Buying new Mac

buzzonit · Jun 8, 2020

Hello to all! I am producer deciding a new MacBook Pro, I’ve been using a 2010 for 6 years it’s time for a new one, I’ve been thinking about the MacBook Pro 16inch 64ram i9, could anybody give me any insight if I should or not buy or any advice on what to buy? I only use MacBook for 10 years I can not use Windows, so please no window comments. Thank you for your time.

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buzzonit said: ↑

Hello to all! I am producer deciding a new MacBook Pro, I’ve been using a 2010 for 6 years it’s time for a new one, I’ve been thinking about the MacBook Pro 16inch 64ram i9, could anybody give me any insight if I should or not buy or any advice on what to buy? I only use MacBook for 10 years I can not use Windows, so please no window comments. Thank you for your time.
Click to expand...

actually I've been taking care of future planning in our audio industry, so I can give some useful insights hopefully:
1) moving from 2010 model, even if you buy weakest current MBP, you'll see a noticeable performance boost
2) the new 16" MBP is well built device (compared to previous macbooks) - better keyboard, better cooling, max battery you can legally have in laptop in plane etc.. - from this point, I'd definitely stay away from new 13" MBP which is cheaper (because of no dedicated graphics chip) but does overheat in first place
3) CPU spec-wise you need to decide on thermal compromise - more cores is better, but they will heat up more, so you'll end up with its performance being pushed down within few minutes anyway - I'd say the price difference isn't huge, but don't expect any magic with i9 over i7 - also do note price of "weaker" 16" model with topped i9 is slightly lower than having i9 model topped with i9 (maybe mistake/trickery on Apple site?)
4) RAM spec-wise this ultimately comes down to what you make use of, obviously you can't upgrade later, so more is better, if the price is worth it it's up to you - I would personally go with "only" 32GB ram and rather second computer running Vienna Ensemble Pro server, specifically for virtual instruments offloading, in which case maybe something like MacMini slave with user-upgradeable ram (up to 64GB) would be better choice imo, while retaining portability
5) for storage, always keep in mind it can die and you loose entire content, so I'd say 1TB is reasonable sweetspot nowadays - if you need more, then you have too many projects unfinished at once (and buying external Thunderbolt 3 NVME drive like Samsung X5 offers better price/capacity), and if you can need less, then you are not using enough software ;)
6) new MacBook means you'll be forced to use MacOS Catalina, zero chance to downgrade (!), you should carefully make sure every software and hardware you use is compatible (Logic will indeed work perfect, but many plugins or audio interfaces may not), from this point of view, buying new Mac during summer, before next MacOS launches (usually in autumn) is safe pick
7) connectivity - new MBP means Thunderbolt 3 with USB Type-C connectors - very versatile, but you'll probably need dongles for everything, and personally I don't think the Type-C connector is as sturdy as older Thunderbolt or regular USB, so keep an eye on desk clutter..

few words about hackintosh - I personally love my desktop hacky workstation, started few years back with El Capitan, skipped Sierra, now on High Sierra which is rock solid despite having X99 chipset which was never supported by Apple at all, yet I'm stuck with it because of my nVidia graphics, luckily I don't use Logic or FinalCut, so far everything else works well on MacOS 10.13.6..
but attempting laptop hacky is basically a no-go, I do have old good MBP 13" 2012 (i7, 16GB ram, 500GB SSD + 1TB HDD, no optical drive) for recording outside (usually around 30 tracks max) because it just works reliably and I don't need to worry about anything (after recently replacing thermal paste myself, temps are now back to 60-80°C instead 80-100°C before), and in the long run you don't really save that much money (for reference, just 1TB NVME Samsung 970 Pro costs around 400$ and many older laptops don't even offer NVME bus onboard)

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Rahull · Jun 8, 2020

Well,it all depends on what exactly is your requirement .I am using a macbook pro and a mac pro.But as u knw,If wanna use latest logic pro x and other apple stuff,u need to be updated and always good to go for latest mac devices.If u are just looking for a stable rock solid device,go for any i7 or i9,ssd and 32gig ram.Also some ppl go for hackintosh devices for cost cutting,though i dnt have any experience of hackintosh.

anvier · Jun 8, 2020

buzzonit said: ↑

Hello to all! I am producer deciding a new MacBook Pro, I’ve been using a 2010 for 6 years it’s time for a new one, I’ve been thinking about the MacBook Pro 16inch 64ram i9, could anybody give me any insight if I should or not buy or any advice on what to buy? I only use MacBook for 10 years I can not use Windows, so please no window comments. Thank you for your time.
Click to expand...

