New M2 Pro and M2 Max MacBook Pro + New M2 Mac mini

[David Nahmani]

New MacBook Pro: https://www.apple.com/macbook-pro-14-and-16/

Press Release

Specifications range from: 

$1,999 14" MacBook Pro M2 Pro

• Apple M2 Pro chip
• 10-core CPU with 6 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores
• 16-core GPU
• 16-core Neural Engine
• 200GB/s memory bandwidth
• Media engine
• Hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes, and ProRes RAW
• Video decode engine
• Video encode engine
• ProRes encode and decode engine
• Configurable to:
  M2 Pro with 12‑core CPU and 19‑core GPU
  M2 Max with 12‑core CPU and 30‑core GPU
  M2 Max with 12‑core CPU and 38‑core GPU

... to ...

$3499 16" MacBook Pro M2 Max

• Apple M2 Max chip
• 12-core CPU with 8 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores
• 38-core GPU
• 16-core Neural Engine
• 400GB/s memory bandwidth
• Media engine
• Hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes, and ProRes RAW
• Video decode engine
• Video encode engine
• ProRes encode and decode engine
• 12‑core CPU
• 38‑core GPU
• 16‑core Neural Engine
• Up to 96 GB RAM
• Up to 8 TB SSD

New Mac mini: https://www.apple.com/mac-mini/

Press release

Specifications range from: 

$599 M2 Mac mini

• 8-Core CPU
• 10-Core GPU
• 8GB Unified Memory
• 256GB SSD
• 16-core Neural Engine
• Two Thunderbolt 4 ports
• Two USB-A ports, HDMI port, Gigabit Ethernet, headphone jack

... to ...

$1,299—$4,399 M2 Pro Mac mini

• Up to 12-Core CPU
• Up to 19-Core GPU
• Up to 32GB Unified Memory
• Up to 8TB SSD
• 16-core Neural Engine
• Four Thunderbolt 4 ports
• Two USB-A ports, HDMI port, Gigabit Ethernet, headphone jack

[ravez]

and ‘keynote’ video

 

 

[redgreenblue]

I look forward to seeing the benchmarks for these, the biggest question for me probably will be if the $400 upgrade to 32 gigs on the Pro is worth it. At $1900 for 32/1 Tb that puts it only $300 from the Mac Studio with the same configuration. 

[Glenn L.]

Meh. My M1 Mini will keel them both with a dull blade!

[des99]

1 hour ago, David Nahmani said:

10-core CPU with 6 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores

Interesting that they moved to this config for the M2 Pro - my M1 Pro is 8 performance and 2 efficiency cores.

I wonder if the 6 M2 performance cores are roughly equivalent, or more so, than the 8 M1 performance cores, and they've gone for similar or minor performance improvements, but possibly better battery life - or whether this is to distance the Pro from the Max a bit more, which does have 8 performance cores (previously, the CPU parts of Pro and Max were essentially the same, so there were no CPU gains going Mac over the Pro, which is not the case anymore).

(Though I haven't seen the details yet, just what was posted in this thread...)

Edited January 17 by des99

[AllTheButtons]

Anyone else notice how the M2 and M2 Max both increased their max memory by 50%, but the M2 Pro is still stuck on 32GB?

Seems like a sneaky way to push users with high memory needs onto the more expensive chip. In my case I’d have to get the Studio instead of the mini.

I’m torn… on the one hand, the mini’s 32GB is cutting it fine for large orchestral sessions. On the other hand, the mini is guaranteed silent and I’m scared of the Mac Studio ‘noise lottery’.

[enossified]

$599 for the base M2 Mini...wasn't the M1 Mini $699? That's aggressive pricing.

[wing]

14 hours ago, David Nahmani said:

Up to 96 GB RAM

Wow. I don't currently own a laptop but I used to have a MacPro I wanna say late 2018 model, and if I recall 16GB of Ram used to be the max you could upgrade to. Then the next release the max was 32GB. Up to 96 is wild for a laptop!

[wonshu]

10 hours ago, AllTheButtons said:

Seems like a sneaky way to push users with high memory needs onto the more expensive chip. In my case I’d have to get the Studio instead of the mini.

Yes, the pricing they are using are pushing pro users to the highest model. Which in a way is fine if I get about 7 years of use out of the machine. We don't have that long term data yet, so we'll see and for laptops this is, well, a very long time especially if they heat up... the 2013 MacPros were usable for 9 years in our team, which thinking about it is unbelievable in the computing industry.

