- Mac For Music Production
- Best Mac For Music Producers
- Mac Mini For Music Production 2016
- Best Mac Music Software
Looking for the best Mac music-production software? We compare the best alternatives to Apple's free music-making app GarageBand, including Logic Pro X, Ableton, Cubase, Audacity and more. In years gone by, Apple has thoroughly dominated the best laptops for music production arena, or indeed any creative production. As the only portable platform for Logic Pro X, the Apple MacBook Pro is everywhere in music production, from the DJ booth and pro recording studio setups, to working bands making music on the road and those of us displaying a Mac proudly on our home studio desk. The 2018 and 2020 Mac Mini are identical in terms of hardware - but pricing got adjusted. Mac Mini 6-Core i5 - on sale: Mac Mini 6-Co.
Ridiculously powerful. Seriously creative.
NewLive LoopsFor spontaneous composition.
Live Loops is a dynamic way to create and arrange music in real time. Kick off your composition by adding loops, samples, or your recorded performances into a grid of cells. Trigger different cells to play with your ideas without worrying about a timeline or arrangement. Once you find combinations that work well together you can create song sections, then move everything into the Tracks area to continue production and finish your song.
Remix FX
Bring DJ-style effects and transitions to an individual track or an entire mix with a collection of stutters, echoes, filters, and gating effects.
Logic Remote
Control features like Live Loops, Remix FX, and more from your iPad or iPhone using Multi-Touch gestures.
NewStep SequencerPure beat poetry.
Step Sequencer is inspired by classic drum machines and synthesizers. Using the Step Sequence editor, quickly build drum beats, bass lines, and melodic parts — and even automate your favorite plug-ins. Add sophisticated variations to your pattern with a wide range of creative playback behaviors. Use Note Repeat to create rolling steps, Chance to randomize step playback, and Tie Steps Together to create longer notes.
Logic RemoteTouch and flow.
Logic Remote lets you use your iPhone or iPad to control Logic Pro X on your Mac. Use Multi-Touch gestures to play software instruments, mix tracks, and control features like Live Loops and Remix FX from anywhere in the room. Swipe and tap to trigger cells in Live Loops. And tilt your iPhone or iPad up and down and use its gyroscope to manipulate filters and repeaters in Remix FX.
Multi-Touch mixing
Control your mix from wherever you are in the room — whether that’s next to your computer or on the couch — with Multi-Touch faders.
Pair and play
Use a variety of onscreen instruments, such as keyboards, guitars, and drum pads, to play any software instrument in Logic Pro X from your iPad or iPhone.
NewSampler
We redesigned and improved our most popular plug-in — the EXS24 Sampler — and renamed it Sampler. The new single-window design makes it easier to create and edit sampler instruments while remaining backward compatible with all EXS24 files. An expanded synthesis section with sound-shaping controls brings more depth and dynamics to your instruments. The reimagined mapping editor adds powerful, time-saving features that speed the creation of complex instruments. Use the zone waveform editor to make precise edits to sample start/end, loop ranges, and crossfades. And save hours of tedious editing with new drag-and-drop hot zones.
NewQuick Sampler
Quick Sampler is a fast and easy way to work with a single sample. Drag and drop an audio file from the Finder, Voice Memos, or anywhere within Logic Pro X. Or record audio directly into Quick Sampler using a turntable, microphone, musical instrument, or even channel strips playing in Logic Pro X. In a few steps, you can transform an individual sample into a fully playable instrument. And with Slice Mode, you can split a single sample into multiple slices — perfect for chopping up vocals or breaking up and resequencing drum loops.
NewDrum Synth
This powerful but easy-to-use plug-in creates synthesized drum sounds. Choose from a diverse collection of drum models and shape their sound with up to eight simple controls. Drum Synth is also directly integrated into the bottom of the Drum Machine Designer interface — giving you a focused set of sound-shaping controls.
NewDrum Machine Designer
Redesigned to be more intuitive and integrated, Drum Machine Designer lets you effortlessly build electronic drum kits. Apply individual effects and plug-ins on each discrete drum pad to experiment with sound design and beat-making in new ways. You can also create a unique layered sound by assigning the same trigger note to two different pads. To help you quickly edit sounds, Quick Sampler and Drum Synth are directly integrated into the Drum Machine Designer interface.
DrummerCompose to the beat of a different percussionist.
Using Drummer is like hiring a session drummer or collaborating with a highly skilled beat programmer. Create organic-sounding acoustic drum tracks or electronic beats with the intelligent technology of Drummer. Choose from dozens of drummers who each play in a different musical genre, and direct their performances using simple controls.
Compositions and PerformancesYour studio is always in session.
Logic Pro X turns your Mac into a professional recording studio able to handle even the most demanding projects. Capture your compositions and performances — from tracking a live band to a solo software-instrument session — and flow them into your songs.
The ultimate way to record.
Seamless punch recording. Automatic take management. Support for pristine 24-bit/192kHz audio. Logic Pro X makes it all easy to do — and undo. You can create projects with up to 1000 stereo or surround audio tracks and up to 1000 software instrument tracks, and run hundreds of plug-ins. It’s all you need to complete any project.
Get the most out of MIDI.
Logic Pro X goes beyond the average sequencer with an advanced set of options that let you record, edit, and manipulate MIDI performances. Transform a loose performance into one that locks tight into the groove using region-based parameters for note velocity, timing, and dynamics. Or tighten up your MIDI performances while preserving musical details like flams or chord rolls with Smart Quantize.
