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M4 Pro: low benchmarks, why?

^
Apart from possibly LLMs i doubt there are any apps out there maximising the memory bandwidth

Mine seems fine. Didn’t put it in a freezer or anything. Just ran it after logging in from a fresh boot

I’ve heard the Mac mini runs slightly faster due to absence of a battery and better cooling.

M4Pro_Bench2.pngM4Pro_Bench3.png
 
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daneoni said:
Apart from possibly LLMs i doubt there are any apps out there maximising the memory bandwidth

Mine seems fine. Didn’t put it in a freezer or anything. Just ran it after logging in from a fresh boot

I’ve heard the Mac mini runs slightly faster due to absence of a battery and better cooling.
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Inline with my Macbook Pro M4 Pro - though I did run it with other apps open/running https://browser.geekbench.com/v6/cpu/9305577 :)
 
Melbourne Park said:
I checked though and its applied by robotic machines. Also statistical checks would be done to ensure QC. I presume all Macbooks use vapor chamber heat exchanges, and that is mature technology. Apple is a huge notebook maker and would do that R&D themselves, but perhaps their designs' manufacture are outsourced, but that would not lower the quality IMO.
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makes sense.
yes, one would think that they have the manufacturing process down.

Melbourne Park said:
Since the CPU would not get hot in a single core test, and the single core result was the one which was very low, the poor result could not have been a cooling issue.
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makes sense too.

i´m clueless

i run a maxMini2012 for -not so legal / well, legal in my country!- TV streaming platforms.
this thing gets hot just by watching a TV Serial on firefox.

my M4pro is not that far away how this thing "feels" vs. it´s temperature.
Right now it looks like my M4base should arrive Dez 27.
So i might have a few days to have both side by side.

i do not like the M4pro for daily usage. I definitly can say that.
I hope apple stands to their word and i can give the M4pro back.
I will then later take a Max studio M4 with that money when these are avaiable.

The M4pro is not a good construct in my opinion. That small case is good for the M4base.
it´s right now at 53°C CPU temp on all 10 P-cores, me just sitting here and typing this text in ( Firefox, esr)
We´ll see
 
streetfunk said:
makes sense.
yes, one would think that they have the manufacturing process down.


makes sense too.

i´m clueless

i run a maxMini2012 for -not so legal / well, legal in my country!- TV streaming platforms.
this thing gets hot just by watching a TV Serial on firefox.

my M4pro is not that far away how this thing "feels" vs. it´s temperature.
Right now it looks like my M4base should arrive Dez 27.
So i might have a few days to have both side by side.

i do not like the M4pro for daily usage. I definitly can say that.
I hope apple stands to their word and i can give the M4pro back.
I will then later take a Max studio M4 with that money when these are avaiable.

The M4pro is not a good construct in my opinion. That small case is good for the M4base.
it´s right now at 53°C CPU temp on all 10 P-cores, me just sitting here and typing this text in ( Firefox, esr)
We´ll see
Click to expand...
Mac Fan Control from Github download, reports my M4Max temps on my 16" are from 40 to 42 degrees C. But just browsing etc.
 
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streetfunk said:
...
I hope apple stands to their word and i can give the M4pro back.
...
We´ll see
Click to expand...
I think your's is faulty.

So take it back now. Don't put it off. And get your money back. And then if you want to compare both, buy two of them and then return after your tests.

I would not muck around and leave it too late. Pre Christmas is a great time to return it, and they will presume you're going to get something more expensive anyway. But they do not care - it's part of what Apple does. But pre Christmas, there's lots of people in the store - if they did not refund straight away, imagine the other customers looking at your distress? But return now ... do not put if off. You can buy another straight away for comparisons if you like (although I think there is a delay in refunding unless you put the refund into an Apple credit.

Good Christmas and do not delay.
 
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Yeah, on the phone they told me i can return it until 8. Jan.
The shop page itself told me i have nothing to return. (that was the 14th day of ownership)
So it´s untl 8. Jan, or nada.

