[CUBE] Processor upgrade versus Video upgrade...

[George Pepper]

Well, if you want to use a 20" Cinema Display or a 23" Cinema HD 
Display with the Cube, as I did, the stock ATi Rage 128 graphics card 
will not run them: There is no ROM update for it that I'm aware of... 
If your Cube came with the optional GF2, you can flash it to run the 
new monitors... There are pros and cons to the GF3 that I settled on 
[It has a fan (But it's quiet), and it runs warm (But my system temps 
seem to be well within acceptable limits)], but I'm very happy with 
it...

And I didn't spend anywhere NEAR $350.00 on it!...

For me, maxing out the RAM and upgrading the video card were the two 
most useful options... I'm planning on upgrading the DVD-ROM and HD 
drives before I worry about a faster CPU... It all comes down to what 
you use your Cube for... I don't use any seriously CPU-straining apps, 
so a faster processor is not for me at this point...

Pep

On Tuesday, March 16, 2004, at 06:18  PM, Bill Fox wrote:

> I agree with Jesse. Upgraded video cards are really only needed for 
> games since Apple relented on the QE standard. CPU speed greatly 
> affects graphics speed under Mac OS X anyway. The major benefit of 
> upgraded video cards is the increased amount of VRAM so that speed is 
> not lost at higher resolutions.
>
> On Mar 16, 2004, at 8:47 AM, jesse v wrote:
>
>>> Anybody using one of the low power processor upgrades without having 
>>> upgraded the video card? I'm still running all original equipment 
>>> (except for the HD) and want a boost for the leap to OSX. I don't do 
>>> a lot of heavy graphics, so was hoping to avoid the video upgrade 
>>> for now and still get a boost, albeit without benefit of Quartz....
>>
>>
>> I believe Apple included the 16MB AGP Rage cards in the QE spec down 
>> the line, so you should still notice a significant speed boost in 
>> your graphics performance.
>>
>> If you don't do much gaming or graphics work, you'd probably just be 
>> wasting money on a graphics card anyway...especially if it's for a 
>> Cube. I think the GF3 is still selling in the $350 ballpark.