Industry-leading tools
As your song develops, Logic Pro X helps organize all your ideas and select the best ones. Group related tracks, audition alternate versions, and consolidate multiple tracks. Lightning-fast click-and-drag comping helps you build your best performance from multiple takes.
Smart Tempo
Go off-script and stay on beat with Smart Tempo, a way to effortlessly mix and match music and beats without worrying about the original tempo. Record freely without a click track. And easily combine and edit MIDI and audio tracks — from vinyl samples to live instruments to multitrack audio stems — with constant or variable tempo.
Flex Time
Quickly manipulate the timing and tempo of your recording with Flex Time. Easily move the individual beats within a waveform to correct drum, vocal, guitar, or any other kind of track without slicing and moving regions.
Flex Pitch
Edit the level and pitch of individual notes quickly and easily with Flex Pitch. Roll over any note and all parameters are available for tweaking.
Track Alternatives
Create alternate versions of a track or multiple grouped tracks, and switch between them at any time to audition different options. Create, store, and select from different edits and arrangements of track regions to make it easier to experiment with various creative ideas.
Takes and Quick Swipe Comping
Click and drag to choose the best sections of each take to create a seamless comp, complete with transition-smoothing crossfades. Save multiple comps and switch among them to pick the one you like best.
Track Stacks
Consolidate multiple related tracks into a single track. Use a Summing Stack as a quick way to create submixes. Or create layered and split instruments.
Project Alternatives
Create as many alternate versions of a project as you’d like, each with its own name and settings but sharing the same assets — efficiently saving storage space. Load any version to make changes without compromising your original.
Track Groups and VCA Faders
Manage large mixes with Track Groups and VCA faders. Assign any selection of channels to a track group, then control the levels or other parameters of all tracks in the group from any single channel in the group.
Automation
Easily capture changes to any channel strip or plug-in parameter. Just enable automation, press Play, and make your changes.
Even more pro features in the mix.
Logic Pro X is packed with incredible tools and resources to enhance your creativity and workflow as you sharpen your craft — even if you’re a seasoned pro.
Graduate from GarageBand.
Logic Remote. Touch and flow.
Mac For Music Production
MainStage 3
Sound as great onstage as you do in the studio.
Education Bundle
Five amazing apps. One powerful collection.
With the dawn of home-based producers, or what some people call “bedroom producers”, many aspiring composers and DJs are looking for ways to set up their own music hive.
Most of them start with laptops or desktop PCs and work their way up to upgrade from mouse and keyboard sequencing to using MIDI keyboards, mixers and so forth.
A big question that comes up amongst music producers is if you can us an iMac, which is regarded as a consumer product, for heavy audio production.
In this article, we are going to break down the iMac’s specifications and if it qualifies as a reliable computer for music production.
Are iMacs powerful enough for music production?
Generally speaking, all iMacs come with 8 gig of RAM, which should be enough for any producer to get their hands on.
The number of tracks, audio files and effects that can be produced in a song, especially if you are working with a lot of automations and you need to fully-master every bit of sound in your song, can also define how much CPU you need, and how big of a screen you need to check everything in place.
This is why some producers have already resorted to getting an iMac for their music production not just because of the big screen, but also the heavy processing power that can cater big DAWs.
Running low on hard drive space can also take its toll on your production power and make you run low on CPU, so most producers get an external hard drive that includes all audio files of their projects, or divide the hard drive into partitions.
For music production, SSD, or solid state drives, are ideal. They make your computer boot in a fraction of the time that it would normally take. It also makes your programs load faster. The only downside to SSD hard drives is that they are more expensive.
Which iMac should you go with?
There are various iMac models to choose from that have screen sizes from 21.5 inches to 27 inches.
The Mac you choose depends on your preference(your DAW’s CPU needs), budget and most importantly your working space. Apple products are usually expensive so you should take your time deciding which Mac is best suited for you.
I’d recommend getting an iMac with quad-core or higher. The entry-level iMac is dual-core with 1.4GHz of processing power. For a little bit more, you can get an iMac with twice the hard drive space and almost twice the processing power.
iMac vs. Mac Mini (for music production)
When buying a Mac, most people either go with a Mac Mini or an iMac.
Best Mac For Music Producers
If you want to save cash, you can go for the Mac Mini. The Mac Mini just tends to be less upgradable. Then again, if you already have a previous desktop computer or even an HDTV at home or on your working space, getting a Mac Mini will save you a couple hundred bucks. Much like desktop PCs, you can upgrade their RAM as you wish depending on your production needs and how much your budget can afford.
![Best mac music software Best mac music software](/uploads/1/2/6/6/126679716/766231675.jpg)
Despite the big cash that you’ll need for the iMac, some producers would stick to their guns because they know they can’t run their DAWs and audio plugins as smoothly as in a Mac Mini, but hey, it’s up to the producer, right?
Not everyone uses high-quality and heavy VSTs and might be more into recording from real instruments instead. If you run a lightweight production set up, it won’t be necessary spending an extra $1000+ on a more powerful Mac.
An iMac is a great choice because it provides you with great CPU power, specifications and an extremely high build quality. However, not everyone can afford an iMac and if you are a “bedroom producer”, getting might be enough to serve your purposes.
Nonetheless, both computers are excellent choices when it comes to music production. The Macs of today are more powerful than they have ever been.
Final Notes:
So, do you still think an iMac is nothing but a product built for average consumers?
No way!
Mac Mini For Music Production 2016
The entry-level iMac comes jam packed with 8GB of ram. Memory is easily upgradable on a Mac and can dramatically improve your computer’s speed.
An iMac is a perfect choice for music production!
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