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M4 Mac Mini for Gaming?

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reddevil0728

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 19, 2010
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If the intention is to use it for occasional gaming (instead of buying a separate gaming PC) I will assume M4 Pro would be a better choice so that with the use of Parallels / VMware or Crossover, it would perform better?


Would the base version of M4 Pro, i.e.,

12-Core CPU

16-Core GPU

24GB Unified Memory

Be good enough to overcome the additional resources to power virtual machine / emulation to run games like GTA, SIMS, COD, BF, MS Flight Sim at playable (decent but not high) settings? Or would configuring it to:


14-Core CPU

20-Core GPU

48GB Unified Memory


Be materially meaningful?
 
It's going to be hard for anyone to answer the question with confidence. Each would need a very clear definition of "materially." Yes, more horses should be better.

However, if you want to play games and "materially" is a sizable difference as you would judge it, don't hinder the gameplay by running it on emulation. Get a gaming PC and bypass a needless layer. If I was buying one right now, I'd probably go with this one from Minisforum bare to then load up with up to 16TB of market priced m.2 inside (just 2 screws to install) and up to 96GB of fast DDR5 RAM inside... both priced FARRRRRRRR below Apple upgrades. In fact, you can get the 16TBs of m.2 and the 96GB of RAM for a lot less than what Apple charges ($2200) for only an 8TB SSD upgrade alone, not counting the Mac.

However, that's not the only PC in town. There are OTHERs made like that too or you can always go the full-on gaming PC route or build your own. Plenty... PLENTY of fish in that sea, with the computer, the RAM upgrade and the storage upgrades all priced LOW... at market... by tremendous competitive forces.

Bonus: if you don't max out the specs of that PC but then discover you need more RAM or more storage in a few years, you can add it inside instead of throwing away the whole computer. I know- that seems crazy. Flexible customer utility in an overall lower-cost product that will play the games you want to play better... what a concept!
 
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HobeSoundDarryl said:
It's going to be hard for anyone to answer the question with confidence. Each would need a very clear definition of "materially." Yes, more horses should be better.

However, if you want to play games and "materially" is a sizable difference as you would judge it, don't hinder the gameplay by running it on emulation. Get a gaming PC and bypass a needless layer. If I was buying one right now, I'd probably go with this one from Minisforum bare to then load up with up to 16TB of market priced m.2 inside (just 2 screws to install) and up to 96GB of fast DDR5 RAM inside... both priced FARRRRRRRR below Apple upgrades. In fact, you can get the 16TBs of m.2 and the 96GB of RAM for a lot less than what Apple charges ($2200) for only an 8TB SSD upgrade alone, not counting the Mac.

However, that's not the only PC in town. There are OTHERs made like that too or you can always go the full-on gaming PC route or build your own. Plenty... PLENTY of fish in that sea, with the computer, the RAM upgrade and the storage upgrades all priced LOW... at market... by tremendous competitive forces.

Bonus: if you don't max out the specs of that PC but then discover you need more RAM or more storage in a few years, you can add it inside instead of throwing away the whole computer. I know- that seems crazy. Flexible customer utility in an overall lower-cost product that will play the games you want to play better... what a concept!
Click to expand...


I wouldn't necessarily say a good easy gaming experience is necessary.

Just want it to be playable.

Considering this option because i need a desktop mac and a mini is good enough for me. and given that m4 is so powerful, i thought i can double it up to play some games, rather than buy a standalone pc that takes up space and may not be used most of the time.
 
HobeSoundDarryl said:
I see. Watch the YouTube video by ETFprime about Mac Mini emulation gaming. It should do what you want.
Click to expand...
I read elsewhere that some games especially those that has to be played online doesn't support because of some anti cheat.

have you heard about it?
 
No. I just think in terms of gaming, what we want to do is have it emulate PC, emulate X86, emulate PC graphic cards, etc. That's a lot of overhead for gaming. Watch that video and it looks like it does a pretty good job with all of that but I wouldn't be surprised if it bumps into issues & challenges too. As we ask an ARM-based Mac do more and more X86 PC stuff, we probably shouldn't be surprised if we bump into some limits.

I went through this same kind of thing when I embraced Silicon. I needed Windows for select client work and I didn't want to trust emulation of ARM Windows. So I purchased both a Silicon Mac and a PC for "old fashioned bootcamp." Since I realized it would open the door to some gaming, I went ahead and picked up a PC like the one referenced earlier. In doing so, I got re-acquainted with Windows and find it nowhere near as bad as spun by Apple fans and regained an appreciation for a priority of power over power per watt. Now I even toss some power tasks that could also be done on Mac to the PC because power generally translates to faster.

Instead of choosing Apple's monitor, I chose a "more open" one capable of linking both to it at the same time and working well with both.

