For Cubase Pro 8: 2009 iMac C2D 3,05 vs 2014 Macmini?

I am considering changing my 2009 iMac 21.5" Core 2 Duo 3.06 Mhz for a new Macmini 2014 i5 1.4MHz. Mac mini - Technical Specifications - Apple

Will a new entry level Macmini perform as well as my 2009 iMac, or will it be less powerful? My current system works just fine, but my eldest son could use my iMac and would prefer having the Macmini on top of the rack where my MR816CSX is installed, instead of running a long Firewire cable to it.

As I said, everything work fine and I don’t really need more power, but I am not going to replace what I have with something less powerful and I am currently not prepared to pay more, because I don’t need an upgrade. This change will only be for practical reasons.

  • I mainly record live rock bands in my studio. (Typically 14-24 audio tracks).
  • I rarely use VSTis except Superior Drummer 2.0 every now and then.
  • The studio Mac is only used for DAW use. I am only always using the current top Cubase-version (but might get Logic in additions to be able to do work for people who are using Logic. E.g. live drum overdubs, leslie overdubs etc)

Any ideas?

Thanks.

Bump…

Any ideas?

Thanks.

Bump…

:slight_smile:

My suggestion would be to find a 2012 quad core i7 Mini.
It’s upgradable and quite powerful.

Hello,

You’re talking too many bad offsets for a good comparison. The iMac has a much faster clock speed but the i5 is a faster system if everything else is the same, which it’s not. Some things will be a little faster, some much slower, some you won’t notice. The graphics is much improved which will give everything a performance improvement.

As noted above if you can find a 2012 i7 quad-core you’ll be much happier - faster system speed, hyper-threading, more cores. The new Minis are much less powerful than their predecessors.

Hugh