Up and running on mini 16/512

[pshufd]

I set it up on a KVM station to check it out and install a few things and then moved it over to my production table. I moved two monitors off my Windows desktop and plugged things in and changed cables here and there and everything just works. I currently have Firefox, Notes, Reminders and Apple Mail running and they are using 7 GB of RAM out of 16 GB. I think that I'd definitely go with the 16 GB. I have other programs to start up and also will add about six YouTube tabs in Firefox and will see how much RAM is used. I am hoping to stay under 16 GB so that SWAP always remains at 0 bytes.

This system is somewhat more responsive than my big Windows desktop. It should be given the Single Core Geekbench 5 score of about 420 points higher. The mini is cool to the touch and I don't feel any air coming out the back of the machine.

I'm undecided on whether to run Synergy to connect my Windows and macOS systems as they are partitioned by monitors right now. Each system currently has two monitors and, if things go well, then I will not normally need to use the keyboard and mouse on the Windows system very much. They both run trading software that is mainly display only during the trading day. If RAM does become short on the mini, then I'll move programs from the mini over to the Windows system.

I am somewhat tempted to buy another Mini, run my trading programs on it and stack them together with a sign saying Mac mini M1X in front of it. My Windows system is very efficient. CPU draw is normally 20-30 Watts. The GPUs probably draw 30-40 Watts together. This Windows system is as cool and quiet as the mini but it accomplishes that with efficient parts, three case fans, a massive heatsink on the CPU and two additional fans on the heatsink. It would be sick to replace the Windows desktop with two minis.

I had a rough idea as to what to expect on performance having used the MBA for two hours but the ease in setup was great as is the performance. My wife has a Mini but I've never had one myself. I am not using Bluetooth nor wireless stuff and I've heard that some have had problems with that.

I will likely try installing Monterey on an external drive as I really like Monterey and I'm curious what the performance loss looks like on an external drive. This satiates for now even though I'd like an M1X notebook.

 

[pshufd]

First real problem. On wakeup from sleep, the HDMI monitor wakes up but the USB-C doesn't. I'll see if this remains a problem. I turned off the screen saver to see if that affects things. If it becomes an ongoing problem, I will only use one monitor on the mini and go back to three on the Windows desktop.

 

[pshufd]

I can get the mini to connect to the monitor by shutting off the monitor and then turning it on again but I think that a real fix is disabling Auto-Select on the monitor. I did that and it came back from sleep but the real test will be in deep-sleep mode. This may explain why it seems to be monitor dependent.

 

[ranjan2001]

I have tried 3 different HDMI to DVI-D cables but this wakeup problem after sleep still remains there, it happens randomly not every time. After reading your post I will try to disable auto select on my monitor menu.

 

[Loyola]

I have tried 3 different HDMI to DVI-D cables but this wakeup problem after sleep still remains there, it happens randomly not every time. After reading your post I will try to disable auto select on my monitor menu.

I have been using this cable for about a week and no issues. At this point I am only using one monitor.

Inland HDMI Male to DVI-D Male 3.3 ft Cable - White - Micro Center

Get it now! Use this PVC molded, gold-plated, hdmi to dvi cable to easily connect a HDMI output to a DVI input.

www.microcenter.com

 

[ranjan2001]

I have been using this cable for about a week and no issues. At this point I am only using one monitor.

I have read elsewhere that using shorter cable upto 3.3 feet solves the problem, as of now I have tried 6 feet cables only, if auto select disabling doesn't solve my problem then I will have to get 3.3 feet cable.

 

[pshufd]

I generally use six feet to ten feet long cables as I like some flexibility in positioning things. I didn’t know that there may be issues with length.