Not strictly a GP topic but as im still on my very first Mac im looking advice.
Budget will be low, I guess just over £1000 is fine, nothing approaching £2000.
I currently use a 14" M1 Pro MBP from 2021. Im happy with it, it does all need. We aren’t gigging constantly and this serves as my home computer as well.
Only 16GB betas per my other thread, Predictive loading is fine. I dont think I need to upgrade just to get 24GB, and the Memory monitor in Mac OS shows the full gig rig as around 30GB anyway.
I feel now I should divide home and live. Id like to cut down on what I have on the internal SSD. I was set on getting the new M4 Mac mini for home, and keeping the MBP for just live use. But, as nice as it is, it’s a bit heavy. Im wondering if I should keep the MBP for desktop use and get the M2 or M3 MacBook Air, in which case id go with 24GB for live use.
Just looking for thoughts really. A lighter laptop would be nice as long as it runs GP and plugins as well as my current one. No need to go for a Pro I guess.
Mac mini would be the ideal solution and the cheapest.
Thanks, that makes sense. I only ever use my MBP closed at home, with a larger monitor/keyboard etc, so it’s not a big deal having a laptop as a home computer.
The new Mac Mini’s seem to be getting great reviews, and are much cheaper than the equivalent MBP, but the Air sits in the middle. There is also rumour of the M4 Air at some point next year though, which adds another complication.
The MBP 2021 is still a great box. The one I use for live has a little more horsepower than yours, but the primary reason is that I’ve had issues with predictive loading on both Windows and Mac at the times I’ve tried to use it. As long as you’re not running into memory issues, I would keep using that MBP as your live machine for the next several years to come.
I too like having at least one ‘home’ dedicated unit (but in fact I technically have five…). I have my original MBP (a 2013 with core I7 and 16GB ram), the MBP that was originally purchased for my live rig which has the same specs as yours, a Mac Studio for my recording studio setup and 2 custom built rackmount PCs I previously used for my live rig. One of those doubles as a hackintosh.
If you were thinking of going with a lighter powered box for your live use, I would caution against that as the overall lifetime of the unit in your live rig VS effort to get everything setup and going would not be a losing battle. If you really want to bring that MBP ‘home’ as it were, then I would go with a heavier hitting MBP for your live rig and stick with it for at least 6-7 years.
Thanks for the reply.
Most of that makes sense, nothing i do on my MBP taxes it too hard, i do a bit of video editing with Resolve and use Logic and Cubase without issues.
I cant see me getting a new MBP for live work, thats such a small part of what i use a computer for that the cost would be way above what i deem ‘worth it’
I use Logic/Cubase at home, along with DaVinci Resolve much more than i do GP, and im aware a Mac Mini M4 would easily cover these, no need to max it out, leaving the MBP for GP, but i could do with a bit more ram for GP, hence the Mac Air comment, a si can afford to get a 24GB version. .
Can you explain moire about the last bit, why a MAcbook Air M4 wouldnt be a good idea?