Buy it, It`s the best macbook pro since the mid 2012 mbp. It is fast and powered for war. I made an album production with the 16" macbook, 32 gb ram, core I9, 8 cores and 8 gb gpu configuration, insane.
I still have my mid 2012 mbp and this is an excellent machine but this 16" beast outperformed several times better. I Also edit 4K video in FCPX and it is smmmooothh and fast.
No regret, it is cost a little fortune but buy it if you can.

sorry for my english

The Mazeman · Jun 8, 2020

If you value and care about using your money in the right place, build a hackintosh using opencore.

Area51 · Jun 8, 2020

The Mazeman said: ↑

If you value and care about using your money in the right place, build a hackintosh using opencore.
Click to expand...

all macs and apple products are overpriced. buy some normal PC with windows or linux

AMERICUH · Jun 8, 2020

Do yourself a favor and build a Hackintosh System.

It has the Power of the 2019 MacPro (8000$) .. I also owned a 2012 MBP and didn't want to quit OSX completely.
Watch the Video and judge yourself. You can save up alot of money here ..

5teezo · Jun 8, 2020

I can't fuck with apple no more. Just too expensive, un-upgradable since RAM and SSD are soldered in and has inefficient cooling due to their form over function philosophy. An i9 in a MacBook Pro is guaranteed to not run at full speed, because it's getting terribly hot and isn't cooled sufficiently and therefore will be clocked down to a degree where it runs slower to nominal speeds of lower spec CPUs.

I would research some current Lenovo Notebooks and see if they are macintosh compatible.They have great build quality and support. I am currently typing this an a used Lenovo T530 Notebook which is running Catalina and Windows 10 in Dual boot mode. That technolli YT channel is a good source for resource for finding possible candidates for building a hackintoshes.

The Mazeman · Jun 8, 2020

5teezo said: ↑

I can't fuck with apple no more.
Click to expand...

Unless some daw making company creates a daw that we can boot right into, both mac os and windows are equally terrible for performance !

fritzm · Jun 8, 2020

Buy the MacBook Pro. Less tinkering, more time making music!

tzzsmk · Jun 8, 2020

buzzonit said: ↑

Hello to all! I am producer deciding a new MacBook Pro, I’ve been using a 2010 for 6 years it’s time for a new one, I’ve been thinking about the MacBook Pro 16inch 64ram i9, could anybody give me any insight if I should or not buy or any advice on what to buy? I only use MacBook for 10 years I can not use Windows, so please no window comments. Thank you for your time.
Click to expand...

actually I've been taking care of future planning in our audio industry, so I can give some useful insights hopefully:
1) moving from 2010 model, even if you buy weakest current MBP, you'll see a noticeable performance boost
2) the new 16" MBP is well built device (compared to previous macbooks) - better keyboard, better cooling, max battery you can legally have in laptop in plane etc.. - from this point, I'd definitely stay away from new 13" MBP which is cheaper (because of no dedicated graphics chip) but does overheat in first place
3) CPU spec-wise you need to decide on thermal compromise - more cores is better, but they will heat up more, so you'll end up with its performance being pushed down within few minutes anyway - I'd say the price difference isn't huge, but don't expect any magic with i9 over i7 - also do note price of "weaker" 16" model with topped i9 is slightly lower than having i9 model topped with i9 (maybe mistake/trickery on Apple site?)
4) RAM spec-wise this ultimately comes down to what you make use of, obviously you can't upgrade later, so more is better, if the price is worth it it's up to you - I would personally go with "only" 32GB ram and rather second computer running Vienna Ensemble Pro server, specifically for virtual instruments offloading, in which case maybe something like MacMini slave with user-upgradeable ram (up to 64GB) would be better choice imo, while retaining portability
5) for storage, always keep in mind it can die and you loose entire content, so I'd say 1TB is reasonable sweetspot nowadays - if you need more, then you have too many projects unfinished at once (and buying external Thunderbolt 3 NVME drive like Samsung X5 offers better price/capacity), and if you can need less, then you are not using enough software ;)
6) new MacBook means you'll be forced to use MacOS Catalina, zero chance to downgrade (!), you should carefully make sure every software and hardware you use is compatible (Logic will indeed work perfect, but many plugins or audio interfaces may not), from this point of view, buying new Mac during summer, before next MacOS launches (usually in autumn) is safe pick
7) connectivity - new MBP means Thunderbolt 3 with USB Type-C connectors - very versatile, but you'll probably need dongles for everything, and personally I don't think the Type-C connector is as sturdy as older Thunderbolt or regular USB, so keep an eye on desk clutter..

