While we're talking photography... PC or Mac!?
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I would say so, yes. If only for the responsiveness of the apps I use the most.Heavymental wrote:This version has a 128gb SSD as the 1st Drive and a 1tb drive as the second. Is the SSD definitely a better option for the 1st drive?
I'm currently using a self-build based on a Core i7 2600K, 16GB RAM, 128 GB Crucial M4 SSD, and 3 misc 2TB HDDs. The main graphics card is an old nVidia 8800GT, backed up with an even older (passively cooled!) 8400GS that I picked up on eBay for 15 quid) since I now use three monitors.
I have Windows 7, all my dev software (SQL Server, Visual Studio) and Photoshop CS5 installed on the SSD, and all the miscellaneous stuff I don't use so much installed on one of the HDDs.
All the image files are on one of the HDDs. I haven't needed to optimise it much, simply because even with files up to 70MB (TIFFs from scanned negs), and sometimes more (panos), multiple layers, etc, etc, performance isn't an issue. I spend waaaaaayyyyyyy more time actually thinking about the edits than waiting for the puter to respond.
Edit: 4 misc HDDs, not three!Is the gorilla tired yet?0 -
ChrisAOnABike wrote:
I would say so, yes. If only for the responsiveness of the apps I use the most.Heavymental wrote:This version has a 128gb SSD as the 1st Drive and a 1tb drive as the second. Is the SSD definitely a better option for the 1st drive?
I'm currently using a self-build based on a Core i7 2600K, 16GB RAM, 128 GB Crucial M4 SSD, and 3 misc 2TB HDDs. The main graphics card is an old nVidia 8800GT, backed up with an even older (passively cooled!) 8400GS that I picked up on eBay for 15 quid) since I now use three monitors.
I have Windows 7, all my dev software (SQL Server, Visual Studio) and Photoshop CS5 installed on the SSD, and all the miscellaneous stuff I don't use so much installed on one of the HDDs.
All the image files are on one of the HDDs. I haven't needed to optimise it much, simply because even with files up to 70MB (TIFFs from scanned negs), and sometimes more (panos), multiple layers, etc, etc, performance isn't an issue. I spend waaaaaayyyyyyy more time actually thinking about the edits than waiting for the puter to respond.
Edit: 4 misc HDDs, not three!
Cheers Chris. Think I will go for the SSD as the main drive then. Will give them a ring and see what they think about the above spec. Can always upgrade the processor in time. That has to be the major advantage of a PC doesn't it! The fact that it's easy to open her up and pop something new in there.0 -
Heavymental wrote:Can always upgrade the processor in time. That has to be the major advantage of a PC doesn't it! The fact that it's easy to open her up and pop something new in there.
That and cost!Specialized Roubaix Elite 2015
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Funny that. ............Giraffoto wrote:Heavymental wrote:Can always upgrade the processor in time. That has to be the major advantage of a PC doesn't it! The fact that it's easy to open her up and pop something new in there.
That and cost!
Edit:- You know what? I can't be bothered........None of the above should be taken seriously, and certainly not personally.0 -
Oh go on davie! Not even in bullet points!?0
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Nah. We are heading down the road I feared in my first reply on the first page. I thought we had sucsessfully avoided that.Heavymental wrote:Oh go on davie! Not even in bullet points!?None of the above should be taken seriously, and certainly not personally.0 -
The real reasons I prefer a PC* (bullet pointed!)
Cost- A PC costs about a quarter of the equivalent MAC Pro model - since I use multiple hard drives, it's the only one that's directly comparable for my purposes. My "mobile solution" is a netbook that costs about £200
- I typically get a new PC every five or six years, so the actual cost is spread out over that time. In general I don't see any hardware failures either - I had a PSU burn out once, that's it. if I upgrade anything as I'm going along it will be something as simple as the RAM
- When I fill up my hard drives I can just add more - the previous one had six HDDs in it. Maximum in a Mac Pro is four. The last machine can be repurposed as a file server (even more backup) and then be stuffed to the gills with HDDs
- It's fun to fix things, and it's good to know that I can always add bits as they become necessary - case fans, interface cards (the current one has gone USB 3.0 without a worry) multiple monitors . . . add them when you need them, don't pay for them until you do
Specialized Roubaix Elite 2015
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Guess notdaviesee wrote:
Nah. We are heading down the road I feared in my first reply on the first page. I thought we had sucsessfully avoided that.Heavymental wrote:Oh go on davie! Not even in bullet points!?0 -
Skip on the case if you want, but I personally wouldn't skip on the PSU.
