MP 1,1-5,1 I think I'm done with my 5,1...

[FirDerrig33]

I have had this machine for a few years now and I keep enjoying using it and upgrading and modifying it...all to get it to do the things that my Mac mini already does. True, the mini does them all slower, but after going through my list of wanted items/parts, etc, I realized that all of that money could be used to by a slightly upgraded of the mini that I already own; or just not spend the money.

Why spend money to get the 5,1 AC/BT 4.0 when the mini already has it? I also have a SSD in there and all the apps I'm trying to "get to run" on the 5,1 already run natively on the mini. I could install Windows as well as Ubuntu just like I did on the MP and it would probably be fine.

Then once I started evaluating the energy usage of the 5,1 as well, it started to seem a little silly to spend all this time, money, and energy on a machine that is working really hard now to be almost mediocre compared to newer Mac models.

If I am missing something here (other than the mini being very less powerful), please let me know.

 

[apostolosdt]

I felt the same when I gave my 5,1 to my elder daughter, who runs a small marketing company. But I still miss its 64 GB ECC RAM.

 

[avro707]

What was your Mac Mini?

If it was the last of the Intel ones then you might well be able to use an EGPU and up to RX6900 GPU with it.

I think some of those Mac Mini should be able to go up to 64GB ram with a 6 core i7, but not ECC RAM however.


I only use my 6 core 5,1 now to run Zwift - it stays permanently connected to a 55" 4K screen and since I started using it, has been very reliable in that role.

I have a dual 6 core machine with 96GB RAM and RX580 and upgraded bluetooth/WIFI but don't use it - that one is in the original box and is in pristine condition, no marks or scratches on it. I would sell it but shipping is very expensive.

I guess I'd need to downgrade the MacOS before selling it to whatever the last version was that didn't need OpenCore (don't want to be liable to support that).

 

[FirDerrig33]

I felt the same when I gave my 5,1 to my elder daughter, who runs a small marketing company. But I still miss its 64 GB ECC RAM.

Yeah but if something works almost as well or even better in some cases, then that much memory might not even be necessary. the 2018 can have 64GB and I might do that at some point. I put my entire list of wanted things into my cart and the total was $1500+, yes, that included the best CPU, the most RAM, SSDs...etc. even if I did just the CPU and NVME, that would have cost upwards of $800. I could buy a maxed out 2018 mini for that.

 

[FirDerrig33]

What was your Mac Mini?

If it was the last of the Intel ones then you might well be able to use an EGPU and up to RX6900 GPU with it.

I think some of those Mac Mini should be able to go up to 64GB ram with a 6 core i7, but not ECC RAM however.


I only use my 6 core 5,1 now to run Zwift - it stays permanently connected to a 55" 4K screen and since I started using it, has been very reliable in that role.

I have a dual 6 core machine with 96GB RAM and RX580 and upgraded bluetooth/WIFI but don't use it - that one is in the original box and is in pristine condition, no marks or scratches on it. I would sell it but shipping is very expensive.

I guess I'd need to downgrade the MacOS before selling it to whatever the last version was that didn't need OpenCore (don't want to be liable to support that).

Oh I still have my Mac mini. it's the late 2014 in my signature line. I think once I sell my Pro I'll get an upgrade. i7s and 16GB Memory with a NVME boot drive should do the trick. Did you know that the 2014 mini supports AVX2? it's pretty cool.

Oh for sure about not supporting an OCLP install on a machine that you sell.

 

[apostolosdt]

Interesting! It didn't know that Mini 2018 can be upgraded, even with quite some effort. Mine is a 2014 model that is now shelved; being replaced by a base M1.

 

[FirDerrig33]

Interesting! It didn't know that Mini 2018 can be upgraded, even with quite some effort. Mine is a 2014 model that is now shelved; being replaced by a base M1.

Oh no, let me clarify. The upgrade would be buying either the maxed out 2014 model or the maxed out 2018 model. The maxed out 2014 would cost about $300 and the maxed out 2018 model would cost about $600. That would be the upgrade.

Which model of the mini do you have?

 

[apostolosdt]

Thanks for the clarification; although, Apple appears to suggest that RAM can be upgraded on Mini 2018:
https://support.apple.com/en-us/102328

(My Mini is a 2014 model, with 2.8GHz i5, 1TB Fusion disk and 8GB RAM, running Monterey.)

 

[mattspace]

If I am missing something here (other than the mini being very less powerful), please let me know.

The Mac Pro can host 3x the RAM of even the highest end M(x) Mac Mini, and no, M-series Macs do not need less ram than Intel machines.

