Recommended setup for 2D graphics

[BlueHeelers]

Recommended setup for 2D graphics

I currently have a Thunderbird 1.1Ghz, 256MB RAM, GeForce2 MX 32MB, and 21" IBM P202 Trinitron. Recently, I have got into Pagemaker, Illustrator, and Photoshop at work. I have been designing brochures, business cards, graphics, etc for our company. I have become fairly good at it and no longer consider myself an amateur and will therefore be spending up to $1200 on either a new system or upgrading my current system.

I have considered a PowerMac for color management but have also heard that Pantone's software or Colorific can calibrate a dispaly device just as well. I am somewhat leaning towards keeping my current setup and getting more RAM and possibly a new video card and/or monitor.

Q1) PowerMac G4 450 or keep my PC?
Q2) What is the best video card (with a reasonable price) for 2D design? Worth dumping my Geforce2 MX?
Q3) Should I break down and buy a 18" flat panel, buy another CRT monitor, or keep my IBM? What about eyestrain?

I would appreciate any input and links to web sites that cover this. Most of the resources I have found are either high end 3D graphics or gaming.

Thanks

REL


Edit: WOW! Thanks for the quick responses. I forgot to mention that I would be keeping my PC as I also do the software development and need Visual Studio and all on my system. My job somehow encompasses anything in front of the computer... not just development or graphics.

I remembered that we also have a computer with a Matrox G400 32MB (not the max) so now I can choose the GeForce2 MX, Matrox G400, or buy the ATI Radeon.

 

[nortexoid]

i'd keep your monitor, as anything else probably won't impress as much as u'd like for the money it'll cost u...

dump the mx...now, do u still want decent 3d performance?..of course u do...
buy an ATI Radeon..any of them...LE, DDR 32MB, 64MB DDR, or VE for dual display....
otherwise, a single head G400/G450 Matrox is selling for damn cheap right now...the 3d is rather poor however...

personally, i'd go for a radeon LE 32MB and flash it (or registry hack) to a retail 32MB DDR radeon...great 3d and 2d...it'll beat your MX in 3d, and obviously 2d.

i've noticed even an old integrated RAGE IIC looks better in 2d than my geforce....sad.

 

[SerraYX]

Q1: I recommend sticking with the PC, I find Macs limited in a lot of areas
Q2: Go Matrox, either G400 or G450. The 2D quality is leaps and bounds ahead of any nVidia offering
Q3: Hmm..it's more of a matter of preference. I would personally stick with the nice big and flat 21", I don't find flat panels as crisp as regular or FD Trinitron CRTs.

 

[Hender]

For graphic design work, I would recommend getting the G4, but be prepared to relearn a lot of things to get proficient with the system. For serious graphics, a Mac is the only way to go, just as long as that's all you plan on doing. Not to say you can't play a game of Quake or Unreal Tournament now and then, but most games and many pieces of software will be unavilable to you unless you've kept your PC. Most people poo-poo Macs, but they really are the most powerful desktop computers around, particularly for graphics work, both still and video. I started out on Macs and eventually migrated to PCs, but I've seen the new G4's, and they really are powerful computers and are damn fast. There's a reason why they couldn't be exported to some...questionable...countries.

If you do just keep your PC, get Matrox's latest card. Matrox has always had the best 2D quality and speed, although as nortexoid mentioned, 3D is pretty weak.

 

[nortexoid]

hmmm...buying a mac totally depends on the applications u're running...

some people make it sound like macs are so much faster as a graphics workstation than a pc using the same software...this is untrue, especially for most 2d work.

most grahpics artists that do use macs use it primarily for the higher availability of better grahpics packages...u sound to be primarily using the adobe packages, which work wonderfully on a high-end athlon ddr system...

plus u can still have fun on it and save some money...

 

[ElFenix]

use the g400. ditch the crappy filters on the mx.

 

[BlueHeelers]

When upgrading RAM is it safe getting a pair of generic 512MB sticks off of pricewatch for around $65 or can the price for the high end memory (mushkin/micron/crucial) be justified if not overclocking? THe motherboard supports high density memory.

REL

 

[MrHelpful]

Get a Matrox G450 32MB DualHead, and an additional Samsung 900NF as a secondary display. The extra space will be a lifesaver for all the additional menus and stuff for those programs. (I have Photoshop with 2 17"ers. I put the menus on the right and the main working space on the left.)

 

[MrHelpful]

The generic should be OK.

I forgot to mention, you should consider replacing your current motherboard with a DDR one. I suggest either the EPoX EP-8K7A or the MSI K7 Master, or even the upcoming dual-processor MSI K7D Master. In any case, you would see a difference and future-proof your system. DDR memory is cheap as hell anyway ($58 for 256MB).