Mac mini for tracking session

[arsis]

Hey guys, I'm preparing for a pre-production session in which I'll be flying from L.A. to Atlanta. I essentially need to be able to carry on a studio. I have a Mac mini that I use for general office/email etc. It's a core 2 duo 2.3 Ghz with 2 gigs of ram and a 1ghz bus speed. Should this suffice for simultaneous 16 tracks in via two 828 MK1? (I have a firewire hub on the way) No efx or headphone monitoring? I'll be recording to a 1 terabyte USB 2.0 drive using DP7. 24bit/44.1

I'm planning to use it as a simple 16 track recorder. I'll edit and mix on my Mac Pro when I get back. Any "gotchas" that I should be on the look out for?

Thanks, Brian

[NazRat]

As far as the processor goes, I can do 18 tracks on a G4 Powerbook without missing a beat, so I think you're good. That's using an 828mkII with additional 8 channels via ADAT and an external firewire drive. I use AudioDesk to keep it lean, but DP has worked just as well. The USB drive is the wild card here. Set up your 16 track session and hit record to see if anything chokes. There's really no difference if it's recording/writing the flat line.

[n2mpujack]

Hey guys, I'm preparing for a pre-production session in which I'll be flying from L.A. to Atlanta. I essentially need to be able to carry on a studio. I have a Mac mini that I use for general office/email etc. It's a core 2 duo 2.3 Ghz with 2 gigs of ram and a 1ghz bus speed. Should this suffice for simultaneous 16 tracks in via two 828 MK1? (I have a firewire hub on the way) No efx or headphone monitoring? I'll be recording to a 1 terabyte USB 2.0 drive using DP7. 24bit/44.1

I'm planning to use it as a simple 16 track recorder. I'll edit and mix on my Mac Pro when I get back. Any "gotchas" that I should be on the look out for?

Thanks, Brian

Get 8 gig ram - the machine will breathe a lot easier. Don't forget that the video ram actually comes from the main system ram - there's no dedicated video ram. I have a Mac Mini and the machine really benefited from the extra ram.

Another thing and this is more airplane-wise:
I don't think they'll allow all this stuff as a carry-on from a size and weight point of view. You WILL want to check with your carrier before you go any further with this. I'm assuming you have a video monitor at the place you're going to. Don't forget any display port adapters of course.

[arsis]

Thanks guys. No time to get the ram. I'll just have to test it tonight. The ram will be a definate addition soon. Maybe when I get there I can find some. Anybody else here using a mini with DP7?

[n2mpujack]

Thanks guys. No time to get the ram. I'll just have to test it tonight. The ram will be a definate addition soon. Maybe when I get there I can find some. Anybody else here using a mini with DP7?

Not using mine with DP7 but DP6 so I can't answer that directly. But the one thing I do like is this sucker is quiet. Assuming you don't have the fan speed issue where it runs at high speed all the time (that's usually due to the fan connector not being seated correctly) you'll have no issues with sound isolation.

[arsis]

Preliminary testing went as smooth as I could have imagined. I'm using a Lacie minimus 1TB drive that I got on sale at Newegg. I'm running two 828s thru a Belkin hub (FW400 to FW800 port). 16 channels in at 24bit/44.1k was smooth sailing. No processing just recording and the performance monitor was barely peaking at 1/2 from time to time. Looks like its going to be a sweet little mobile rig. I still only have the 2 gigs of ram but I won't be editing or mixing on this machine.

[mikehalloran]

> Get 8 gig ram - <

And put it where? Is there a 2.3G Mac Mini that can take 8G RAM?

[n2mpujack]

> Get 8 gig ram - <

And put it where? Is there a 2.3G Mac Mini that can take 8G RAM?

If you're talking about the 2.26 Ghz Mini (late 2009 3,1) Apple says it'll take 4 gig but you can actually put in 8 gig. Actually, any Mini from that model on can take 8 gig. Info comes from MacTracker.