Mac guys, help!

So I have a Powermac G4 500mhz AGP Graphics. It's basically been unused since it was made, but that was in 1999 so it's obviously not up to the task of handling all my new recording software. I just bought a Presonus Firestudio Project which comes with Cubase LE 4. I also bought a Korg padKONTROL which I will be using with BFD, Reason Adapted, ect. I'm not a very computer savvy guy, but I know that my G4's current setup won't be able to handle these proccessor-heavy programs. I also can't run most of this software with my G4's current operating system (which is OS X 10.3). I can't afford an entirely new computer at the moment, so I've been looking into upgrading my G4 until it's able to get the job done. So far, I've found that I could do the FastMac G4 processor upgrade, which includes the following:

Motorola G4 7455 processor @ up to 1.53 GHz

2MB L3 Cache

Integrated Heat Sink & Fan

6x Faster than Stock G4

More info on this can be found here: http://fastmac.com/g4.php

I'm also going to need to upgrade the RAM, get more hard drive space, and upgrade to at least OS X Tiger.

I'm looking for a little guidance in terms of upgrading this thing. The FastMac Processor upgrade I mentioned earlier is the best processor upgrade (as far as I can tell) that I've been able to find for this model PowerMac. Like I said earlier, I'm not huge into computer technology so I probably know much less than everyone else on this particular board. If I could get some upgrade suggestions in terms of processors, RAM, hard disks, operating systems and anything else you think I might need, that would be a HUGE help. Basically, I'm looking for a Mac savvy dude to hypothetically mod my G4 until it's the best it can be for the recording software and hardware that I mentioned earlier. I realize this is a long post, so thanks for getting through it and extra special thanks to anyone who can help me out!

Also, if all of this just isn't worth it, you could let me know that as well. If I upgrade the G4 to it's fullest extent, will it be possible to upgrade my recording set up to higher end stuff and continue to use the G4, or is there just not much hope for this thing. Like I said, it's almost completely unused so I'd feel bad not putting this thing to use, even if it's just until I can afford a new Mac.

Thanks again guys!

I have a similar setup to what you are proposing right now. I have a G4 which was originally a 466MHz processor. I swapped it out for an OWC processor, and it works quite well. That said, I *HIGHLY* recommend not buying a processor from OWC because I had major problems and had to send back their processor three times because they had the wrong settings on it, which I finally figured out by myself. I suffered through bizarre crashes, freezes, the computer not booting up at all, and months of downtime because of this folly. Piss-poor customer service and ineptitude create a very dissatisfied customer. Some people recommend only getting a processor from Mac. I don't know, but it was nightmarish for me.

Go with someone who has outstanding customer service and a good quality processor, whatever that might be, and it'll definitely hold you over. Max out the RAM. Ram is cheap.

The other option would be try and see if you can purchase a Mac Mini, which will cost probably about $800, which is admittedly a few more bucks than a processor/RAM upgrade, but not tons more.

wow. 500mhz. wow. im at 2.3 ghz and i still crash my recording software all the time. it really depends on how much this upgrade costs. 1.5 ghz is just barely passable for recording. i would honestly either find a used powerbook thats a few years old which would be pretty cheap and give you 1.67 or more ghz, a mac mini as mentioned earlier, or preferably a macbook. i bet you could get a used one for under a grand- upgrade some ram and ta da, powerful music making tool. if this upgrade costs more than a few hundred, forget it.

I missed the other upgrades that you mentioned, such as needing to upgrade the operating system and increased HD space. This is looking more and more like the Mac Mini might be a worthwhile choice, since it would obviously come with the updated operating system and possibly more HD space. The thing, though, with the Mac Mini is that I don't believe it can accommodate a second drive internally, so all your audio HDs would have to be external drives.

I have a similar setup to what he's proposing, and it really depends on what the software is made for. For instance, with Pro Tools 5.1 LE/OS 9.2.2, I'm easily getting 24 tracks loaded with plug-ins, and can process up to three reverb plug-ins (not that I do this) before the system starts wheezing. In PT 6.4/OS 10.3.7 (yes, I have a dual-boot system), about the same. So if the software was originally designed for something with less processing power, that extra CPU push is actually quite a bonus, and can perform quite well. I don't know with Cubase LE 4.

The reason why I'm now suggesting the Mac Mini or something similar is because of all the effort and futzing it'll take to get his system up to speed vs. simply buying something new that already does everything that he wants. I did it because I was stuck with Digi001 and didn't want to blow money on a new Digi rig, but since he already has the new rig, there's less reason to do all those upgrades to an eight year old computer.

wow, 24 tracks! thats pretty impressive for a comp like that. i guess i have a skewed notion on how much processing power tracks vs plugins takes up- and the software probly makes a huge difference. on my 1.67 powerbook i could get maaaaybe 8 tracks averaging about 4 plugins each before i'd hit the wall.

i hear good things about mac mini all the time too so maybe go for it.

