KVR Audio

iamgroot · Post by **iamgroot** » Fri Oct 09, 2015 1:57 am

hi guys, I currently have a 13" 2011 early macbook pro with 2.3GHz dual-core Intel Core i5, 320GB Serial ATA; 5400 rpm, and 16gbs of ram. I just bought logic pro x and and I use a lot of plugins such as omnisphere, sylenth1, massive, izotope mastering suite and so far my cpu meter is going pretty high with a little amount tracks and plus the small screen size is not helping. I guess I could upgrade to an ssd but I heard its better to have a more powerful cpu. Im thinking of selling my macbook pro for a 2012 mac mini model, which people are saying are the better than the 2014 models. What specs do you guys think I would need to run these plugins smoothly without the high cpu spikes? or should I get an imac?

nominil · Post by **nominil** » Sat Oct 10, 2015 2:27 pm

I can answer this, but I think this post might be in the wrong forum. The intent is for mobile apps and (mobile) hardware.

I'm on a 2.6ghz i7 Mac mini 2012 with 16gb. I don't use some of the plugs you list because they have a rep for being tough on the cpu (NI stuff supposedly is, anyway). I have no problems running quite a bit at once in LPX. Four cores can share the load better, and you'd also get a modest single core speed bump from 2.3 to 2.6ghz.

Imo, it gets down to what you like in a desktop and what you can spend. I think the 2012 mini would work for you, but you can spend more and get a more modern and powerful iMac. I like my mini a lot, and I'm glad I picked one up before Apple decided to remove the quad core option in the 2014 version.

surferman · Post by **surferman** » Sat Oct 10, 2015 3:10 pm

I have the 2.3. I 7 Mac Mini and I use logic Pro X. Mine runs great but I don't use all those plug-ins but I use mo tact and drum plugins, a few othrer things and lots of amplitude on guitars. I also add t-racks plugs on most tracks and it works great. I plan to put an ssd in soon.

surferman · Post by **surferman** » Sat Oct 10, 2015 3:12 pm

Dang autocorrect ... Kontact. 16 gigs ram

iamgroot · Post by **iamgroot** » Sat Oct 10, 2015 5:10 pm

my bad. Ill move this post to correct forum. Thanks anyways.

iamgroot · Post by **iamgroot** » Sat Oct 10, 2015 6:29 pm

nominil wrote:I can answer this, but I think this post might be in the wrong forum. The intent is for mobile apps and (mobile) hardware.

I'm on a 2.6ghz i7 Mac mini 2012 with 16gb. I don't use some of the plugs you list because they have a rep for being tough on the cpu (NI stuff supposedly is, anyway). I have no problems running quite a bit at once in LPX. Four cores can share the load better, and you'd also get a modest single core speed bump from 2.3 to 2.6ghz.

Imo, it gets down to what you like in a desktop and what you can spend. I think the 2012 mini would work for you, but you can spend more and get a more modern and powerful iMac. I like my mini a lot, and I'm glad I picked one up before Apple decided to remove the quad core option in the 2014 version.

The new imac sounds nice but right now, im not willing to spend $1700 and plus I don't really want the display since I just bought a new one. I just want to know if the 2012 quad core i7 mac mini would be enough to handle the plugins I intend to use rather than the new 2014 mac mini with only a dual core processor.

nominil · Post by **nominil** » Sat Oct 10, 2015 6:44 pm

iamgroot wrote: The new imac sounds nice but right now, im not willing to spend $1700 and plus I don't really want the display since I just bought a new one. I just want to know if the 2012 quad core i7 mac mini would be enough to handle the plugins I intend to use rather than the new 2014 mac mini with only a dual core processor.

I think a quad core 2012 mini would work well for you, and it would definitely perform better than a new mini in running a multi-core capable app like LPX.

Benchmarks are here: http://browser.primatelabs.com/mac-benchmarks

tehlord · Post by **tehlord** » Sat Oct 10, 2015 6:47 pm

Quad core will be fine. It's the dual core Mac minis that don't work well.

chokehold · Post by **chokehold** » Sat Oct 10, 2015 7:07 pm

iamgroot wrote:I just want to know if the 2012 quad core i7 mac mini would be enough to handle the plugins I intend to use

I had a late 2011 Mac Mini with a quad i5 in it, had enough puff for everything I used it for. 48+ Kontakt instruments, 2.1+ GB Superior Drummer kits, and lots of FX. No issues at all.

The only downside is that those Minis run really hot in normal conditions (surfing, watching a vid, etc) already, so they have a fan that will start and become VERY loud pretty quickly with a couple of plugins loaded. Can be annoying if you are monitoring over speakers and can't do that very loudly.

EDIT: I should mention that I did put a set of SSDs and some more RAM in. Was definitely worth the trouble.

Smack Dammit · Post by **Smack Dammit** » Sat Oct 10, 2015 8:18 pm

I also have a late 2012 2.3 quad i7 mac mini(w 16 gigs), bought about a year ago used for $550, best $550 I ever spent and everything runs great on this little beast.... Still need to get an SSD though..

iamgroot · Post by **iamgroot** » Sun Oct 11, 2015 1:24 am

chokehold wrote:
iamgroot wrote:I just want to know if the 2012 quad core i7 mac mini would be enough to handle the plugins I intend to use
I had a late 2011 Mac Mini with a quad i5 in it, had enough puff for everything I used it for. 48+ Kontakt instruments, 2.1+ GB Superior Drummer kits, and lots of FX. No issues at all.

is there a reason you don't use it anymore?

Michael L · Post by **Michael L** » Sun Oct 11, 2015 4:15 am

I realize you are looking at real-world, but this might help give clarity:
Benchmark comparison of quad and dual core:
http://barefeats.com/macmin14.html
If you want to compare tech details including CPUs on any mac:
http://www.everymac.com
If you want to compare two CPUs:
http://cpuboss.com
Also note any differences in L3 cache, which is important.

iamgroot · Post by **iamgroot** » Sun Oct 11, 2015 5:20 am

Michael L wrote:I realize you are looking at real-world, but this might help give clarity:
Benchmark comparison of quad and dual core:
http://barefeats.com/macmin14.html
If you want to compare tech details including CPUs on any mac:
http://www.everymac.com
If you want to compare two CPUs:
http://cpuboss.com
Also note any differences in L3 cache, which is important.

Thanks for those helpful links. The 2012 mac mini looks pretty good even though its 3 years old. That's weird that apple decided to downgrade the 2014 model to dual-core it would have been beastly if it had a quad. And from what it seems like, apple has no intention of releasing a new mac mini anytime soon.

Michael L · Post by **Michael L** » Sun Oct 11, 2015 5:34 am

Prices have been going up on used quadcore mini; previous mini release schedule was every 2 years, thus likely 2016. Apple also eliminated the quadcore chip from all new iMacs except for the 5kRetina, which is now faster than the quadcore MacPro. Apple's aggro strategy is really infuriating. Consider hackintosh at http://www.tonymacx86.com if you don't upgrade OS very often....

2012 Mac mini for logic pro x enough?