My new one should be here at 27. Dez.
I need a few days to switch over and to manage the audio apps and plugin licenses.
Some need to be de-authorised from with the PC/Mac in question. It will be a nightmare to go thru that stuff.

right now, as i´m typing, 64° CPU temp.
i run two plugin hosts (audio apps). One runs idle, parked in the dock. One is open and reports a CPU load of 3% ( thats on one core. they both run on only one core). the idle one is anyway set to a project that is empty = no CPU load.

just running one Host (my main one, loaded, but set to an empty project, so, just loading the RAM)), and park it in the dock, wouid usually rise my CPU temp by 10°C. A completly normal scenario here.
"My" M4pro really feels 2/3 like my 2012macmini.

i really hope for everybody else that my M4pro is faulty and yours are just better !

i´ll report back how my M4base will heat up, haha.
my workloads are finally allways the same.

and then hoping for a nice Studio Max in spring or summer.

Thanks for all the feedback !
 
This are my recent temps. M4 Pro 14/20

Simple web browsing with several tabs + Youtube + email

Screenshot 2024-12-18 at 7.33.35 pm.png

Running W11 ARM on virtual machine whilst also web browsing on macOS

Screenshot 2024-12-19 at 2.13.54 am.png

Still running W11 ARM on VM but after temps dropped and fans off


Screenshot 2024-12-19 at 2.41.49 am.png
 
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daneoni said:
^
Apart from possibly LLMs i doubt there are any apps out there maximising the memory bandwidth

Mine seems fine. Didn’t put it in a freezer or anything. Just ran it after logging in from a fresh boot

I’ve heard the Mac mini runs slightly faster due to absence of a battery and better cooling.

View attachment 2462966View attachment 2462968
Click to expand...
Whatever it is, the performance gap is immense btwn M4 Pro and M4 Max, 24gb ram vs 36gb should not be that consequential. So I am chalking it up on memory bandwidth. It COULD be that the extra perf cores and gfx cores make it that much better, but I doubt it explains the performance difference.

Look, I think there is a definite space for the M4 Pro, and I would likely be happy 80% of the time with it. But when I am in rendering hell or trying to work on a giant 3d model, I think i’ll be much happier with a M4 Max/M4 Ultra.

I think a M4 Max is the sweetspot for actual vfx/3d/heavy editing work. Ultra will be a beast and worth the extra $$$ but likely overkill for me… Depending on upgrade cost for 64gb ram vs Ultra base, I might go Ultra base if it comes with 64gb. Hopefully M4 Max Mac Studio base is 64gb or 48gb tho.
 
aibloop said:
Whatever it is, the performance gap is immense btwn M4 Pro and M4 Max, 24gb ram vs 36gb should not be that consequential. So I am chalking it up on memory bandwidth. It COULD be that the extra perf cores and gfx cores make it that much better, but I doubt it explains the performance difference.

Look, I think there is a definite space for the M4 Pro, and I would likely be happy 80% of the time with it. But when I am in rendering hell or trying to work on a giant 3d model, I think i’ll be much happier with a M4 Max/M4 Ultra.

I think a M4 Max is the sweetspot for actual vfx/3d/heavy editing work. Ultra will be a beast and worth the extra $$$ but likely overkill for me… Depending on upgrade cost for 64gb ram vs Ultra base, I might go Ultra base if it comes with 64gb. Hopefully M4 Max Mac Studio base is 64gb or 48gb tho.
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Well of course. If you’re doing heavy 3D work or complex video editing with effects, i dare say you shouldn’t even be looking at the M4 Pro. The extra decoders/encoders, and GPU cores in the Max and Ultra chips will be significantly more impactful

The M4 Pro is more for 4K video editing, photo editing, mild 3D/vFX work, number crunching, software development etc
 
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daneoni said:
This are my recent temps. M4 Pro 14/20
Click to expand...
MUCH Thanks for that !
totally different than what i have, i´d say.
My new M4base came in yesterday. Not in any mood to set it upright now. But i have to hurry into next week with that.
Hope i can make some comparisons.
 
streetfunk said:
Hello,
...

need to decide if i should send it back, which i would hate to do.
I need SC speed by any means ! a 10%up would be allready close to be enough to justifie a new mac purchase. A 15% up on a new model makes me definitly jump....
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Why do you think there is a problem with the Mac when it is more likely an issue with Geekbench?

