Who's cheapest? Mac vs PC...?

[Peter Ferling]

The issue of mac vs. pc due to stability is misguided. We all have experiences that argue in favor of one over the other. My so happens to favor of macs, (though I like and use PCs).

Sure there are bad macs. Our G4's were a pain. However, the G5's are quite the opposite as I've stated in my last post.

If you want a machine that will last, and under the greatest deal of stress and constant use, my experiences tell me that the mac G5's win. I agree with Glenn that for the extra money, you should have one professionally built. The difference in cost is added insurance against failures in meeting deadlines, and losing clients, (assuming yours is not a hobby). You are free from the hassle of fixing it, and simply create content.

I personally am tired of building and maintaining my own PCs. I thought that buying HP and Dell workstations would provide added stability for the extra money, and they did, until I added third party hardware/software.

My next machine, be it a G5 or AMD BOXX workstation will be professionally configured, using proven hardware and software that works well together. However, just like the mac, I will be limited to what is configured from the vendor. Should I install or make changes, I then take the risk of creating an unstable PC. Correct? Well, the macs are no different. Apple follows this philosophy.

Therefore, the more important issue for you is which platform provides solutions to meet your content creation? To say which is cheaper is the wrong approach. Buying something based on cost alone is no guarantee that you'll be happy with the end result.

[Boyd Ostroff]

If you're doing something which might require special capture cards or disk arrays then getting a preconfigured machine might make sense. But if you just want to edit DV in Final Cut Pro I don't really think it's necessary to have a machine custome configured for you. Buy a G5, get some additional memory, pop a second drive into it, install FCP and start working. It's pretty straightforward. I think you will need at least this level of technical knowledge to use the machine anyway...

[Dean Harrington]

and other Macs since the classic. The only problem with Macs is the lack of some software capabilities. We are thinking about a PC laptop to run DV Rack for capture and Serious Magic Ultra for Green Screen productions. Serious Magic uses Microsoft "DirectX" architecture which is not on Macs and probably won't be for some time if ever! It makes sense to be able to work in both worlds. Sometimes you don't really have a choice. If the gig pays get the hardware to do the job. In general, Macs are stable and the G5 duel 2.5 CPU running 4.5 has been a good experience!

[Boyd Ostroff]

This has the potential to tip the scales, but probably not in the short term:

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...281#post320281

[Tom Wills]

I can't see a difference in the price coming up just because Apple is switching to Intel. I don't even believe they are. "Insiders" have said this many times before. Apple wouldn't be stupid enough to actually switch, and if they did, it'd be a change of maker, not of architecture. They are also NOT going to make OS X run on generic PCs, even if they are going to run x86 on their own computers. That'd be such a stupid move. As has been discussed many times, Apple makes OS X to make their hardware run. Not the other way around.

[Barry Rivadue]

I agree that a place like monarchcomputers.com is an excellent option for a customized editing system. I had one done from them, and they check to make sure all chosen components are compatible.

[Dylan Couper]

My point is this.
Macs are not any more stable than PCs, and PCs are not any more stable than Macs.
For everyone I know who says their Mac never has issues* I know someone with a PC that runs perfectly all the time. For everyone I know with a problematic PC, I know someone who has come close to throwing their Mac out a window.

If you want to believe the hype that your PC or Mac is better than someone elses Mac or PC, that's fine. Tell yourself whatever you need. Just stop proclaiming it as gospel to the masses.
Come to think of it... DVinfo has some pretty strong policies about religion... Maybe this thread should fall under it... :)


*I consider ANY technical, whether hardware or software snag, an issue. This is anything from your CD not ejecting, to your computer not detecting your drives, to software shutting down, to lockups, to crashes. Anything that your computer isn't supposed to do without your instruction, but does anyway, is an issue.

[Ron Evans]

Well said Dylan. I have exactly the same experiences with Mac and PC. Most of the PC instablilty I have encountered is with loading up rather strange combinations of software and hardware that are just not available for the Mac anyway. My friend has a Mac ( big Mac fan) that is absolutely stable but only has Office loaded!!! My PC I use for email and internet is very cheap only has Office and is also very stable ( for years). I have two other machines used for editing audio and video. I use one of these when I want to try something new and these DO crash under some conflicts. Again most of this software or hardware just isn't available for the MAc so the problem doesn't arise.
I think the issue is clear if the available software for the MAC is what you want then the MAC is OK. IF you want the flexibility of trying out a large number of hardware and software options then the PC is your only choice AND you had better be knowledgable enough to PLAY with the PC hardware and software. I will stay with the PC as I am quite happy to configure for new items and overall hardware and software for the PC is less costly for more power.

