Ableton Forum

Hey, I'm considering switching to a new laptop and I wonder if you could help me out a bit.

I'm currently on an old Macbook Air. Performance-wise this is just a tragedy with many new plugins, but I get around everything by freezing and flattening tracks, which, in fact, is not that bad for my workflow. But still - when it comes to larger projects, or mastering with multiple plugins, the fan noise which activates pretty early is just killing my enjoyment of the whole process + in fact I'm hearing stuff worse due to just the fan being so loud.

Mind:

• I'm running Ableton 10 - for performance and stability reasons, I didn't upgrade to 11 or 12

• over the years I bought tons of plugins, including stuff by Native Instruments, Arturia, Waves, Soundtoys, Output, etc

I'm considering 2 options when it comes to the switch:

• either an old 2015 Macbook Pro with the highest possible configuration

• or the new M1 or M2 Macbook

What I like about my current Macbook and what I like about the 2015 Macbook Pro:

• keyboard, which I love

• USB 3.0 ports - my audio interface, midi controller, hardware synths, push, etc are all connected via old USB ports + I don't want to be always carrying a hub just to plug anything

• all plugins work fine with my current setup

What I would love to have after switching:

• better overall performance - I'm planning to buy e.g. Slate + Ash plugins which are know to be very CPU hungry

• no issues with plugins not being compatible / not opening / etc

• no issues with Ableton 10 not running correctly - for now, I'd like to stay with 10 and not upgrade

• no problems with connecting my gear (audio interface, controllers, etc)

So, my questions are:

• is there a HUGE difference in Live (esp. Live 10) performance between 2015 Macbook Pro with top configuration vs M1/M2?

• which option gave you fewer issues, more stability and more overall enjoyment when working with Live?

• did you run into any compatibility issues with plugins (e.g. Soundtoys and the likes), when switching to M1/M2?

And FYI: I KNOW that new M1/M2 Macbooks are WAY faster and stronger than the 2015 Macbook Pro. I'm well aware of that. What I need is to weigh the pros and cons. And if e.g. there are more cons to M1/M2, then I have no problem with going for lower performance, but more compatibility and stability with the 2015 Macbook (if that would be the case).

I've one of the last Intel MacBook Pros, bought June 2020, and even on that Live's performance is mediocre. My next Mac will definitely be Apple Silicon.

There's a huge thread on Modwiggler which you might find useful if you can wade through it!

Migrating to Apple silicon - issues, solutions, trouble-shooting

https://www.modwiggler.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=241989

I would make sure Live 10 is compatible with the latest MacOS, otherwise I would absolutely upgrade to a newer M Mac.

You will need to upgrade to Live 11 or Live 12 to get max performance out of your new Mac M1/2/3...

Thanks a lot for the answers, but all of this is not about performance. It's about fun and usability and full compatibility. And I'm asking which of these laptops is more stable / usable / compatible with all plugins and fun to work with Ableton.

You’re kind of in a tricky situation. If you’re using old Live, you might not want a current laptop. But the old laptops’ days are numbered, and in many different ways you could hit an inconvenient problem.

If it was in any way possible, I’d encourage getting the current models particularly because of their efficiency. Quiet ( no fan noise ), not overheating, and decent battery life. To me, these factors reduce stress and encourage playtime.

For full compatibility it is best to take an Intel based MacBook as you can run your old Ableton version and outdated plugins

Thanks a lot everyone for the tips!