PC vs Mac
Zairdragon
Posts: 2
I am upgrading to a new computer and have done tons of research, but I'm still undecided. So I wanted to ask other daz users your opinion. I have looked at both PC and Mac. I have always been a PC user, but now that my renders are more complex I wonder about going with a Mac. Also should I go with a laptop or a tower? What do you all think?
Daz 3D is part of 
Connect
DAZ Productions, Inc.
7533 S Center View Ct #4664
West Jordan, UT 84084
Licensing Agreement | Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | EULA
© 2024 Daz Productions Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Comments
I like Mac but I will give you my opinion:
PC - Less compatibility issues especially dealing with Studio
Tower - More cost effective, i.e. you pay more for a laptop with the same specs as a desktop. Screen size as well, most laptops allow for connecting to a separate screen but then what is the point between that and the desktop.
*Also depending on how you feel about upgrading, towers are a lot easier to upgrade than a laptop. Laptops are limited in what can be upgraded.
Also, complex render.
Graphics card = Choppy viewport when you load up things / move camera to pose, a better graphics card can help with that.
Processor Cores number/speed + RAM = Faster renders, handles more complex scenes
For a screaming fast computer at just a little extra...buy two drives.
One SSD that is big enough to fit the OS on.
A second standard hard drive that is 1TB or more to install all programs and such on.
With your OS on the SSD, the boot process and windows functions will be screaming fast.
This is a more emotional response from a Mac user: I just bought a new
iMac this weekend and had it up and running with Studio 4 in ten minutes.
So far I have had no problems. As a computer illiterate that is what I want.
The only reason I would consider a PC is the compatibility issues
mentioned. There are a few useful plug-ins (?) that are PC-exclusive.
And I also agree with previous poster regarding laptop vs desktop.
Oh and one other thing I forgot to add...
If you choose windows, you will want to get the 64bit version, preferably WIN7 Ultimate. Allows for more RAM and 64bit software that can access that RAM.
Mac Tower - More bang for the buck but higher outlay even for the lowest end one.
I use PC and Mac but I will tell you something. A mac will not be superior to a PC, it can be equal to it but cost you more to get there. I say this only because you say "my scenes are more complex so I was thinking about MAC". Not necessary. A better PC will do fine.
I'm not going to fuel the MAC PC war, like I said I use both. But being practical, if you use a PC now then it will be a smoother transition. Be sure to get 64bit OS though.
If you wanted to go mac for other reasons than take the jump :)
I use PC with win7 64 and Mac OS10. For Hardware - Go PC. CHEAPER to upgrade. All that makes a mac is the OS. And that you can get for PC.
I have considered a two drive system. I currently have a HP touchsmart 64 bit. I love it, its just too small now. I have far too much content loaded. What is the OS acronym stand for? There is some stuff I'm still learning. oops, brain cramp OS stands for operating system. I'm assuming I will need a tower to do this.
As someone with hardware from all over the spectrum here's my 2 cents.
Hardware wise the PC and Mac are now equivalent. To get a PC to the same equipment level/quality as what is in a Mac, the prices will be equivalent. I'm not talking about the NewEgg, Tigerdirect clearance of the last cheap Videocard etc, but *EQUIVALENT* quality.
Since Apple went Intel, internally the Mac is simply a PC with higher quality parts and a firmware restriction. The biggest difference is in the OS.
MacOS is a Posix OS: meaning that it has all of the stability and security inherent to Posix. It also inherits some of the user unfriendlyness of Posix. In order for Apple to compensate for this they had to make some compromises. And of course, Apple is Apple and you'll compute their way, on their terms.
Windows is Windows. It has no security worth mentioning, but allows for more access to the hardware for applications than does MacOS. I leave the question of stability to common sense. Depending on the necessary support software (firewall, virus, drivers, etc) performance will vary.
Now, which is better for you? Only you can answer that. Do you worry about Viruses a lot? MacOS is better. Do you want to customize your system your way? Windows is better.
Want to get the best of both? Go Linux. (just kidding, Linux is no panacea)
Kendall
I would suggest to go for a Mac. This is not a matter of comparing hardware, that is not the whole story, in fact it's not even half of the story.
Mac OS is a system designed for the artisticly-inclined person. The way it works, the way it feels is less about technical matters and more about the natural interaction of human-with-computer. This is not a statement against Windows, Windows has been traditionally a technical OS, Mac OS is a art-oriented OS. That is why so many people in artistic fields, form painting to movie editing and everything in between, use Macs a lot.
It's hard to describe, it's a feeling, a way it fits in the artist's mind. It's not about specs and Ghz.
