New MBP specs and advantages?

[stubbsonic]

I'm considering a new MBP purchase. I'm weighing the cost/benefit of pro vs max, and added RAM options. The new machine would be my main studio machine, and my current 2012 MBP would shift to portable/remote uses (lessons, gigs, out-and-about).

My current demands are modest. I don't do huge orchestrations or have big track counts, or use massive amounts of plugins. But sometimes gigs come along that rev up the fan, so to speak.

I have a couple questions about the potential advantages to having lots of headroom, power-wise.

1. With a more powerful CPU does that mean that I can drop a buffer size down very low and have super low latency for virtual instruments and effects? I'm thinking about things like convolution reverbs, kontakt, reaktor, etc.

2. Will the added power (and/or added RAM - to say, 64 GB) have any noticeable affect on my experience if I'm not pushing things super hard? E.g., might it mean the fan(s) is/are more or less likely to kick in for basic tracking, etc.?

3. How does having beefier CPU, RAM and Graphics affect battery consumption for low-impact tasks? Will it be lower than it would be on a less capable machine?

4. When I purchased my current 2012 MBP, my choices for CPU/RAM/SSD specs seemed like overkill at the time, but as I enter year 10, I have zero regrets, as this machine as performed and kept up quite well for me. It's not super fast, but it feels "normal". Should I consider the same kind of future-proofing specs for this purchase?

5. With regards to DP, I know I can expect some roughness as it's a newer OS, but are there any general thoughts about how DP would work with a snappy M1 Max (for example)?

Thanks!

[HCMarkus]

Unless you really need/want a laptop for the studio, you might want to hold off a few days... rumors are Apple may well be releasing a Mac Mini with the higher-horsepower Pro/Max SOC. I've got my fingers crossed.

1. Yes.

2. One huge advantage of the Apple Silicon SOCs is they sip power and, as a result, run much cooler than prior comparable CPU/GPUs. Fans are pretty unlikely to kick in unless the machines are really pushed.

3. See #2.

4. Do you need the 64GB (large orchestral templates, typically) of RAM or plan to do a lot of video editing? The M1 Pro 10 core variant is a very potent audio machine.

5. The reports I've seen are promising. Anyone? Anyone? Ferris?

[stubbsonic]

Thanks, HCM.

A Max'ed Mini could be a very welcome option-- the extra connectivity, lack of battery concerns, and form-factor are pluses.

I'm realizing that I've appreciated the uninterruptible nature of the laptop's battery as our power occasionally flickers on/off. The option to shift the older laptop from main studio duty to out-and-about duty is appealing-- which I couldn't do with a mini.

But yea, I will seriously weigh that mini option when/if that news drops.

Thanks so much for your advice!!

[HCMarkus]

You're Welcome!

Note that a UPS adequate to support a Mac Mini and monitor is not expensive, plus you can plug your audio interface into it.

I've got a big ol' Cyberpower PFC powering my current Mac Pro. Also on the UPS: Cable Modem and Router, so the Internet survives outages (at least for awhile). A second, smaller UPS takes care of the interface and monitors (video, not speakers, or course).

[stubbsonic]

Will definitely factor that in, if I go that direction. Thanks.

[mikehalloran]

The one advantage that large amounts of RAM offers is the ability to keep many apps open simultaneously without going to the well that is drive space. That said, the integrated RAM of the M chips is so much more efficient that you don’t need as much as you used to with discrete RAM as on Intel machines.

Every once in awhile, I will open Activity Monitor just to see how much I’m actually using. I keep a lot of browser tabs open and that is normally my greatest RAM hog—even when editing video. I never max out the 128GB on my iMac Pro so I’m thinking hat, when the time comes, 64GB will be way more than enough when I go to Apple Silicon. That said, I’m doing some beta testing of other apps on my wife’s MBAir in conjunction with DP 11.04 and Premiere Elements. Its 16GB onboard is not breaking a sweat.

[stubbsonic]

Thanks MH. I probably will kick down the extra beans for the added RAM, not that I'd need it for a while, but again, it's the future proofing to make the machine last me longer in use-- since I likely won't get a machine again for yet another 10 years! Making a jump from 16 GB on Intel, to 64 GB on M1 should make things run very very fast. And perhaps Kontakt will make effective use of that RAM.

[stubbsonic]

I ordered a new M1 Max MBP and I went for the 64 GB RAM upgrade. I do hope this proves to be as long-lasting/durable as this 2012 MBP has been.

I also hope that the fans don't come on when I'm tracking. Perhaps with the processer overkill, I won't be pushing it very hard during tracking with mics.

