2018 Mac Mini Performance?

[cyrano]

Originally Posted by serr

Everything back to late 2008 still runs the latest OSX. (10.14 currently)

I'm sorry, Serr, but that's not exactly true. There's one 2008 Macbook that runs Mojave, but the 2009 MB Pro's are limited to El Capital. I don't know about other machines besides the MB / MB Pro range. I'd have to look that up.

Of course, there's DosDude's patch. But that's unsupported. And I wouldn't advise it, as there's very little reason to use a more recent system for audio.

In fact, the only reason I can come up with, is to run a recent browser. For Safari you need the latest and greatest, but FF runs on much older systems. And Chrome from EC on.

And a second reason might be if you run an iOS device and use the cloud and appstore. That's a pita with Mavericks and next to impossible with Snow.

Hec, if it weren't for the browsers, I might still be running Snow.

[thehipcola]

Originally Posted by MRMJP

I'm glad you started this thread. It led me to solve the one beef I have with the 2018 Mac Mini i7.

I found an app that easily turns off Turbo Boost and can be customized to automatically turn off (or on) when certain apps are running.

What app is this? sounds like a great tool to keep handy!

Thx!

[MRMJP]

Originally Posted by thehipcola

What app is this? sounds like a great tool to keep handy!

Thx!

Believe it or not, it's called "Turbo Boost Switcher"

https://www.rugarciap.com/turbo-boos...iuApfbTigGiNHc

You can turn it on/off globally or have it automatically turn on just when certain apps are open. Since turning it on, the fans have been dead silent when doing audio work which is the only time they would really kick on and I haven't noticed a loss in performance when working or rendering files. Good stuff.

See Screenshot:

[JSMastering]

Originally Posted by serr

They started resting on their laurels when Jobs died. The security is all about preventing repairs to try to make the product disposable and generate return sales. If they were offering the heavy security models for the likes of CEOs or CIA operatives - where NOW you really would want to treat a $2000+ item as disposable for security reasons and performance is secondary - and normal performance focused models for the rest of us, that might be reasonable. And of course this is a mental exercise of fitting the product design I see into some logical scenario. They don't seem to be courting that market at all. To keep drinking the koolaid at this point and say "No... no... they're doing this for my security... and it's totally reasonable to pay this much for that and throw it away in a couple years when it breaks..." This is Apple riding out their popularity with ridiculous expensive but disposable products. The build quality and all the logic board design faults since 2013 are more of what you'd expect from a Dell from Worst Purchase.

That their now 7 year or older products outperform everything since (from port configurations, modibility, repairability, and performance vs price) is pretty ridiculous.

At some point before too long we WILL have more disposable computing devices just like what happened with the calculator and fussing over old hardware concepts will be a moot point. We're not there yet and further, Apple is making this artificial for no reason but to drive up prices and shorten the life of the product.

Well, there are a lot of other issues beginning to crop up.

I don't mind Apple's upgrade cycle. You definitely don't need to chase every new release, and I never did. Except when things broke. FWIW, a majority of my Mac upgrades were free because of major issues covered by the warranty.

But the last good ones being that old is about a no-go. If you've still got one, I say use it 'till it dies and then see what you need. Buying one that old today...doesn't make sense to me.

I switched to Hackintoshes around 2012 or 2013, I think. That hackintosh was the best OS X experience I ever had. By far. There were some issues using a 4k monitor (which just worked under linux, after looking up the right modeline to use). But, that ended up being Apple not following specs and artificially crippling OS X...not a hardware issue.

I really wish I could still support them. I just can't.

That being said, I'm probably going to switch back to an iPhone at some point. Regardless of how much I disagree with Apple's direction, Google is unquestionably worse.

[thehipcola]

thanks for the app info!

Just spent a week at a cottage tracking various instruments and doing production work with my (new) 2014 MBP - very impressed with it's performance - using Apollo 8p and Reaper.

I think I might figure out how to get my FW UAD Satellite's and maybe even an external PCI enclosure for my UAD cards connected to this laptop and work from this for the time being for mix work - until the Mac Mini matures and I start getting the "all clear" signals from around the audio web. Someone posted elsewhere - UAD forum I think - that the various audio related kinks are nothing surprising and every new major OS change from Apple going back many years is similar experience out of the gate - and usually resolved in the first 3-6 months. Reassuring to hear that... guess I was a little too excited to buy the ultra new thing right away.

[o_e]

Originally Posted by cyrano

"Not supported" doesn't necessarily mean it doesn't run.

I can report that I'am running Logic 9 on MacOS 10.11.6 aka 'El Captain'
without any issues..

[serr]

Heh. I'd say with the state of Apple's OSX installers recently, Dosdude1 is to OSX like SWS is to Reaper. Even if the installer doesn't try to call your machine obsolete prematurely, his utility will let you download the installer file with no bs if Apple's server is crashed.

Kind of weird recommending a 7 or 8 year old machine, yes. But true Apple-like computers simply aren't made anymore. This post-Jobs stuff is garbage with a 3-5 year life. The last of the Jobs-era machines will run for 20 years if you take care of them. Do the math there.

OSX is still relevant and Linux is a little bleeding edge as far as the audio community and every software maker fully jumping on board. I say be a scavenger right now with the last of the Jobs-era Apple machines and hold out for DIY builds and Linux just a little longer unless you're tech comfortable and need a cutting edge spec machine.

Strangely, I don't feel like OSX is broken yet. (I know others disagree.) Cracks in the surface for sure! Almost certainly right around the corner. But it's not dead yet! Windows was always the walking dead of an OS. Dosdude1 seems to have a handle on the OSX installer bugs as well as extending the newer OSX versions to actually unsupported older machines.

"Unsupported" is old hardware that needs older drivers that are no longer being provided by the OS. "Planned obsolescence" is a machine with fully supported hardware but where the OS installer reads a system model number and disables itself. One of these things is not like the other.

Edit: In hindsight, that comparison is not right. Dosdude1 fixes bugs in OSX installers. SWS adds features to Reaper. It isn't a bug fix. So that's actually a bit rude in hindsight! Apologies!

[ivansc]

Originally Posted by o_e

I can report that I'am running Logic 9 on MacOS 10.11.6 aka 'El Captain'
without any issues..

Is that newer or older than Mavericks, which is what I am running Logic Pro 9 on? I was told Mavericks was the last reliable update for LP9 but would love to hear different, as everything else including my RME Babyface and my Focusrite Liquidmix32 works perfectly on it.

[cyrano]

It's newer.

Check for liquidmix drivers, tho...

[ivansc]

Yeah already knew about Liquid Mix & not that bothered, but I would rather like the option to update to the most recent version of OSX that WILL work with Logic Pro 9 given that it may help me actually sell the Mac Mini as and when I decide to.
My pal`s album has been mixed already (at Abbey Road, no less!!) but not mastered, so I am hanging on till we are sure we dont need to change anything.

[cyrano]

IIUC, you're planning on selling the Mini WITH the Logic Pro 9 license?

Personally, I'd separate those. The Logic 9 license won't bring much and the number of potential buyers will be far greater without it. Mini's sell well, over here.

Unless, of course, you already have a buyer lined up...