Should I buy a new PC or new iMac?

[clintmartin]

I have no experience with apple other than my old iPhone but the new M4 iMac looks like a good deal.
For about $1899 I can have the new M4 iMac with 10 core cpu, 10 core gpa, 16gb ram, and a 1tb of storage. It also comes with monitor, keyboard and mouse.
If I order a PC it would be around the same money without keyboard and mouse. However memory expansion is far less.
So anything I need to consider that I may possibly be forgetting about.

[FranklyFlawless]

So anything I need to consider that I may possibly be forgetting about.

Clearly defining your use case(s).

[clintmartin]

Project studio. Recording audio. No video, no gaming.

[paramita123]

Project studio. Recording audio. No video, no gaming.

I used to sell studio equipment. My advice always was, get what you are accustomed to, and don't spend all your money, you will need more.
What that means is PC or MAC both can do the job, what matters is a platform you are comfortable working on. And for the music you do (yes I am listening to it now), a good soundcard, mic, speakers and some other bits are important too.
The old MAC vs PC is fairly irrelevant. Both powerful, I worked with all kinds of setup. What you need to know is how to save, backup, run some optimisations, etc..

[Tiles]

I would not buy a computer with just 16 gb ram anymore. I start to run into the limits of my 32 gb ram already with my music. My next one will have 64 gb minimum. And my sample libs alone already exceeds the maximum 1tb storage of the mac. I personally could not live with just one monitor neither. I have two 27" here. But besides that, use whatever fits your needs.

[gelly-vapor]

I love iMac , i use a 2012 iMac with osx 10.15 and Reaper , but i know it will became soon screwed because Apple used to 'lock' older system , all it need (IMO) is RAM but i cant upgrade it , i really regret it , i think if you can buy a strong PC go for a PC you will be able to upgrade it.

[paramita123]

I would not buy a computer with just 16 gb ram anymore. I start to run into the limits of my 32 gb ram already with my music. My next one will have 64 gb minimum. And my sample libs alone already exceeds the maximum 1tb storage of the mac. I personally could not live with just one monitor neither. I have two 27" here. But besides that, use whatever fits your needs.

The RAM usage very much depends on instruments used and style !
I am running a 3yo Alienware with 16GB of RAM and do not use it all.
My tracks mix ROMplers with virtual synths and audio tracks with amp sims and FX, an average of 20-tracks per project.
Some people go large with libraries, some people keep it simple. What I always advise is to consider the full setup rather than splash all the money on one piece. For example it makes no sense to buy a super expensive microphone but use a cheap soundcard. A harmonious setup with some money left for food and you're good

[Tiles]

Yup, but when you buy enough ram already, then you don't have to worry about instruments and style. You may want to change either at your journey

Mac is always the problem that even with the most expensive setup the hardware is rather short calculated. Be it ram or ssd space. And it is not easy to change. So with a Mac you need to know beforehand.

[osiris]

[tlr]

I agree on RAM and consider 32 GiB the minimum for a new box. I went for a PC because it was more bang for the buck, but I really struggle with all the annoyances that are default enabled in windows. Upgrades for instance, those are force fed by Microsoft at any time, even win10 -> win11. Sometimes that breaks functionality with hardware drivers you have. Apple lets you review what updates are available, and then choose.

For storage I added a 2 TiB SSD in addition to the factory 512 GiB "boot"-drive. I try to keep all sample-libraries and my projects on the added SSD. This makes it easy if I ever want to re-install the OS or swap computers. I'll just swap in that drive.

Now that I think I've managed to disable most negative behaviour it feels ok. Performancewise it's very good.

[chagzuki]

There have been a few alternative 27" retina resolution monitors produced recently. How much is a Mac mini plus one of those?
The iMac seems a good solution for people who want a basic computer where everything just works, i.e. webcam, good built in speakers and OK display. But if you're connecting an audio interface and monitor speakers I doubt it's really going to make sense, and for a desktop it would surely be nicer to have a larger display.

[tlr]

I went with a Lenovo 32" 4K monitor. It wasn't that expensive. I think more or less any monitor works with mac's too these days. For me, 4K on a less than 32" monitor gets unreadable without tweaking font sizes everywhere.

[chagzuki]

I think more or less any monitor works with mac's too these days.

I've never tried it but I believe the scaling options in Mac OS are limited and it's much preferable to run at retina PPI.

[tlr]

I think more or less any monitor works with mac's too these days.

I've never tried it but I believe the scaling options in Mac OS are limited and it's much preferable to run at retina PPI.

I agree, you should check that the PPI of the monitor matches a normal apple monitor. A bit of a minefield but apple monitors can be crazy money.

[clintmartin]

So sticking with PC is starting to feel like the wise thing to do.
For audio, is the latest gen i5 just as good as an i7 or i9?
I noticed at Studio Cat Jim Roseberry’s PCs all seem to use i5s.
I think 32gb of ram would be plenty for what I do. EZD3 and maybe EZK2 are the only instruments I usually use. The rest is guitars, bass and vocals.