4, etc.). My assumption is that I can get something used that will do just fine.

 

What speeds should I be looking for to run programs like this. What else should I be aware of when it comes to Powerbooks? (I'm a PC guy).

 

Thanks!

My band Thousand Houses: www.thousandhouses.com
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You're stating USED powerbook. What is your budget or does anybody offer you one?

There are a few things to think about when you're coming from the Windows world.

Go for OS X immediately. The older Mac systems are DEAD, gone and buried. OS X is the thing to go for.

Put lots of memory in it, at least 512 MB.

Some apps are especially developed for Mac or just work better on a Mac, like Logic, ProTools, Digital Performer and Ableton Live. Also M-audio has good Mac support.

Get DiskWarrior in case things are starting to run not like they're supposed to run.

And don't feel the need to buy an anti virus application! :P

http://www.bobwijnen.nl

 

Hipness is not a state of mind, it's a fact of life.

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WHOAH

I've been thinking of selling my Powerbook, but I love it too so... least I would be able to let it go for would be like $1650. It has 1 stuck pixel, and has at least 6 months of the 1 year warranty left.

 

It was bought in September on the 17th.. 867 Mhz, 256 MB RAM, 15" widescreen TiBook..

 

But I'm not sure yet... what's your budget?

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I was hoping to get into something between $500-$800. I have been looking at older powerbooks, such as an Apple Powerbook Titanium G4 400/384M/10GB/.

 

Is this enough power and memory?

 

Thanks.

My band Thousand Houses: www.thousandhouses.com
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The "400" in that equation will kill you. 800 mhz would be a minimum, IMO.

 

I recently added one of the 12" iBooks to my studio and it's the bee's knees. $1000 and it runs 10.3 and everything under the sun. It even ran an entire session one night (LOTS of track/overdubs, right to the internal drive!) when my main Mac took a nosedive. (Self inflicted, my own fault.)

 

The 12" iBook G4/800 would be my recommendation in this price range. They're an incredible bargain.

 

Paul

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posted 02-20-2004 01:34 PM                       

------------------------------------------------------------------------

I was hoping to get into something between $500-$800. I have been looking at older powerbooks, such as an Apple Powerbook Titanium G4 400/384M/10GB/.

Is this enough power and memory

Definitely not enough speed or RAM. Go for a powerbook with at least a 500 processor and 512 RAM. If you're adding softsynths I'd say 800 minimum and a gig of RAM if possible.

*

 

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So...after the posts in this thread...I am planning on getting an entry level G4 Ibook to run PT as well as some other programs (Reason, etc.) I am a life long PC user, so my Apple knowledge is low.

 

The entry level Ibook is 800mhz, 30G, and, I think, 256 RAM.

 

Will Pro Tools run smoothly with my MBox on this Ibook? What else should I be aware of? I have been told it will work just fine, but you guys are the experts. Would there be any good reason to pop the extra couple hundred $$ to get the 933?

 

If there is something already posted about this that I didn't find, please direct me to it so I don't waste forum space.

 

Thanks all!

 

Mitch

My band Thousand Houses: www.thousandhouses.com
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I used to use a iBook G3 500Mhz with the M-Box. Only quirk was that some times the output would be distorted when you first started up PT. All you needed to do was unplug and plub back in the M-Box and it was fine. I was using it only with OS9 and there wasn't much available for OSX at the time. I did find it to be a little underpowered. With a few soft synths loaded you could run out of power quite easily (you can always bounce to disk those tracks to free up CPU). All in all, a very stable machine.

 

If you plan on using the built-in display as your primary you might want to jump to the next model. Eventhough the resolution is the same it's just easier to see on the bigger display. Still I like the smaller size for live where I want the smallest footprint. Additionally the proc boost and additional 10GB seem to make it money well spent.

 

Busch.

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Originally posted by Calumet:

So...after the posts in this thread...I am planning on getting an entry level G4 Ibook to run PT as well as some other programs (Reason, etc.) I am a life long PC user, so my Apple knowledge is low.

 

The entry level Ibook is 800mhz, 30G, and, I think, 256 RAM.

 

Will Pro Tools run smoothly with my MBox on this Ibook? What else should I be aware of? I have been told it will work just fine, but you guys are the experts. Would there be any good reason to pop the extra couple hundred $$ to get the 933?

 

If there is something already posted about this that I didn't find, please direct me to it so I don't waste forum space.

 

Thanks all!

 

Mitch

Lemme give you some tips, as an ex PC user and now a three and a half years Mac user.

Fill your iBook up with RAM. 256 meg is not enough, make it 640. There are brands that are making 1 GB memory sticks, but they're expensive (both for Mac and PC).

30 GB is not a lot when using ProTools. Go for an external firewire HD or make it an 800 MHz 60 gig HD custom model (or the 14" 1 GHz w/60 gig which I have...).

Go to this site to learn about the diffs between WinXP and OS X.

Last but not least: happy cruisin'!

http://www.bobwijnen.nl

 

Hipness is not a state of mind, it's a fact of life.

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- $200 for a 133MHz clock difference isn't very good bang for the buck, but you've got to live with that computer for a while and the extra speed will extend its useful life.

- Don't bother with the 400, because there are already apps out that require more than that as a minimum. It sucks to get something new that's already obsolete, you'll be wanting to upgrade right away.

- Getting an external hard drive is good advice period when you want to record. Your computer will have a 5400 RPM drive built-in, you can get a 7200 RPM drive that will perform much better.

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