Benchmarks only give an approximation of what the computer will do on real problems.

If you want a higher benchmark score, then carefully kill any background tasks you do not need and put the Mac in the refrigerator. Run on AC power with a full battery. That is how people get faster scores. It is stupid. What you should be doing is NORMAL WORK and tracking where the bottlenecks are.
 
ChrisA said:
If you want a higher benchmark score, then............... and put the Mac in the refrigerator. Run on AC power with a full battery.
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ChrisA said:
It is stupid.
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yes, this is stupid !

why are you telling me such stuff ?
I wanted to have a mac that just has the 100% normal power. It´s not about a benchmark score itself.
There have been folks posting their benchmark results in this thread. Results they got out under normal test conditions. BS ( as if it was about the results itself)

but ok, i can solve the whole myth now ! see my next post
 
Last edited:
Ok, here the solution:

i got my M4base in. I´ve just set it up the bare minimum (macOS only), and took then some GB6 measures.
Then i migrated my M4pro setup onto it.

my first GB6 SC results were: 3825, then 3926, or so.
I consider the 3950 SC results on GB as "very good-" or "best possible normal results".

After the migration, the GB6 SC score dropped down to 3726 or so. I got oit similar results several times.
So a loss of 100-200 points.
Also is now (after the system migration) the CPU temp slightly higher !...while just doing same tasks.

So, verdict:
my whole setup eats some power, respectivly is it slowing down the machine slightly.
Looks like my M4pro is normal. Not sure about the CPU temp. Could be normal then, or could be slightly higher thean average. Hard to say. Nevertheless, i´d like to swap my M4pro for a (to come) M4 studio Max.

Again: Thanks for all the feedback !
 
daneoni said:
I probably wouldn't migrate and would instead do a fresh install and install your usual software from scratch.
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yeah, one day.
700+ plugins ( VST/AU) !!! (according to ableton live / i had not anything a clue at all, haha)

i might do a fresh install when i get me a M4studio Max. Since i have now a M4. So that jump then is not anylonger that important. To do a fresh install will take me months, i fear.

daneoni said:
You might me migrating files/settings that are causing issues.
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There should not be anything like that.
But a fresh install is due. Thats true.
The big problem is to decide what´s not to install ? I need to decide on that bevore i start a fresh and sleek install.
 
My 12 CPU cores / 16 GPU cores M4 Pro achieved 3964 Single-Core and 20746 Multi-Core. The GPU test gave 60491 OpenCL Score. I think these are descent to normal results. I did the GB6 test only once, on the fifth day from the purchase. There were some software installed - Afinity Suite, Firefox, CommanderOne, BBEdit and Rider. None of these programs were running during the test. The Mac Mini box were placed on the desktop as usual, no fridges etc. :)
The CPU temp right now is 40ºC with 4 tabs in Firefox, one terminal window and activity monitor open plus iStat Menus in the background. The GPU is at 33ºC with 2 monitors connected. One 1920x1200 Dell U2415 an a 4k Samsung. Preview on the Dell and Firefox on the Samsung.
I have heard the fan only once - during the System diagnostics procedure that I run on the third day, which gave me a
ADP000No issues found.
result. BUT yeah, the fan at full sounds like a jet engine. Otherwise the Mini is completely silent. So far I am very happy with it.
 
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popup said:
My 12 CPU cores / 16 GPU cores M4 Pro achieved 3964 Single-Core and 20746 Multi-Core. :)

The CPU temp right now is 40ºC with 4 tabs in Firefox, one terminal window and activity monitor open plus iStat Menus in the background.
Click to expand...
Thanks for sharing !

jfyi: So, apple did stand to their word. My M4pro will go back. That´s good news.
 
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