I get by with a low-spec iMac for recording. I only ever record 1 or 2 sources at once, and I don't use many plugins (and almost never while I'm tracking).
But nothing lasts for ever, and when my current machine dies, I will be looking at just over £1k to replace it with similar. Having watched the video below, I realise that for about the same money I could have a much better spec'd Hackintosh.
Does anyone here use one, either for recording or generally? If so, did you do your own build, and was it 'golden'? Or did you buy it pre-configured/loaded?
Any problems encountered, e.g. with OS updates?
Hit me! (Ouch, not that hard...)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WU7U2kJsQv0
Comments
https://www.tonymacx86.com/
And their install tools, and it's very very simple.
I'm on my 4th. Kabylake i7 based machine that is thooper.
Do you have a reason to stick with Apple?
Yes.
(1) I use SMUG Capo which is Apple only, and although other similar apps are available, I have several hundred Capo files which I don't want to ditch.
(2) I have my music room iMac and our general-use iMac set up for file sharing. It may well be possible to add a PC to such a set-up, but I suspect it may involve 'tinkering with computers rather than using them for productive work'!
(3) I like the ease with which I currently sync iTunes and iCal - see (2) above.
(4) Time Machine.
I haven't built a Hackintosh personally
In which case you may not be best placed to answer my questions!
I (personally) feel it is the sort of thing to do if you enjoy tinkering with computers
I get a lot of satisfaction from making and modding.
https://www.studiowear.co.uk/ -
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Facebook - m.me/studiowear.co.uk
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I went from Mac Mini to iMac some years ago, and found it a very worthwhile upgrade.
However, if you are building a studio machine for a single purpose then none of that stuff is going to matter and there are very few draw backs
want a machine with 64gb ram, an Nvme.2 drive and a 9900k for less £1400?
of course you do!
Hell, you can boot camp to windows and throw a Radeon 570 in there for cheap and beat the kids at Fortnite while you're at it
Just to add, are you aware of Apple refurbs? Maybe they have what you want for less?
https://www.apple.com/uk/shop/refurbished/mac
Thanks, that's worth a look.
In fact, if you want to be a bit more energy-conscious, you might want to get a Raspberry Pi 4 (not a 3, because it only has 100Mbit/s networking) and set it up as a NAS - that way, you don't need to keep any of your Macs on all the time. That means you can add any kind of machine to the network and still be able to get at your files without any trouble at all.
Some problems you may encounter and solve within minutes. Specific configurations with a simple update from Apple could break all sorts of drivers etc which could result in research for minutes, days, weeks, . . . . months. You could be entering into hardware configs with no help from Apple so wait until some kind sole can figure it out. If hardware is your bag then that is possibly a welcome challenge for you and some people love solving the issues hence the Hackintosh projects.
Apple are renowned for 'it just works' and even they have screwed up despite having complete control over the hardware supplied so I personally would rather stay away from custom setups (too many hours spent trying distros, no longer interested)
As an example, in the past with Samsung (I think it was) I had an issue with replacing a hard drive on my iMac, Apple dictated there was an extra sensor to monitor the temperature to start up the fan. Replace your hard drive with a standard Samsung on an Apple iMac and the fan was constantly running. Fortunately somebody created an app http://exirion.net/ssdfanctrl/ I wouldn't want to have to write that kind of app just because I had changed a disk. Having experienced that issue I can say that without the app, it was a painful auditory experience to sit next to the iMac.
Things may be better now, so maybe this is now is all sorted and there is no plug and pray kind of issues - I wish you luck if you go down a Hackintosh route. Send feedback here, I for one am interested in current situation with Hackintosh.
Unless you want the fancy looking box, its the way to go.
One proviso - it will be louder than an actual Mac, even with some fancy fans and heat sinks. If you're a stickler for ambient noise in your studio, look at Noctua fans and heat sinks, or a water-cooled method.
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