Ableton on Mac M1

The Lounge Other Gear
#21

the lack of virtualization on the m1’s is a real bummer. im hoping that changes, but windows already stated that arm support is way down the list of priorities (i know you can use the dev build) and vmware already stated they have not much interest in virtualizing x86 OS’s on M1s

It was always nice to run 2-4 OS’s simultaneously, but the cost factor between the m1’s and an intel equipped to handle that is just stoopid. looks like its time to just get a NUC or deal with the slow speeds on my synology for virtualization.

#22

My biggest issue with Mac is it being so restrictive when installing software. Forcing everything onto the boot drive can fill it up fast. On my Windows computer I never install any music programs on the boot drive. I’ve set up an external SSD boot drive on my M1 Air but that takes away the speed advantage that the M1 has of having the CPU and memory on the same chip.

#23

what are you using as the external? nvme’s in thunderbolt enclosures help a lot, but yeah, still takes a performance ding

#24

I have a one gig Samsung T7. Small and light enough that I used Velcro tape to attach it to the back of my monitor. That works really well. There are faster drives now, but the port of the M1’s will not transfer data as fast as the latest spec high end SSD’s.

#25

OS in itself is of no concern for me, I don’t care about win/lin/osx, they all converge to the same thing. But those pc laptops are downright awful. Cheap plastics, thick and heavy cases, poor thermals, bad screens, subpar performance, ridiculous battery autonomy, etc. It’s 2021 and when a vendor releases yet another “macbook killer”, it’s still just a crapbook that is not up to the game of previous decade mac laptop. Why is the competition so far behind ? It’s a bit like sequencers… we know for 20 years now that elektron-style p-lock sequencing rocks, yet the competition only releases crippled versions of it.

iu-2

Anyway:

Never understood why so many mac here

There, that’s why.

4 Likes
#26

Maybe not compare to a basic hp either … Obviously you can find a pc with a clean, ventilated and functional case that will give you a lot more inputs and outputs and a real graphics card, without soldered or integrated ram into the processor.
Otherwise my last mac experience, a crumbled case and cutting on the edges, heating and a lot of difficulty in guaranteeing (15 days after purchase) a broken backlight following an update of mac os, no loan machine for 15 days and a mediocre support. In addition, the operating system and its restrictions concern me much more than the aesthetics or the form factor.

#27

Not comparing to a basic hp… I’ve had numerous very expensive pc laptops (because working in IT, not because I’m rich) and frankly I’m done with this, never again. (again, speaking about laptops, not desktops… my PC desktop has a “real” RTX graphics card, thanks… but this is really the last thing I want on a laptop).

#28

You obviously didn’t have the right ones, never had a problem with mine,
I didn’t have a thousand, but a few nonetheless.
I’m telling you, just experiences and certainly needs different .
Putting a graphics card in my processor is the last thing I want on a laptop (or stationary) for example.

#29

you have that backwards. you’ll never max out a tb3 port with a single drive. those ports are doing 40gb/sec
it all comes down the the slowest link. and thats a 1gb/sec drive using the USB spec your using (still an nvme in there)
i have nvmes in thunderbolt enclosures getting 6gb+/sec
granted, its till not as fast as the internal, but a bunch of small files transfers slower than a huge file.

I still use the internals, but swapping things out now for what i need on the internal is far less time consuming.

#30

Very fast, completely silent, always cool, runs longer than the day and feather-weight… I have the right one in my hands right now :wink:

Hopefully now you can understand better why so many macs here.

#31

not sure if i’m following this correctly.
the gpu on the m1’s isnt eh same thing as “integrated graphics”

#32

The ports on these Mac are maxing out at 10. My Samsung T7 maxes out at 9. The newest fastest drives max out at 18, almost twice as fast as the actual performance on the M1’s ports. The port on the M1 iPad is even slower. The jack may be the same, but they are not full spec high speed ports.

#33

not sure where youre getting this, but id be curious where you say it maxes out at 10
10 what? 10mb, mB, gb, GB? what drive are they using with what interface?
black magic speed tests?

#34

Definitely go with Mac…I just went through the whole “get myself a PC, because it’s cheaper to get the same specs” thing. In the end I turned it into a hackintosh, then ultimately sold it on.
Now I am waiting to buy a Mac (when the new Mini comes out).

In my experience, Mac is always going to be a smoother experience.

  • Macs run quietly (cheap PCs can be LOUD)
  • They just work (no faffing in BIOS)
  • They are small
  • They have gotten quite cheap since Apple Silicon

If you want to do standard stuff + make music & don’t game, there is no reason not to do with a mac in my opinion.

1 Like
#35

Lots of AU plugins don’t run in Ableton on M1 Macs. You should look into that before buying. I have an M1 mini, and a bunch of plugins don’t work.

Overbridge is fine though.

2 Likes
#36

Mac, all the way. I’ve used linux, windows, and mac for sound, and mac wins every time. The M1/apple silicon is a freaking miracle. No fan is game changer. I get all the reasons people don’t like the mac, but considered on a technical basis, as a tool for the job, there is no competition.

2 Likes
#37

Yeah i’ve seen talks on the new M1. How certain is that though and will the price point be as sharp as the last one? I guess if not I can always get the 2020 one at a discount when its announced. Its expected in oktober right?

#38

Correct. That’s what I am doing. Either the new ones will be affordable, or I’ll buy an older one (which is still good enough for all tasks) and it will be even cheaper by then.

1 Like
#39

I would be surprised to see a new Mac Mini this year. They just upgraded it with the M1 chip about 9 months ago, and traditionally it’s not a machine that has received frequent updates. I do think we will see a new 16” Macbook pro soon, as that one is still running on Intel.

#40

That’s more of a reason to release the M1X as soon as possible since the 16" was garbage BECAUSE of Intel / AMD having such inefficient processors that make the Macbook so loud / hot (and therefore throttle… a lot - my Intel i7 runs often at 1 GHz and give me the feeling I’m using a 100€ PC from 1996 in 2021). Nobody likes that. Also a few plugins not working right now wouldn’t convince me to buy a PC or Intel Mac.

By the way: Which AU / VST are not yet M1 compatible?

P.S.: Here’s a reason why fans suck:

image
image2268×4032 2.38 MB

my next Macbook better not have fans, I need to clean (quite a task to do without bending the case…)

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