13 inch MacBook Pro capability

[Unknown]

Hi all, first post, lurked etc...

Is anyone running R9 on one of the new 13 inch MBP's? Is the performance good, does the screen real estate get in the way of working?

I've got a powerful desktop and have waited for an eternity to update my 2012 15" i7, laptop is for doing some serious stuff on but mostly sketch pad work and boring day-job stuff.

Currys have 10% cash back on all Apple stuff until end of the month so it makes the prices a little better.

[Vince-Noir-99]

Hey there, I'm using an early 2015 13" MBP, base model, so I think I can only give feedback on the screen size/resolution comfort, as it's something I've given a lot of thought to, and compared with different external monitor solutions.

At the regular scale setting the interface of Reason feels cramped. At its 'largest' (more space) setting I'd say it's workable, but not ideal (even then it's not even at 1080p). With some little 3rd party utilities it is possible to reach the 2560x1600 resolution and whilst it super comfy to work in (doing any kind editing besides Reason), on a 13" screen it just looks way too small... But you may find it more or less acceptable.

Finally I'd say that Reason isn't probably the most suitable DAW to work on smallish screens (as for example Ableton is), but at the "more space" display setting it's a fair compromise.

If you'd like to see some screenshots at different res. let me know and when I have time I'll post them.

[Unknown]

Hey there, I'm using an early 2015 13" MBP, base model, so I think I can only give feedback on the screen size/resolution comfort, as it's something I've given a lot of thought to, and compared with different external monitor solutions.

At the regular scale setting the interface of Reason feels cramped. At its 'largest' (more space) setting I'd say it's workable, but not ideal (even then it's not even at 1080p). With some little 3rd party utilities it is possible to reach the 2560x1600 resolution and whilst it super comfy to work in (doing any kind editing besides Reason), on a 13" screen it just looks way too small... But you may find it more or less acceptable.

Finally I'd say that Reason isn't probably the most suitable DAW to work on smallish screens (as for example Ableton is), but at the "more space" display setting it's a fair compromise.

If you'd like to see some screenshots at different res. let me know and when I have time I'll post them.

Thanks for the reply, good info.

My eyes aren't amazing (I wish Props would put some custom zoom features in) so I may feel a bit lacking on real estate. I use ctrl and two finger swipe to zoom (set up in accessibility) to get around this now with my space settings, usable and quick but it does pixellate. If you can upload some screenshots that will be very much appreciated.

How is the CPU power for you with a dual core machine?

[Vince-Noir-99]

Yeah I use zoom all the time too, even on my external 1440p display. It's a great feature.
As far as CPU, there's plenty for me but I should mention my sessions don't usually require stacks of REs. I could definitely push more!

Here are some screenshots in 'default' scaling.

default 1.jpg (807.35 KiB) Viewed 2856 times

default 2.jpg (920.93 KiB) Viewed 2856 times

default 3.jpg (720.18 KiB) Viewed 2856 times

[Vince-Noir-99]

...And here set to 'more space'.

more space 1.jpg (912.42 KiB) Viewed 2856 times

more space 2.jpg (960.32 KiB) Viewed 2856 times

more space 3.jpg (903.63 KiB) Viewed 2856 times

[Unknown]

...And here set to 'more space'.

That's awesome thanks,

It's not really very different from the real estate I have now on the 15", just with that slightly smaller screen. I reckon I may well go for the 13".

I'm loathed to pay the new prices but with the cash back and saving the VAT (will buy it through work) it comes down to a better price. I hate the thought of going back to Windows, always having problems with work computers that take me back to the days of spending hours trying to find a problem when all you want to do is create. Having said that the HP Spectre looks pretty nice.

[Vince-Noir-99]

No problem! I've also pondered at times about the Windows options.. but ultimately I'm glad I'm on Mac's due to the flowing OS and reliable hardware. Though probably other people will argue with that Each time I sit at a Windows computer it's headaches.

[Unknown]

I spent an entire morning last week trying to fix a Windows glitch where the disk usage showed as 100% but there was barely any actual usage, made the machine virtually unusable. Switched to mac in 2012 and nothing has ever happened like that to me.

[Kaosis]

The hardware is basically the same now days, as for reliability windows is just fine. You pay a premium for the name Apple and OSX. Apple has its fair share of bugs as well, I've used both extensively through out the times.

But I've found that if you buy a similarly equipped PC you have the reliability without the hefty price tag. Just don't try to compare a $500 PC to a $1700 macbook, that's obviously not fair lol

[Kaosis]

I'm not saying I dislike OSX, just don't disregard the other option. The continuity between IOS and OSX is great, but being locked to a set amount of memory (16gb) on a laptop is dumb. Guarantees that in a few years time you've gotta upgrade.

