Which M4 Mac Is Best for Content Creators? 🚀 A Brutally Honest Breakdown!

[@chadmullins7553]

Will you upgrade? Wait for new models? If not, what do you have right now?

[@jimtipton8888]

I fit dead center in the prosumer category. Bought the M4 16 in a 14/20/24/1TB configuration. Recently threw the kitchen sink at it. Music open and playing, On One Photo Raw open with a multilayer edit going, FCP editing a 4K video with at least 5 effects piled on the timeline. Safari open with 20 tabs. PDF Expert, Nord VPN, Numbers, Mail, Reminders, Calendar all running in the background. Machine got as high as 60% memory pressure and it only used 1.5 GB of swap. No stutters, no spinning wheels, no crashed apps. Save your money, RAM upgrades for most is just a money grab.

[@chadmullins7553]

Sounds like you are doing great!

[@urbexindigo5164]

If this is the latest chips then why on earth does each system require so much RAM to perform what is now considered standard tasks like 4k video editing? Wasn`t the whole purpose of these chips to prevent all this?

[@chadmullins7553]

This is a great question and highlights common misconceptions about the relationship between hardware specs and performance. Yes, the M4 chip is designed to make things more efficient, but it is not designed to eliminate RAM. Apple silicon has the CPU, GPU, and Neural Engine sharing the same pool of memory, making it more efficient. It does allow for the machine to handle 4k video editing more efficiently than traditional systems with separate RAM and VRAM When it comes to RAM requirements for Video Editing... Softwares like I use - DaVinci Resolve or FCP11 and PP use the RAM to cache, preview and render content. The more RAM you have available, the more complex and higher quality of a project you can handle without it slowing down crashing. The Hardware acceleration that comes with the Max Chips also really helps a lot! More RAM is recommended because even with the M4 chip being so efficient, it will be too taxing on the complex video edits and things like that once color grading, audio edits, noise reduction, motion graphics and other things are applied. When people are working in a professional or semi-professional setting, time is money. The RAM and better configurations will not only help during each individual edit, but will save a ton of time over a longer period. The video editing abilities of both people and softwares are consistently increasing and so will the demand of the computers, so the RAM will also be future proofing. For those who are getting base models because of the excitement over bench marks, they will be upgrading to newer chips with more RAM in the near future because they didnt purchase the product for the long term.

[@glennthompson1971]

@@chadmullins7553or maybe those going for base models now will upgrade to the next base model in 2 years

[@johnnyboneart]

Excellent job!!

[@chadmullins7553]

Thank you, Sir!

[@kevenspargo6829]

Where are you seeing the prices you showed? Some of them are lower than what I’ve seen.

[@chadmullins7553]

Apple.com is where all of it was. I had made sure I confirmed every price as I was editing too... When I first shot the video, things were cheaper, then they raised the prices. So I had to re-do some of the video. Apple can change the prices at any time and also different locations around the world may have a different price.

[@chadmullins7553]

However that may be, the pricing should be close and should be similar in difference between models .

[@kevenspargo6829]

@@chadmullins7553 Again, WHERE are you seeing these prices?

[@kevenspargo6829]

@@chadmullins7553 Won't answer my question and deleted my reply? Got it. I'll never be back.

[@TheRustyGarageandHomestead]

How big is your monitor? I run 2, 27" curved monitors and my laptop's 18" monitor. I still feel like i would like to go bigger or add another

[@chadmullins7553]

My upper monitor is a 27". The one on the bottom is a 40" ultra wide. I use the dual screen setup in DaVinci and put the full screen timeline on the 40". I then screen share to my MacBook Pro and run that as a "video clean feed". That allows me to make the edits with the full screen timeline and opens a ton of space up for the other stuff and be able to see how it would look on the laptop. I have links in the description that goes to these monitors. They have a nice blackfriday deal going on too.

[@TheRustyGarageandHomestead]

@@chadmullins7553 awesome sir ill check them out

[@AdmiralCecil]

Soon to come, the M4 Max and Ultra Studio next year.

[@chadmullins7553]

Yes! That will be very exciting for creators and professionals!

[@TheRustyGarageandHomestead]

this video was great Mr Chad. i have always been a windows guy but the more i check out the apple products and talk to people for video editing this just run better. I would really like a desktop mac studio or mini with the M4 max chip in it. The laptop would be great but id love to have a designated desktop at home to work from. Great video buddy. Just bit the bullet last night and bough studio since its finally on sale. I feel like a have a ton more to learn now.

[@chadmullins7553]

The studio is an amazing machine! I bought mine a year ago and it has been nothing short of amazing! Feel free to reach out with any questions for any of the stuff if you need. It can be a bit confusing at first when switching over to MacOS, but once you use it for a couple of weeks, you will never want to go back to windows haha...

[@TheRustyGarageandHomestead]

@@chadmullins7553 thank you. i keep hearing that about mac's lol

[@chadmullins7553]

@@TheRustyGarageandHomestead They are a hot item right now... The M-series chips really are something special.

