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Post by sirthought on Mar 25, 2020 2:38:16 GMT -6
Thought I'd throw this up for discussion.
I'm liking the value in the newest Mini, which I think can be a serious studio tool. Nothing super special was updated, but if you need a new computer, the storage has been doubled at same price points, which is nice. Newer RAM chips and CPU options. Not sure how much of a handicap those 6-core i5 CPUs are if you wanted to save a bit. The i7 is the safer bet, I know, but six cores handles a lot of processing tasks. And if you're looking at refurbs, the 2018 models aren't a huge drop off from these.
The iPad Pro seems to be getting closer and closer to a laptop. They'll now have a sweet case (optional) with same keyboard as the MPB 16" and…a trackpad. The iPad touchscreen can do a ton, but when you really need to certain tasks, mouse and trackpad support is welcome. Still, for audio work you can't run regular Logic Pro X or several other production tools. I don't have an iPad, so I've never tried tracking with Garageband or some other iOS DAW. Given what it costs, I'm not sure it checks all the boxes for what I'd want to do with it.
The AIR has its place, but I'm not sure that anyone doing audio would really call it a preferred option.
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Post by kcatthedog on Mar 25, 2020 6:03:10 GMT -6
I’d only do the i7 mini for long term performance.
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Post by sirthought on Mar 25, 2020 8:22:36 GMT -6
Long term? Do you think an i7 is going to do its thing longer than an i5 will?
They both will diminish in performance as they age, but I doubt one last longer in general. There might be reasons to still say the i7 is better for audio production. (I don't know a ton about what software actually utilizes hyperthreading, but that's only available here in the i7 model.) But an i5 8600K with six cores + six threads is handling a lot more than it use to. I think that's what they are using with these currently. The i5s also have a tendency to not crank up the fan noise to sound like a vacuum cleaner while you are tracking.
I was wrong about the CPU options being updated. Apple updating the Mini today with older Gen 8 chips, when Gen 9 chips are available now, makes no sense.
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Post by jeremygillespie on Mar 25, 2020 8:26:57 GMT -6
Still running a 2012 maxed out mini. Fan barely ever comes on unless I'm doing really intensive VI's and the room is hot. I have a very quiet battery powered fan that I turn on behind my racks to pull air through them and it keeps the mini fan from turning up to turbo level.
Will most likely get another Mini when this one stops handling my needs.
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Post by sirthought on Mar 25, 2020 8:36:05 GMT -6
Yeah, I know a few studio folks with 2012 Minis.
Maybe the Minis don't have the fan issues. I know lots of message boards with complaints about fan noise on 2017 iMacs with i7s. Reports of fans sounding like a jet plane just importing photos from a SD card. Simple tasks.
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Post by kcatthedog on Mar 25, 2020 8:38:01 GMT -6
Long term meaning, short to medium term you could be more frustrated with the i5 meaning it would not have the i7 performance?
If you are really pushing the i5, it could develop actual degradation ( (overheating issues), while the i7 wouldn’t ?
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Post by kcatthedog on Mar 25, 2020 8:39:22 GMT -6
I have a 2012 mbp i7, 2.3 chip and 2 ssd, never heat the fans, but I clean it out from time to time.
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Post by Blackdawg on Mar 25, 2020 9:41:27 GMT -6
Im looking at a new mac mini pro in a Sonnet chassis for HDX card. then adding the PCI chassis later for good storage options and graphics card plus if ever a second HDX card. For only 800 bucks the Sonnet chassis seem great. Just need to get the quiet fans.
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Post by javamad on Mar 25, 2020 10:04:17 GMT -6
I am about to buy an i7. Very happy to see the base memory increased. Means I will go for a 1Tb storage now. Planning to get base Ram and update to 64 myself.
I run Logic and do sessions with mostly audio, as in 95% of my sessions would be 100% audio.
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Post by drbill on Mar 25, 2020 10:34:18 GMT -6
I've had a couple Air's now and I LOVE em. I don't use em for audio though....
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Post by dreamsambas on Mar 25, 2020 10:35:15 GMT -6
How much will the 2020 mini run you?
I need to look into a new studio computer. Still running on a 2009 Macbook...
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Post by Blackdawg on Mar 25, 2020 10:40:21 GMT -6
How much will the 2020 mini run you? I need to look into a new studio computer. Still running on a 2009 Macbook... 1300 for the top processor and base hard drive and Ram. add another $300 to upgrade the ram yourself to 64Gb(Saves $700 bucks).
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Post by sirthought on Mar 25, 2020 10:42:00 GMT -6
$1300 for i7, 500 GB, 8g RAM. You spend about $150 on 32g RAM from OWC and install that yourself.
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Post by sirthought on Mar 25, 2020 10:43:24 GMT -6
Amazon is offering $50 off baseline iPad Pros and they haven't even come out yet.
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Post by drumsound on Mar 25, 2020 22:18:25 GMT -6
Still running a 2012 maxed out mini. Fan barely ever comes on unless I'm doing really intensive VI's and the room is hot. I have a very quiet battery powered fan that I turn on behind my racks to pull air through them and it keeps the mini fan from turning up to turbo level. Will most likely get another Mini when this one stops handling my needs. My MINI is similar and I rarely hear the fans come on.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 25, 2020 22:26:11 GMT -6
How are the thermals on a pimped out 2020 Mini? Most of the time, with poorly recorded digititus metal, I drive all of my CPUs hard with distortion and color plugs on every channel, amp sims, tons of nice compressors, and hate to render. Is Mac Mini better than building low DPC latency AMD Windows build in 2020? I'll lose access to the addictive Variety of Sound plugins I've used for years, but that's not the end of the world. Most of my rescue mixes have well over a hundred plugins if I don't render. I only like rendering to commit.
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Post by the other mark williams on Mar 25, 2020 23:16:46 GMT -6
How are the thermals on a pimped out 2020 Mini? Most of the time, with poorly recorded digititus metal, I drive all of my CPUs hard with distortion and color plugs on every channel, amp sims, tons of nice compressors, and hate to render. Is Mac Mini better than building low DPC latency AMD Windows build in 2020? I'll lose access to the addictive Variety of Sound plugins I've used for years, but that's not the end of the world. Most of my rescue mixes have well over a hundred plugins if I don't render. I only like rendering to commit. I'm a Mac guy, but I can't imagine running a Mac Mini would be better than an AMD Windows build in terms of performance or $. There are plenty of reasons people stick with Macs, but high performance and low cost are not two of them. Now, a new Mac Pro is certainly high performance, but definitely not low cost...
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Post by Blackdawg on Mar 25, 2020 23:35:17 GMT -6
Depends on the DAW really and how much it takes advantage of multicore processing really. For what we do often a higher single core speed is much better.
But for what it would cost to buy a mac mini vs building a PC, you could double power easily just on the fact you can add any GPU you want easily. That alone puts you miles ahead. Now I realize that DAWs don't use GPUs, so might not be a big deal. But RAM is cheaper and easier to upgrade as you go. Hell...EVERYTHING is easier to upgrade on a PC. To that in mac world, you gotta drop the cash on the Mac Pro.
Mac systems tend to be pretty damn reliable though vs PC often. Not that PC can't be and that Mac can't have hiccups that are odd and annoying.
Just depends. I use both all the time. Love them both.
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Post by johneppstein on Mar 26, 2020 3:46:46 GMT -6
Depends on the DAW really and how much it takes advantage of multicore processing really. For what we do often a higher single core speed is much better. But for what it would cost to buy a mac mini vs building a PC, you could double power easily just on the fact you can add any GPU you want easily. That alone puts you miles ahead. Now I realize that DAWs don't use GPUs, so might not be a big deal. But RAM is cheaper and easier to upgrade as you go. Hell...EVERYTHING is easier to upgrade on a PC. To that in mac world, you gotta drop the cash on the Mac Pro. Mac systems tend to be pretty damn reliable though vs PC often. Not that PC can't be and that Mac can't have hiccups that are odd and annoying. Just depends. I use both all the time. Love them both. I dunno.... Maybe it's just that a lot more audio guys run Macs than PCs, but I see an wful lot more complaints about "upgrade compatibility" problems with Mac users. I seems to me that the coders at Apple tend to mess around with the underlying infrastructure more than the guys at Microsoft.
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Post by Martin John Butler on Mar 26, 2020 9:30:00 GMT -6
Years back, when I switched from an i5 to an i7, major issues went away. I wouldn't even consider an i5 under any circumstances.
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Post by wiz on Mar 27, 2020 2:49:58 GMT -6
you guys that are running minis......what are you using for screens... I really like my iMac 27" screen..... if I go mini, what should i look for ... or avoid as far as a screen goes...
Cheers
Wiz
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Post by indiehouse on Mar 27, 2020 10:28:43 GMT -6
you guys that are running minis......what are you using for screens... I really like my iMac 27" screen..... if I go mini, what should i look for ... or avoid as far as a screen goes... Cheers Wiz I had one of the Mac thunderbolt displays but ended up selling it a few years ago for one of those ultra wide monitors. I kinda wish I hadn’t done that. The resolution makes everything small as I have to set the screen about 3-4 feet away. It’s wide, which makes it awkward to place. And the mini’s don’t have a dedicated video card, so I feel it’s a bit taxing on its resources.
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Post by the other mark williams on Mar 27, 2020 10:51:22 GMT -6
you guys that are running minis......what are you using for screens... I really like my iMac 27" screen..... if I go mini, what should i look for ... or avoid as far as a screen goes... Cheers Wiz Depending in which iMac you have, you could keep using it as your monitor: www.lifewire.com/use-imac-as-monitor-with-target-display-mode-2260906For 3rd party screens, Apple recommends the LG Ultrafine 5k if you want the closest thing to a current iMac.
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Post by Blackdawg on Mar 27, 2020 10:52:50 GMT -6
As indie pointed out though, keep in mind there is no dedicated graphic card. So a 5k display is gonna hurt. You can add an eGPU though later just because on the housing you pick(noise)
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Post by the other mark williams on Mar 27, 2020 10:55:13 GMT -6
Also, the Mini is supposed to be quite nice, but the graphics really don’t hold up very well if you’re doing any serious video work from various reviews I’ve read/watched. Even using an eGPU, it seems better to just get a machine with better graphics from the get-go.
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