[Data_Shrine]

Desktop-wise i think PC are better now (if you build or buy a good one). Macs are definitly overpriced, but for laptops, I wouldnt reccomand otherwise. Pretty much everyone I know who has or owned a laptop pc had parts failing, build quality is still pretty bad all over. They generally have a short lifespan.

[dana]

I have a top of the line 15" macbook pro, great for starting songs but i bring them to my big desktop 5960x running windows 10 to work on them more..

I would keep the laptop you have for sketching out ideas and buy a pc (says me with about 7 macs)

[vancityguy]

I have a rookie question here to dive a bit more into options with the Macbook Pro and hoping you guys can help!

I've had an early-2011 13" MBP with 8GB RAM and ever since I've upgraded the OS and Reason to 9.x, the laptop's beginning to feel dated. :'( Last week, I finally got the "Computer too slow to play song" message and decided it's time to get a new machine.

I'm on a tight budget and given that it's impossible to upgrade the RAM in the new 13" MBP post-purchase, I want to know if I should spend more and get a Mac with more RAM or a better CPU? It'll be the MBP with 2 thunderbolt ports (not the one with the overhyped touchbar).

For the record, I'm learning how to produce EDM tracks and I've begun to do a reasonable amount of processing in my mixes and also tend to stack some REs.

Any thoughts on this would be appreciated!

[joeyluck]

I have a rookie question here to dive a bit more into options with the Macbook Pro and hoping you guys can help!

I've had an early-2011 13" MBP with 8GB RAM and ever since I've upgraded the OS and Reason to 9.x, the laptop's beginning to feel dated. :'( Last week, I finally got the "Computer too slow to play song" message and decided it's time to get a new machine.

I'm on a tight budget and given that it's impossible to upgrade the RAM in the new 13" MBP post-purchase, I want to know if I should spend more and get a Mac with more RAM or a better CPU? It'll be the MBP with 2 thunderbolt ports (not the one with the overhyped touchbar).

For the record, I'm learning how to produce EDM tracks and I've begun to do a reasonable amount of processing in my mixes and also tend to stack some REs.

Any thoughts on this would be appreciated!

What version of macOS? Propellerhead has confirmed issues with Reason performance in Sierra and El Capitan.They say they are in touch with Apple. Hopefully will be fixed soon!

[ambitran]

Right now the best solution is to run boot camp and download windows to run Reason. Probably 7 or 8 with your machine. It runs much better at the moment


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[joeyluck]

Right now the best solution is to run boot camp and download windows to run Reason. Probably 7 or 8 with your machine. It runs much better at the moment


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I'm tempted to do that, but I don't own Windows and I work in QLab which only runs on Mac. And I export changes often from Reason and load them into QLab while I'm designing a show. So that would require switching OS between each change. I'm making do with my i7 MacBook Air with a higher buffer size. But performance is still low in Reason. Just going to have to keep my fingers crossed... Just glad to know that Propellerhead is aware and says they are working on getting it fixed.

[ThisIsNotTheMusic]

I have a rookie question here to dive a bit more into options with the Macbook Pro and hoping you guys can help!

I've had an early-2011 13" MBP with 8GB RAM and ever since I've upgraded the OS and Reason to 9.x, the laptop's beginning to feel dated. :'( Last week, I finally got the "Computer too slow to play song" message and decided it's time to get a new machine.

I'm on a tight budget and given that it's impossible to upgrade the RAM in the new 13" MBP post-purchase, I want to know if I should spend more and get a Mac with more RAM or a better CPU? It'll be the MBP with 2 thunderbolt ports (not the one with the overhyped touchbar).

For the record, I'm learning how to produce EDM tracks and I've begun to do a reasonable amount of processing in my mixes and also tend to stack some REs.

Any thoughts on this would be appreciated!

My 2 cents worth. Processor is king. I was running a Surface Pro 4 i5 with 4GB RAM, constant issues. Now use a desktop with an i7 and never a worry.

[vancityguy]

I have a rookie question here to dive a bit more into options with the Macbook Pro and hoping you guys can help!

I've had an early-2011 13" MBP with 8GB RAM and ever since I've upgraded the OS and Reason to 9.x, the laptop's beginning to feel dated. :'( Last week, I finally got the "Computer too slow to play song" message and decided it's time to get a new machine.

I'm on a tight budget and given that it's impossible to upgrade the RAM in the new 13" MBP post-purchase, I want to know if I should spend more and get a Mac with more RAM or a better CPU? It'll be the MBP with 2 thunderbolt ports (not the one with the overhyped touchbar).

For the record, I'm learning how to produce EDM tracks and I've begun to do a reasonable amount of processing in my mixes and also tend to stack some REs.

Any thoughts on this would be appreciated!

What version of macOS? Propellerhead has confirmed issues with Reason performance in Sierra and El Capitan.They say they are in touch with Apple. Hopefully will be fixed soon!

I'm running Sierra right now. Fingers crossed for Reason 9.5! Can't wait to finally run Serum properly within Reason!