[@BillyLuna]

New sub here. Great channel. Would you be so kind as to answer a few questions. I mostly use Final Cut Pro & Photoshop to create videos on my Billy Luna Crime Stories YT channel. I am working in 1080p, but plan to start working in 4k. Currently I am Using a Sandisk Extreme Pro SSD (2TB & 4TB) to edit off whilst using FCP. I like to use Final Cut Pro, Photoshop and 40 web browser tabs open simultaneously. 1) For my needs, which exact configuration of the new M4 Mac Mini should I get? (Pro or no, RAM, SSD) This is the configuration that I have been mulling: $1,799.00 512GB SSD storage Apple M4 Pro chip with 12‑core CPU, 16‑core GPU, 16‑core Neural Engine 48GB unified memory 512GB SSD storage 2) What would the practical difference be when using Final Cut Pro, Photoshop and 40 web browser tabs open simultaneously if I just got the base M4 mac mini rather than the M4 Pro mac mini? 3) If I go M4 Pro what would the practical difference (for my use scenarios) be in upgrading from 24 GB memory to 48 GB? 4) Is there any speed or performance advantage in going with a 1 TB SSD vs 512? 5) Do I need to worry about fan noise when I’m recording on camera video or voice over with the M4 Pro mac mini? Thank you!

[@chadmullins7553]

First of all, thanks for the sub! Really appreciate it! I will do my best to answer questions you have... Using FCP and PS at the same time while having so many tabs open, you are going to need as much ram as you can get... 48 or 64 GB will be giving you more to be able to operate the programs at one time. You still may run into some RAM issues from time to time with 48 GB if you are really pushing it with your edit. You would definitely need the Pro chip if you want it to work effectively. The CPU is really going to be what helps the browser being open with so many tabs. Hopefully with a lot of ram and disk space, you are not going to be running into to many problems. I never have that many tabs open (that I am aware of) so I'm not sure of how much that is going to affect you. That will be something you have to test out. As much as you are going to be pushing this computer, I am sure the fans will be coming on. I don't know how loud they will get, but if you can do some noise reduction than the fan noise shouldn't be too much of an issue. The two SSD's you are using are nice, however once you hit a certain amount of memory usage, they slow down a lot! I personally edit video with a Samsung 980 pro and use a sandisk extreme pro 1tb SSD for Photo editing. What I suggest you do here is put your files for editing onto the 4tb, your music, sfx, b-roll and whatever else you need on that. Use the smaller SSD to run the Cache files. That will allow the faster transfer speeds for the cache files and the other files do not really need that much speed, so you will be okay. If you are doing this professionally, than I suggest you figure out your finances for it and invest with the idea of future as well. If the level of editing you are doing is going to be this level and more in the future, you may want to look into a max chip in the Mac Studio. Be it an M1 Max or M2 Max, they are still amazing computers and can really be pushed. If you have any more questions, feel free to reach out and ask

[@KeithWallsVocals-od5ry]

The big question for me is buy the M4 Max MBP now or wait for the M4 Max Studio. I’m still running on a 2017 Intel iMac Pro (with a powerful eGPU).

[@chadmullins7553]

I can totally understand! When I purchased my M2 Max, I had to consider if I wanted the M3 Max from the MacBook Pro or if I wanted the M2 Max Mac Studio. For me, the Mac Studio was so much cheaper and I was not in need of portability. So I went with the M2 Max and then later upgraded my 2017 MacBook Pro to an M3 Pro. I think there is a lot more risk involved with the MacBook Pro and the high cost of the Max chip, so its better for me to stick with the Mac Studio in the home studio

[@KeithWallsVocals-od5ry]

@ I don’t really want or need a laptop. But Apple skipped the M3 Studio completely and we have only a vague timeline when the M4 Studios will actually ship. I have to assume the holdup with the Studio models is the Ultra chip since the Max is already up and running. But then, they probably wanted to save the top end chips for the laptops, which are clearly more expensive (and profitable) than the desktops.

[@chadmullins7553]

@@KeithWallsVocals-od5ry I totally understand! They do not want the Mac Studio to compete with the MacBook Pro, which is why they have not launched it yet. I know it may seem vague, but I believe we will see them by April or May if they do not surprise us just before Christmas. The M3 was skipped from the Mac Studio for specific reasons regarding the type of chip, As they went down to 3 nanometers, there were 2 types of 3 nanometer chips. The M3 was put on the first one which is more expensive and faulty, meaning that apple would have to create more binned chips and it would be at a higher cost. The had the exclusive on those chips, so no other company could use them. All of the M3 computers will be the only computers on that die. So the M4 is on a newer and better die which is cheaper and has less issues during manufacturing. They also updated the fuse on the max chip, which means the layout for the Ultra chip will be different as well. So the ultra chip will be even more powerful than what many anticipate. If you can wait, you will get an amazing computer... If you lease the Mac Studio with the M4 ultra, you will have the most insane option... Just something to think about.