few words about hackintosh - I personally love my desktop hacky workstation, started few years back with El Capitan, skipped Sierra, now on High Sierra which is rock solid despite having X99 chipset which was never supported by Apple at all, yet I'm stuck with it because of my nVidia graphics, luckily I don't use Logic or FinalCut, so far everything else works well on MacOS 10.13.6..
but attempting laptop hacky is basically a no-go, I do have old good MBP 13" 2012 (i7, 16GB ram, 500GB SSD + 1TB HDD, no optical drive) for recording outside (usually around 30 tracks max) because it just works reliably and I don't need to worry about anything (after recently replacing thermal paste myself, temps are now back to 60-80°C instead 80-100°C before), and in the long run you don't really save that much money (for reference, just 1TB NVME Samsung 970 Pro costs around 400$ and many older laptops don't even offer NVME bus onboard)

5teezo · Jun 8, 2020

The Mazeman said: ↑

Unless some daw making company creates a daw that we can boot right into, both mac os and windows are equally terrible for performance !
Click to expand...

It exists already. It's called Akai MPC. ;)

5teezo · Jun 8, 2020

Wohoh, not so fast

1. The "future proofinf" strategies for Notebooks are pretty limited compared to desktop computers anyway. But with Apple they don't exist at all since you cannot upgrade the CPU, RAM and SSD down the road.

2. Apple has a strict policy to how long a device is supported with hardware parts for repair (5 years max, after that it's labeled vintage and you won't get parts). I've been there. I had a MacBook Pro late 2008 which pretty much was dead around 2013.

3. Planned obsolescence in Software: Apple puts Software restrictions into macOS, so after about 5 years you can no longer install the latest version of macOS -even if it might be fully capable of runing the latest version of macOS. dosdude1 macOS patcher project is proof of that.

4.The moment you can no longer install Logic because it requires a newer version of macOS which you cannot upgrade to because your system identifier is not in the list of supported hardware, your so called "plans" go out the window.

5.If you want a future proof computer system for music production you build a desktop pc with dual boot Mac os and windows (and definitely not Linux!). Since Apple will leave Intel behind and use their own CPUs in the future, which is rumored o be based on ARM architecture that smartphones use, Apple will become obsolete for pros at that point anyway because it is a horrible CPU instruction set for professional work like media production.

Most Apple users usually don't care about, because they are generally not tech savvy, but more advanced users who know a little bit more about computer technology know this.