I wonder if price / CPU computing power is still going down... it might be but I'm not seeing it clearly...

[zipb]

These are too expensive. Any current Mac with at least 32 GB RAM and a reasonable sized SSD is way above my budget.

My top-of-the-line MacBook Pro 2011 was 1800 eu. Now a comparable model is twice the price.

[wonshu]

Yes, they are getting more expensive. The same MacBook Air I bought in 2021 now costs € 350,- more. Ouch.

[kerochan]

18 hours ago, Glenn L. said:

Meh. My M1 Mini will keel them both with a dull blade!

Same with my Mac Mini Glen!   M1 16gb RAM,  fastest, quietist, smallest, cheapest and most powerful computer I have ever owned!      

 

[David Nahmani]

22 minutes ago, kerochan said:

Same with my Mac Mini Glen!   M1 16gb RAM,  fastest, quietist, smallest, cheapest and most powerful computer I have ever owned!      

Same here. Very happy with my M1 Mac mini that I run with a 4K HUAWEI MateView 28.2" display:

[JakobP]

Looking at the M2 minis, going from 256GB to 512GB is 200$ (250 here in Sweden), wonder if the SSD chips are made only by gold and diamonds ? 🙄

Edited January 18 by JakobP

[David Nahmani]

56 minutes ago, JakobP said:

going from 256GB to 512GB is 200$ (250 here in Sweden), wonder if the SSD chips are made only by gold and diamonds ? 🙄

This has always been the case on the Apple Store. Back in the day, one could always buy less expensive aftermarket RAM and install it ourselves, but this process has become increasingly difficult and finally just impossible with Apple Silicon's integrated memory. 

[JakobP]

Yeah, I know... But still, difference in price 256gb-512gb for e.g. a samsung ssd being like 20$... (I know the macs internal ssd's are higher quality, but ten times the cost ???)

[des99]

Apple have always gouged on disk and RAM option prices in their computers. As David said, BITD there were often third-party options - we don't have those now, so you have to either say "I'm out", or pony up the cash through gritted teeth to get the minimum you deem essential...

[JakobP]

You're right of course, guys. After all it's a desktop, as long as you have enough internal storage for the OS and Logic all should be well, using external storage for projects and 3rd party stuff 🙂 

[David Nahmani]

Just now, JakobP said:

You're right of course, guys. After all it's a desktop, as long as you have enough internal storage for the OS and Logic all should be well, using external storage for projects and 3rd party stuff 🙂 

Yes the SSD limitation is easy enough to circumvent. The RAM is another story. You just have to bite the bullet. 

[kerochan]

5 hours ago, David Nahmani said:

Same here. Very happy with my M1 Mac mini that I run with a 4K HUAWEI MateView 28.2" display:

I went for an immaculate used Apple TB 27 Display for my studio AND the same at home.   But the Hauwei looks fab, and the other Hauwei displays too, amazing prices!

 

[Glenn L.]

I have an LG 32“ monitor. Have it set at 1440, so my aulde eyes can see. I have no complaints, but 499€ I shouldn't have any.  

[One100]

Very tempting, but will all my plug-ins work? Native instruments, Arturia, Korg etc. 😕

[Darude]

14 hours ago, One100 said:

Very tempting, but will all my plug-ins work? Native instruments, Arturia, Korg etc. 😕

All that work with M1, they should. Architecture is not changing. If you're on Intel, you'll want to check developers' sites about compatibility. ALMOST all the big ones and smaller devs, too, by now have Apple Silicon native versions of their plugs, BUT, check them yourself to be sure.

https://www.quora.com/What-VST-plugins-are-compatible-with-the-Apple-M1-chip

[des99]

Also note that some developers have varying Ventura compatibility, too.

[fisherking]

27 minutes ago, des99 said:

Also note that some developers have varying Ventura compatibility, too.

besides plugin alliance? just curious what else doesn't work yet in ventura. i had one issue (the sonalksis creative filter, with no response ever from the developer); easily replaced by logic's own autofilter). all my other plugins have worked since day 1 of the first ventura beta...

