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  #1  
Old 08-15-2022, 12:03 PM
NickSoundAuthentic NickSoundAuthentic is offline
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Default Anyone try M2 yet?

Hey everyone, currently running a M1 Mac mini just fine with Pro Tools, but will be getting a MacBook Pro 14 or 16 as the portability is becoming more important to me. I don't think I'd be able to make this move until the M2's are likely out for those models.

So, my question is that if anyone is running PT 2022 on an M2 Air or M2 MBP 13 currently and if there are any issues.

I know the cusp of tech is always kinda of sketchy for PT so would everyone suggest I scramble and find the cash for the current M1 Pro/Ultra series?

Thanks!
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  #2  
Old 08-15-2022, 12:45 PM
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Default Re: Anyone try M2 yet?

I have a fully loaded M1 mac mini here and waiting for a fully loaded M2 macbook air in few weeks. Sorry, have nothing to report but the bottleneck currently seems to be lack of native software.
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  #3  
Old 08-15-2022, 01:37 PM
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lesbrunn lesbrunn is offline
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Default Re: Anyone try M2 yet?

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Originally Posted by JFreak View Post
I have a fully loaded M1 mac mini here and waiting for a fully loaded M2 macbook air in few weeks. Sorry, have nothing to report but the bottleneck currently seems to be lack of native software.
Hey Janne. Though I'm currently using a 12th gen Windows system, I'm seriously attracted to the M2 because of the amazing reviews I've seen about M1. i seriously believe Apple Silicon is the way forward. How have you found your M1?

I know usage differs. Do you use lots of Midi and VIs? I do, and PT doesn't always co-operate. Guys who use audio exclusively usually have the best experience with PT. Even if you don't, my research has led me to believe that Apple Silicon is extremely efficient. PT is inefficient with CPU (compared with most other DAWs), so that always leads me to look for the most powerful systems available, to compensate.

Any useful information about this?
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  #4  
Old 08-15-2022, 09:36 PM
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Default Re: Anyone try M2 yet?

Most useful information I might share is that it seems Apple Silicon only requires half the memory footprint you have used to waste on Intels. In other words this 16GB memory behaves just as good as 32GB Intel.

It makes sense because memory is so much faster so you don't need to spend it on caching. It also does not make sense becuse you would think a library takes as much memory as it takes. A mystery...
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  #5  
Old 08-16-2022, 03:22 AM
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lesbrunn lesbrunn is offline
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Default Re: Anyone try M2 yet?

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Originally Posted by JFreak View Post
Most useful information I might share is that it seems Apple Silicon only requires half the memory footprint you have used to waste on Intels. In other words this 16GB memory behaves just as good as 32GB Intel.

It makes sense because memory is so much faster so you don't need to spend it on caching. It also does not make sense becuse you would think a library takes as much memory as it takes. A mystery...
I've come across this before and I asked the question here some time ago, but I was told it wasn't so. I believe you because I've read it in many places. You don't use Windows at all, do you? How do you compare your M1's performance against the other macs you've used?
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  #6  
Old 08-16-2022, 04:21 AM
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Ben Jenssen Ben Jenssen is offline
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Default Re: Anyone try M2 yet?

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Originally Posted by lesbrunn View Post
I've come across this before and I asked the question here some time ago, but I was told it wasn't so. I believe you because I've read it in many places. You don't use Windows at all, do you? How do you compare your M1's performance against the other macs you've used?
FWIW; I went from a i7 3,2mHz Mac Mini (2018) 32GB to a M1 mini 16GB 7 months ago. I tried out sessions between them, and tried to get a unscientific realworld sense of the difference in performance. I can't prove this in any way, but I came to the conclusion that the M1 gave me about 1.6 times the audio realtime processing power of the intel. It's the biggest jump in power I've experienced in over three decades with macs! (Added: I'm talking strictly PT performance, and this is running PT in Rosetta2. I haven't even bothered to try any apple silicon native DAW.)

I'm also happy with 16GB memory, but I'm mostly mixing audio. I can tell you that I can run a PT session and Adobe Lightroom, which is more ram hungry than PT, without a hitch. The memory might run into the yellow in Activitymonitor, but everything is cool. This is with lots of things in the background, browser, streaming etc. It just seems like the 'system-on-a-chip' ram handling works in a different way… It's good.

I know nothing about the M2, except what I read; it seems it's built on the M1, same clock speed, more cores, and can access more ram. The clue here is; we've always known that single core performance is clue to realtime audio processing, and the cores in M1 and M2 are basically the same.

They say the "M3" will be a 3 nanometer design, and therefore more potent than the 5nm M1/2.


