Concerns about buying MacMini

Yes, you can drive two separate DVI monitors off the mini. You just need the MiniDisplayPort to DVI adaptor.
Good Thunderbolt external drives should have two TB ports, one being a "pass-through" for your display. So don't worry about using up your TB port on a monitor.

I use my 2012 mini for Creative Suite 6, and it is very fast. The power of the CPU more than makes up for any alleged shortcomings of the GPU.

Don't buy 8Gb RAM from Apple: Get the base RAM, and buy from a third-party, like Crucial. Good quality RAM is very cheap, and Apple does charge a lot for adding RAM. It's very easy to fit it yourself: unscrew the "jam-jar" lid on the bottom, pop out the old sticks, press in the new.
If you're feeling adventurous, you can even install a third-party SSD in the place of the hard drive. Otherwise, I would strongly recommend Apple's Fusion drive, which is super fast.

I agree 100% with benwiggy, and I was very surprised with the speed of the Mini!

Buy RAM from somewhere else and not Apple, they charge a lot more. I bought 16GB from Crucial for 58 EUR!, works great.

Also the internal HDD, even being 5400 rpm, is really fast, faster than my previous 7200rpm drive. You will be happy with it and happier that in the future you can upgrade to an SSD and place it yourlself.

Only buy 4gig of ram from Apple. Take the money you save and put it toward the fusion drive and 2.6 processor. Get 16 gig of ram from amazon for 80 bucks and you will be set. The performance of the mini is very good with this configuration.

I just received my Mac Mini yesterday. I went for the 2.6 processor and Fusion Drive, and 16GB RAM. Adding a MiniDP-DVI adapter (along with the HDMI-DVI adapter included in the box) I am driving two Dell 2001FP monitors, and it's working great. Assuming your 24" monitors are 1920x1080 resolution this will work fine for you; the built-in HDMI will support up to 2.75MP display. They'll be independent displays, just like in Windows.

My old machine was a Dell with Windows 7. I used VMWare Fusion to "clone" that computer into a virtual machine on the Mini, so I can still use some Windows software while I'm fully transitioning to the Mac. I was frankly amazed at how quickly & easily it virtualized the old Windows box and how smoothly that works.

This as nothing to do with the subject , but everything to do with this subject.

I have had 2 Mac Min`s , and when the time comes will buy a 3rd.

They are great little power houses , there form factor is great , and they are
fast... very fast !

My 1st was the 1.83 GHz , and my 2nd is a 2010 ( the first one with HDMI ).

My 3rd will be one with an SSD.

Something to think about though:

The base moves around a bit , so either but rubber feet on the bottom or just a piece of thing rubber ( like a gasket or similar [ go to any hobby or craft store ] , I was lucky my bank ( awhile back when banks could afford to give stuff away ) , ( another subject for another day ). They gave me a round rubber bottle / jar opener !

I thought to myself what the heck am I going to use this for.
So it sat in the kitchen utility drawer until I bought my first MM , and ever since that free piece of rubber has saved my Mini from moving and I did not have to had stick-on rubber feet ! and it`s a perfect size as you don`t even see the small rubber disc.

One last hint , I have always had my Mini place on a 1" mini chopping block.
Why you ask !!
Ventilation , having it raised , even just a little , provides that extra bit of ventilation to help keep it happy during long days and nights.

By all means , the Mini is the very best bang for your buck. {period} !!

Later , Happy Holidays

Gary 

some people scoff at the idea (have posted before on the subject) but go to a motor bike shop and buy some airfilter intake foam - get the finest that they have (green).

cut a hole in it the size of the black base and then cut it to the outside of the mini.

place the mini on top of it: it won't slide, ever, and more importantly it keeps the inside free of dust.

MJL said:

some people scoff at the idea (have posted before on the subject) but go to a motor bike shop and buy some airfilter intake foam - get the finest that they have (green).

cut a hole in it the size of the black base and then cut it to the outside of the mini.

place the mini on top of it: it won't slide, ever, and more importantly it keeps the inside free of dust.

Click to expand...

Interesting idea! Thanks!

Jedi said:

Something to think about though:

The base moves around a bit , so either but rubber feet on the bottom or just a piece of thing rubber ( like a gasket or similar [ go to any hobby or craft store ] , I was lucky my bank ( awhile back when banks could afford to give stuff away ) , ( another subject for another day ). They gave me a round rubber bottle / jar opener !

