Without entering the debate of which is best (there are specialized websites with professional benchmarks if anyone is interested), I do feel compelled to point out that Apple phased out Intel chips over 5 years ago.

"The Apple M1 chip was officially introduced on November 10, 2020."

 

Every single musician/producer I know is on Mac, but not a single one of us has ever asked the other why we were on Macs. We just are.

It's only Microsoft Windows users who are periodically up in arms asking this question. Mac users don't even think about it.

That said, I was not always on Mac. I was on Windows for 10 years before Apple bought Logic, so I can tell you what the benefits of switching to Mac were and have been for me.

I had the good fortune of using top of the line (priciest) models by Dell, Toshiba and Sony. Over the years, I upgraded each time to go from 14" to 15" screen, 16" to 18" and finally I got a 20" behemoth of a 'laptop.'

Thing is, I travel all around the world: major cities in Asia and Europe mostly, but also Australia, South America, and Africa (even to the Sahara once). My point here is not yay me, but support: I found myself multiple times needing support, and not able to get it. Luckily, I'm technically savvy, and knew to travel with Windows and Office install disks, etc, and to troubleshoot issues. And issues I had aplenty.

To answer your question about "the benefits over regular PC" I just got tired of having to fight with Windows, disable 20+ services, install newer drivers, etc. Plug and play - my ass. Yet, when Apple bought eMagic and I had to switch to Mac, I was not happy. I was fuming.

But all my friends were on Mac, so I switched. And guess what the first benefit was? Plug and play. I literally plugged in my RME Firewire 800 interface, and voila. No fighting with whatever services, no drivers, no hassles, no headaches. Macs are plug and play, ironically.

Here's another benefit: Apple Stores. Got hardware, battery, cracked screen issue? Go to the Apple Store. There are 535 Apple stores in the world, half that many in the US alone. How many Windows or Microsoft stores are there? Zero. (Microsoft permanently closed all of its 83 to 116 physical retail stores in June 2020). There are 7 Google stores in the world, in case you're wondering why I have an iPhone.

Ultimately, the better question to ask is: "How many Mac producers or musicians have switched to Windows?"

 

Always been PC because I want hardware flexibility.

And I don't really like Apple's cultish ideology, cute UI and idiosyncratic file management. Their UI/UX workflow choices and handholding is very childish and consumer oriented personally, I have a work Mac for some account stuff and it feels like a toy.

Not that i like Microsoft as a company either.

 

Last edited by a moderator: Feb 18, 2026

The real question is, how many new customers will buy which operating system? The majority will buy Windows.

I don't understand your argument about trouble-free installation. The internet and our forum are full of installation problems. If I have a Windows problem, I contact the manufacturer of the relevant hardware or software online and receive free support.

I can't understand your argument about the Apple Stores, nor the fact that Microsoft closed its stores. And your joyful claim of seven Google Stores worldwide for your overpriced smartphone is also more than questionable. Am I supposed to pay for the flight or train ticket there myself?
When I buy an operating system, I don't want to have to travel long distances and pay for the trip myself if there's a problem.

The most widely sold and used operating system is Windows, and it's also much cheaper than Mac.
With Mac, everything is somehow expensive. People used to say Apple was the brand of the rich.
They're romanticizing their Mac world; it would be disastrous to admit they were wrong.
They're in love with their Macs. Criticism isn't tolerated; instead, they praise them to the skies.

 

Finally a sane approach!
And easy to answer:
Midi and DTP: Atari
Graphics and Video: Amiga

//Edit// and for the OG DungeonMaster experience: Atari

 

I loved DungeonMaster! The graphics were incredible. I worked on a couple of well known Amiga games when i was 19. Great period for home computers, very exciting time.

 

There's a compelling reason for audio editing and recording on a PC: DSD.

Recording and editing aren't possible on a Mac—the operating system (Core Audio) doesn't support native DSD streaming.
You'd have to re-encode everything PCM if you wanted to edit it on a Mac—and that's precisely what you don't want when recording DSD.

Unfortunately, Pyramix is the only option for this - on a PC.

Another reason to use both systems in parallel: to leverage their respective advantages and avoid their disadvantages.
That's what I call dialectics over ideology! ;)

 

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I started with PC, but moved to Mac for its "ecosystem." Garageband and Logic Pro 9 gave me the instruments, effects and loops to really get going. Then I got into third-party instruments and effects. Then Logic Pro X, of course. I've familiarized myself with other DAWs, however, at least to compare their workflows, and to assess my monkey-branching options to Windows or Linux when Mac might become too proprietary.

Until that point, I'm sticking with Mac but hanging back on the trailing edge: 2017 iMac with OS 13.x.x installed. Although I fully aware of the advancements in OS and the corresponding updates in software, I realized that there is nothing to be gained, at this point, by upgrading hardware in order to accommodate newer software. Software has been developed to exceed my needs and capabilities. No compatibility issues, either. And I could exactly replace my iMac for $300, from eBay.

Still have one eye on the door, however, and keeping up with the cross-platform DAWs, just in case. Apple looks like it might go subscription-only in the foreseeable future.

 

If you install 32-bit Windows 7 or 32-bit Windows 10 via Boot Camp on an Intel Mac, then:

• 16-bit Windows apps will run
• DOS apps will run
• 32-bit apps will run
• No VM required

Because you’re running true 32-bit Windows with NTVDM built in.

From the software side, that’s no different than installing 32-bit Windows on a Dell, HP, or custom PC. Boot Camp isn’t emulation. It’s native hardware access. The Mac just becomes a PC when you boot Windows.

There are ways around everything anyway. This is when you go to local computer store and spend $20 for a machine to control whatever Sputnik-era devices there is no workaround for.