And I'd be able to get more than 24 tracks except that PT 5.1 LE has a limit of 24 tracks. I can get many more tracks on PT 6.4 LE (I forgot what I had exactly...30? 35?). And I can achieve each with a bunch of Waves plug-ins.

But yeah, it totally depends on the software. Bear in mind that with PT 5.1 LE, it was designed to run on computers that were 455-700MHz, so running a 1.5GHz processor is, as absurd as it sounds, blazing fast for what it is.

Y'know what's funny is that I used to regularly get 16-24 tracks in SAW+ on a 133MHz Micron PC in 1996 when I first started recording on DAWs. It just depends on what the software was designed for.

I meant to type "466" MHz processor. My fingers did not dance the dance of typing accuracy.

hahaha "mostly harmless".....yeah douglas!

Not a Mac guy here -- but, yeah... plugs and VI's can take up a huge amount of CPU but a well-optimized system should be able to deal with a relatively large number of tracks if you minimize plug and VI use.

When I started using my 133 mHz Pentium 'One' for DAW work back in '96, I regularly got 16-20 tracks out of it.

Granted that was back in 16 bit audio days. But that was a machine with about one fourth the computing power [or a hell of a lot less if you believed what Apple claimed back then ] of the 500 mHz G4 we're talking about here.

If you have a computer that exceeds the speed that the DAW was initially designed for, you're going to get great performance, lots of plug-ins, etc. With the system I have, running PT 5.1 LE, a 1.5GHz computer is very fast for it since PT 5.1 LE was initially designed when 466MHz computers were the norm.

But like I've been saying, fatalist should get a Mac Mini.

Whoever said "1.5 Ghz is barely passable for recording" , needs to tell that to my 1.25 Ghz MDD G4, which can do over 24 tracks with modest amount of plug-ins on most of the tracks.

Hell, my now-retired and partially disassembled Pismo Powerbook--at 500 Mhz--could handle about 16 tracks with some plug-ins.

Phil's right: get yourself a Mini. Why dump all that money into a processor upgrade and extras when you could get a newer machine that's amazing right out of the box? Even a used Powerbook--one of the last ones--can be had for a really good price. And if you still insist on going with a processor upgrade, I insist you check out macgurus.com.

Whoever said "1.5 Ghz is barely passable for recording" , needs to tell that to my 1.25 Ghz MDD G4, which can do over 24 tracks with modest amount of plug-ins on most of the tracks.

I've got a 1.25 MDD G4 as well, and it's been very solid. You have to be somewhat careful not to overload the processor, but it's a good machine. Unfortunately, to keep up with software updates, I've upgraded OSX a few times. I noticed after upgrading to Tiger (a necessity for PT7), some of my more power hungry plug-ins don't work as well--and this is after disabling Spotlight and trying some other optimization tricks. When I am dragged kicking and screaming to Leopard, I expect to have to upgrade this machine.

Whoever said "1.5 Ghz is barely passable for recording" , needs to tell that to my 1.25 Ghz MDD G4, which can do over 24 tracks with modest amount of plug-ins on most of the tracks. Hell, my now-retired and partially disassembled Pismo Powerbook--at 500 Mhz--could handle about 16 tracks with some plug-ins. Phil's right: get yourself a Mini. Why dump all that money into a processor upgrade and extras when you could get a newer machine that's amazing right out of the box? Even a used Powerbook--one of the last ones--can be had for a really good price. And if you still insist on going with a processor upgrade, I insist you check out macgurus.com.

Yeah, I can get 24 tracks all with 2-3 plug-ins on each track, including three different reverb settings from TrueVerb, which is fairly CPU-intensive, and numerous Bomb Factory plug-ins. If I use Wave plug-ins, which are less CPU-intensive, I can pretty much use as many compressors as I want. People will ask why I'm using this system, and I just point and say, "Look what it can do." I think a lot of this "I need the fastest, latest computer" stuff is marketing. Sure, I can upgrade, but it's not going to increase my productivity, speed, or most importantly, sound quality.

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And just for the record, I was mentioning to get a Mac Mini in the first,third, and fourth posts for the same reasons.

Most people never give that name a second thought. Illiterate heathens.

Do you say "so long, and thanks for all the fish" at the end of very show? Because if you don't, you should think about starting.

Of course, all you'd get is one guy laughing his head off at the back of the audience, and everyone else scratching their head in confusion. But that one laughing guy would think it was HILARIOUS.

Right... that old machine of mine had a 7200 WD Caviar drive that had as good throughput as today's 7200 RPM drives and, IIRC, a PCI-66 bus that could more or less service it pretty well. But it is kinda hazy... that was more than a decade ago.

That 500MHz G4 is usable if you stick with old software. Otherwise, I agree with the others about the Mini. Honestly, with what it would cost to upgrade that machine, you're really better off with the Mini, anyway. Keep it as an internet machine or maybe set it up as a backup server for your projects.