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Macbook Pro 2012 non retina for music

edited January 2019 in Other

I ask myself about getting a MBP 2012 non retina version for my music needs. I will not use it for something else.

I use iOS and my iPhone 7 Plus for creation, even finishing songs, and live setup. Nothing beats its immediacy and mobility.

I also have a Windows 10 Lenovo T440P which I use more and more with Ableton Live as a more advanced live setup, as there are essential effects and tools I don’t find on iOS yet. The goal being to manage 10 or more songs in one and only live set.

It’s a stable and reliable laptop rig, but here is why I think about this MBP:

  • I use a BlueBoard with Midifire for advanced live triggering. I need to use the iPhone in the chain, as Bluebaord is not W10 compatible. Should works with CME WIDi bud, but I will still miss MidiFire advanced script. Both BlueBoard and Midifire are compatible with Mac. I could get a Mcmillen Softstep2 as an alternative for 350 euros, but as a sax player I can’t look at my feet and 10 buttons is perhaps too much. Blueboard’s 4 buttons with Midifire 24 actions is a perfect combo, and MBP 2012 used is easily found for 350 euros too.
  • I want to buy a Livid Minim midi controller, it will be an essential part of my setup: ultra compact and BT, configurable. But the editor is Mac only... I will need customization, so again a MBP makes sense.
  • IDAM could be nice too, for iOS/Ableton integration without the need to buy an iConnectivity interface. But is it reliable enough, which OS version works well?
  • Core audio drivers and aggregate devices.
  • Legendary stability for live setups.
  • This MBP version is the last one upgradable, I already have a 525 Go SSD, 8 Go RAM, and it can have a second HDD in an optical caddy.
  • On a MBP 2012 13 inches laptop, 1280X800 non retina will be good enough for Ableton Live. I have 1366X768 resolution on the 14 inches Lenovo and it’s perfect. Also, a dual core 2.5 ghz i5 is what I already have, it’s good enough for my needs.

I’ve read on different forums MBP 2012 was still a nice rig in 2018 for music making. I will use it only for that purpose, and don’t very often upgrade my music software on laptop, at the inverse of iOS. So if it sticks with Sierra, High Sierra or Mojave it’s not an issue.

What do you think about this, anyone still use one of use 2012 MBP?

Comments

  • In my opinion, it will be worth it to spend a little more for an i7 of the same vintage. I used a 2011 MBP i7 till recently and it was great...I plan to get another.

  • @Janosax I bought the mac mini (late 2012, 16gb ram and 256 SSD) for the same reason and I'm happy with that investment (even I'm not using it too much ATM).

    if you can go for the i7 as @espiegel123 points. If you plan to do video stuff is a must. Also consider the Digitech Trio+ since it can handle 12 songs (with 5 parts per song), works as drummer and bass player and also has looper.

    I'm considering getting one ASAP and keep the mini at home for low budget gigs or jams as addition to my keytar.

  • edited January 2019

    Thanks to both of you for advice. The i7 ones I’ve found are more in 500 euros range with quad core 2.9 i7 with single core going to 3.6. Is it usual price? Still worth it?

    I will take a look at Digitech Trio+ too ;)

  • @Janosax said:
    I ask myself about getting a MBP 2012 non retina version for my music needs. I will not use it for something else.

    I use iOS and my iPhone 7 Plus for creation, even finishing songs, and live setup. Nothing beats its immediacy and mobility.

    I also have a Windows 10 Lenovo T440P which I use more and more with Ableton Live as a more advanced live setup, as there are essential effects and tools I don’t find on iOS yet. The goal being to manage 10 or more songs in one and only live set.

    It’s a stable and reliable laptop rig, but here is why I think about this MBP:

    • I use a BlueBoard with Midifire for advanced live triggering. I need to use the iPhone in the chain, as Bluebaord is not W10 compatible. Should works with CME WIDi bud, but I will still miss MidiFire advanced script. Both BlueBoard and Midifire are compatible with Mac. I could get a Mcmillen Softstep2 as an alternative for 350 euros, but as a sax player I can’t look at my feet and 10 buttons is perhaps too much. Blueboard’s 4 buttons with Midifire 24 actions is a perfect combo, and MBP 2012 used is easily found for 350 euros too.
    • I want to buy a Livid Minim midi controller, it will be an essential part of my setup: ultra compact and BT, configurable. But the editor is Mac only... I will need customization, so again a MBP makes sense.
    • IDAM could be nice too, for iOS/Ableton integration without the need to buy an iConnectivity interface. But is it reliable enough, which OS version works well?
    • Core audio drivers and aggregate devices.
    • Legendary stability for live setups.
    • This MBP version is the last one upgradable, I already have a 525 Go SSD, 8 Go RAM, and it can have a second HDD in an optical caddy.
    • On a MBP 2012 13 inches laptop, 1280X800 non retina will be good enough for Ableton Live. I have 1366X768 resolution on the 14 inches Lenovo and it’s perfect. Also, a dual core 2.5 ghz i5 is what I already have, it’s good enough for my needs.

    I’ve read on different forums MBP 2012 was still a nice rig in 2018 for music making. I will use it only for that purpose, and don’t very often upgrade my music software on laptop, at the inverse of iOS. So if it sticks with Sierra, High Sierra or Mojave it’s not an issue.

