16" M1 Max or M2 Max MBP?

[HawkTheHusky1902]

Hi all,
Ive been racking my brains recently deciding whether to get the M1 Max or M2 Max 16" MBP for my 1080p/4K/occasional 8K video editing in FCP/Davinci Resolve and 20-60MP RAW photo editing/panorama stitching in Lightroom/Photoshop/Affinity/GIMP/Pixelmator. I have watched all of the Youtube vids, including Max Tech's comparison video, and considering that Marques Brownlee is not upgrading to M2 Max and he edits 8K RED RAW footage with the M1 Max, and that apparently the difference in performance overall is not big, and the M2 Max runs quite a bit hotter (which i hate, i want the coolest possible), and that the price differrence where i live is large, I am pretty set on the M1 Max and that it will be enough. And yes, i need the Max over the Pro because of the extra dedicated video encoders/accellerators.
However, i would love if anybody could help me on the decision and if the difference in speed/snappiness between the M1 and M2 Max is noticeable and worth the big price difference. I understsnd you get more softwsre support with the M2 Max, but the M1 Max has enough software support i think, and i am completely fine with used stuff.
I can currently get the M1 Max 16" MBP almost maxed out with 64GB of RAM and 32c gpu and 1TB SSD (i refuse to pay a lot for/dont want/need more than 1TB internal, and i plan on using an external SSD anyway mostly) for 2899 on the US Apple Refurbished website with warranty and in excellent condition, and i think that is an AMAZING deal and very tempting, and want/need that 64GB of RAM for panorama stitching with hi res photos, etc., and i will not find a M2 Max MBP with more than 32GB of RAM for under 3k, which is my budget. From what i have seen, i will get a bigger difference in performance having double the RAM than having that small CPU/GPU bump.
I guess i solved my problem myself....i need a lot of RAM and performance under 3K (my budget), and the M1 Max is the only one that checks those boxes! However, as i said, help is very appreciated.
Speakers are better apparently too on the M1 Max, albeit the difference is not that big.
The only reason to get the M2 Max now is for the Wi-Fi 6E, and HDMI 2.1, which is very nice actually, but i need to think whether or not i actually will take advantage of that and if the price difference and losing half the RAM compared to the M1 Max is worth it to get the faster HDMI (the HDMI is more important to me than the Wi-Fi upgrade honestly, i am just fine waiting a bit longer for websites to load or stuff to finish downloading).
Thanks in advance for any help, which is much appreciated.
PS: i also dont think the M2 Max is worth it at all with its small bump if an M3 chip is around the corner.

 

[herbert7265]

As you already stated, most likely you have already solved your problem yourself.

If your budget doesn’t allow the M2 Max in the same configuration you deem as necessary for your usage as a refurbished M1 Max then your possibilities are most likely quite limited or non existent.

Beside the reviews you already mentioned, you may have also a look into these reviews from ArtIsRight. They may answer also some of your questions like comparison M1 Max to M2 Max and number of GPU cores.

If the increased performance of the M2 vs the M1 is useful and worth it or not is something everybody has to determine for himself. Different people, different requirements, different opinions… all fine!

The M2 Max runs quite a bit hotter? Sure, I cannot compare as I only owe the M2 Max, not the M1 Max, but I have not recognized anything until now regarding the computer runs hot.

Last but not least… yes, the M3 may be already around the corner. But so is the the M4, M5 and so on. Something I learned since quite a while ago: If you need something today get what fulfills your requirements and is available today. Always waiting for the next best thing doesn’t get you anywhere…!

Herbert

 

[Fravin]

PS: i also dont think the M2 Max is worth it at all with its small bump if an M3 chip is around the corner.

You should not think it's a "small bump". This is a little lie that reviewers have told you.

Apple made a lot of tweaking in M2, some regarding raw proccessor power, other related with power consumption. In overall it is a faster chip that requires less power and that can achieve longer runs with no throttling.

Even if you consider only the CPU benchmark results, 20% is not a small bump. Just take a look on what Intel achieves with each new core gen.

And most important, don't give the reviewer's content the final word. Think about it further.

 

[HawkTheHusky1902]

You should not think it's a "small bump". This is a little lie that reviewers have told you.

Apple made a lot of tweaking in M2, some regarding raw proccessor power, other related with power consumption. In overall it is a faster chip that requires less power and that can achieve longer runs with no throttling.

Even if you consider only the CPU benchmark results, 20% is not a small bump. Just take a look on what Intel achieves with each new core gen.

And most important, don't give the reviewer's content the final word. Think about it further.