 

I don't use "i" ANYTHING,(especially i-Kok!). Apple is the Great Satan. Of course, that's just my opinion.....YMMV.
That being said, perhaps my opinion was partially formed by the company I keep. There are bands that initially
turned me off because of their fan base. I neither wish to hang out with Juggalos or smugass "I know something
that you don't" Apple fanbois.......LOL!!

 

I've used Macs for over 40 years. Back in the days when all the audio in music production was external, either platform worked OK but there were more options available on the Mac. Once processors got fast enough for digital audio, Mac was the only sensible option because the PC clock was just too unstable, until Windows NT in the mid-nineties - after that both platforms were workable (lets forget about Vista) but in general there was more development on the pro end for Mac. That has evened out somewhat over the years, but most professionals seem to prefer Macs, more for the interface than for performance. One arguable advantage of Macs is that the hardware and the OS are products of the same developer, so OS compatibility issues are never there, though in my experience that's only been a problem with very cheap PCs. Bottom line is that these days both are stable and fairly reliable - which platform you're on matters less than processor speed and available RAM. With so many models (esp laptops) now having RAM hardwired into the motherboard, it's wise to pay up from for more RAM than you think you'll need, especially if you use a lot of sample instruments.

 

Strange coincidences! The first assembler I coded in was 6502. When I studied electrical engineering, it was really boring up until the day we had a lecture on FFT's. That blew my mind! Finally something really useful. When I did my post-graduate, the digital audio computer revolution was just about to happen, and I was coding samplers (8-bit then 16-bit) using assembler and interfacing with bespoke hardware. I used to fall asleep at night dreaming about counting clock cycles!

 

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To every point - EVERY point - you make I call bullsh1t. The exact opposite is true. On which planet do you live again?

 

30+ years PC, not a Microsoft fan but well it went this way jobwise.
Short excursions with Linux and MAC over the years.
If i had to, i could always switch, some work but possible.

 

The choice is really made for me by the type of stuff I use my computer for. If all I did was produce music I might have a hard choice to make, but because I do stuff like gaming, machine learning amongst other things I need a nvidia GPU. I have a separate Windows install for my music production for the most stability and low latency, I also use Ghost Spectre version which strips a huge amount of the dead weight and overhead. This shouldn't be necessary of course. But, if you are a Windows user who doesn't have a dedicated machine, I do highly recommend at least having two installs, one for everyday, one for music.

 

What does ARM have to do with any of it? Buying a new Mac does not mean getting rid of the old one.

32bit Windows 7 is as old as anyone reasonable is going to install unless they want a 98se/XP machine for god knows what reason. I'm not running an ATM. The only old hardware that I use even remotely regularly are my e-mus, akai s2800, and Kawai K4. So I have no reason to need 16 bit apps for anything. With ZuluSCSI and SD cards, I don't even use scsi anymore. I only have one synth that I have an old OS for, and even that has been handled by a newer Midi Editor/Librarian.

What old hardware do you have that you think I might not be able to get working if I had one?

My DAW is a Mac. I'm using a win10 xlite pc for an audio plugins audiogridder server for r2r releases. Unlike most people here, I have multiple machines with different operating systems on them. Microsoft Business apps like Power BI, Excel, Access, and others are not great on Macs; but that is probably just more about MS making badly ported versions for Mac. Same for Kali, putting it on Mac is possible, but it is also basically an afterthought.

The part about these discussions which usually makes them pointless, is we have a userbase involved that only know how to use one operating system. I can't think of a single person I know who does not know how to use Windows "Adequately". Most Windows users don't know Linux at all, although a decent percentage claim to, and it runs on the same hardware. All you have to do is find some threads from some "new to Mac" users and it becomes very obvious how alien MacOS is to the majority of the population. "I tried it once and didn't like it" is typical of most people who claim to know what they are talking about. In 5 minutes, it's very obvious they have almost no clue. It probably takes 3 months for most people to know up from down. A large portion of Mac users do not use MacOS because they do not know Windows. They do know it and that is the reason they will never go back to it.

 

Last edited: Feb 18, 2026

First, kindly do not lord-like over a legitimate question, or use whataboutism to invalidate my life experience and perspective please. I know some bitter forum participants here spew napalm and hatred at a few of us professionals but you're a moderator (I thought) - I would expect a higher standard of civility from you.

Second, yes, we can look at sales numbers across the board - but the context here (of both the OP question and my answer) was and is music producers. Using whataboutism to shift the perspective and therefore context to gain the illusion of an "advantage" implies you believe we are at odds, or adversaries. We are not.

1) There's not much I can do if you don't understand; and 2) I'm happy you "receive free support." This was never my experience - in 10+ years as a heavy duty 24/7 Windows user. (I can go into detail off line if you're interested). I do hope you understand that I can only speak to and write about my own experience - not yours.

Again, 1) there's not much I can do if you don't understand; and 2) your statements about flights and train tickets and long distances are again using whataboutism to shift the perspective of and denigrate my experience. Again, I do hope you understand that I can only speak to and write about my own experience - not yours.

Again, the the context here (of both the OP question and my answer) was and is music producers - not "the most widely sold" or "used operating system," or the price (Mac OS is free by the way - as are all Apple software updates, including Logic, Mainstage and FCP).

And I can't speak for others, but I'm not in love with a computer - Mac or Dell or Sony - any more than I'm in love with a car, or romanticizing anything. And I'm first to criticize anything I'm using - go on any Mac, Apple or Logic forum and feast your PC soul on the criticisms there.

But, and I hope you're old and emotionally mature enough to appreciate this: I don't speak for everyone. I can only speak to and write about my own experience - not yours, not "romanticizers" of any ilk - just my own direct and indirect experience (what my fellow producers and musicians say to me, or discuss in my presence). I would've hoped this would be implied in anything discussed here. Evidently it is not.