    What do you think about this, anyone still use one of use 2012 MBP?

    I've got one of these, and it's great. The only thing I'd recommend is using your SSD as the boot drive, and the standard HD for storage. You don't even need to mount it internally - I connect mine via USB and it's ten times faster than the built in drive. I've even got a second SSD plugged in for storage, so I bypass the internal drive completely.

    Fast enough for me to run Maschine, Reason, Logic etc. and various plugins.

  • @Janosax said:
    Thanks to both of you for advice. The i7 ones I’ve found are more in 500 euros range with quad core 2.9 i7 with single core going to 3.6. Is it usual price? Still worth it?

    I will take a look at Digitech Trio+ too ;)

    https://forum.audiob.us/discussion/comment/596294#Comment_596294

  • @Janosax said:
    Thanks to both of you for advice. The i7 ones I’ve found are more in 500 euros range with quad core 2.9 i7 with single core going to 3.6. Is it usual price? Still worth it?

    I will take a look at Digitech Trio+ too ;)

    The quad core is worth it. I forgot to mention it (forgot that there might be a non-quad core option). The quad i7 gives you a lot more performance which is valuable for DSP.

  • @espiegel123 said:
    In my opinion, it will be worth it to spend a little more for an i7 of the same vintage. I used a 2011 MBP i7 till recently and it was great...I plan to get another.

    Yes, if you are spending any kind of significant money on a computer that old, it is best to get one with the quad core, and faster processor. The idea being it will escape boat anchor status for a couple years longer. A solid state drive makes a big difference too, as far as getting an old computer to feel like a newer one.

    I recently got a mini 2012 i7 with a 256gb ssd and it is great for making music. With Apple it is painful doing all of the homework to ensure O.S. compatibility with accessories and software that isn’t the latest and greatest- compatibility with audio interface, big monitor resolution, software, DAW, midi interface. I settled on El Capitan, new enough to run most of the software, but old enough to run an awesome audio interface. Things got weird with a lot of audio interfaces on Sierra, with driver signing. You’ve got to watch like a hawk, lest one component lead to Apple preferred situation where you have to buy all new stuff.

  • I have a quad i7 2012 15" mbp and it is great for music. I replaced the DVD drive with a second hard drive, then recently an ssd, so 500gb ssd for system drive, 1tb ssd for recording drive. It's the last mbp that is easily user upgradeable, I'll be sad when it has to be Replaced, which is hopefully not for a LONG time.

    Funny enough, I also have a 410t, although it's running win7. I only use it to track from a Yamaha m7cl though, because the ether sound asio streamer is windows only.

  • Thanks for all other answers.

    I’ve just read Live 10 is not fully compatible with Mojave yet. Are El Capitan and Sierra both compatible with IDAM and BTLE midi?

    Also, when you buy a used Mac, I suppose it’s like iOS devices the machine has to be removed from seller Apple account?

  • I agree, go i7, fastest processor possible. But yes, those 2012 non retina mbp's are great machines for music. I'd recommend upgrading to 16gb ram and everything will be super snappy. High Sierra will run smooth, but there are lots of reports about Mojave slowing things down considerably, not to mention the ableton compatibility issues..

    and yes, a used machine should come completely wiped of all previous data.

  • @palm said:
    I agree, go i7, fastest processor possible. But yes, those 2012 non retina mbp's are great machines for music. I'd recommend upgrading to 16gb ram and everything will be super snappy. High Sierra will run smooth, but there are lots of reports about Mojave slowing things down considerably, not to mention the ableton compatibility issues..

    and yes, a used machine should come completely wiped of all previous data.

    Mine doesn't seem to have slowed down with Mojave.

  • From the Ableton official Knowledge base:

    MacOS Compatibility with Live

    Live Versions: 10, 9
    Operating System: Mac 10.7 and later

    macOS 10.14 "Mojave" Compatibility

    Live 10 is not yet fully compatible with macOS Mojave. Due to new security protocols on Mojave, when launching Live for the first time you'll need to grant certain permissions to ensure full functionality. As long as you click "OK" to each dialog box there will be no functional impact. An update for Live will be released in the future with full Mojave compliance. See "Known Issues" below.
    Live 9 is not officially compatible with macOS Mojave. The last OS version that is officially supported with Live 9 is 10.13 "High Sierra". Although Live 9 may work with 10.14, we cannot guarantee 100% functionality. See "Known Issues" below.

    Known issues with 10.14 Mojave:

    Mojave now requires you to give explicit permission to certain programs to access specific functions. When opening Live a dialog might display one or more of the following messages:

    "Ableton Live" would like to access the microphone.
    "Ableton Live" would like to access contacts.
    "Ableton Live" would like to control this computer using accessibility features.
    Software associated with "Ableton Live" is not optimised for your Mac and needs to be updated.

    Important: You need to click "OK" to give Live the correct permissions to enable full functionality. In case you clicked "Don't allow" you can still grant Ableton Live the necessary permissions in System Preferences ---> Security/Privacy ---> Privacy.

  • On the subject of 2012 MacBook Pros: anyone know if it can run Snow Leopard? I've had conflicting non-first hand reports.

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