Having a PSU that can keep the voltages rock solid regardless of the load is key for great system stability. But it is your money, so only a recommendation from me.Simon0 -
springtide9 wrote:Skip on the case if you want, but I personally wouldn't skip on the PSU.
Having a PSU that can keep the voltages rock solid regardless of the load is key for great system stability. But it is your money, so only a recommendation from me.
Since a PSU is the only component that has ever burned out on me, I'd give this^ my vote too. The Corsair one I have at the moment is nice and quiet, which is a consideration too.Specialized Roubaix Elite 2015
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mfin wrote:One things for sure... a mac out of the box will give you far better colour accuracy on screen with no mucking about. (in the case of iMacs or any Mac runnng a Mac screen).
No it won't, if you do your research properly and buy a decent monitor.
As for skipping things, don't skip on PSU as has being said and also don't skip on case.... You'll want good ventilation and nice cable management inside.
I spent hours doing the inside of my case and it still could be better:
This is an ancient pic, my system is far more advanced now, and it's still obsolete, I'm planning on taking it to the Dickinson's Real Deal.
https://dl.dropbox.com/u/10062971/case%201.JPG0 -
willhub wrote:mfin wrote:One things for sure... a mac out of the box will give you far better colour accuracy on screen with no mucking about. (in the case of iMacs or any Mac runnng a Mac screen).
No it won't, if you do your research properly and buy a decent monitor.
As for skipping things, don't skip on PSU as has being said and also don't skip on case.... You'll want good ventilation and nice cable management inside.
I spent hours doing the inside of my case and it still could be better:
This is an ancient pic, my system is far more advanced now, and it's still obsolete, I'm planning on taking it to the Dickinson's Real Deal.
https://dl.dropbox.com/u/10062971/case%201.JPG
cor! does it have chippy lights inside?'dont forget lads, one evertonian is worth twenty kopites'0 -
Not made the decision yet.. going to get a PC and was looking at the spec-it-yourself sites but what is the advantage over something like this? http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/advent-dt ... 7-pdt.html Doesn't seem bad and compares well price wise? What is the advantage of the websites like PCspecialist.com?0
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Dear me, and I thought I was slow at making decisions. Not to worry, it took over a year to decide on the new car I bought at the weekend. Anyway, back to the question . . .
PC Specialist (and others) allow you to specify every component so you can have exactly the specification you want. This is good if like me you're very, very fussy about PC specs. There are a few things you probably won't get on any off-the-shelf model, like multiple HDDs or additional cooling, and there will be a few no-name components of which one may well be the all important PSU. So there are a few good reasons to either build it yourself or get it built to spec for you. Yet another one is software - the off-the-shelf model may be filled full of annoying "trial versions" that just get in the way of using your PCSpecialized Roubaix Elite 2015
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Giraffoto wrote:Dear me, and I thought I was slow at making decisions. Not to worry, it took over a year to decide on the new car I bought at the weekend. Anyway, back to the question . . .
PC Specialist (and others) allow you to specify every component so you can have exactly the specification you want. This is good if like me you're very, very fussy about PC specs. There are a few things you probably won't get on any off-the-shelf model, like multiple HDDs or additional cooling, and there will be a few no-name components of which one may well be the all important PSU. So there are a few good reasons to either build it yourself or get it built to spec for you. Yet another one is software - the off-the-shelf model may be filled full of annoying "trial versions" that just get in the way of using your PC
Ha, yeh, other stuff got in the way so I haven't thought about it! My only real 'need' is lots of RAM and a decent processor as far as I'm concerned so I'm tempted just to get something off the shelf that has 16gb+ of memory and a dcent processor (i5 or i7) but will consider the better componentry in the PCS options. Thing is, I've never had a computer fail on me so I'm not overly worried about cheap components!0
