Workstation Workshop

An Insider's Guide to the Economical Purchase of 
Apple Mac Pro 2008-Core Professional Workstations (FAQ):

Question: I am a beginning designer on a small budget and have been thinking about purchasing the single processor quad core Mac Pro from Apple. It has one quad 2.8GHz CPU, while your entry level machine instead contains two 2.5 GHz quad cores. Would I be better off with four 2.8GHz processing cores or eight 2.5GHz cores? My plan had been to purchase a second 2.8GHz processor when the price drops in about a year and add it to my machine then.

Answer A: After having worked with dual CPU systems for more than a decade now, I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that it is usually a bad idea to purchase a dual Xeon with the intention of adding a second CPU sometime in the future. The reason I say this is twofold: you will be forced to purchase an extra Heatsink / Fan from the manufacturer as an expensive separate add-on part and, even worse, purchasing the second processor after prices drop is not as simple as it sounds. This is because Intel releases new batches of Xeons over time which, although they carry the same model number, are frequently incompatible with one another and thus cannot operate properly in pairs. You may wind up ordering and then trying to return several CPU’s before you get one from a matching series (batch). In other words, it is always best to set up your dual processor Xeon machine to run with both CPU slots filled from the
very beginning (to avoid an expensive and confusing future upgrade nightmare).

Answer B: Clock speed is not nearly as important as it was back when people were using single-core machines. These days, the ability to execute more threads among multiple coordinated processing cores is the direction in which all software programming related to multimedia editing and design is headed.

Therefore, you are far better off having eight cores operating at 2.5GHz than only four running at 2.8GHz, for the same price. It is difficult for me to understand why Apple has failed to offer an 8-core entry level machine. But, since they have not, we decided to do it ourselves (thus making fully functional Mac Pros available to many people who could not otherwise afford one).

Question: I notice that you are not currently offering a 3.2GHz model, as Apple does. Is there some specific reason for this, and would I be able to save money by ordering one through you?

Answer: Thank you for asking. Yes, there is a specific reason. Not to sound overly melodramatic about it, but our view is that the 3.2 GHz Mac Pro as offered by Apple, Inc. is a socially irresponsible piece of hardware. The reason? Its power consumption at idle is 150 watts per CPU (as opposed to only 80 watts per CPU for every machine we carry). Depending on whether the workstation is idling or under load, the power consumption of the 3.2GHz model is between double and triple of that of the just slightly slower 3.0GHz model. Much higher initial cost, and then triple the power consumption (not to mention adding to global warming) to go from 3.0 to 3.2? That is just plain crazy!! Part of the blame rests with Intel, but nobody forced Apple to use such energy guzzling CPU’s in their machines. When Intel releases an 80 watt version of the 3.2GHz chip we will stock a Mac Pro model based on that product within 30 days for $1500 less than Apple’s 150-watt per CPU energy hog.

Question: Hello, I already have my own video capture and display cards. They are both compatible with the 2008 Mac Pros and I am wondering whether you can leave the GeForce 8800 GT 512MB out of my system (I am considering Green Model Three) and then give me a discount.

Answer: Certainly. We have no intention of charging you for items that you don’t need. We are happy to obtain and install alternate video cards that customers prefer. It has become fairly routine over the years for us to have customers send in capture or display cards that they have purchased separately.

We install these devices for them and make sure that they are recognized by the operating system and function properly.

Question: How much would it be to add a second Super Drive to a Green Model Two?

Answer: A fairly reliable rule of thumb is to see what Apple is trying to charge you and subtract 20 percent.

Question: I prefer to have two mirrored SAS as my system drives and use two internal 1000GB for file storage. Can you configure a Green Model Two that way for me? What size SAS drives should I get? I am using Final Cut Pro and Adobe CS3.

Answer: Yes, in fact I have my own system set up exactly the way you describe. I recommend a pair of 73GB 15K SAS drives (low seek times / high transfer rates). Unless you are a software tester, you will never fill up a 73GB drive with just the OS and your work applications. Especially since 146GB and 300 GB SAS drives are exceedingly expensive (especially in pairs).

Question: About how much is it to add additional RAM and hard drives if I buy a Green Model One?

Answer: Please check what Apple wants to charge you and subtract 20 percent to get our price.

Question: Do you sell Apple (or another brand of) monitors?

Answer: Yes. We are able to obtain Apple and other large display monitors at excellent prices and have them shipped directly to you from wholesale distribution, matching the arrival time of your Mac Pro.

Question: I am interested in buying Final Cut Studio for use with my new Mac Pro. Can you include the software for a reasonable price (licensed in my name, of course)?

Answer: Yes, we will purchase software for you at a wholesale price and install it on your new machine.
 
Question: How much do you charge for shipping the Mac Pro systems that you sell?

Answer: Whereas many computer and electronics vendors secretly make money by skimming from inflated shipping charges, we maintain a policy of charging you only the actual amount that we are billed. Customers with their own Fedex, UPS or DHL accounts are encouraged to ship their new systems that way and be billed directly.

Question: Do you sell recertified products, or only new ones from the factory?

Answer: We have some demo models from other vendors, but as far as Apple goes, we deal only in brand new merchandise.

Question: What is the warranty situation on Mac Pros if I buy them from you?

Answer: The same as if you purchase from an Apple store or Apple Direct. We also carry extended warranty Apple Care packages and sometimes are able to offer discounts on those, though not huge ones, by any means.

THANKS A LOT TO EVERYONE WHO ASKED EITHER ASKED ME QUESTIONS OR SHARED THEIR KNOWLEDGE AT MACWORLD SAN FRANCISCO THIS YEAR. PLEASE FEEL FREE TO WRITE ME WITH YOUR QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS AND I WILL RESPOND TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY.