I’ve been using my 2015 MacBook Pro (2.2 Ghz Quad-Core i7) to run GP4, and its working great. However, the MacBook Pro is my “home” computer, so I’m thinking about buying a used Mac Mini just for gigs.
The price difference between a used 2014 and 2018 Mac Mini is significant. Does anyone have experience using either or both of these Mac Minis? Would the 2014 be good enough? I don’t run a lot of plugins, and minimal virtual instruments. I’m using a Focusrite 18i8 for my interface. I need to run with minimal latency because I am using vocals and guitar through GP. (I currently can use 128 or 256 buffer with my MacBook Pro with no glitches or problems.)
(Also, I might use Luna Display with an iPad for the Mini display.)
It really all depends on what you’re doing. I have an old, trusty mac book pro from 2011 that I use exclusively as my backup. It’s there, it wasn’t really ever used, but it runs all my latest stuff without issues. It’s an i7 with an SSD though.
So really - it depends on what you do. I’d say watch the CPU meter and if it goes beyond 20% on normal use I’d say buy something stronger just to have that extra “CPU headroom”. Otherwise - even 2011 will do.
I use a 2014 Mac Mini 3.0 GHz i7 16 GB RAM. It’s works fine at 256 samples. I would like a bit more CPU -headroom, but I’m waiting for the Mac Mini M1x. When buying, think ahead. What is adequate for now may not suffice a few years from now. One advantage of the 2018 Mini is user expandable RAM.