Thanks everybody
The M2 Max does throttle more than the M1 Max.
I would like to see evidence regarding that i should not think the difference is a small bump. That 20-30% increase in GPU performance is not small, yes, but all other things like SSD speed, CPU speed, etc. are similar. The thing is, that i cant get a M2 Max MBP with more than 32GB RAM under 3000 bucks, whereas i can get an M1 Max with double that RAM for less money, and, believe it or not, less heat. The only reason to get the M2 Max instead would be the extra GPU performance, Wifi 6E and HDMI 2.1. I just dont know if i will use that HDMI 2.1. Sure, its nice to future proof...
I really dont know why Apple made the heatsink in the M2 Max MBP substantially smaller than the M1 Max, with a bigger chip to cool, or why the speakers are a bit worse on the M2 Max...weird things like that that are just annoying when buying a Mac and knowing you will pay more for the new version which has quirks like that...i know that perfect laptop doesnt exist, and the M1/M2 MBPs are pretty dang close to perfect, but why, Apple, why?

 

[HawkTheHusky1902]

As you already stated, most likely you have already solved your problem yourself.

If your budget doesn’t allow the M2 Max in the same configuration you deem as necessary for your usage as a refurbished M1 Max then your possibilities are most likely quite limited or non existent.

Beside the reviews you already mentioned, you may have also a look into these reviews from ArtIsRight. They may answer also some of your questions like comparison M1 Max to M2 Max and number of GPU cores.

If the increased performance of the M2 vs the M1 is useful and worth it or not is something everybody has to determine for himself. Different people, different requirements, different opinions… all fine!

The M2 Max runs quite a bit hotter? Sure, I cannot compare as I only owe the M2 Max, not the M1 Max, but I have not recognized anything until now regarding the computer runs hot.

Last but not least… yes, the M3 may be already around the corner. But so is the the M4, M5 and so on. Something I learned since quite a while ago: If you need something today get what fulfills your requirements and is available today. Always waiting for the next best thing doesn’t get you anywhere…!

Herbert

I know about ArtIsRight, but it is just a rabbit hole...

 

[herbert7265]

The M2 Max does throttle more than the M1 Max.
I would like to see evidence regarding that i should not think the difference is a small bump. That 20-30% increase in GPU performance is not small, yes, but all other things like SSD speed, CPU speed, etc. are similar. The thing is, that i cant get a M2 Max MBP with more than 32GB RAM under 3000 bucks, whereas i can get an M1 Max with double that RAM for less money, and, believe it or not, less heat. The only reason to get the M2 Max instead would be the extra GPU performance, Wifi 6E and HDMI 2.1. I just dont know if i will use that HDMI 2.1. Sure, its nice to future proof...
I really dont know why Apple made the heatsink in the M2 Max MBP substantially smaller than the M1 Max, with a bigger chip to cool, or why the speakers are a bit worse on the M2 Max...weird things like that that are just annoying when buying a Mac and knowing you will pay more for the new version which has quirks like that...i know that perfect laptop doesnt exist, and the M1/M2 MBPs are pretty dang close to perfect, but why, Apple, why?

Question: Do you have first hand (speak: own!) experience concerning these topics you state, for example heat, throttling, worse speakers, performance, and so on? Or is your, as it seems, not very positive opinion about the M2 only based on YouTube reviews?

Again, if your budget only allows the M1 Max in your desired configuration, go for it! For what is known, at least as I understand, it seems to be a really good computer. Why ranting about something you do not want to go for, based on your very personal opinion and your budget?

Herbert

 

[Fravin]

...but why, Apple, why?

That was my point.

I think that those reviewers looking for some fault spec is giving us the feel that Apple's laptops wasn't so perfect.

But think a bit. Apple does not pay respect to those looking for spec sheets. lol It only says the minimum necessary: 16 cores. But wait. What? What is the clock speed?

Apple does not mind if you will open up the laptop to compare the two projects, shouting to everybody that: Look, I discovered that the new heat sink is smaller than old one (!) What the hell Apple?

But why for? The laptop was designed to work as a solid machine. Not to be compared to the old model. Things evolve. Materials evolve, copper gets more pure, for instance. Why should we let us be annoyed for something that does make no matter? Just because a self-stated-smart-youtuber said it?

No thanks.

I will think differently, get my MacBookPro and do some work.

 

[HawkTheHusky1902]

Question: Do you have first hand (speak: own!) experience concerning these topics you state, for example heat, throttling, worse speakers, performance, and so on? Or is your, as it seems, not very positive opinion about the M2 only based on YouTube reviews?

Again, if your budget only allows the M1 Max in your desired configuration, go for it! For what is known, at least as I understand, it seems to be a really good computer. Why ranting about something you do not want to go for, based on your very personal opinion and your budget?

Herbert

Agree, and i must confess, yes, my opinion regarding the M2 is only based on YT vids....but i did use the M2 Max MBP 16" in a store quickly, and damn was it fine *chefs kiss*.