At the hardware level Mac use top notch components and are engineered to high levels of excellence. I switched to the Mac in 2004 and I owned, since then, 3 MacBookPros, and eMac, and my current machine, a MacPro 8-core tower system. Loved them all, loved the way they don't get in the way of what I do, which is what a computer should do, IMHO. If I have to setup a network server I do need to get my hands dirty. For my everyday work, I want a machine that fits right and allows me to work my 3D art and code in a natural way. The combination of Mac and Mac OS is what I believe is the natural choice for anybody involved in art.
All the best.
Having used both myself, this and what Kendall Sears said is pretty much my experience. It comes down to personal choice, not one being better than the other. Get what you can afford and what works for you.
I appreciate everyones opinion that posted. I has helped me narrow down my options.. Thanks!!
Lol you only had two to begin with:) whatever way you go enjoy the new rig.:)
What about WebOS?
The op was asking what rig to get. IE either pc or mac as far as I understand.
Was teasing.
lol I suck at getting jokes:(
Pretty sure it's my bad for failing at humor :(
lol I think its because I have no idea what webOS is:)
Was, I think HP killed it (they bought it from Palm) last month.
On the PC/Mac discussion I can say that I use Macs, but sometimes you see plugins or extra programs that are Windows only, but as many stated here, a PC with the same parts and specs are as expensive as as Mac Pro. I usually use a classic car metaphore. You can get a cheap Asian hatchback in corrugated plate with wooden seats much cheaper than a BMW, and it's as fast as the BMW as wells long as it stays on the road at that speed, but you lack the comfort and the quality of the BMW.
I have a Mac laptop that's been operational and issue-free for over seven years. True, it cant go anywhere now in terms of the system hardware, but I still use it for lower end work. I fully expect the same performance out of the MacBook Pro I now own.
Yes, you pay more, but you get to keep it for a longer time.
Non technical, but if this is important for you...
Apple withdraws all products from EPEAT environmental ratings
http://www.geek.com/articles/apple/apple-withdraws-all-products-from-epeat-environmental-ratings-2012079/
You can run OS10 on a PC? Can you also develop Mac programs on it?
One thing I'll toss in that my niece encountered recently. Whenever I get a PC laptop serviced under warranty, I pull the hard drive first. Pulling the hard drive from a Mac invalidates the warranty.
You can run OS10 on a PC? Can you also develop Mac programs on it?
It is possible to run the version before Lion, if you can still find a copy, on some non-Apple hardware. But it's fiddly to set up - I did look into it and rather took fright. As far as I know all tools, including coding, are available though of course you'd be hard put to know whether a problem was inherent in your code or down to the "Hackintosh"'s limitations.
Real artists use Mac! hmm, wait... I'm using a pc. Well my monitor is a Mac, and um... I have a Mac webserver... welll...
j/k ;)
Real artists use whatever tool works for them ofc. What you might want to ask yourself is, how technically oriented are you, and how much time do you want to spend maintaining your system. The Mac as pointed out has a better user interface, is in general more solid and requires less effort on the part of the user. The PC is more flexible with other programs you might want to use, add-on hardware, and one other thing... if you do have a question about something, since more people use PCs you are more likely to get a quicker answer to how exactly to do something. But that does come at the price of having a less stable system in general then a Mac (for various reasons I won't go into.) As for price of the system, Macs have a pretty stable price point for what you get whereas PCs prices go all over the map. One can get much more power for less money on a PC *but they can also get ripped off easily and get much less.* The PC market is *not* at all related to you get what you pay for, rather you get what you're knowledge will get you. The Mac market on the other hand charges a premium (yes still, compared to what I can build as a knowledgeable builder.) for ease of use, stability, good UI. For many people, the Mac ends up being a much better deal because this all equates to how much something *really* costs you. Remember, when the system isn't working, it's still degrading in value and one is left sitting on their hands.
It is possible to run the version before Lion, if you can still find a copy, on some non-Apple hardware. But it's fiddly to set up - I did look into it and rather took fright. As far as I know all tools, including coding, are available though of course you'd be hard put to know whether a problem was inherent in your code or down to the "Hackintosh"'s limitations.
OK, thanks. Doesn't sound like a good solution, better to get a Mac then I guess...
If you ever intend to use Bryce, get a PC. Bryce does not work with the latest Mac OSX releases (Lion or later) and there is no ETA on getting that situation fixed. :-/
Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit will make use of up to 16GB of Ram. If you have a system with more than one physical cpu (never mind how many cores), then you do need Win 7 Professional, Enterprise or Ultimate. Ultimate is not a bad way to go, but why spend more if you are not going to go beyond 16GB, or more than one cpu? At the high end, there are Engineering Workstations that go way beyond what a Mac Pro offers, but these machines can run from $5-10K at the low end to well over $100K.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/aa366778#physical_memory_limits_windows_7
Edit: Oh, and go with a tower. I would never do serious rendering on a laptop. Once you get beyond the basics and want to do real cpu and memory intensive renders, you need the power and expandability of a tower. That is, unless you own stock in Alienware. :-P