[des99]

50 minutes ago, fisherking said:

besides plugin alliance? just curious what else doesn't work yet in ventura. i had one issue (the sonalksis creative filter, with no response ever from the developer); easily replaced by logic's own autofilter). all my other plugins have worked since day 1 of the first ventura beta...

Yep, I'm aware of your experiences. I'm also aware of emails from various developers over the last few months saying "do not upgrade to Ventura", and other mails saying "this product is now compatible with Ventura", and so on. I've seen enough to make me think "well *some* people seem to be having particular issues with compatibility".

I'm not keeping a running score of which plugins work, which plugins don't, which plugins may work fine but the developer says "don't run them on Ventura" yet because of unspecified issues, or ones which appear to work OK even though the developer has said "don't run them on Ventura" , because you haven't yet hit the bug the dev is aware of and in the process of fixing that crashes and corrupts everything etc etc. All I'm saying is, *check* your stuff is compatible just in case you buy a machine running Ventura, and find something vital to you, somehow messes up, and you're without a safety net at that point.

I've seen plenty of people in this situation, the PA plugs are the main example that springs immediately to mind, that have been disappointed that they can't use their tools, or open their projects properly, and no-one wants to find themselves in that situation.

Kontakt 7.1.5 was released just a few days back - the first version where NI says "Kontakt is now compatible with Ventura". Did previous versions "work"? Probably. Maybe it was just a certification thing, and there were no actual bugs - possibly, it happens all the time. Or maybe there were real issues in there that needed to be fixed before the developer could add their seal of confidence, that you were lucky you didn't hit. It's difficult to say. But if you waited until official compatibility, you could be reasonably confident (as much as you ever can be, at least) that it would work as expected.

In case it seems like it, I'm not making a big deal over this - I don't think the compatibility issues have been that widespread, or even challenging to fix (although I'm sure it will take PA 6+ months to get around to fixing their stuff), it's mostly minor stuff from what I've seen. But one minor code change, that was easy to fix, could still make the difference between being able to load your projects, or not.

[fisherking]

one thing we've seen a lot over the years; the difference between a developer telling us a plugin is not 'supported' in a current OS, vs a plugin that doesn't actually work on that OS.

ie many developers didn't support ventura when it was released (in beta, or even in it's final release), but those plugins did in fact work.

anyway, at any given moment, with any OS, logic, our 3rd-party plugins... people have good or bad experiences. but i certainly hear what you're saying. 👍

[des99]

30 minutes ago, fisherking said:

one thing we've seen a lot over the years; the difference between a developer telling us a plugin is not 'supported' in a current OS, vs a plugin that doesn't actually work on that OS.

Indeed, as I specifically mentioned in my above post.

And also the other way around - a developer not saying it *doesn't* work on that OS, and the user expectation that it does...

The more tech-savvy of us can usually work around these issues to varying degrees (eg, substituting plugins, or removing them etc), but it's the people that aren't really into the tech stuff, got prompted for an update and clicked on OK (or just bought a new Mac), and now find themselves in some weird tech-hell where they can no longer access their work. I'm saying that a bit of forethought, research and confirmation will make sure someone doesn't inadvertently put themselves in that situation, unnecessarily.

(In the case of new machines, of course, sometimes it's unavoidable...)

Edited January 19 by des99

[mrgeeze]

My 2013 quad core I7 macbook pro is about ready for replacement. I still run Logic and Band in a Box simultaneously with no problem. But software vst regen is lagging and I'm excited about getting new iron. That thing lasted me 10 good years. I spent $4k back then and its worth every penny. It has served me well and owes me nothing. Best computer I've ever owned.

My budget is 3-4k +-. 

My quandary now is whether to purchase the mini  or a macbook pro. I do very little or no video editing. It will be used primarily for music- Logic pro and Band in a Box. So the M2 pro seems like the chip for me.

I did a few configs and a 32GB M2 Mac Mini with 4TB (lets not argue internal vs external on this thread) cost about $3k. That seems bitching good.

A comparable 4tb Macbook Pro 32GB comes in around $3800. A grand more. I get some portability that quite honestly, i rarely use. I can always tote my 10 year old macbook pro on the road.

Lets leave the internal/external storage argument out of the discussion if you would be so kind

So, any comments?

I have monitors and keyboards and all the rest.

I'm thinking of the min and perhaps a new ipad in a year or 2.

 

[des99]

Looks like you've already made up your mind... 😉

Edited January 19 by des99