 

[Fravin]

Sorry if was rude on this. I'm getting some disgusted with youtuber, specially those. 😀

 

[HawkTheHusky1902]

Question: Do you have first hand (speak: own!) experience concerning these topics you state, for example heat, throttling, worse speakers, performance, and so on? Or is your, as it seems, not very positive opinion about the M2 only based on YouTube reviews?

Again, if your budget only allows the M1 Max in your desired configuration, go for it! For what is known, at least as I understand, it seems to be a really good computer. Why ranting about something you do not want to go for, based on your very personal opinion and your budget?

Herbert

These new Apple Silicon MBPs , M2 or M1 are still absolutely AMAZING laptops, so i guess i will be very happy either way coming from a Mid 2010 i5 MBP I picked up for 10 bucks with 8GB of RAM and an SSD from my friend lol....(works great for light tasks btw)

 

[HawkTheHusky1902]

Sorry if was rude on this. I'm getting some disgusted with youtuber, specially those. 😀

Yeah....i feel ya🤣

 

[HawkTheHusky1902]

That was my point.

I think that those reviewers looking for some fault spec is giving us the feel that Apple's laptops wasn't so perfect.

But think a bit. Apple does not pay respect to those looking for spec sheets. lol It only says the minimum necessary: 16 cores. But wait. What? What is the clock speed?

Apple does not mind if you will open up the laptop to compare the two projects, shouting to everybody that: Look, I discovered that the new heat sink is smaller than old one (!) What the hell Apple?

But why for? The laptop was designed to work as a solid machine. Not to be compared to the old model. Things evolve. Materials evolve, copper gets more pure, for instance. Why should we let us be annoyed for something that does make no matter? Just because a self-stated-smart-youtuber said it?

No thanks.

I will think differently, get my MacBookPro and do some work.

Regarding the heat sink, that is why the M2 Max throttles more than the M1 Max, its good to know when buying.
Also, i dint know about you but when buying a 3000 dollar laptop i want to know every single thing about it, including heat management and heat sink size, because 3000 dollars is not 10 bucks my guy.
That much money is not to be thrown at the newest stuff if the newest stuff is not the best value or buy for me.

 

[Fravin]

Youtuber's opinion aware, M1 Max is a hell of a laptop. What a great and speedy machine it was.

I work with RAW pictures too, and I found that working with external SSDs is the smarter way to work on those Apple Silicon Macs.

1st, raw files won't benefit from speeds higher than 1000mb/s. That's what you get with Samsung's external SSDs. And they are cheaper than Apple's SSD. It does not sense to use the internal SSD wich such files. I have a lot of those Samsung's SSDs around. Wish I had saved some bucks buying a little SSD in my MacBookPro.

 

[Fravin]

Regarding the heat sink, that is why the M2 Max throttles more than the M1 Max, its good to know when buying.
Also, i dint know about you but when buying a 3000 dollar laptop i want to know every single thing about it, including heat management and heat sink size, because 3000 dollars is not 10 bucks my guy.
That much money is not to be thrown at the newest stuff if the newest stuff is not the best value or buy for me.

The fact is that youtubers are miss understanding the concept behind the Apple's silicon. You have different core speeds in each group. The performance ones have slower clock speeds, the efficiency ones have higher CPU clocks. But numbers never shows the whole picture regarding CPUs.

So when you see that the clock speed dropped a little in those monitoring softwares (which was designed to work with x86 CPU in mind) it doesn't necessarily says the CPU was throttling, but more performance cores have been enabled.

I'm telling you, forget those youtuber's crap. They aren't telling you the whole story. They are doing what will give them more clicks and money.

 

[HawkTheHusky1902]

Youtuber's opinion aware, M1 Max is a hell of a laptop. What a great and speedy machine it was.

I work with RAW pictures too, and I found that working with external SSDs is the smarter way to work on those Apple Silicon Macs.

1st, raw files won't benefit from speeds higher than 1000mb/s. That's what you get with Samsung's external SSDs. And they are cheaper than Apple's SSD. It does not sense to use the internal SSD wich such files. I have a lot of those Samsung's SSDs around. Wish I had saved some bucks buying a little SSD in my MacBookPro.

I agree, Apple robs people with their SSD prices...
The thing is, i still dont know whether to get the M2 max over the M1 Max even if my budget was unlimited, becuase of the heat and worse speakers. However, i guess HDMI 2.1 and wifi 6E is very nice indeed...
The M2 Max's extra GPU cores would be great for editing 4k/8K video.

 

[HawkTheHusky1902]

The fact is that youtubers are miss understanding the concept behind the Apple's silicon. You have different core speeds in each group. The performance ones have slower clock speeds, the efficiency ones have higher CPU clocks. But numbers never shows the whole picture regarding CPUs.

So when you see that the clock speed dropped a little in those monitoring softwares (which was designed to work with x86 CPU in mind) it doesn't necessarily says the CPU was throttling, but more performance cores have been enabled.