Ron Evans

[Greg Boston]

Originally Posted by Dylan Couper

If you want to believe the hype that your PC or Mac is better than someone elses Mac or PC, that's fine. Tell yourself whatever you need. Just stop proclaiming it as gospel to the masses.
Come to think of it... DVinfo has some pretty strong policies about religion... Maybe this thread should fall under it... :)

Well I came back to this thread to find it had developed into pretty much what I warned about in my first post...a platform war(which DVinfo also has policies against). Sadly Dylan, the loyalties of the users of both systems tends to be so strong, it IS like a religion to them. Maybe this thread needs to be closed now. People aren't even addressing their replies to Casper anymore. They are debating points made by the previous posters.

=gb=

[Robert Simon]

Back to the original question:

I agree you almost want to start with the software you like and that should dictate the platform, subject to financial constraints.

I had a PC built about 4 years ago, but I did have continual problems with conflicts and complete systems failures. I use a Mac now, which I believe is more expensive pound-for-pound, but does allow me to concentrate on my craft rather than IT issues. I think a MAC and FCE is a good balance of cost and capability, and FCP is great if you can afford it.

It may very well be that PCs now are much more stable, and there is some great software available for a reasonable price (e.g. Vegas). If you are comfortable around PCs, this is a great option. If not, make sure you have a friend that is, just in case!

[Jonathan Jones]

There are some very good posts here, as well as some that spout the normal evangelism for one platform or another. But still...many good perspectives. Here are my two cents as a user of both platforms.

MACS ARE MORE EXPENSIVE if you go with the standard 'out the door' prices. You can pay bargain basement prices for a PC, but to outfit it for comparable tasks as on a stock Mac, the PC cost escalates and it depends on the disposable time you can afford to hunt for the right parts, install, configure and troubleshoot .

THERE ARE MORE SOFTWARE OPTIONS FOR PC - and that is true, and with very few exceptions, I have come to appreciate this when I need something done that is only possible on my PC, but the software for my Mac tends to run more smoothly, integrates better with the OS, needs almost zero configuration, and is remarkably stable.

Simply put... My time is money, and I highly value a platform that provides a transparent user experience and gets out of the way. Yes, it is true that I have had a few minor issues on my Mac OS X system - I really push it to the edge - but with the Apple integrated apps, my workflow is quite simply miles and miles more efficient than when using my PC.

I use my PC in a few instances when I need something done in an app for which I cannot find a workable solution on the Mac - these instances happen fewer and farther between - but still it is important. I don't rely on my PC for everyday workflow and efficiency...like I said, time is money, and if I had to add up the amount of hours I spend configuring my Windows apps to work well with one another and with the hardware I am using- as well as the amount of time I spend running freakin' updates...well, there go dollars and cents that sometime don't seem to make sense.

I have used both platforms for a long time and am pretty comfortable doing work on either one...but luckily I am afforded the opportunity of both platforms.

If I had to make a choice and splurge for only one - it would have to be the Mac.
-Jon

[Jeff Sayre]

Hi, Casper

I notice that you are a new member--welcome! Your written English, by the way, is good.

Here is the main focus of your post:

Originally Posted by Casper Dalgaard

I'm gonna invest in a new computer and software for professional dv-editing (avid, fcp, premier or others.)

There are many opinions on what machine to choose - mac or pc - but as money is a limited source to me I would really like to have some opinions on the price!

Here is how I suggest you resolve your question:

1. You state that "money is a limited source" to you. If budgetary constraints are the most important factor, then you need to price out two or three options and simply choose the one that best fits within your budget.

Although it can make sense to go over budget to get a "better" system, sometimes business owners do not have that luxury. You need to decide if that is your situation. If so, then price becomes your deciding factor.

Maybe in the future, the financial constraints will not be there and you can debate features instead of price points.

2. On the other hand, if you have some flexibility with your budget, then the question to answer is which NLE software package do you wish to use.

Richard's post sums it up nicely!

Originally Posted by Richard Alvarez

you might want to decide on your editing system first. I know thats hard to do without test driving them. But some systems only work on specific platforms.

Final Cut Pro only runs on Mac for instance. If you decide on FCP, then it's MAC.

Premiere and Vegas only run on PC's. Same thing.

Avid ships with copies for Mac AND Pc's.

So, there is my suggested approach. You either decide based on how much you can spend or which NLE system you prefer to use.

Good Luck!