M1 Mini from cMP5.1... Life past Mojave!

[Chicago Keri]

Have been using my new 16gb / 1TB M1 Mac Mini for about a week now, coming from my trusty 2010 Mac Pro 5.1 running Mojave.

This has been a difficult decision, as the Mac Pro has been entirely awesome for many years, being my main video editing machine. The MP has a 6 core Xeon with 24gb ram, an RX570, a NVME PCIE SSD of 1 TB, a SATA SSD for project scratch disk, and 3 6TB SATAs.
But time moves on and it's time to move past Mojave.

So I started using the M1 Mini and it seems good. Sourcing a Pegasus R4 external Thunderbolt drive enclosure brought all of my files to their usual places with no fuss, and the trusty Apple LED Cinema Display works like always with a DisplayPort adaptor. An external USB DVD burner restores the lack of Superdrives and I'm up and running! And now I just got an Apple Thunderbolt Display, which should give a somewhat better webcam and also return the use of FireWire... when I get around to hooking it up.

Final Cut Pro works a fair bit better. The timeline viewer scrubs very fluidly now and rendering is a lot faster. My most recent project weighing in at 31 minutes took a few minutes to render on the cMP and just about one minute flat on the M1. Also, the background rendering is now unobtrusive. This is with the M1 at a relatively early stage of development and the cMP at a very mature stage.

The size and power differences are staggering. The M1 is maybe a kilo or two (1.2kg) and less than 150w total draw where the cMP weighs maybe 20 kilos with drives and has a 1,000w power supply drawing up to 1400w. Even if I add the weight, size and power of the external drive enclosure it's not anywhere close. Yet, the M1 runs Final Cut better.

I suspect that the M1 Mini will improve as Apple works things out and the next generation of Apple Silicone will completely put this one to shame. Next time I won't wait so long to upgrade!

 

[b.lam]

I'm also in line to replace my 5,1. It's fascinating that it still works after 11 years (bought it immediately after it was announced in 2010). But as you pointed out, it's a power hog. Nowadays you can get the same compute power with much less power drawn from the socket.

Additionally, mine is running Windows 10 only nowadays, since the last MacOS supported with Nvidia drivers was High Sierra. I switched my main computer to be my Macbook Pro (2013) three years ago. But this one is showing its age as well: bulging batteries

So I'm quite interested to finally getting something new and my eyes are also on the Mac Mini (over the years I found out that for personal use, I don't need a laptop). Even though it itches me to buy something new right now, I'm hoping that later in fall, Apple introduces an updated version of the M1 Mini with options of more RAM, and especially more GPU cores. The current M1 is CPU wise faster than my MacPro, but on GPU side, only slightly (10%) faster than my discrete Nvidia GTX 960. Let's hope some of the rumors regarding the M1X/M2 are true and an updated Mini is on its way. If it would last as long as my MacPro, I'm not sure. But if it lasts 5-7 years, I think that would be OK as well.

 

[Monotremata]

I did it last year with the i7 Mini. Replaced my six core 3.33 machine about 4 months before the M1 dropped. Dont regret it at all. Had to buy an enclosure for my audio and sample library drives, but everything else was already a WD MyBook enclosure so that was easy.

The one thing I really do miss (aside from some software that stopped working passed Mojave) is the RX570 I bought to run Mojave though. When I do try to play games, Im pretty much stuck with old emulators like MAME or DOSBox. Even running the 2D Baldur's Gate remaster is a little too much for the Mini. The fan sounds like I'm working on a 200 track project in Logic Pro or something. Tried to play Battletech when I first got it and it took me like 10 minutes just to get into the preferences to turn all the graphics down (the 570 let me play it at full quality in 4K), and it STILL was not playable.

Other than that, power wise, the i7 Mini is pretty much neck and neck with the 11 year old six core 3.33 Pro. The Mini is definitely faster thanks to the bus speed and whatnot, but CPU wise they're both almost exactly the same when I open the Logic projects Im still working on. Im curious to see what the M2/M1X brings though, as soon as the replacement for the i7 model comes out, I may be jumping ship already just to move ahead.

