STANDARD MacBook Air M3/16GB in Music Production (Logic & Ableton). Impressive!

[@ירח]

dude i relied on you HEAVY this 2 weeks as an ableton user i just bought the m3 max 14 inch with 1tb and 64 ram coming from a i9 13900ks 128 ram your style of videos truly provide what we all ask ourselves when buying new gear etc even if ill want to go for something outdated i can scroll your video history and find the answer to my question pls continue providing you got my support

[@bjornark]

Thats an awesome machine. Thanks for watching and your support!

[@zezeproductions]

Are you a mixing engineer or a producer? Do you run heavy instruments in your project or just mixing tools with bounced tracks? I am about to buy a notebook for the first time switching from PC but I am a producer.

[@zezeproductions]

please let me know it's important for me. Share your experience after two months

[@powerplantbody8243]

Came here for the review and stayed for the music 👏🏼

[@bjornark]

❤️ First track is BjoKib - Glow, and the second one is currently unreleased but will be called BjoKib - Serpens. Thanks!

[@nacoliver]

@@bjornark We need the track BjoKib - Serpens please haha. Such a banger!

[@magnusberger6762]

Same. Left for the bathroom.

[@bjornark]

You guys… Thanks. 😊🥰

[@majbt45]

The music that you make is actually quite good.

[@bjornark]

Thanks!

[@PLANETWATERMELON]

Yah, it was awesome sounding! Interesting how your sample shows the M3 base using effiencency cores with Logic while others claim it kinda does not.

[@michaelleemahan]

You are a legend! Thank you thank you thank you. I now know what direction I want to go when buying my next laptop. Also your song glow is sweet.

[@bjornark]

Thanks! Glad it helps :)

[@kevinsturges6957]

Thank you so much for doing all this research and sharing the information. I just bought a 16 gig M3 MacBook Air as a portable DAW computer and I’m pretty happy with how much I can throw at it in real time. It should last me 10 years and it’s amazingly faster than my main i7 Windows desktop.

[@royalemuzikproductionz]

I just took the leap of faith today and got a 16GB 🐏 M3 Air 512 and I’m did that based on the past 2 videos I’ve watched on your channel . So thank you 🙏🏾

[@vatolegato]

How many tracks have you been able to throw at it?

[@royalemuzikproductionz]

I’ve been doing 64 tracks sometimes in the 50’s an instance of console 1 on every track and 4reverbs and 4Delays

[@ivang2490]

@@royalemuzikproductionz I have the same MacBook, and I feel very poor performance. I put 4 Ableton synths, and 2 Roland Cloud virtual instruments, a reverb and delay in the master....and it eat 40% of CPU. Without no effect and nothing more in the tracks. I played a bit with the latency, but don't change so much. Maybe I am making something wrong ?

[@royalemuzikproductionz]

@@ivang2490 maybe you’re not on the right buffer but I’m using an Apollo twin duo . I also record ferrofish B4k organ via audient sp8 via Adat so I get a tiny bit of round trip latency but if I bounce everything into mp3 and then add overdubs of organ I later drag the file back into the populated project. I will say though now that I’ve made up my mind to sell my 52GB 🖥️ 2017 i5 I’ve installed most of my plugins and it has changed the dynamics of the M3 Air’s performance

[@ashconbeats8414]

Second track is nice man! Not even into house but that is 🔥!

[@bjornark]

🙏 Thank you!

[@MOBOfficial7]

Your vdo is so useful man!! Appreciate it. 🙏🏾❤️

[@bjornark]

Thank you!

[@michaelfournier8620]

Thanks! Cool tunes too!

[@bjornark]

Thanks!

[@danmoore9682]

Thanks for the video! It's been very helpful to help me chose my next machine!

[@bjornark]

Glad it helps!

[@damion2226]

Really helpful and great music.

[@bjornark]

Thank you. :)

[@wasabi333]

Amazing videos as always! I just got done making a track in live on my M3 Pro 18gb and man! Some stuff on the mac is FAST! There's some weird slowdowns here and there, and I think it's mostly graphic bugs, but MANNNN, does it take well a good electronic music session with mixing and mastering! I'm quite impressed here as well! BTW! Trippy tracks! Really dig them!

[@bjornark]

Awesome :)

[@StuartwasDrinkell]

Bjornar thanks here's a subscription to say thanks for your work.