 

[avro707]

Thanks for the clarification; although, Apple appears to suggest that RAM can be upgraded on Mini 2018:
https://support.apple.com/en-us/102328

(My Mini is a 2014 model, with 2.8GHz i5, 1TB Fusion disk and 8GB RAM, running Monterey.)

This site shows how it is done:

Mac mini Late 2018 Memory (RAM) Replacement

Learn how to upgrade or replace the memory in your 2018 Mac mini with this RAM replacement guide. The mini can support up to 64 GB of RAM, using...

www.ifixit.com

On 2018 mini.

Meanwhile on a 2019 Mac Pro it takes only a matter of minutes to upgrade the ram… these tiny machines are great until you can’t easily upgrade something as basic as RAM.

 

[FirDerrig33]

This site shows how it is done:

Mac mini Late 2018 Memory (RAM) Replacement

Learn how to upgrade or replace the memory in your 2018 Mac mini with this RAM replacement guide. The mini can support up to 64 GB of RAM, using...

www.ifixit.com

On 2018 mini.

Meanwhile on a 2019 Mac Pro it takes only a matter of minutes to upgrade the ram… these tiny machines are great until you can’t easily upgrade something as basic as RAM.

lol, yes it does and it can of course. I just kept wanting to clarify that mine could not because I kept think you meant the 2014.

 

[FirDerrig33]

The Mac Pro can host 3x the RAM of even the highest end M(x) Mac Mini, and no, M-series Macs do not need less ram than Intel machines.

Yeah that’s for sure and that’s another reason why I realized what I was doing wasn’t making much sense. I had my whole shopping list ready to beef it up even more and if I took that money that I almost spent and added it to what I can probably sell my machine for, I could buy a 2019 Mac Pro and have the machine I’m pretending that my current one is.

And now that I’m not handling heavier media loads as far as basic production, 3d modeling, or even other graphics tasks, having that much RAM isn’t necessary for me.

Having a better processor and a faster drive will make the memory I have work just fine and I’m pretty sure I can be fine with 16-32GB in any machine now.

I’m just going to wait a while and get something else since everything I used the 5,1 for is pretty much done.

 

[apostolosdt]

Under a similar dilemma, I came up with a standard Studio M1 Max (but with 32 GPU cores for better photo editing).

 

[mattspace]

Having a better processor and a faster drive will make the memory I have work just fine and I’m pretty sure I can be fine with 16-32GB in any machine now.

Yup, and when the lack of ram leads to the ssd wearing out from virtual memory use, the machine is basically disposable-priced, so you can just e-waste it, get another and pretend Apple cares about its environmental impact.

 

[m1maverick]

What do you use the Mac Pro for and what limitations does it have for your workload? Were you considering an upgrade for the sake of an upgrade? Or because it has a limitation(s) that are holding you back?

 

[FirDerrig33]

What do you use the Mac Pro for and what limitations does it have for your workload? Were you considering an upgrade for the sake of an upgrade? Or because it has a limitation(s) that are holding you back?

I used it as my primary computer for movie ripping and adding to iTunes, virtual machines, booting into Linux to use OS tools to stream media and remote play my PS5, also use it to fix my other computers or repair drives, former design work and things like that.

It does have limitations but it finally came down to me using a computer that is too expensive to run and too expensive to upgrade just to make it as useable as a more modern computer that runs at a fraction of the cost and also costs less. If a late 2014 Mac mini with an i7 can do what I do on my Mac Pro now, why would I keep trying to make my Mac Pro what it isn’t? That’s the conclusion that I basically arrived at and now my Mac mini is my main computer until I sell my 5,1 and get something a little better.

 

[m1maverick]

I used it as my primary computer for movie ripping and adding to iTunes, virtual machines, booting into Linux to use OS tools to stream media and remote play my PS5, also use it to fix my other computers or repair drives, former design work and things like that.

Sounds like the Mini would be a good fit for these tasks.

It does have limitations but it finally came down to me using a computer that is too expensive to run and too expensive to upgrade just to make it as useable as a more modern computer that runs at a fraction of the cost and also costs less. If a late 2014 Mac mini with an i7 can do what I do on my Mac Pro now, why would I keep trying to make my Mac Pro what it isn’t? That’s the conclusion that I basically arrived at and now my Mac mini is my main computer until I sell my 5,1 and get something a little better.

I agree, it sounds like replacing the Mac Pro with something else is a good choice. I guess the question becomes: With what and what configuration? I would steer you towards one of the new AS Mini's unless you require Intel specific software. If so then your choice of the 2018 Mini sounds reasonable.

