Which Mac for Logic pro x

[ryaan.d]

I'm a music student and in the market to buy a new mac for the purpose of music making and editing.

I've narrowed down my options to the Macbook pro 13" with retina display. However my question is regarding the specifications. Obviously the higher end specs are the better option but my budget only really allows for the 2.7ghz processor and 8gb ram.

Will this be capable of running Logic pro x smoothly with additional plugins?

I'm not overly keen on going over my budget, however neither do I want to be stuck with specifications that don't meet my requirements, given that the model cannot be upgraded after purchase.

 

[Greene]

Yes, that will be a great mac for Logic x!

When it comes to logic (any version), the question really isn't whether or not it will run, it's how many instruments/plugins it will playback simultaneously. Faster processor = more stuff at once. Your Mac should handle most projects fine. To get an idea of what your mac can do, search for the logic 9 benchmark numbers.

Although, I would really recommend going with 16 gb ram if you're running large sample libraries / are a classical composer.

 

[keysofanxiety]

What Greene said, really. I'd recommend the 15" Retina MacBook Pro for its capable quad-core processor and 16GB RAM as standard. Not to say the 13" isn't suitable, though in the interest of longevity it's best to make the jump to a quad-core, especially as plugins get more resource-intensive.

 

[Greene]

fwiw - I know the quad core 15 inch is/was what Berklee recommended/required their students to get.

If you're really on the cheap, look for a used 8 core mac pro. This is going to give you a lot of longevity and upgrade headroom for your money. Although I've since upgraded, most of my music gets made on an original mac pro with a processor upgrade. One of my friends recently picked up a comparable system, did the upgrades herself, and in total spent about $150.