[@bjornark]

Thanks :)

[@mellifluousfable]

It is rarely the case that someone needs it and more that they want to believe that they’re someone who actually needs it..

[@mrt.7146]

Sweet tracks 🤩

[@bjornark]

Thanks! :)

[@Verschiedenes]

Great, thanks for the video. It certainly helped a lot :)

[@sonicboom1970]

Very helpful thank you. Enjoyed yhe music too

[@bjornark]

Thanks! Glad you like it :)

[@accentontheoff]

On a related note, have you ever tried an iMac, maybe an M3 or M4. Esp with Logic Pro. Nice music, btw.

[@bjornark]

Thanks! No iMac haven't been something I have used that much.

[@accentontheoff]

@ Ok thanks.

[@michatroschka]

nice track!!! i think the pro is better for the long term with thermals and IO more ram and battery as a main computer

[@bjornark]

Thanks! Yeah if you can get the Pro go for it.

[@mojito6629]

Thanks!

[@bjornark]

You are welcome!

[@Pamapamapop]

Hi, this is really helpful, thanks for doing this. By any chance can you add RAM usage to this video ? That would be very helpful to understand heavy plugin use scenarios. Regards.

[@H-4-D3423]

LIKE CPU-CORES & SUNCREEN!!!!! Cool vid as ever BjoKib, I was pretty darn close on my guess for the M3A being around the M1MBP level, impressive indeed. My guess is that M4 may yield 15-18% for music production. I know lots of people are talking up the benchmark results, but I doubt those gains will be seen on proper software working/stressed. It's still 3NM, albeit a different node for the die. Two-three months and people will likely be getting M4's if they order at earliest opportunity. You sold your Moog and ordered your Muse yet? :)

[@bjornark]

We are getting to a point where it doesnt really matter for most people. Just buy whats available now and it will work fine. Moog is sold, order for the Muse is placed but it wont come before October!

[@H-4-D3423]

@@bjornark I'm curious about the M4 Mac Mini and what they'd do with the pricing tbh, but that's about it lol. Gr8 news about the old one selling, boooooo to those waiting times!!

[@Kantaap18lallantaap]

Wow thanks!!

[@djerikfox]

Im so happy with my m3 air 500ssd and 16 g ram...it runs logic and cubase 13 perfect with no problems!!! regards

[@florianhoti2181]

Does it heat up after hours of working on it

[@djerikfox]

@@florianhoti2181 ..no, not really, working on logic pro and cubase 13, not more than 70 tracks, sometimes it goes up to 95 maybe 100C but just for a short time, tested with nexus 4 it can run 180 nexus pianos (with midi chords)with no problem on cubase , logic 175...average temp is about 60C.regards

[@JamesLloydKeyboardist]

Thinking of getting the MacBook Air 24 gb memory, 1tb. My projects usually max out around 40-45 tracks, usually less. I don’t do mixing or mastering so none of those types of plugins used. I use quite a bit from Kontakt and omnisphere, also just added the new pigments. Recording to external ssd and Kontakt library is on another external ssd. As mentioned in other comment, 45-50 tracks max, and will be closed while at home connected to external monitor. I produce Smooth Jazz for a living. Will this machine be enough or do I need the MacBook Pro? Currently using trash can Mac Pro with 500 gb and 64gb of memory with no issues. 🎹💙 Thank you in advance.

[@jamesnyers1721]

Honestly the M1 Air with 16 GB is enough for many. It is about 10 times more powerful than a Mac Pro 10-15 years ago and people were producing top recordings back then with it...

[@bjornark]

This, its not about the tools anymore.

[@robertsimondj]

true

[@Pamapamapop]

However production quality, versatility, depth is more advanced than 15-20 years ago.

[@royalemuzikproductionz]

No Ableton I have noticed though since I’ve put more plugins and apps on the m3 the CPU goes a bit into 40’s but I try restricting my track counts to the 30’s .50-60 tracks including vocals and effects is too excessive . So I’m cutting back

[@Kamino]

as someone with regularly 100+ tracks in their project, with quite heavy plugin use, do you think the m3 pro macbook air with 24 gb ram is a reasonable solution?

[@bjornark]

Perhaps, but probably not.

[@Kamino]

@@bjornark indeed. just bought a macbook pro m4 (base version) with 24gb of ram. we shall see if it does the job

[@Currobot]

@@Kamino I have bought that model too, but my projects don't exceed 30 tracks. I'll get it in a few days, let's see how it behaves.