But as shown in that video, it looks like it can do a pretty good job with general gaming emulation. It's an impressive little Mac. Since you need it for other macOS purposes too, it seems like the way to go. You can always give it a try and if it comes up short for gaming wants, consider adding a PC too at that time. And if that's a possibility, think carefully about the monitor decision NOW as Apple's is great with Mac but only has the one input, is relatively expensive, is fairly locked down, etc. There's plenty of fish in the monitor sea.
 
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Personally, I've decided that my move is to go with base Mac Mini's for now

Having the smallest amount on the table means the highest chance of % cost recovery and I know I'll personally much more enjoy more frequent upgrades to an all new chip/system as opposed to paying 2-4x to get a much more powerful Mini in the M4 line now.

Looking back at folks who specced up M Studios, for instance, and seeing how their value just got HAMMERED .. and their machines seemingly so easily leapfrogged in performance by future M chips convinced me this is the right path
 
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if you want to fly , i'd Highly suggest Getting X Plane 12 demo downloaded, and see how it go's for you. but running MSFS is not possible.
 
turbineseaplane said:
Personally, I've decided that my move is to go with base Mac Mini's for now

Having the smallest amount on the table means the highest chance of % cost recovery and I know I'll personally much more enjoy more frequent upgrades to an all new chip/system as opposed to paying 2-4x to get a much more powerful Mini in the M4 line now.

Looking back at folks who specced up M Studios, for instance, and seeing how their value just got HAMMERED .. and their machines seemingly so easily leapfrogged in performance by future M chips convinced me this is the right path
Click to expand...
I disagree with the analysis that states "...folks who specced up M Studios, for instance, and seeing how their value just got HAMMERED." The kind of [usually heavy] users that buy Studios do not buy Studios to watch their eBay value over time. They buy Studios to do real work with, and the whole point of buying a "...specced up M Studios, for instance" is to do that real work smoothly.

E.g. I bought a specced up M2 MBP that is ~ equivalent to an M2 Studio because M2 Studios were delayed. Not for a second have I thought that the value "just got hammered" when M3 or M4 came out, because the M2's value doing real work remains superb. The reason it remains superb is because I built a specced up heavy duty box in the first place.

I agree that folks with lesser needs willing to live with low-RAM boxes and willing to be upgrading frequently should go with base Mac Mini. The base Mac Mini is a superb value. That was not the OP, however.

The OP queries going to the Mini with Pro chip, which more than doubles the cost. Since OP seeks a sessile desktop box, my suggestions would be to instead:
• Get a base M4 Mini and add RAM to 32 GB.
• Get a fast-response display appropriate for gaming
• Try gaming on the M4 Mini as feasible. M-series power is causing game developers to make more and more titles available.
---------------------------------------------
And then if deeper gaming is desired:
• Add a KVM switch to allow switching to a second computer.
• Build a desktop gaming PC box.
• KVM switch the display to the PC box when heavy gaming is desired.
 
I play on a Mac Mini. I have a 27 UHD monitor, and the games use a resolution of 2560x1440. I haven't noticed any particular problems. I don't see any noticeable changes after switching from M2 to M4. The increase in RAM to 16 GB was beneficial because there is no swap and the GPU can use up to 4 GB of physical memory. But the M4 is very noisy compared to the M2. The change in dimensions did not do it any good - the GPU instantly reaches 75 degrees Celsius.
I don't think the advice to buy Pro or Studio is appropriate. They are bought for work. In most cases, the basic mini is enough for games. And if it is not enough, it is better to buy a gaming console.
In gaming performance tests, the M4 has a negligible advantage over the M2. In games, this is not noticeable.
 
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Dimvol said:
I play on a Mac Mini. I have a 27 UHD monitor, and the games use a resolution of 2560x1440. I haven't noticed any particular problems. I don't see any noticeable changes after switching from M2 to M4. The increase in RAM to 16 GB was beneficial because there is no swap and the GPU can use up to 4 GB of physical memory. But the M4 is very noisy compared to the M2. The change in dimensions did not do it any good - the GPU instantly reaches 75 degrees Celsius.
I don't think the advice to buy Pro or Studio is appropriate. They are bought for work. In most cases, the basic mini is enough for games. And if it is not enough, it is better to buy a gaming console.
In gaming performance tests, the M4 has a negligible advantage over the M2. In games, this is not noticeable.
Click to expand...
Do you use crossover or parallels/VMW
 
Realistically I think for gaming on a Mac when you want to mostly play Windows-only titles, you're better off getting the cheapest possible Mac and spending the money you saved on not upgrading it on something like a GeforceNow/Shadow/etc subscription.
 
Playing is easy.
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