Advice for composition:

Hi,

I've decided to get a mac but I'm not entirely sure on what I'll need to run Logic Express (maybe pro) for audio manipulation and sampler instruments. I'm a Music Technology student at Lancaster University, England. I'm really asking for advice on whether to get a Mac Pro or whether I can go to the lower end of the Mac list without compromising the performance of Logic.

I was going to go for something like this:

* Two 3.0GHz Dual-Core Intel Xeon
* 2GB (4 x 512MB)
* NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB (single-link DVI/dual-link DVI)
* 250GB 7200-rpm Serial ATA 3Gb/s
* One 16x SuperDrive
* Apple Keyboard & Mighty Mouse - British
* Mac OS X (English)

* Five USB ports
* Two FireWire 400 ports
* Two FireWire 800 ports

But I'm wondering whether I'd really notice the difference between that and an iMac with this spec:

* 2.33GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
* 2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
* NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GT 256MB SDRAM
* 250GB Serial ATA drive
* Keyboard (English) & Mighty Mouse + Mac OS X (English)

* 24-inch TFT display
* 8x double-layer SuperDrive (DVD±RW, CD-RW)
* AirPort Extreme
* Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR

I read that the Mac Pro is more for video editing which I'm imagining takes uses up more resources so I'd be concerned that I'd be buying something that is vastly over powered for what I want to do. But on the flip side, I don't want to be limited.

So the main use would be Logic Express 7/Pro, some home video editting, Max MSP and that's about it.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated!

Currently I'm simply using Garageband with just a 1.83 iMac 17" and not noticing ANY problems. The Core 2 Duo processors pack a lot of punch. Depending on the kind of audio you'll be doing, you'll need to pick up a few things along the way, so if it were me, I'd go for the lessor of the two spec wise, and then have some $$$ left over for the other things that you're going to need.

I think the "Lower" end one would suit you fine. Even though its lower end then the one you spec' first, its still very powerful and should hold its ground quite comfortably

Just dont forget to also add to the price a decent external HDD to back up all your work on. Im also a music tech student about to start university, and can appreciate the amount of work going into the projects

~~ TS ~~

Dude I'm running Logic on a G4 Mac Mini. You won't have any issues with an iMac.

Go for the pro if you have the money. The storage options are weak in the integrated units. They all accept only one hard disk. You can use firewire external drives, but I prefer internal expansion.

Mac Pro has 4 easily accessible SATA bays, plus the graphics are upgradable.

Also, if you get a poor screen in your iMac you have the hassle of convincing Apple to replace it. Uneven backlights, dead pixels etc.. are what I call faults but Apple doesn't always see it that way.

The iMac 24 has a very bright screen and if you turn down the backlight they start to hum. One of my external monitors hums but not at medium brightness, so that's ok.

At least with the pro you can source your own monitor and take it back or buy another if you get one that's not perfect.

I was waiting to post in this. The pro may be your best bet. If you're going to be doing serious recording and using a lot of midi effects and plugins, it's going to require more memory. Even a decently equipped imac may have problems there, depending on what you're trying to run at the moment. I've had no real practical experience with using a ton of plugins at once, but that's what I've heard from most all accounts.

If you want a good answer, post here :www.recording.org . The forum has experts on it, so they'll have more experience and knowledge than I will.

And for future reference. Garage band is not Logic...