![Recording](/uploads/1/2/4/8/124816705/918759963.jpg)
If your Mac is running OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard (2009) or later, you can use the built in QuickTime 10 player for audio recording. Open QuickTime Player from your Applications folder. Open the File menu and select New Audio Recording. The main benefits of Studio One: drag and drop workflow (actually helps you mix really fast), really smart layout for recording, mixing, editing, etc., fantastic integration with the onboard mastering suite. Spectrasonics Omnisphere, Trillian, Stylus RMX, Roland JV-1080 Synthesizer, East West Libraries, Antares Auto Tune, Avid Impact Compressor, Genelec Monitors. In fact, I recorded and mixed my most recent album Help of the Helpless in Studio One. The main benefits of Studio One: drag and drop workflow (actually helps you mix really fast), really smart layout for recording, mixing, editing, etc., fantastic integration with the onboard mastering suite. Maybe this has been answered many times before, but I don't understand why a mac is better for recording. I know they are well built, easy to use, and much more stable. In this video I discuss my decision to get a Mac Mini to produce my music, and also edit my videos, instead of getting a different kind of computer.
The 5400 RPM drives in the latest minis are FAST. I bought one and compared read/write times versus my 2008 17' macbook pro with a 200 gig 7200 RPM drive in it. The times were faster, and in some cases much, much faster with the mini and 5400 drive. It really blew my mind. The reason i did the test is because after I loaded up the mini and started working on it, it seemed so darn fast. My 17' macbook pro is a 2.4ghz model, and the mini was 2.53 ghz, both with 4 gigs of ram. Yet the mini felt like a speed demon on some tasks.
Bottom line, unless you regularly record 24 tracks of 96K audio through a firewire port, I can't imagine one case where the speed of that internal drive will matter. Best part is, for under $100 bucks, you can upgrade the internal to a 320 or 500 gig 7200 anyway.
My plan is to use the existing drive for a year or so, and when the 7200 internals get even cheaper, take a look at that time to see if I even need to bother.
Bottom line, unless you regularly record 24 tracks of 96K audio through a firewire port, I can't imagine one case where the speed of that internal drive will matter. Best part is, for under $100 bucks, you can upgrade the internal to a 320 or 500 gig 7200 anyway.
My plan is to use the existing drive for a year or so, and when the 7200 internals get even cheaper, take a look at that time to see if I even need to bother.
Jan 30, 2010 9:49 AM
Let’s clear one thing up, if you don’t want to buy a Mac then stop reading now. This article is not about the merits of Macs v PCs, been there, done that, got the t-shirt.
If you are thinking of building a home studio and want a Mac then you might be tempted to get a Mac Pro or full spec MacBook, but before you dive in don’t write off the Mac Mini.
I own a Mac Pro, a Mac Mini and a MacBook Pro, which gives me a unique view on the pros and cons of all three Macs. Microsoft visual studio for mac. I have to say that the Mac Mini has a lot going for it for a home studio, here are my thoughts.
Connectivity
The Mac Mini has a lot of connectivity for the small footprint it has. Thunderbolt and 4 USB3 connectors. Firewire 800 was dropped for the Late 2014 model. Either way, this offers a comprehensive range of choice when considering an audio interface. Connectivity is also important for hard drives and other interfaces such as keyboards. One small thing to be aware of, in some cases USB3 creates issues and a hub is needed to make items such as iLok2s and some drives work. iLok3s are fine on USB3 ports.
One reason some people don’t even consider the Mac Mini is the lack of internal expansion, however, the Thunderbolt port allows for the use of expansion chassis, both Magma and Sonnet make solutions that can give users HDX and HD Native card connectivity, Avid also makes the HD Native Thunderbolt box that will connect to the Mac Mini.
Mac Mini Size
When building a home studio one thing to consider is size, the Mac Mini has one of the smallest footprints out there, so can sit on a desk and hardly be noticed.
Mac Mini Fan Noise In The Studio
The Mac Mini is whisper quiet, in fact far quieter than the older Mac Pro silver tower. If you want to record through microphones in the same room as your computer then fan noise is an important consideration - I’m impressed by the lack of noise from the Mac Mini.
Expansion Considerations
I’ve pimped my Late 2012 Mac Mini, installing 16GB of RAM and a Crucial SSD, both of these options cost around $300 and around 30 minutes to install. Now the little baby flies like a rocket.
Free Recording Software For Mac
Conclusion
Why Mac For Recording Studio
Having run some tests my pimped Mac Mini can easily record 64 audio tracks in a single pass on a low buffer setting and play them back too with plug-ins installed. Visual studio for mac wiki. It may be Mini by name, but the performance of a Mac Mini belies its unassuming size.
![Recording Recording](/uploads/1/2/4/8/124816705/535838531.jpg)
If you are building a home project studio and want to take the Mac route then the Mac Mini is well worth consideration.