(Edit; I'm sorry, I keep adding to this post; I mentioned Lightroom; I have a catalogue with 8000 something RAW images. All loading up different size previews in memory, and while on the i7 intel I'd get used to the odd second or two to wait for screen update of big lists, on the M1: just smoooth sailing. All the time. Perhaps even bigger jump than PT. But then, Lightroom is native. But again; the SOC M1 with the gpu on-chip, I guess that is contributing.)
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Last edited by Ben Jenssen; 08-16-2022 at 04:50 AM.
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  #7  
Old 08-16-2022, 05:32 AM
its2loud its2loud is offline
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Default Re: Anyone try M2 yet?

Quote:
Originally Posted by lesbrunn View Post
Hey Janne. Though I'm currently using a 12th gen Windows system, I'm seriously attracted to the M2 because of the amazing reviews I've seen about M1. i seriously believe Apple Silicon is the way forward. How have you found your M1?

I know usage differs. Do you use lots of Midi and VIs? I do, and PT doesn't always co-operate. Guys who use audio exclusively usually have the best experience with PT. Even if you don't, my research has led me to believe that Apple Silicon is extremely efficient. PT is inefficient with CPU (compared with most other DAWs), so that always leads me to look for the most powerful systems available, to compensate.

Any useful information about this?
With specifically the M1 Mac Mini with only 16GB of RAM there’s a good chance you’ll run out of memory if you’re using a lot of VI’s. Regarding the Silicon processor, whether M1, M1 Max, M1 Pro, or M2, you are good to go. Apple now has systems which allow you to add more RAM. You will not experience the more “efficient” RAM usage in Pro Tools until Pro Tools stops relying on Rosetta 2 to run.
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  #8  
Old 08-16-2022, 05:42 AM
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Ben Jenssen Ben Jenssen is offline
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Default Re: Anyone try M2 yet?

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Originally Posted by its2loud View Post
With specifically the M1 Mac Mini with only 16GB of RAM there’s a good chance you’ll run out of memory if you’re using a lot of VI’s.
That's so not specific, I think it's not very informative.
Quote:
Originally Posted by its2loud View Post
Regarding the Silicon processor, whether M1, M1 Max, M1 Pro, or M2, you are good to go. Apple now has systems which allow you to add more RAM.
Wow. Please tell, what's changed with ram upgrades!
Quote:
Originally Posted by its2loud View Post
You will not experience the more “efficient” RAM usage in Pro Tools until Pro Tools stops relying on Rosetta 2 to run.
And how do you know this?
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  #9  
Old 08-16-2022, 06:26 AM
its2loud its2loud is offline
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Default Re: Anyone try M2 yet?

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Originally Posted by Ben Jenssen View Post
That's so not specific, I think it's not very informative.

Not exactly sure how it’s not informative, but whatever

Wow. Please tell, what's changed with ram upgrades!

Umm, specifically you cannot purchase an M1 Mac Mini with anything more than 16GB. The other Apple silicon offerings can all be ordered with up to 64GB depending on the machine chosen.


And how do you know this?

Real world experience using Native apps that were previously running under Rosetta 2. Went from using more RAM under Rosetta to less RAM as Native apps.

At this point it’s highly speculative that PT will behave with the same efficiency but it’s likely it will be more efficient as a Native App. Particularly the AVE, in my opinion.
P.S. why are you so reactive to my comments? Did you take them personally? If you have conflicting information, by all means, please share it. The more info people have the better it will be for everyone looking to upgrade systems. I only share what my experience has been since using the M1 Mac Mini with Pro Tools professionally as of March 2021.

Last edited by its2loud; 08-16-2022 at 06:39 AM.
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  #10  
Old 08-16-2022, 06:28 AM
Obsidian Dragon Obsidian Dragon is online now
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Default Re: Anyone try M2 yet?

Quote:
Originally Posted by its2loud View Post
Regarding the Silicon processor, whether M1, M1 Max, M1 Pro, or M2, you are good to go. Apple now has systems which allow you to add more RAM.
I'm assuming you mean that you can preconfigure the Apple Silicon Macs with a higher amount of RAM at time of purchase. The RAM is part of the SOC architecture and not a separate memory module or sticks or RAM.

So, "you" cannot "add" more RAM. You must buy the system with the Apple Silicon with all the RAM you'll ever be able to use on that computer. The RAM is not user upgradeable.

When the Mac Pro goes Apple Silicon, we'll see what apple does in regard to RAM expansion. Perhaps a secondary level RAM that is not as fast as the onboard primary RAM on the SOC.
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Last edited by Obsidian Dragon; 08-17-2022 at 11:49 AM. Reason: fixed typo
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