[@Kamino]

@@bjornark you might be interested in an update. so far, the 14 inch macbook pro m4 base version with 24gb of ram, 1tb hard drive, has exceeded my expectations. projects with 150 tracks and significant plugin use including multiple linear phase eq’s, 30+ serum instances, ozone 11 and pro l 2 with 2x over sampling hitting 20-30% cpu use, loading very quickly, no overheating whatsoever and export fast. honestly mind blowing considering the same projects made my previous laptop (gaming laptop pc) with an i9 overheat and hit 100% cpu usage with major crackles and lag. from what i can initially tell the m4 base version is honestly a remarkable piece of engineering. we shall see how it holds up for the next few years

[@randomhunter8593]

​@@Kamino Sorry english is not my first language, are you saying that the macbook pro m4 base 24gb ram is good for your music production expectations, right? 150 tracks with all that!! it is impressive!!

[@matthewgaines10]

As always, it depends on what you’re doing. I don’t like using a SSD to make up for a lack of random access memory. If the SSD is non-user serviceable, more 32 GB RAM is better.

[@Produce10158]

I’ve been contemplating getting the M3 Air for a while now. This video came at just the right time. I always go back to that video you did on the low-end M1 to get reassurance. Would you say there is any real advantage the 16gb has over the 8gb when it comes to music production?

[@fallenleaf24]

YES! I have the Base M1 8gb Mac mini.. with UAD plugins for instance they have to have the background app running with is an additional 60-100mb of ram. when you take that & the other plugins that have background apps you find that about 1-200mb is used my them. I have projects that will hit 12gb of ram & this get a bit unstable. Logic still works well but you can tell it's over working. I will upgrade this unit as soon as I can just to get more RAM. I don't need a lot more but 16 I would say is worth it. & if you use Kontakt or such romplers then you are going to need more RAM as thats where its stored. I am very happy with my 8gb & I will happily use it as is. but then I have some heavy MIDI work happening having some more overhead is very welcome.

[@bjornark]

Thanks for sharing!

[@Anthony-kp7sf]

@@fallenleaf24 not sure why you have so many apps running in the background - that isn't really normal? those are likely updaters and such, and dont need to be running while you're using logic. also, aside from what you're talking about.. logic hardly uses ram at all. virtually everything done with MIDI is done on the CPU. im very confused by this comment lol. ram is used for samples, mainly. even then, these new Macs use their drives to swap which makes up for any ram it needs in the end. honestly I think you're running things that don't need to run which is bogging down your ram, or you're cramming in some serious plugins and actually getting close to the CPU limit. logic doesn't have to store samples in ram because the speed of the ssd is so fast.

[@fallenleaf24]

@@Anthony-kp7sf UAD opens every time you load a plugin.. there is no getting out of it.. I have projects that are 100% MIDI not a sample anywhere.. not even the drums as they are are created via a live synth.. I can easily see 8gig plus+ every AU plugin need RAM. so yes you need it. not as much which is what th e8GB is plenty for my current needs. many of the apps have their updated apps. yes.. but UAD.. you close that background app & the plugging stop working.. it it relaunches when you open a plugin again. xD don't ask me.. LOL That mixed in with the stream deck.. yes it's worth it!!! they are incredible! launchpad... you get my point.. RAM will be used :D

[@Simpa414]

i am completely new to Mac and music in general. I play guitar but would like to start producing music. is this m3 16 enough really? I dont really have m4 pro money. I like that m3 is small and easy to carry, but is the lack of fans a big deal?. Idk, i never had anything from Apple, are these m chips really that good for music?

[@bjornark]

Yes, the M3 16GB is very capable.

[@joostvankerkhoven8729]

Thank you for doing all this extensive research - it's so helpful for picking a future model. I noticed that in the Ableton-playback all the 8 cores (both performance & efficiency) of the M3 Air were working whereas with Logic it seemed to not use them. Is that observation correct? Because that would mean with a future M4 Air one would effectively have 10 cores (4P + 6E apparently) at one's disposal which would still give more headroom... any thoughts on this matter? Keep up these wonderful video's in any case! Thanks a ton!

[@bjornark]

Glad it helps! I have asked Ableton, they use only Performance cores. So it must been something else. That said, they said they are constantly working on bettering their audio engine for these new types of CPUs with different cores. its the same thing on Intel PCs with P/E cores. Now tho, it only uses P cores.