 

[Chicago Keri]

Was having an issue on the M1 Mini with "unexpected restart" errors overnight after connecting up a Thunderbolt1 Pegasus R4 drive enclosure via an Apple TB3>TB2 adaptor while using the 27" LED Cinema Display on a TB3>DisplayPort adaptor. The system worked fine until sleep.
Also, upon wakeup I would get many messages for "disk not ejected properly" for the Pegasus drives.

Hooking up the Apple Thunderbolt Display via the Apple TB3>TB2 adaptor and then daisy-chaining the Pegasus into the display's TB port seems to have solved both issues.
No overnight restarts and no "disk not ejected properly" after wakeup. The Pegasus also sleeps and wakes up as it should, so apparently things go to sleep in a more orderly fashion with this configuration.

Now, on to testing the Thunderbolt Display's FW800 port. As my analog video capture device is FW, this matters.
And, it just works! The Canopus is listed correctly in System Report and Final Cut finds the video from it, so all is well.

For those of us with legacy devices, the Apple Thunderbolt Display seem to be a good hub for the M1 Mini.

 

[ashleykaryl]

I think there are several of us in similar situations. My 5.1 has run virtually 24/7 since new, but now only in use for occasional tasks requiring legacy software or on standby as a backup. Under Mojave it's starting to hit compatibility issues with various software. Apple will soon stop releasing security updates for Mojave and at that point options really do become limited.

I purchased the i7 mini about a year ago as a stop gap, knowing that silicon was coming but also that there would be a transition period. I underestimated the likely speed bump from M1 and over estimated the transition hassles based on previous experience moving from PPC to Intel. Nevertheless, I find the i7 to be pretty capable and generally faster than the Mac Pro. When I switch on the Mac Pro now it seems loud and pushes out a lot of heat.

For my work I always need two computers, so the plan now is to wait for the M2 mini release that will likely be here within 12 months. It's perplexing that some are still spending money upgrading 11 year old Mac Pros.

 

[Chicago Keri]

...It's perplexing that some are still spending money upgrading 11 year old Mac Pros.

Ah, but what a Mac Pro! A colossal work of art that's still no slouch, many people patch MP5.1s up to Big Sur. I dislike non-supported patched configurations though and even the newest Minis are faster...

 

[ashleykaryl]

I am definitely fan of the Mac Pro and I am saddened to be moving on. Just recently I had it running 24/7 at maximum CPU for a couple weeks rendering 3D frames, which it handles with no fuss or strain and that is a task I would have been uneasy about on the i7 mini due to high temperatures.

The real problem is software compatibility and security going forward. I just don't think it's wise to be running patched machines and Mojave is on death row.

 

[ashleykaryl]

The big plus for the Mac Pro was ease of troubleshooting, so if a drive or graphics card had an issue it could be tested and replaced by the user in minutes. So far the mini has proven totally reliable. Nevertheless, I cannot halt work for a week or two (maybe more) if a computer needs to go in for repair, so a backup is essential. When I pick up a silicon mini I should be well covered then for five years with both computers running the same OS and work documents synched over iCloud.

 

[Chicago Keri]

After a few months, the M1 Mini is still going OK. The Pegasus R4 (1st gen) does like to cause "disk not ejected" messages after system sleep. The Apple Thunderbolt Display works very well and acts as a hub for Firewire, USB and the Thunderbolt Pegasus. With the Pegasus running, sometimes wakeup is quite slow and there are occasional overnight crashes. So, I usually shut down the Pegasus unless working in Final Cut. As expected, the M1 has had several updates, mostly for "security".

 

[harriska2]

After a few months, the M1 Mini is still going OK. The Pegasus R4 (1st gen) does like to cause "disk not ejected" messages after system sleep. The Apple Thunderbolt Display works very well and acts as a hub for Firewire, USB and the Thunderbolt Pegasus. With the Pegasus running, sometimes wakeup is quite slow and there are occasional overnight crashes. So, I usually shut down the Pegasus unless working in Final Cut. As expected, the M1 has had several updates, mostly for "security".

