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beatntrack

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 18, 2013
1
0
I use a MacBook Pro (early 2011 ID 8,1) running Mavericks. As a recording engineer I use it for location work to record multitrack audio into Logic Pro X. However, it has recently begun stalling out mid-recording with a "Disk too slow" error message,

I want to hotrod it with a Mercury Pro SSD from OtherWorldComputing.com so that it is lean and mean and this disk error never reappears.

My question is how to fresh install OS 10.9 on a virgin SSD. I have no DVDs to install from since Snow Leopard. Now that the OS is a download from the App store it implies you already are running an OS on the machine which would not be the case here.

What's the elegant way to do this?

All help gratefully received.
 
Download this utility from Apple and use it with a 1GB or larger USB key to make a recovery key from your current Mavs install.

Then when you install the new drive just option key boot to the USB key. Then start Disk Util and format the new drive to Mac OS Extended. Now quit Disk Util then click install OS. Then wait while the 5GB OS downloads and installs.
 
I want to hotrod it with a Mercury Pro SSD from OtherWorldComputing.com so that it is lean and mean and this disk error never reappears.

The OWC drives are relatively expensive. I've got a 256Gb Crucial M4 in each of my MacBook Pro and Mac Pro desktop. I'll replace them with a 480Gb M500 sometime soon.

http://www.amazon.com/Crucial-2-5-I...F8&qid=1384816806&sr=1-3&keywords=crucial+ssd

If you haven't already done so, then bump it up to 16Gb while you're at it.

eg
http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Chann...1384816743&sr=1-1&keywords=CMSO16GX3M2A1333C9
 
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