[@KeithWallsVocals-od5ry]

An almost maxed out M2 Max Studio is $4200. The M4 Max MBP I’ve been contemplating is $6200. Big difference!

[@chadmullins7553]

@@KeithWallsVocals-od5ry That is huge! May I ask why you want to max it out? Personally, I am running an M2 Max with 64 GB ram and 1tb SSD. I currently am using an external SSD for editing with, however will be building a server soon. Adding extra storage on the inside is quite expensive and is not really necessary... When it comes to editing, I am editing with DaVinci resolve and I do quite a bit of motion graphics and other high GPU intensive thins with it. I really do not have much of an issue. I can run DaVinci Resolve and Photoshop at the same time and still have enough ram. So if you are going up above that, you must have a really tough workflow. If you are goin that high, why not go for an Ultra, but with a little less interior storage and then maybe set up a NAS or something for cheaper and larger storage?

[@mariabjrn66]

I have a MacBook Pro (2015), so anything will be a massive upgrade for me 😂 but are you saying that for the professional photographer, the maxed iMac won’t be sufficient ? 😮 As far as I can see, the Mac mini setup will be a more expensive option for me once I’ve finished the setup with monitor, keyboard, mouse etc

[@chadmullins7553]

That is a ver good question! The iMac is a wonderful machine and has an amazing screen to it. If you are upgrading from a 2015 model, it's going to be a huge upgrade. When it comes to the photo editing, if you are using a lot of denies, exporting a lot and if doing a lot of work within something like Adobe Camera Raw, than it will be pushing the chip hard. You have to keep in mind the iMac is quite thin and the base model only has 1 small fan. The upgraded has 2 small fans, but even then, the cooling system is really not that much. You will be putting the computer through a lot of thermal cycling which will slow the computer down quite a bit on heavy loads. So with that being said, if you are upgrading from 2015 intel base Mac, you may even want to consider an M1, M2, M3 Pro or Max chip if it happens to be affordable. They are all really amazing when it comes to photography. I am a photographer too and I moved up to the M2 Max(Mac Studio) M3 Pro(MacBook Pro) from a 2017. I have no issues with the photography anymore. Everything operates very fast and smooth. So if you are doing a lot of photos, the iMac might not be what you expect. The bench marks we keep hearing about a really exciting, however the 10 core CPU is not going to really give you enough power for very heavy needs. If you are not doing too many photos at a time and are focused heavily on the quality of a few photos, than it might be a good machine. I would suggest you do a little more research into professional photographers who have been trying to use the M4 iMac to see.

[@abagatelle]

I have a 2015 MacBook too, but am upgrading to a used M1 Max 32GB, which should last for ages I hope 🤞🏻The 2015 is just too slow for modern software.

[@chadmullins7553]

@@abagatelle The M1 Max with 32 GB could work very well for several years. Especially if you are mostly focused on photography as well.

[@abagatelle]

@@chadmullins7553 Photography but mostly video (in Resolve Studio edition)

[@chadmullins7553]

I have no idea what happened during the export, but the iMac Pro was not supposed to be in the middle of the screen like that...

[@SleevelessMTG]

I’m gonna stick with my pc, but that was some 🔥🔥🔥 editing chad!!

[@chadmullins7553]

Thanks man! Appreciate that. I used your plugin it quite a bit in this one.

[@SleevelessMTG]

@@chadmullins7553 ❤️❤️

[@mrsrhardy]

Bought the mac-mini m4 base model and have used half the 256gb with all the apps (affinity2, office365, Apple software suite inc FinalCut) ect, with all the music stuff and Affinity content they bundled into the upgrade... I have a BASE for the M4 coming with nVME expansion and ports and will move DOWNLOADS to it and keep much of the assets that eat the storage to the base. Cheap and cheerful and apple can kiss my OVERPRICED upgrade ass this time arond. Also aliexpressed the parts to refirb my XR for another year or two for $60. Money tight, be smart! Oh, I am a heavy user with PRO taste buds but the base M4 is eating it right now and my MBP M3 base model is good until the AIR (phone and laptop) launch in Macrh 2025! Oh the M4 and A18 are the FIRST of the ARMv9x archatecture and no ones talking about it. They are the Core2duo to the ARMv8 thats been with us since 2013! Its a big deal and the M5 will add Wifi7 as its more a twiddle than a tweak!

[@mrsrhardy]

Oh the BARGIN is the MBP 14/16 MAX and the base M4 MacMini M4... In-between is money traps

[@chadmullins7553]

Sounds like you have a great setup. I think they should have put wifi7 in, can not understand why they couldn't do that...

[@rodiape]

I was so excited to buy my first laptop, but i can't feel but scammed with those ram and hd upgrades, lost all excitement on the process

[@chadmullins7553]

I totally understand! Thats why in this I wanted to start a a realistic starting point for a content creator of what the good configuration and cost would be. Everyone is promoting the base machines, but they really are not enough for content creators.