 

[FirDerrig33]

Sounds like the Mini would be a good fit for these tasks.


I agree, it sounds like replacing the Mac Pro with something else is a good choice. I guess the question becomes: With what and what configuration? I would steer you towards one of the new AS Mini's unless you require Intel specific software. If so then your choice of the 2018 Mini sounds reasonable.

I’m thinking that the mini is still a good option. My goal mini would be the late 2014 dual i7 with 16GB memory with a 1TB SSD and a 1TB NVME SSD raided. This way the read write wouldn’t use the swap.

The late 2014 is ideal because I can still use my 27” ACD w/minidp without using a dongle. Then the machine has usb 3.0, the display has usb 2.0, and it’s AC and BT 4.0 ready for anything else I need compatibility for at this point. And with Monterey I can still use iTunes instead of the AppleTV/Music apps.

 

[mectojic]

I have had this machine for a few years now and I keep enjoying using it and upgrading and modifying it...all to get it to do the things that my Mac mini already does. True, the mini does them all slower, but after going through my list of wanted items/parts, etc, I realized that all of that money could be used to by a slightly upgraded of the mini that I already own; or just not spend the money.

Why spend money to get the 5,1 AC/BT 4.0 when the mini already has it? I also have a SSD in there and all the apps I'm trying to "get to run" on the 5,1 already run natively on the mini. I could install Windows as well as Ubuntu just like I did on the MP and it would probably be fine.

Then once I started evaluating the energy usage of the 5,1 as well, it started to seem a little silly to spend all this time, money, and energy on a machine that is working really hard now to be almost mediocre compared to newer Mac models.

If I am missing something here (other than the mini being very less powerful), please let me know.

My 5,1 is now primarily a Windows gaming machine. Everything else that needs a MacOS is now on an M-series chip.

 

[avro707]

The i7 2018 with an EGPU connected (if possible) and RX6900XT in the EGPU and 64GB RAM would be a pretty powerful machine that keeps Intel compatibility and Windows use.

Maybe the other option could even be an Nvidia card in the EGPU and connect the EGPU only when using Windows?

Depending on how much GPU heavy stuff is done on the MacOS side. One person is doing exactly that on a Reddit post I saw (with a 64GB machine), but it has a PowerColor Red Devil AMD 6600 XT.

 

[FirDerrig33]

My 5,1 is now primarily a Windows gaming machine. Everything else that needs a MacOS is now on an M-series chip.

My 5,1 is now primarily a Windows gaming machine. Everything else that needs a MacOS is now on an M-series chip.

And that’s what I was considering doing as well for a while but then I would still need to get a better gpu(which wasn’t on my list) and then that makes it to where I could actually replace the old 5,1 with the 2019 model which supports everything.

And plus this is all luxury anyway because I have a series x and don’t really need a windows gaming pc. I just need to chill out with the unnecessary upgrades I think, LOL.

 

[avro707]

with the 2019 model which supports everything.

Everything within the limited amount of legacy GPUs that Apple allows to be supported in MacOS.

If you ditch MacOS completely then you have more options with the 2019 Mac Pro (if that's what you meant).

So far only 81 people want to use new GPUs in their 2019 Mac Pros according to a petition I saw.

 

[mectojic]

And that’s what I was considering doing as well for a while but then I would still need to get a better gpu(which wasn’t on my list) and then that makes it to where I could actually replace the old 5,1 with the 2019 model which supports everything.

And plus this is all luxury anyway because I have a series x and don’t really need a windows gaming pc. I just need to chill out with the unnecessary upgrades I think, LOL.

Don't underestimate the power of a good GPU. It's also much, much cheaper to get a powerful new-ish GPU than it is to buy a 2019 model.

 

[timborama]

I have 4 minis (two 2014, two 2018). All bought new and spec’ed to their CPU and RAM limits, and all have 2TB SSDs. They’re workhorses, one of the 2018s is my daily running Mojave, as I need 32-but support, running Adobe CS3 perfectly fine, VMware/XP, etc. I’ll admit there is software I can’t run, so the other 2018 mini is running a more recent macOS for newer software (3D slicers, Fusion 360, etc). I will likely consider a new mini that’s forthcoming, but it won’t/can’t replace my intel mini.

 

[FirDerrig33]

Under a similar dilemma, I came up with a standard Studio M1 Max (but with 32 GPU cores for better photo editing).

The M series look great for sure. I like them a lot and I like that Apple went to arm. I just don’t like the price. I’m hoping that I can either sell my 5,1 locally and use that to buy a replacement mini, or even trade it for something comparable. We’ll see.