Upgrading my Mac: Mini, Pro, or Air with M2 Chip?

[Ustun]

Hey everyone,

I'm a producer and performer and I'm currently in the process of upgrading my setup. I have two computers - a Mac Mini 2018 and a MacBook Pro 2015 - but unfortunately, my MacBook Pro is experiencing some issues and I'll need to decide whether to replace it in near future.

One thing that's important to me in my work is using a clean machine for live situations to avoid any kind of crashes. That's why I've kept my MacBook Pro dedicated solely to professional software, while using my Mac Mini for everything else.

Now, as I consider my options, I'm wondering if it would make more sense to sell and replace my computers with a new Mac Mini and a MacBook Air with an M2 chip on both, or stick with just one computer this time and get a new MacBook Pro with M2 pro something.

I'd appreciate any advice or insights that the community can offer, especially regarding the performance issues that have been associated with the M2 chip in the past.

Thanks for your help!

[jocknaethick]

I'm just hoping my tired old iMac 2015 (i5) can hold on until they release a new iMac which I believe is going to skip M2 straight up to M3...if that doesn't pan out, I think I may bite the bullet and spring for a Mac Studio. Whatever I end up with, it is going to be a massive performance jump from this tired old girl.

[Ustun]

I'm just hoping my tired old iMac 2015 (i5) can hold on until they release a new iMac which I believe is going to skip M2 straight up to M3...if that doesn't pan out, I think I may bite the bullet and spring for a Mac Studio. Whatever I end up with, it is going to be a massive performance jump from this tired old girl.

I'm also super excited about this upgrade since the performance difference looks huge, it was not like this before (:

[Jac459]

I was not on apple before but I was on a rather powerful razer laptop i7 8750h, rtx 2080, ssd nvme 1tb, 32gb ram of 2020.

My gf offered me a mb air m1 with 8gb and 256 ssd. I was expecting it to be a lighter backup but actually the m1 was blasting the I7 without breaking a sweat.
So I totally shift to apple and upgraded recently to an m2 pro with 16gb and 1tb ssd.

The performance boost is indeed very significant when moving to M chips. And it is like captain America, they can do that all day...

After between an m1 and a m2 pro, I know the perf is basically times 2. From m2 to m2 pro I am not sure.

What I know is that in bitwig with heavy tracks with a lot of effects, reverbs and eq, I was touching the limit of the m1 only when I was doing the mixing and mastering in the same session.

If it helps...

[Ustun]

Thanks for your feedback!!

My main concern here is the pros and cons of investing in two computers - one for heavy-duty tasks and another for live performances - versus using one laptop for everything. With the recent release of M-chipped Macs, I'm starting to wonder if having two computers is still necessary.

While I do like the idea of having two machines specialized for their respective tasks, a new MacBook Pro would likely offer more processing power than my current i7 powered Mac Mini. I would appreciate any feedback from who are using application and plugin stuffed M chipped MacBooks for live performances.

I am super scared of live crashes, had happened a lot before (:

[FranklyFlawless]

I would just use one laptop for everything. You can keep it clean by using only the applications required for the task. Less is more.

[Ustun]

I would just use one laptop for everything. You can keep it clean by using only the applications required for the task. Less is more.

I know and I do feel you. I use Ableton Live and go in the box with its native devices on my live projects actually. This idea of having a clean computer for live could be a theory btw, or paranoia (: - Is it? - And I do love my workstation a bit dirty, not about professional applications, but with unrelated apps and stuff, it's my "computer" computer.

[FranklyFlawless]

Sure, in that case, make sure your unrelated applications do not take resources during startup or a live performance. You can also use an external hard drive for them so that it is easy to separate what is professional and what is not.

[mgw38]

The M2 Air is an astonishing machine. Completely noiseless, fast, no performance loss when on battery and the battery life is better than anything I had before. I would just go for an Air first and, in case it does not quite cut it as a desktop replacement for you, add a desktop. Personally, I would go for a Windows desktop though. PCs make better desktops, Macs make better laptops (unless you are a gamer).

There are really only two reasons why you might find the Air somewhat restrictive.
1) It only has two Thunderbolt ports and they are only TB3, so if you have a lot of external devices that need a lot of bandwidth, that could become an issue.
2) External display support on the Air is admittedly disappointing. It only supports one external display. There are aftermarket solutions for multiple display support, but they are basically hacks that use the one display output for addressing multiple displays.

I recently switched from a Razer Laptop for a MacBook Air M2 and I found that incredibly liberating. Freezing tracks on Ableton is a thing of the past and I no longer have to constantly look for a power outlet.

[uOpt]

I would keep a separate notebook for live performances. They are cheap(-ish) and the benefit is obvious. There is a lot of software out there that does unpredictable things.

[PAK]

I'd hold off on Macbook Air purchases unless desperate. It's said to be getting upated, to M3, by WWDC (Some point within the next ~12 weeks). The update will also give a good idea of likely M3 Pro / Max / Ultra performance even if those won't come until later in the year / next year. Though it seems a bit strange to launch a new desktop M2 when M3 will already be used in other products.

But wait if you can..

[Scotty]

The actual performance difference between an M2 MacBook Pro and the original M1 MacBook Pro is not very significant. I picked up a 13 inch MacBook Pro M1 yesterday used with Logic and Final Cut installed for $938 USD 16gb ram , 512 gb SSD , 100% battery life (30 discharge cycles) verses $2078 for a new M2 with same specs and the software including tax.The actual performance difference is about 15% to 20% overall. The m1 was sold in December of 2021. Used is viable. The prices were converted from Canadian which why they look a bit weird.