Please compare DP on my G5 versus Macbook Pro

[MeisterEckhardt]

My mackbook pro:
2008, 2.5 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo
4 GB ram 667 Mhz DDR2 SDRAM
250GB hard drive
OS X 10.6.8

My G5
Dual 2.5 Ghz with 6 GB RAM
Two large internal hard drives.
I use Motu Machfive 2, MX4 and a 828 MKII interface on either machine.

I use DP 6 but I don't think for your advice, it shouldn't matter what version of DP. Some of you may use DP 7 and I'd be curious about your take on it anyway.

Which machine will give me more performance with DP, Machfive 2 and MX4? It's been great on my G5 and I never exceed the track limits, I don't mind if I have to freeze tracks so I am reluctant to install all this stuff on my Macbook pro just to see how it performs. If it's mind-blowingly better to move to the Intel chip, I might do it. Also I'd have to geek-out my Macbook pro with two external drives, I am assuming, in order for it to use Machfive's sound librarys on one drive and also to write DP files on another drive, right? I'm ok with that if the Macbook Pro is a much better way. If it is only a slight improvement, I'll stay old school.

Any opinions?
TY! Peace to all of you.
Meister

[Shooshie]

Intel over PPC is a huge leap in performance. Yes, you'd need a couple of Firewire 800 drives to get the most out of your MacBook Pro. Of course, you can do it with no extra drives, but the best performance will come from using multiple drives.

DP7 was probably the best version-release of DP in its history, and it's only gotten better.

Shooshie

[mikehalloran]

You can get a PCI card for eSATA on the MBP. This will give you the ability to add one or more eSATA drives (depending on the chip in the controller). Much faster than FireWire. If the controller supports multiple drives, you can but a multiplier that lets you add up to four. If the controller supports only one drive, then the multiplier doesn't work.

A 23" monitor can cost about $125. That and an eSATA drive or two will have you running circles around the G5. Use the MBP monitor for your mixer or CueMix or effects etc. You still have a limitation of 6 or 8G RAM depending but there's still plenty you can do.

[HCMarkus]

32-bit Geekbench scores provides some perspective:

Power Mac - 2.5 Dual G5 June 2004: 2,100

Macbook Pro- 2.5 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo, Late 2008: 3,420

Power Mac G5 Quad 2.5, Late 2005, the last and greatest G5 : 3,319

Current 6-Core 3.33: 15,800

[MeisterEckhardt]

Wow! Thanks for your responses. You hit the answers out of the ball park. And very interesting answers with intriguing statistics. Musician-geeks, unite! Thanks to the community here. I am very grateful you are here. I never knew that about the eSata card which could accommodate multiple drives. I like that idea a lot. That would totally save all my USB and firewire ports from getting used up with cable madness and a need to use hubs while also gaining speed. Gracias.

Cheers,
Meister

[mikehalloran]

Yes, cards that support more than one port are available. It is a good idea to check with the manufacturer first to make sure that it is compatible with your MBP (see below). Here is one that supports two out:

http://www.amazon.com/Tempo-Sataii-Pro- ... multiplier

If you find a controller that has one port out but supports "Port Multiplier Technology", then the following box will let you hook up an additional four:

http://www.addonics.com/products/ad5ehpmeu3.php

I have one of these boxes but since my built in controller does not support MPT, it is useless to me and I will be selling it. Unfortunately, there is no solution for the iMac that does... Dang!

Anyway, I would certainly max out the RAM. Depending on the model, it is 6G or 8G. All in all, you will rock over your G5.

My G5 was great but, when it was time to move on, I was glad I did. It put out so much heat that I joke the savings on air conditioning paid for my iMac - partially true.

[HCMarkus]

The new iPhone Geekbenches at over 1600!