This post is intended for Mac Mini users who use their minis for multitrack recording. If you don't use a mini, you don't need to tell me "don't use a mini for recording--it's underpowered!" etc. I'm aware of that view already! But... I have heard comments of some folks using Mac Minis for recording with some success. If you have personally used a Mini for recording, I would love to hear your comments, positive and negative. Also, what kind of setup do you have: modifications, interface, software, etc.? Thank you! --Wally

I have a 1.42MHz Mini with 1GB RAM. I use Logic and Live and if I'm recording audio, I'll use a Metric Halo 2882 firewire interface with it. This is not my main rig, but I do occasionally do arrangements/recording and editing on it. It works very well. No issues. I would like to be able to use more RAM, but oh well. As for track count, I can playback 36 stereo tracks in Logic 7 from the internal drive and a few extra if running from a FW drive.

Hi, I've been using a mini with 1gb Ram. Have used Garageband and have just put Live on there. For multitrack recording have found it slowing once tracks get into double figures. Have to freeze and mix down tracks to speed things up. Have managed to record an album thats being released next year so its possible to do. Should be going up to 20 inch I Mac once the budget alows.
Its certainly possible to do recording on a mini, just needs extra work and time.

Is this "slowing" happening using GarageBand? I've heard that the price you pay for the friendliness of GB is that it eats up lots of CPU space.

The Mini is dead quiet, too.

yes, slowing is on Garageband. I think it does eat up cpu. but is very quiet... and according to my wife "cute".

Edited by Tony (01/12/05 07:26 AM)

Mac Mini, 1Gb Ram, 1.42GHz, 40Gb hdd, 200Gb Lacie FW HDD, M-audio Quattro USB. Mine's fine. Have ran, Logic 7, Live 5, Cubase SX, and without any major problems. Also will happilly run final cut pro too!

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Hadey-- I listened to the sound clip on your website. Did you do that with the setup you list?

I think this may be the guy who emailed me!

But yep I run a 1.42ghz Mini with 512mg ram, 160gb LaCie, and Presonus Firebox. Frequently work on projects with around 32 audio tracks, with say 4-5 effects on each channel and some software instruments. No problems.

Its a great piece of kit, running Logic Pro 7.

Laurence

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P.I.G.L.E.T - where is polly?

Yes, I'm the guy who e-mailed you, from my work e-mail (oh my) so I haven't checked that yet (on US mountain time).

Quote thewallylama:

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Hadey-- I listened to the sound clip on your website. Did you do that with the setup you list?

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If it's the track that loads 1st on the music page, then yes. Why, has it put you off?

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http://www.papamofoman.com
myspace

Very funny. No, I enjoyed it quite a bit, which is why I was asking! --Wally

Quote thewallylama:

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Very funny. No, I enjoyed it quite a bit, which is why I was asking! --Wally

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Thanks!

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http://www.papamofoman.com
myspace

What is interesting to me is that non-mini users have cautioned me about the mini being underpowered, yet here on this post I'm hearing mini users generally saying that they are pretty happy with it. Whenever I hear a comment about slowness, it seems to have to do with Garage Band, which I guess eats up lots of CPU space because of all the built in commands to make it more friendly. But I had an iMac G5 user tell me that GB slowed down his machine, too. --Wally

I’m using a Mac Mini, with a PreSonus FireBox, a firewire harddrive, and running Cubase LE. I’ve been running the system for 5 months now without a problem.

I have run over 48 audio tracks (24-bit, 48kHz) at once with no problem. - Yes a ‘wall’ of 48 tracks. Why ? I wanted a symphony of synths for a part in a song. I was going to bounce the tracks into a stereo file, but the Mini didn’t glitch so I kept all 48 tracks in the main mix. -I “do” think it was only possible to do this with a external firewire drive.
I think the problem most people have with Mac Mini’s is the fact they don’t add external firewire or usb drives. .....?.........?........?

I don’t use Garageband. It does seem to push the cpu. And to me it sounds crappy. I haven’t played with Garageband much, and I’m not sure I want to waste my time doing so.

All of my recordings have been audio tracking. I don’t use soft synths and I don’t use a lot of pluggin effects. My drums are from a drum machine, rex files, Cubase drum sessions, or samples. I play the guitar, bass, and keyboards direct into the recordings.
I can’t real say how the Mac Mini would hold up to a lot of soft synths, soft samplers, etc....

One other thing that really gives the Mac Mini a big boost (besides the firewire drive) is a external hardware reverb. Even a lower cost hardware reverb is going to sound better than most pluggins.

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How many tracks can you record (input) at once

Quote thewallylama:

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What is interesting to me is that non-mini users have cautioned me about the mini being underpowered, yet here on this post I'm hearing mini users generally saying that they are pretty happy with it. Whenever I hear a comment about slowness, it seems to have to do with GarageBand, which I guess eats up lots of CPU space because of all the built in commands to make it more friendly. But I had an iMac G5 user tell me that GB slowed down his machine, too. --Wally

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There is nothing inherently inefficient about GarageBand compared with Logic or any other DAW, it's simply that in GarageBand, all tracks are either being time-stretched in real-time or playing virtual instruments (with multi-FX on by default!)

In other DAW's, people are often outputting MIDI to external devices which has minimal CPU demands, whereas with GarageBand, it's all being done on your Mac.

These kind of operations are by their nature CPU-intensive, whether you do them in GarageBand, Cubase or Logic or Live!, there's no getting away from that fact.

GarageBand also sounds fine, it has the same Audio Engine as Logic. Obviously if you stretch loops too far from their original pitch/tempo, it's inevitable there will be artefacts. But the (EXS24) instruments are great, and the FX are whatever you want them to be . . .