I’m curious if you don’t put the stystem to sleep (other than the monitor) if you have the same problems. The first thing I did was turn off sleep and I’ve never had a problem.

 

[MevetS]

I did it last year with the i7 Mini. Replaced my six core 3.33 machine about 4 months before the M1 dropped. Dont regret it at all. Had to buy an enclosure for my audio and sample library drives, but everything else was already a WD MyBook enclosure so that was easy.

The one thing I really do miss (aside from some software that stopped working passed Mojave) is the RX570 I bought to run Mojave though. When I do try to play games, Im pretty much stuck with old emulators like MAME or DOSBox. Even running the 2D Baldur's Gate remaster is a little too much for the Mini. The fan sounds like I'm working on a 200 track project in Logic Pro or something. Tried to play Battletech when I first got it and it took me like 10 minutes just to get into the preferences to turn all the graphics down (the 570 let me play it at full quality in 4K), and it STILL was not playable.

Other than that, power wise, the i7 Mini is pretty much neck and neck with the 11 year old six core 3.33 Pro. The Mini is definitely faster thanks to the bus speed and whatnot, but CPU wise they're both almost exactly the same when I open the Logic projects Im still working on. Im curious to see what the M2/M1X brings though, as soon as the replacement for the i7 model comes out, I may be jumping ship already just to move ahead.

I too switched from a 5.1 I bought when it came out to an i7 Mini. I use an eGPU with a RX580 and never hear the fans. I don’t use it for games so YMMV.

 

[Flocarino]

I am making the move as well from a 5.1 to a Mac Mini 16Gb/1TB and would need your help.
I need a hard drive enclosure to bring my 3 spinners 3.5’’ and my 2.5’’ SSD.
I’m looking for something silent and durable. I was looking at the OWC Thunderbay 4 but the price is a downer, just to store 4 drives.
Can you guys suggest me any other viable options ? Thunderbolt or USB.
I will highly appreciate it.
Thank you

 

[Monotremata]

Using a USB-C Oyen Mobius for mine here. It’s only got 2 bays but they have a 5 bay I’m upgrading too as soon as it’s time to replace my USB WD drives. Waaaaaay cheaper than the OWC and all my drives including my SSDs are SATA so thunderbolt was a waste of money here.

 

[Flocarino]

Thanks, I'm looking into it right now...

 

[zoltm]

I am making the move as well from a 5.1 to a Mac Mini 16Gb/1TB and would need your help.
I need a hard drive enclosure to bring my 3 spinners 3.5’’ and my 2.5’’ SSD.
I’m looking for something silent and durable. I was looking at the OWC Thunderbay 4 but the price is a downer, just to store 4 drives.
Can you guys suggest me any other viable options ? Thunderbolt or USB.
I will highly appreciate it.
Thank you

MP 5.1 (2010)(ROM 144.0.0.0.0) 2 x 3.46Ghz X5690, 128GB 1333Mhz, Angelbird Wings PX1 with 512Gb Samsung XP951, IO Crest SI-PEX40129 with Samsung 970 PRO 1TB & 970 EVO 1TB, Samsung 860 EVO SSD 500GB, Highpoint RocketU 1344A USB 3.1, MacVidCards Radeon Vega 56 8GB EFI BootScreen with Pixlas Mod

Hi there @Flocarino good to see a 5,1 cohort here also making the move. Looking at your signature, I am sure you are a pretty high end cMP 5,1 user, I am quite curious how do you feel about the move from cMP to M1 Mac Mini. I am looking at this thread religiously for experience from cohorts making similar move.

I am definitely not a demanding user like you, I am merely using a single CPU cMP, with just a RX 570 4G.

Look forward to more experience sharing from this thread! May I know what is the plan with the cMP, do you consider selling it or redeploy the cMP for some other uses?

Thanks and good luck with the switch.

 

[zoltm]

Using a USB-C Oyen Mobius for mine here. It’s only got 2 bays but they have a 5 bay I’m upgrading too as soon as it’s time to replace my USB WD drives. Waaaaaay cheaper than the OWC and all my drives including my SSDs are SATA so thunderbolt was a waste of money here.