[@H-4-D3423]

Breath Bjørnar!!!!!!!!!! :D

[@TheSubstrance]

Hey Bjokib! Thanks for this. You didn't mention RAM usage. Did it ever go past 16gb (swap)? I run similar projects and thinking of getting the M3 Pro with 18gb or the Air with 16.

[@bjornark]

Damn, forgot that. I will check RAM usage later and update with a pinned comment!

[@TheSubstrance]

@@bjornark Thanks man, you should have a lot more subscribers lol

[@JoshJDavid-lc3nc]

Oh I wanna know that as well just got the pro with 18gb ram wondering if I need to return it and get more ram

[@PaulPo81]

Guys I would say go for the m4 pro Mac mini .. as we get 16 gb ram now … and 500 gb … me too planning to update from Mac Book air 2017 .

[@kota2620]

Thanks for your awesome videos, they've been really helpful! The music is awesome too! Can you recommend an audio interface that is compatible with both Ableton and the MacBook air M3?

[@bjornark]

Thanks! Focusrite makes good and affordable audio interfaces. I use an old RME Fireface UCX interface.

[@kota2620]

Amazing, thank you! Do you use a particular docking station to connect the audio interface and the laptop?

[@dertaberti8321]

Very nice music...

[@bjornark]

Thanks!

[@julienchupin9954]

Thanks a lot for your very helpful videos ! Do you think there is any interest in upgrading to 24gb for a MacBook Air in music production or 16gb is enough for this machine ?

[@bjornark]

Glad it helps! More RAM is always good, up to you if its worth it.

[@jdwdrums]

Is the logic overload session you have available for download the same session you're playing here for the Glow song? It sounds really great!

[@bjornark]

Thanks! No its not the same session. The "DAW Overload" is used for the numbers in the beginning of the video.

[@benmuetsch]

Can you test how many times you can duplicate the tracks of the Live 12 demo song on each machine? Just curious how my 2019 Mac Pro holds up. Preferrably at 256 buffer and 48kHz :) would be awesome! Just group the whole demo song and try to duplicate until it overloads ;)

[@bjornark]

I do not have the M3 Max anymore, but I can try on the M3 Air.

[@arch94]

Just got a Macbook Air M3 16gb/512ssd, do you think that'll do to run and work with ableton 12 live? Bought it specifically for that.

[@bjornark]

Of course it will work. Go and make something cool :)

[@olexiisokolov]

I use Adobe Audition for voice processing. But I'm thinking of trying Logic Pro. Does it make sense or is it roughly the same? Use MacBook Air M3

[@UCXqkbxdVtmNYS6sp7Ppcy0w]

Can the MacBook Air M3 (2024) handle headphones with a 250-ohm impedance like Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO 250 Ohm? Can they be used without an amplifier for professional work on MBA-M3?

[@bjornark]

Yes

[@H-4-D3423]

I'd love to know what the direct impact is, on a 4P/4E Mac in Logic (or even Ableton) when you compare performance in a 3.5/4 minute typical release song Bjørnar - and what would happen if that same track was 16mins long instead, with the same number of tracks/plugins. Would it perform identical, or would there be lag and larger performance spikes?

[@bjornark]

I will try to incorporate such test in the future.

[@H-4-D3423]

@@bjornark Thank u BjoKib, I know your time is short. It can just be a test/track you've already done, preferably in Logic as I plan to buy than. It just makes me not be sure which level of Mac Mini I need. Cheers for the input.

[@GermoStaalfeldt]

Yes its all enough, ,modern cpus

[@bjornark]

Yeah, they are getting really good.

[@JamesLloydKeyboardist]

If I use the MacBook Air closed most of the time connected to an external monitor, will I have overheating issues?

[@bjornark]

Macbook Air is unlikely to overheat. It will automatically slow down before it gets to that point. If you load it with very heavy CPU usage.

[@JamesLloydKeyboardist]

@@bjornark Thank you. 🎹💙

[@pinkdesire82]

@bjornark what camera/webcam did you use for this video?

[@bjornark]

Sony Alpha 7 IV with FE 24mm F1.4 GM lens.

[@shredlife1841]

Followed ya on Spotify. Great music good sir! In your professional opinion, is the 18gb 12-core M3 pro good enough for someone who is just starting with Music Production (and DJing also) and will use either Logic Pro or Ableton? Mostly House production initially. Thanks b4hand

[@bjornark]

Thanks for the follow! The model you suggest should work just fine for that use.