I'm telling you, forget those youtuber's crap. They aren't telling you the whole story. They are doing what will give them more clicks and money.

I agree on one hand, but on the other hand the Youtubers would get more money out of their affiliate links to Amazon by promoting the newest more expensive stuff, but clicks is what matters most i guess.
The thing is, now the M2 Max is starting to look great, and if what you said is true about the tests, that would explain a lot, but then M3 is around the corner lol, but the thing is i can always wait or get what i need now and have fun
Either you were a bit mistaken, or Apple actuallt does it, but why would performance cores have slower clock speeds, and the efficiency cores faster? That doesnt make sense to me, but id love to learn.

 

[Fravin]

The affiliates links clicks are pay for the click action, not the value paid by the consumer.

Youtube generate large incomes to people who are getting the platform busy somehow. So, the more viewers you have watching your content, the more you will receive.

I run an add agency, I usually pay some youtubers to do their work. lol


CPUs are complex things, you can't measure it like they was all equal. For instance, Pentium 4 chips were stated to run at 3.6Ghz. Does it mean that the 2023 13400 i5 that runs at 4.6Ghz are just a little faster?

No! You have a huge leap between the two. The core size evolved, today it is possible to build small cores that are more efficient and more powerful. You can put more cores running together. Cache memory plays a big role on it too. Today we have faster cache memories that benefits the CPU to run faster with a lower clock speed.... Things are evolving a lot in computing science.

Take a look here.

 

[TechnoMonk]

Op, I have been using an M1 Max 64 GB, it’s a good one, but if I was in the market for new MBP, I would go for a m2 max 96 GB. I know folks who have M2max, and it is lot faster in some workflows. If you gonna keep the laptop for 5-8 years, you gonna probably need any extra performance you can get from M2 compared to M1.

 

[Zaydax333]

Looks like you answered your own question tbh. However:
If you don't need truly 64GB of RAM then there are M2 Max refurbished options for 32GB available at $3k.

Generally the new apple silicon machines handle larger files better since the RAM is shared between the CPU and GPU.

Since the RAM is shared you might be ok with 32GB? You could always try and return if it doesn't work with the larger files?

If you're worried about it running hotter you could always use macs fan control or etc to run a slighlty more agressive fan curve

Edit: nvm seems you already considered this

 

[TechnoMonk]

I bet you are not aware of max tech fudging numbers to fit their narrative. Max tech guy had no clue on RAM or SSD speeds. They were literally recommending people to get bigger SSD than RAM for swapping.

 

[Klae17]

If you can't afford one of the options, your decision is made for you.

 

[Jamo12]

The Wi-Fi 6E is neat, but do you have a router that can use it. If not, are you willing to spend the extra money on one?

For the HDMI 2.1, do you plan on using a 4k monitor at 120fps? If you don’t have one, are you willing to spend the extra money on one?

The extra GPU performance may be worth it… but, like you said, the extra RAM is going to speed up your work with such large files more than the GPU. Your export times may take a hit, but your day to day will be better.

All of that together makes me point to the M1 instead of the M2.

 

[Fravin]

I bet you are not aware of max tech fudging numbers to fit their narrative. Max tech guy had no clue on RAM or SSD speeds.

I think I hate this one.

Youtube should drop his channel off

 

[HawkTheHusky1902]

Op, I have been using an M1 Max 64 GB, it’s a good one, but if I was in the market for new MBP, I would go for a m2 max 96 GB. I know folks who have M2max, and it is lot faster in some workflows. If you gonna keep the laptop for 5-8 years, you gonna probably need any extra performance you can get from M2 compared to M1.

I dont think i need 96GB of RAM, ahd who needs that? Nice though
In what workflows did your folks notice a big difference?

 

[HawkTheHusky1902]

Looks like you answered your own question tbh. However:
If you don't need truly 64GB of RAM then there are M2 Max refurbished options for 32GB available at $3k.

Generally the new apple silicon machines handle larger files better since the RAM is shared between the CPU and GPU.

Since the RAM is shared you might be ok with 32GB? You could always try and return if it doesn't work with the larger files?

If you're worried about it running hotter you could always use macs fan control or etc to run a slighlty more agressive fan curve

Edit: nvm seems you already considered this

Thank you for tuning in.
I would get the M2 Max over the M1 if the price difference was not that big and i wouldnt lose half the RAM.
I will think about it. The thing is, what am i getting in the M2 Max to make up for the loss of 32GB of RAM? Hdmi 2.1 is nice, and wifi 6E, buf thats it? Not trying to bash the M2 Max at all, just wondering. I think i might be ok honestly though with 32GB of RAM, but does the CPU/GPU bump make up for the loss of 32GB of RAM? Choices, choices...