@Monotremata This is indeed an interesting suggestion that I have not think of before, thanks for the inspiration. Would it be something like this https://oyendigital.com/hard-drives/store/3N5-C.html ?

I am indeed quite curious give the super expandability and reliability of the cMP, is it indeed a good use case to re-deploy the cMP as a home server. There is 10G ethernet port option on the M1 Mac Mini and it's not expensive at all, it might be worthwhile considering to install a 10G nic into the cMP and use it as a NAS. Power consumption for the cMP would be an issue. The ability to cross connecting a M1 Mini and cMP sounds like an interesting project.

 

[Flocarino]

I will receive my Mac Mini this Friday so I’m preparing the transition and hope that everything will go well….especially the data transition (from the cMP to the Mini). I barely used the cMP over the years….nothing heavy, usage wise, thrown at it beside a couple of COD games😂
I will try to sell it and find it a good home, so I can cut on the price of the Mini.
I’m sure that it will make another mac enthousiaste very happy and hope that he can take advantage of the full potential of this beast.
I just hope the mini will meet my expectations for the years to come. One thing I will miss, it will be the storage space inside.
I will keep you posted on the facts, once I’ll made the full transition, and once again, all my data files to be safely transferred to the Mini. Honestly, I’m very anxious as I never done this….REALLY😔

 

[Monotremata]

@Monotremata This is indeed an interesting suggestion that I have not think of before, thanks for the inspiration. Would it be something like this https://oyendigital.com/hard-drives/store/3N5-C.html ?

Yeah that's the one. I bought the 2-bay one initially because my Time Machine and storage drives are WD MyBook enclosures. The Storage drive is my old Time Machine drive so its about time to replace that I think so as soon as I do, Ill be moving to the 5 bay case and just put everything in there (and have an extra tray for the future).

 

[Flocarino]

Personally, after a long night of study😅 all types, I went with this one:

TerraMaster D4-300 USB 3.1 (Gen1) Type-C Storage External Hard Drive Enclosure Hot Swappable (Diskless)

The TerraMaster D4-300 is a hot-Swappable USB 3.0 Type-C external hard drive enclosure with smart safety protections. No RAID array feature and hard drive included.

www.amazon.ca

I'll keep you posted when I'll receive it.

 

[Chicago Keri]

I am making the move as well from a 5.1 to a Mac Mini 16Gb/1TB and would need your help.
I need a hard drive enclosure to bring my 3 spinners 3.5’’ and my 2.5’’ SSD.
I’m looking for something silent and durable. I was looking at the OWC Thunderbay 4 but the price is a downer, just to store 4 drives.
Can you guys suggest me any other viable options ? Thunderbolt or USB.
I will highly appreciate it.
Thank you

Am using a first generation Pegasus R4 for 1 2.5" ssd and 3 spinners out of my cMP 5.1. The drives appear on my desktop as always and Final Cut finds them just as before. The only issue is that when the system goes to sleep, there are occasional "Disk not ejected" errors and slow wakeup. Shutting down the Pegasus when not in use stops these issues. It could be because I have the Pegasus connected to the Apple Thunderbolt Display's TB2 port. Maybe I'll try getting another TB3>TB2 adaptor and see how it behaves when connected directly to the Mini.
So far as noise, the Pegasus R4 is reasonably quiet, with an annoying PSU fan sound. This is not too difficult to change and with a quieter PSU the Pegasus is unobtrusive.
As the Pegasus1 is not really supported on newer systems, it might be better to consider a Pegasus2 R4 or newer.

 

[Flocarino]

Well, the transition is now complete at 100% since my cMP 5.1 was sold today and my Mac Mini M1 took over.
I honestly like this little bug😁...along with the new hard drive enclosure which works perfectly along the Mini.
I just have another order for a small USB-C dock to help with the USB ports be more reachable. I don't even use the 2 x USB ports in the back of the Mini...the 2 x TB4 are enough for me.
I'll keep you posted as the time will pass by.....