[@shredlife1841]

​@@bjornark No problemo! I hear good music, I follow haha. And thanks!

[@mattkurb728]

Hi can you please tell me how well the m4 max or pro manage with plugins in a live setting. Is there latency or could I mix my band's 8x stems live set (4 plugs per stem) with ableton or logic plugs and a soundcard , not needing a mixing desk. And what would be best best bang fot buck here

[@leonelpaparotto]

Hi @bjornark, what are the specs of your PC that you use as your main production device ?

[@bjornark]

Sure, I have updated the video description. :)

[@durimister]

show settings window

[@catalaxiaxxi]

How can i have like 100 tracks in a MacBook pro 2012 with protools? And this just 50ish?

[@bjornark]

It depends, if its only audio and little plugins it wont use much resources.

[@catalaxiaxxi]

@@bjornark few eq compresors and reverb per chanel, also 24/48

[@yodathejedi]

I don't know about macs much but I wonder, if I only use a komplete kontrol mk3 midi keyboard and a mac, do I also need a proper soundcard, like an external focusrite or is just the mac enough? On pc I have one to use asio drivers in daw.

[@bjornark]

If you want to record audio from lets say an guitar, hardware synth or something external you need a soundcard. If you only produce in the box the internal audio card of the mac will work fine.

[@billt3031]

Is the buffer size in Mac different than windows? Like when you want to mix and add a lot of plugins, do you lower the buffer or increase it?

[@SamHocking]

Pretty much the same. On my M2 Ultra I get 352 instances @ 64 buffer, 397 @ 512 buffer. On my Intel 13900k I get 507 instances @64 buffer and 581 instances at 512 buffer for the same project, audio and plugins, so they're about the same just the 13900 is a fair bit more capable at audio DSP than the M2 ultra obviously.

[@onsugarmountain]

What kHz are you using for your tracks? I’m an audio student for engineering and production, could be working with 50-100 tracks 48kHz instead .of 44.1. On the rare occasion 96kHz. think an air would do me well for a few years? Thanks man

[@onsugarmountain]

I se you put 48kHz now. WoW tanks for Boeing I thorough!

[@jubinroy4987]

Theoretically a 24 gig air m3 might run 75 tracks right

[@bjornark]

No, not necessarily.

[@sanaksanandan]

CPU and RAM

[@Anthony-kp7sf]

the ram doesn't matter in terms of running tracks and a base m3 MacBook Air with 8gb ram can run 158 tracks. the m3 pro chip can do around 200. thats only because it's a different chip, not due to the ram. these new Macs also swap ram to cache samples, so like.. ram really does not matter. that's why apple keeps releasing 8gb models.

[@sanaksanandan]

@@Anthony-kp7sf Ya. CPU is the main thing. RAM comes into picture on tracks with loads of samples. Anyway, looks like apple is going to release new M4 Macs with 16GB ram as base models. That's good.

[@Lagos3sgte]

It seems like the 48gb of ram is giving it enough resources so that it can better handle the lower buffer size in real time.

[@Trickey2413]

It's the cpu not the ram. The m3 max has twice as many cores as the base m3.

[@chris5375]

Nobody needs 48 GB of RAM, are you Hans Zimmer 😉

[@nguyenminh7780]

@@chris5375you sir, obviously isn’t the kind of people who needs over 8GB of ram on a production laptop

[@whatsmynameagain7774]

Its most definitely not enough you do know most producers like to stream?

[@bjornark]

Most producers stream? Right.

[@MarcioSilva-1976]

Well, M1 was already quite capable of doing that

[@siamesi]

come for the tittle stay for the music

[@bjornark]

Thanks :)

[@markahmadieh7003]

Dude same! The tracks are awesome

[@bjornark]

❤️

[@Anthony-kp7sf]

you seriously dont even need the 16gb lol. you can get 8gb and be completely fine. DAWs hardly use ram at all. they use the CPU.

[@bjornark]

This depends on what plugins you use. So it can differ from one person to another actually.

[@whatsmynameagain7774]

You need 32g ram minimum For music production m1 ultra or m4 max

[@bjornark]

No, you don't.

[@erdokurt4101]

I really want to listen your music that produced in 32 gm ram and m4😂