Apple Logic Pro /LogicExpress Discussion

Hi,
I'm looking at the new Macs and wondering if the construction is 
completely controlled by them and if any and/or all variations are also 
distributed by them. By variation, I mean less powerful compared to 
more powerful. 

I've only had experince with PC's and have built many for myself and 
others through the years and the gathering of parts has been as easy as 
walking through a computer parts shop and deciding how powerful I need 
it to be. 
All reference to Mac's has been as completely assembled units and my 
curiousity leads me to ask how far into the future the hardware that's 
incorporated with the units will go. Also, is the hardware different 
from that of a PC. Ex.. motherboard, processor, etc..

Any info would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Gary

> I'm looking at the new Macs and wondering if the construction is
> completely controlled by them and if any and/or all variations are also
> distributed by them. By variation, I mean less powerful compared to
> more powerful.

They are, yes. The disadvantage of this is that they are less competitive 
(since there's no dozens of companies trying to do the same as the others for 
a dollar less), the advantage is that Apple is in full control over the 
system's design (where no one is for the PC) so they can easily drop any 
legacy and make jumps in technology to optimize hardware and OS to the latest 
standards.

> All reference to Mac's has been as completely assembled units and my
> curiousity leads me to ask how far into the future the hardware that's
> incorporated with the units will go.

Generally, iMacs, eMacs and Mac Minis are not built to be expanded, upgraded 
or modernized. You get what you buy and don't buy them unless they can do 
everything you want. PowerMacs however would be the equivalent of a PC with a 
top-brand motherboard (which these days also has onboard sound, USB, SATA 
etc) and have the same modularity.

> Also, is the hardware different 
> from that of a PC. Ex.. motherboard, processor, etc..

The main difference between a Mac and a PC is its processor (IBM PPC instead 
of x86-derivatives) and hence also the motherboard. However what you connect 
to that motherboard (memory, IDE/ATA/SATA, PCI etc) is according to the 
applicable standards. Indeed the Macs are completely built and, like other 
fixed-built systems like Suns, SGI's and the likes, with high-class (thus 
expensive) components. This makes them reliable but doesn't give you the 
choice to use cheaper parts where you don't care so much.

This whole approach also gives much less hassle with Bios/OS configuration to 
tell your computer what it's actually made of; it will already know. :)

Maurits.

--- In Logic_Cafe@yahoogroups.com, GAmoore@a... wrote

Is it too hard to get at the ram in the Mac Mini or a matter of 
acrhitecture design?
G

 

I think I saw a book a few years ago on how to build your own mac 
from parts. 
> But in general its not done. Of course you can hotrod most macs in 
various 
> ways - ram, hard disks, video board, pci boards, monitors, internal 
optical 
> drives. Usually the higher end macs are more configurable. I saw 
that the Mac Mini 
> only comes with 256 ram - and it takes an apple tech to install 
more ram. 
> what a hassle. apples are really not the place for building your 
own machine. but 
> some people here use windows machines in conjuction with macs.

PowerMacs however would be the equivalent of a PC with a 
> top-brand motherboard (which these days also has onboard sound, USB, 
SATA 
> etc) and have the same modularity.
 
Indeed, I feel very educated in the time it took me to read a few 
paragraphs. As I was browsing through the new Mac on their website, I 
noticed the price range and the capabilities increasing side by side 
but the more powerful units still fall short of the ram needed for 
Logic.

G. Moore, in a response said iMacs require a tech. to upgrade the ram 
and I was wondering if the high end units also fall into this category.
Gary

> G. Moore, in a response said iMacs require a tech. to upgrade the ram
> and I was wondering if the high end units also fall into this category.

Fortunately not. :o) And don't be scared off by the mem-upgrade prices from 
the Apple store, they select the most expensive ram available for some 
reason. Apparantly Crucial (www.crucial.com) is a good shop for memory that's 
guaranteed to be compatible with the right Mac but not too expensive. No 
experience with them myself, but I hear good stories on the Logic lists. :o)

Maurits.

gswerner2002 <gswerner2002@...> wrote:
: 
: Is it too hard to get at the ram in the Mac Mini or a matter of 
: acrhitecture design?

It's just hard to get at. I've seen a website that shows how to do it,
though, and it's not too scary. If I remember correctly, it doesn't void
your warranty to do it yourself.

-- 
 agreenbu @ nyx . net                             andrew michael greenburg