12-29-2007, 08:40 PM

Heloo there,

I'm in a bit of a mess, Im a student and my course says I need a mac. I'm doing a music course and I would need to use software like MAX/MSP, logic and other music related software, since I'm also an amateur dj I'd like to move from the dreadful windows platform to the sleek and lovely OS X. However theres a problem,

MONEY

At the moment I have about £250 saved up which is about $500 and for that I can get a iBook G3 600 Dual USB Hardly what I need. That said though, what do all of you mac experts think I would need minimum and recommended e.g iBook G4 or Powerbook G4 etc? I love the macbook 2.2Ghz white and thats the one I would love to buy but that wouldnt be anytime soon lol. My rubbish dell pc is nearly dead and I need something quick, any ideas guys and girlies, I'd really appreciate any help you can give

Also if you know any places in the states where they deliver to the UK, PLEASE LET ME KNOW

Thanks a lot!
Take care
Harmi

12-30-2007, 12:06 PM

Hey guys, I'm not a mac user yet I'm afraid but I really want to switch over! WINDOWS IS VERY VERY BAD :p
Since I'm a uni student and because of my course I have to use mac now with audio and sound related software (MAX/MSP, Logic Pro, Cubase, CSound etc) I need to get a mac but I have a relatively low budget and I'm in the UK. I can just about afford a 1.33Ghz G4 iBook in very good condition at around £350 or a 1.33 - 1.5Ghz G4 Powerbook 12" for £450 to £500. Will these mac notebooks be sufficient to handle Tiger and the apps above with everything else (Safari, iLife, etc) ? If i was to get a macbook pro £1300 it will take me ages to get the money and I kinda need it now. Any help would be much appreciated mac experts

Thanks a lot!
Take care
Harmi

12-30-2007, 12:12 PM

The G4 will never be as fast as the macbook, but OK to use with tiger and music software

One other tip for a poor student. With the pound now at 2 dollars, trawl ebay US to see what your budget can get. Most N American sellers will state "ship to the United States only" or similar. It is worth contacting them because often it just hasn't occurred to them to sell sell elsewhere.

I bought my G4 a few years ago off ebay and saved 200 quid on what I could get in this country

12-30-2007, 12:16 PM

Thanks for the quick reply Louishen! Ive thought about buying it from the US but then wouldnt I have to pay customs or something? I suppose if its not much then I couldnt care less, thanks for the great idea though! I'm going on my hunt now

12-30-2007, 12:38 PM

You could keep checking the refurb store on Apple's UK site.

There's not much on at the moment but keep checking as availability changes regularly.

For example there were some base model Macbooks for £549 a couple of weeks ago.

These are just like buying a new machine (In fact more often than not they are, as they are usually just old stock that has been returned)

http://store.apple.com/Apple/WebObje...nclm=Certified

12-30-2007, 12:55 PM

hi

well the faster the better tbh but i used a ibook g4 for about 6 or 7 months of sound work when i was at college and it did the job fine i then upgraded to a macbook and it was faster but the ibook still did the job for the person in the class i sold it to so i will say any of them will do the job just the better the notebook you can get the more it can handle so keep an eye on ebay and referb store you might get a macbook for your money.

12-30-2007, 01:34 PM

Great!! Thank you everyone for your suggestions/advice, I will take them all on and keep you posted on what I eventually buy

Take care
Harmi

12-30-2007, 10:15 PM

I use my 1.67 Ghz PowerBook G4 to write and record using Logic.
I have absolutely no issues with it.
Yes, a MacBook or MBP is newer and a bit faster... but bigger/newer/faster does not always equate to better.
I have used both MBP's and PowerBooks and I could not find any real discernible difference in the performance with respect to music recording.
If you can get a hold of a PowerBook and save some cash, then go for it.

01-03-2008, 09:32 PM

Hey, sorry to keep revolving around the same topic again, my budget has become very low now because I had other student expenses. At the moment I have a 2.8ghz pentium 4 machine as my main pc and I want to switch, partly because of my course and because im ready to switch to os x but slowly. I use my main pc for everything really but because I commute quite a lot now, lots of time is wasted so Ive decided that I need a notebook. I really like the IBM Thinkpad T42 with its 1.7ghz pentium m processor, I can get it for about £300 which is great and thats the max I can go in terms of spending. Ive looked on ebay and 2nd hand mac sites and the only one I could see as a potential buy was the ibook g4 1.33ghz. Is this similar to the T42 in terms of performance? I would use it for word processing, music, videos, internet, mail, some dj software and a few music creation apps. According to the software developers sites the T42 would be sufficient tod do the job but it doesnt look like the mac can. Would it be totally better to just get the T42 for now and then save up properly for a better mac such as a g5 powermac, c2d imac or macbook pro? If you have any ideas please let me know and if you think there are better buys than the T42 for £300 id love to know. Thanks very much,

Harminder

01-03-2008, 09:46 PM

Im sorry ive made a few errors, the listing reading powerbook when it shouldve been ibook and the ibook 1.33ghz g4 (actually £400) i mentioned wasnt the right one, i meant the ibook dual usb 12" 600mhz g3. Sorry for the confusion. Thankls

Harminder

01-03-2008, 09:51 PM

I would avoid the iBook for audio work, as it did not have an audio line-in jack like the PowerBooks and MacBooks do.

A 1.3GHz G4 would probably be slower than a 1.7GHz Pentium-M. It could do what you want...barely...if it was loaded with memory and you were patient. And you'd need an external audio interface like a Griffin iMic (which would cost more.)

I'd save up for a MacBook (even a basic one would blow away an G4 or Pentium-M machine) if possible. A loaded, later-model PowerBook would be another option, but only if you got a really good deal on one.

01-03-2008, 09:58 PM

Im sorry ive made a few errors, the listing reading powerbook when it shouldve been ibook and the ibook 1.33ghz g4 (actually £400) i mentioned wasnt the right one, i meant the ibook dual usb 12" 600mhz g3. Sorry for the confusion. Thankls

Harminder

01-03-2008, 10:16 PM

Originally Posted by harmi11

Im sorry ive made a few errors, the listing reading powerbook when it shouldve been ibook and the ibook 1.33ghz g4 (actually £400) i mentioned wasnt the right one, i meant the ibook dual usb 12" 600mhz g3. Sorry for the confusion. Thankls

Harminder

No way would I pay that kind of money for those old iBooks.

01-03-2008, 10:50 PM

thanks technologist for your help. Ive just ordered a T43 which was a lot better than the T42 for amazingly the same price. I am going to save up for a MBP Take care
Harminder