Same 
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Macbook m1/m1 pro 16/32gb. For computers, more is always better. Or you can wait 6 months for Mac M3
I’m not sure that I see the value in a ‘Pro’ for audio, unless you are working in Logic with hundreds of tracks and massive sample libraries.
Audio applications rarely seem to take advantage of having more CPU cores.
For me, the big draw of the ‘Pro’ is the display for HDR video editing, and better connectivity if you need more than one external display.
The big drawback is that it’s noticeably bigger and heavier, as well as being actively cooled rather than passively (though the passive cooling system in the Air could be a lot more robust).
Definitely for a Windows machine, but not necessarily a Mac - though I’d still want at least 16GB on any system I buy.
I haven’t had an issue with a MacBook/Pro since they made the switch to unibody designs well over a decade ago now.
Prior to that I had no end of problems however, and swore off the brand for a long time.
After the unibody design, and the ease of getting service at an Apple Store now (which doesn’t apply everywhere, of course) they are the only notebooks I would recommend.
Battery swelling is unfortunate but a fact of life with lithium batteries, not anything specific to Apple.
It’s rare with them though, unlike many other brands (thinking specifically of Razer here).
I’ve been thinking of moving my desktop over to Mac again due to the low power consumption and extra features they have (e.g. Screen Time) and was originally looking at a Mac Mini.
But when I recently had to pull out an old PC for something that just wouldn’t work on my current Windows 11 system, it made me realize how much more convenient it is to have everything integrated in one device rather than ending up with a mess of cables everywhere, with two PCs, two displays, keyboards, mice, etc set up.
Of course that’s not a common occurrence, but I’d prefer to pay the difference for that convenience, and the option of moving away from my desk at ease.
One thing I would suggest with any laptop or portable device is to be sparing of your use when it’s plugged in.
Nothing seems to kill the battery life quicker than when people use these device at a desk most of the time, and keep it plugged in/sitting at 100% charge. These batteries like to be active/power cycled a lot.
Feedback on 8 vs 16 GB is very mixed here. Interested in an M2 over M1 only because it has more inputs.
I would use it for recording and arranging several audio tracks in Ableton (live record max. 4 tracks at a time, editing so far max 25 tracks) and have a few effects plugins running on these tracks.
No VSTs so far, but having the option to later add 1-3 MIDI tracks with VSTs would be nice. From what I hear, 8GB should be enough for that? The price increase for 16GB is huge as there are many deals for 8GB but not for 16.
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I’d say 8gb is enough right now.
Whether or not it will be enough in five years, I don’t know.
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same 
[quote=“Fin25, post:21, topic:198259, full:true”]
same
(wanted to make some kinda inception reply… but messed with quotes 
)
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same 
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Shame
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I got a 2nd hand M1, stupidly powerful, but it handles all my Izotope plugs without issue. RAM in these machines is handled differently, but I would still recommend getting as much as possible.
The only issues I’ve had is having to upgrade hardware (interface & NI S4 Mk 1) that would only work with Intel chips sets.
Using my old interface as an ADAT input, so don’t feel sorry for me 
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one more vote for mini instead of a laptop if you don’t need mobility. you get extra usb ports, hdmi, smaller form factor, better thermals, etc. etc. etc., but with the same silicone power.
also the new M2 models are upgradeable to a real desktop computer level.
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I guess the useful thing is Apple Silicon seems to largely cut audio like a knife to butter. I do agree tho that not overspending is a great way to go. Year on year there seem to be substantial improvements with Apple Silicon, I think to the point that Apple products maybe don’t hold their value as well as they used to.
For example, the current M2 Max seems to largely beat out the M1 Ultra in many tests. It’s virtually like cutting that machines price in half - who in their right mind would pay more for the M1 Ultra when the performance is better on the M2 Max, and the cost is less?
The upper echelon Macs seem precariously placed and priced in my opinion.
I think the M1/M2 Pro series of chips is the sweet spot for performance per dollar. On all M Pro machines you find more ports available, but don’t have the expense of the Max chips.
This round I personally went for an M2 Air and a Mac Studio M2 Max as a setup mix, the Air is mostly fine for everything, but Mac Studio gives me a performance chip for 3D stuff and more heavy ram usage for much less than it costs in MBP’s.
I’d personally love to see the 15” Air with more ports and a Pro chip inside.
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The Mac mini is amazing. I’ve got an M1 8Gb, it was bought for Logic, is totally silent, never crashes and takes up no space at all. For mobile I use a M2 IPad which thanks to the recent Logic release means I can work back and forth between the two machines easily.
In terms of processing power needed for music production any Apple machine with a M cpu is ample.
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I want cores, as many as possible please 
I’m blown away how smooth Blender is, I had pretty good pc before switching to mac several years ago but damn this thing runs Blender like Paint. and the best part is it’s cool and silent no matter the loads. crazy machine.
but yeah, it’s quite overkill for 95% people.
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I have a Macbook Pro M1 32GB, I took more memory because I thought 16GB would be too little for me, I was wrong. It has never happened to me that it would exceed 16GB because the Macbook works wonders when it comes to memory. For music, working in a DAW with a bunch of plugins is a joke on Apple Silicone, even an MBA/Mini with 8GB can work great. Other models like Max/Ultra are overkill imo. Buy any one, as long as it’s Silicone.
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Same
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I definitely think M3 is going to have a pretty decent 3D focus - to the point it might even be worth upgrading from M2. I think the fortunate thing here may be tho, if u don’t care about 3D, then M2 would still be a great second hand buy.
I found certain test Blender projects sluggish on the Air, and exploring unreal engine is basically a non event. But on the Max Studio I can get going and working. Sure, it’s not a 4090, but I’m just learning and want a useable UI more than anything.
It was cool actually to see Apple are throwing cash behind Blender to get it up to scratch on Apple silicon. And likewise they seem to be backing in Unity. It’s funny but for all Tim Sweeney’s whining a year or so back, maybe if he’d just chilled out it would actually be Unreal support coming to Vision Pro in another universe.
If Apple is doing all this I wish they go all in on a Pro mouse that brought the MMB back to the Mac. The Magic Mouse is useless for this stuff.
Sorry for the off topic biz OP
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I think power will be sufficient on either M1 or M2.
BUT where the MacBook Pro M2 14" really shines, is sound. Speakers are incredible and a massive upgrade from the 13,3" MacBook Pro. I have the comparison, as I switched from 13,3 to 14" for work.
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8gb is enough for that use case
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Unless is machine has very bad thermal management and is throttling like mad, I am not sure how OP manage to exhaust the computing power of an Intel I9 though.