You can use benchmarks (or look them up) for cpu comparison:
https://www.cpu-monkey.com/en/compare_cpu-amd_ryzen_9_9900x-vs-amd_ryzen_9_9950x

Now the benchmark that is most similar to audio stuff is cinebench, and for us the multicore part ist the interesting one.
So in cinebench the 9900 is only 75% as fast as a 9950. In my country and the prices here that makes the more expensive one worth it.
Because its the same amount more expensive as it is more performant.

 

Yeah, thats the good thing about modern times. Its not like in the 90ies. CPUs have become so fast, they last quite some time.
I'm still on my trusty AMD 5950X and I don't see a reason to upgrade for some years to come.
So while saying "this rig is gonna last 10 years" sounds crazy at the first glance, it is in fact perfectly reasonable.

 

if you have the software and money to go in either direction without loss or hassle I would go with the AMD build. Me personally, got myself stuck deep in the apple ecosystem so switching back to pc right now would be like starting everything from scratch...so like I was saying, PERSONALLY Iplan to get the m4 Mac mini. Every other Mac is just damned overpriced. Since I've started using intel based Macs however the community for them musically has grown exponentially and I flipping love it...it used to be like crickets out there if you were looking for a free little utility to do some odd task to a midi file or something that is easy af to find for free on pc but on Mac you would have been lucky to find it at all and if you did it would cost MINIMUM 3$...they really nickel and dime you to death...

 

Most of the time, you can't really test the CPU's lifespan extensively because it's been upgraded repeatedly.
I think my CPU will outlive me. First the power supply, then the motherboard, then the RAM.

 

Mac user here, 2 laptops, 2 desktops. The highest I have is M3 Max Pro and M3 Max Ultra desktop.

(1) don’t buy anything below 1tb ssd and 24gb ram
(2) no matter what you do once in a while logic pro will stop and complain that there aren’t enough resources
(3) Logic is very bad at resource allocation, use Reaper

I still love logic and I am a Mac user (most times I only use 10-15 tracks with 2-5 plugins on each track), so for me Mac is okay, but I don’t know what it feels like to never have to worry about when Logic will suddenly stop.

By the way if someone knows how to optimise Macs and which processes to kill, let me know.

 

Melda works. You have to install the whole package and not install anything again. If you install any additional library separately it will revert back to demo. But if you install the whole K’ed package it will work.

 

I did install the whole package! But still it didn't work, I tried installing & uninstalling it like 4-5 times still no success. Everything opens in demo mode.

 

Oh sure, I didn't mean a decade without dying on one. I meant that IMHO you're right that when one buys a good system today he might get up to ten years of a decent usable machine. And that is something that was totally different pre 2000. Those fuckers NEVER were up to the task you bought them for (not even on day one) and half a year later a cpu twice as fast hit the shelfs.

 

I’m a proud (ab)user of Melda. All the stuff would have costed a million dollars to install. I think you need to have the right package. I will check which version I used from the sister site. Also I have SIP disabled, I don’t care. VR or HiCISO is the goat.

 

If you don't want to use programs that are only available on a Mac, don't get the Mac. You will not be happy with a 512gb storage space. 2tb is ok, but it is not a lot either, depending on what you do. If you have big sample libraries 2tb will be full soon as well, but you will be able to add storage to a PC a lot easier and cheaper than to the Mac Mini. Depending on the motherboard you have multiple m2 slots that you can use. Also adding more RAM or anything really will be easier and cheaper with a PC.
Also connecting multiple monitors to the Mac seems more difficult too. You will need to use some thunderbolt connectors with adapters I guess as you only have one HDMI connector.

 

I'll echo the 9900 over 9950 purely to save some bucks too if you decide on PC. CPU power is not going to be a problem with that series and Ableton. I use the 9900. I have never even had to flatten or freeze (explicitly to conserve power while writing) and I'm running 2xRME Digiface into it and not conservative about throwing unique fx instances around with OS engaged. Put the extra money in a graphics card. Far more performance gain than the diff between a 9900 and 9950, the graphic card will actively be used. The extra cpu performance, not so much.

Also, it's doubles as a portable sun. The pc has to be somewhere you can vent heat or otherwise has decent airflow. Not for the computers sake. It'll be fine. For your sake. 60c idle is normal. 95c under not quite but close heavy stress is normal. You will never be cold again.