I thought to myself what the heck am I going to use this for.
So it sat in the kitchen utility drawer until I bought my first MM , and ever since that free piece of rubber has saved my Mini from moving and I did not have to had stick-on rubber feet ! and it`s a perfect size as you don`t even see the small rubber disc.

One last hint , I have always had my Mini place on a 1" mini chopping block.
Why you ask !!
Ventilation , having it raised , even just a little , provides that extra bit of ventilation to help keep it happy during long days and nights.

By all means , the Mini is the very best bang for your buck. {period} !!

Later , Happy Holidays

Gary 

Click to expand...

I love it. I have four 'Pink Pearl' erasers perched under my Mac Mini for rubber feet and ventillation.

Mac mini 2012 Core i7 2.6 GHz, 16GB aftermarket ram. Works great for almost everything. Chokes up a bit on intense FCPX stuff, but even with FCP it works amazingly well. Wish I had coughed up the money for the fusion drive.

You'll be very happy with the Mini. I have the 2012 Server and I watch HD stuff on there all the time and it runs fine assuming my connection is working well. RCN in NYC SUCKS! Mine has never gotten very hot either.

Only gripe I have with it is the slower HDD. I use a MBA and rMBP and I am used to the SSD speed. Other than that, I have no regrets for buying.

The only part of your post I can't comment on is the Final Cut. I've used iMovie and ripped DVDs (I own) to put on my iPad. So, I haven't really taxed it but I have pushed it a bit. I bought the base mini, and then went to OWC for memory. Like previously stated, it's so easy to upgrade the RAM on a Mini, I could talk my 10yr old through it over the phone.

I also upgraded the drive to an SSD (again from OWC). This I wouldn't have a 10 year old do, but with marginal skills and the tool kit (only a few $$ from OWC), it's pretty easy.

I don't wait on apps. They pop up instantly.

I think you'll be fine. Oh, and my Mini is mid-2012 build, and the cheapest one.

pertusis1 said:

I love it. I have four 'Pink Pearl' erasers perched under my Mac Mini for rubber feet and ventillation.

Mac mini 2012 Core i7 2.6 GHz, 16GB aftermarket ram. Works great for almost everything. Chokes up a bit on intense FCPX stuff, but even with FCP it works amazingly well. Wish I had coughed up the money for the fusion drive.

Click to expand...

You can buy a cheap 3rd party SSD and put it in a cheap 3rd party enclosure, connect it via USB 3, and it will give you a huge performance boost. Fusion drive is nice but I'd rather spend $100 for a nice SSD experience rather than $250...

Problems

Any display issues?

My 2.3GHz Mini connected to a 24" NEC display using an Apple Mini Display Port to DVI adapter via the Tunderbolt port has exhibited no issues. The problems that people have been experiencing are with displays connected via HDMI.

I have the stock 5400rpm drive and it suits me just fine. If you must have the extra speed offered by an SSD I suggest seriously considering going for the Apple SSD upgrade. Sure, it costs more than doing it yourself. But when you figure in the time involved, the chance that something can go wrong and the fact that the Apple SSD doesn't void your warranty, I think that the price difference is worth the extra cost. And I am the type who usually goes with DIY... After watching the OWC video I am reluctant to tackle dismantling my Mini to install an SSD.

Thanks.

Mojo1 said:

My 2.3GHz Mini connected to a 24" NEC display using an Apple Mini Display Port to DVI adapter via the Tunderbolt port has exhibited no issues. The problems that people have been experiencing are with displays connected via HDMI.

I have the stock 5400rpm drive and it suits me just fine. If you must have the extra speed offered by an SSD I suggest seriously considering going for the Apple SSD upgrade. Sure, it costs more than doing it yourself. But when you figure in the time involved, the chance that something can go wrong and the fact that the Apple SSD doesn't void your warranty, I think that the price difference is worth the extra cost. And I am the type who usually goes with DIY... After watching the OWC video I am reluctant to tackle dismantling my Mini to install an SSD.

Click to expand...

I was new to macs, and had a killer pc from last year, i bought my first mac about a month ago, a mac mini i7. Put in a ssd and 16 gb of ram.

Lets just say, I kissed and said goodbye to my pc a week later. Sold it and have never looked back. Even if the mac os takes some getting used to, i feel like it is fun using a computer. No uncontrolled and constant software upgrades. It just works.

Get the mac mini, you wont regret it unless you play lot of games.

Agnoslibertine said:

It just works.

.

Click to expand...

Except for the wake from sleep to static, which just doesn't work.