[mikehalloran]

I ordered a new M1 Max MBP and I went for the 64 GB RAM upgrade. I do hope this proves to be as long-lasting/durable as this 2012 MBP has been.

I also hope that the fans don't come on when I'm tracking. Perhaps with the processer overkill, I won't be pushing it very hard during tracking with mics.

Way cool!

You should be good. Reports about the new Studio are that the Ultra version will weigh 2 Lb more than the Max. The 128 will ship with a copper heat sink while the 64's is aluminum — everything else, fans etc. is the same. This tidbit also explains why there was no MBP Ultra announced on Tuesday.

The rumor mills are going nuts that the M2 wasn't announced as so many had speculated. I'm guessing that Apple hasn't figured out how they'll get it cool (energy efficient) enough to put in a laptop — yet. Heat = wasted battery capacity in a laptop.

[stubbsonic]

You should be good. Reports about the new Studio are that the Ultra version will weigh 2 Lb more than the Max. The 128 will ship with a copper heat sink while the 64's is aluminum — everything else, fans etc. is the same. This tidbit also explains why there was no MBP Ultra announced on Tuesday.

The rumor mills are going nuts that the M2 wasn't announced as so many had speculated. I'm guessing that Apple hasn't figured out how they'll get it cool (energy efficient) enough to put in a laptop — yet. Heat = wasted battery capacity in a laptop.

Ah. That makes sense. Adding 2 lbs to a laptop would be a deal breaker, as would having to put potholders on your lap to render video.

Seems like they are really pushing this SoC to new limits. I wonder if the M2 will also not require developers to revise code as they were touting with the Ultra.

[stubbsonic]

I just saw that a company called GPU Audio is providing an early release of an FIR Convolution Reverb that uses the GPU to do some fast processing with super low latency by employing GPU processing for audio. This release is a test plugin for PC with an NVIDIA discreet GPU, only. They say it is part of a larger suite of plugins that will be released in a couple months. They do mention support of Mac OS next year.

It raises interesting questions about the fun possibilities with all those GPU cores on the M1 chip that would otherwise be underutilized by us audio people.

[dix]

I just saw that a company called GPU Audio is providing an early release of an FIR Convolution Reverb that uses the GPU to do some fast processing with super low latency by employing GPU processing for audio. This release is a test plugin for PC with an NVIDIA discreet GPU, only. They say it is part of a larger suite of plugins that will be released in a couple months. They do mention support of Mac OS next year.

It raises interesting questions about the fun possibilities with all those GPU cores on the M1 chip that would otherwise be underutilized by us audio people.

That's quite interesting. I didn't even know that was possible. I got the M1 Max for the higher RAM, and have no real need for the additional GPU cores it comes with - be able to put the cores to use would be a big selling point for plugins that were able to access them

[stubbsonic]

That's quite interesting. I didn't even know that was possible. I got the M1 Max for the higher RAM, and have no real need for the additional GPU cores it comes with - be able to put the cores to use would be a big selling point for plugins that were able to access them

GPU Audio's idea to put convolution out as a test case is clever because convolution is famously CPU heavy, particularly with very long reverb IR's. To provide convolution on all those GPU cores with super low latency is a crazy good idea, and IMHO the best possible first use of it.

I'm imagining being able to run 6 or 7 IRs of varying lengths without having to give CPU a second thought. (With the M1, use of the GPU cores might not even be necessary for my humble needs.) Still, very clever to get a jump on this for us audio nerds.

[dix]

Looks like no Mac GPU Audio plugins until 2023 unfortunately, but still exciting.

https://earlyaccess.gpu.audio

[stubbsonic]

My new MBP will arrive next week. I'm weighing doing a clean install of essentials, vs using Migration Assistant.

With the clean install (fresh individual installs of each piece of software), I have the option of weeding out non-essentials and older stuff. But it will take lots of time & attention. I'm leaning this way, for OCD reasons and perhaps some practical reasons.

With the migration assistant, it might be more turn-key and fast. Potentially, I just switch over to the machine and then discover which things require updates or futzing as I go. But I'm concerned things will go pear-shaped and require lots of troubleshooting.

Any opinions?

[EDIT 1: doing a little googling, I see that this topic is amply discussed in various mac forums. Lot's to read there.]

[EDIT 2: Found this kind of interesting option:
"...a hybrid look-see approach. ... I'm going to install the latest Monterey on an external SSD and Migration Assistant my world to that. I'll update everything as far as I can to be Monterey-compatible... I'll boot off this external SSD and get some idea of the functionality (or otherwise) of my world. I know its not the same as running off the internal super-fast SSD but it'll give me an insight into the carnage (or otherwise) of what works and what doesn't. Monterey-compatible isn't the same as M1-compatible, granted."]