tzzsmk said: ↑

actually I've been taking care of future planning in our audio industry, so I can give some useful insights hopefully:
1) moving from 2010 model, even if you buy weakest current MBP, you'll see a noticeable performance boost
2) the new 16" MBP is well built device (compared to previous macbooks) - better keyboard, better cooling, max battery you can legally have in laptop in plane etc.. - from this point, I'd definitely stay away from new 13" MBP which is cheaper (because of no dedicated graphics chip) but does overheat in first place
3) CPU spec-wise you need to decide on thermal compromise - more cores is better, but they will heat up more, so you'll end up with its performance being pushed down within few minutes anyway - I'd say the price difference isn't huge, but don't expect any magic with i9 over i7 - also do note price of "weaker" 16" model with topped i9 is slightly lower than having i9 model topped with i9 (maybe mistake/trickery on Apple site?)
4) RAM spec-wise this ultimately comes down to what you make use of, obviously you can't upgrade later, so more is better, if the price is worth it it's up to you - I would personally go with "only" 32GB ram and rather second computer running Vienna Ensemble Pro server, specifically for virtual instruments offloading, in which case maybe something like MacMini slave with user-upgradeable ram (up to 64GB) would be better choice imo, while retaining portability
5) for storage, always keep in mind it can die and you loose entire content, so I'd say 1TB is reasonable sweetspot nowadays - if you need more, then you have too many projects unfinished at once (and buying external Thunderbolt 3 NVME drive like Samsung X5 offers better price/capacity), and if you can need less, then you are not using enough software ;)
6) new MacBook means you'll be forced to use MacOS Catalina, zero chance to downgrade (!), you should carefully make sure every software and hardware you use is compatible (Logic will indeed work perfect, but many plugins or audio interfaces may not), from this point of view, buying new Mac during summer, before next MacOS launches (usually in autumn) is safe pick
7) connectivity - new MBP means Thunderbolt 3 with USB Type-C connectors - very versatile, but you'll probably need dongles for everything, and personally I don't think the Type-C connector is as sturdy as older Thunderbolt or regular USB, so keep an eye on desk clutter..

few words about hackintosh - I personally love my desktop hacky workstation, started few years back with El Capitan, skipped Sierra, now on High Sierra which is rock solid despite having X99 chipset which was never supported by Apple at all, yet I'm stuck with it because of my nVidia graphics, luckily I don't use Logic or FinalCut, so far everything else works well on MacOS 10.13.6..
but attempting laptop hacky is basically a no-go, I do have old good MBP 13" 2012 (i7, 16GB ram, 500GB SSD + 1TB HDD, no optical drive) for recording outside (usually around 30 tracks max) because it just works reliably and I don't need to worry about anything (after recently replacing thermal paste myself, temps are now back to 60-80°C instead 80-100°C before), and in the long run you don't really save that much money (for reference, just 1TB NVME Samsung 970 Pro costs around 400$ and many older laptops don't even offer NVME bus onboard)
Click to expand...

Cube Sixty-Three · Jun 8, 2020

Brother, go for the base model of Macbook Pro 16" you will not regret it, save money! I'm the type that runs powerful plugins even acustica audio and it handles it well. Don't waste money on maxed out models.

Mykal · Jun 8, 2020

You can not use Window Anyways ..... like others have said it's best to go with a newer version of a Mac Pro. I would avoid any of the MacBooks, they tend to get hot. Try recording a simple 4 man band live for a few hrs and it turns into a shit show because the Macbooks I have ever had always overheated and I never can get the last few songs. Never again. I lost a lot of money because I was not able to record the whole show

Last edited: Jun 8, 2020

Valnar · Jun 8, 2020

Rahull said: ↑

If u are just looking for a stable rock solid device,go for any i7 or i9,ssd and 32gig ram.
Click to expand...

tbh i feel more and more that 32GB ram is not futureproof anymore looking at the giant kontakt libraries... but on the other hand, if you dont do much library based music and work with few tracks in general even 16gb would be sufficient enough, it really depends on the genre

signalflow · Jun 8, 2020

I have a Mac pro (2009) and a Asus Rog i7 laptop Hackintosh. Like most people here, I agree. Save your money and build a Hackintosh. My $800 Asus Rog hackintosh laptop is as good or better than what was available in terms of specs at that time + I can upgrade hdd, memory ect...

Don't get me wrong because I love Mac and can't get away from the os however the prices Mac is starting to charge for thier machines is just insanity. Next desktop build will be a Hackintosh or just upgrade the old Mac Pro I have to the max.

Area51 · Jun 8, 2020

apple is just bad. buy a laptop with windows.

fritzm · Jun 8, 2020

Yes, after visiting NAMM 2020 and seeing Macs and iPads as far as the eyes could see, and hardly a PC in site, just get a PC. Because ALL those vendors and Devs are totally stupid idiots. joke.

Area51 · Jun 8, 2020

fritzm said: ↑

Yes, after visiting NAMM 2020 and seeing Macs and iPads as far as the eyes could see, and hardly a PC in site, just get a PC. Because ALL those vendors and Devs are totally stupid idiots. joke.
Click to expand...

I agree. everyone buying and developing apple products is stupid

evolasme · Jun 8, 2020

Apple died with Jobs

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