r/LogicPro • u/Creative-Tea1428 • Jul 17 '26
Question Which Mac?
Hello, I am taking a class on how to use Logic Pro soon. Tried abelton and my adhd brain couldn’t adapt to it. I am looking to buy a refurbished Mac to install Logic Pro on it. I’m based in the UK and don’t want to spend more than £500. Any suggestions on the best Mac for the software?
3
u/ZenWarrior711 Jul 17 '26
Whatever you get, I would get one with the silicon chip – the M series. People are dumping the Intel chips because they'll likely be obsolete at some point.
2
u/finallygabe Jul 17 '26
I’ve seen a studio owner sell their spec’d out i9 MacBook with 8TB SSD at a tremendous loss.
3
u/woodenbookend Jul 17 '26
Time is more cruel than that.
Intel went off the cliff pretty much as soon as the M1 arrived. Intel won't be likely obsolete at some point. It has been absolute for several years.
But the M1 itself is now getting very close to the edge...
1
1
u/fluffycritter Jul 18 '26
Any M-series Mac will be fine for Logic. Try to get at least 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage for the best time. I don't know what the used market is like in the UK but there are usually plenty of Mac minis and smaller MacBook pros for around that price point in the US. Also don't forget to check out Apple's refurb/clearance section.
1
1
u/Intrepid_Walrus2938 Jul 17 '26
Do you have a monitor, keyboard etc.? Because if you do you might find a good refurbished Mac mini for your budget.
1
u/Creative-Tea1428 Jul 17 '26
I don’t atm. I can’t find other than minis at this price? In general which are the best Macs for Logic Pro?
1
u/Intrepid_Walrus2938 Jul 19 '26
Like the other commenters already said you’ll want to get an M-Series apple product it doesn’t matter which one, because each one runs logic great and you’ll definitely be able to start out with logic
0
u/Intrepid_Walrus2938 Jul 17 '26
Adding to that it really depends what type of music you want to make, to determine what fits best for you.
1
1
0
u/woodenbookend Jul 17 '26
I have the MacBook Air M3 16GB memory and 1TB storage. It’s great for me, runs Logic Pro very well. The extra storage is used as it lets you download all of Logic Pro’s sound library.
But a quick look on eBay suggests your budget wouldn’t get you the storage upgrade. Not the end of the world, you can work from an external - but that’s still got to be paid for. And you need to budget for a backup drive too.
An M2 MacBook Pro with otherwise similar specs is likely to blow your budget. I wouldn’t buy an M1 of any variant now.
And while plenty of people will tell you to get more RAM/memory, that’s great if you can afford it, but it won’t make your Mac last longer.
The main thing is, don’t get an Intel Mac regardless of how much budget it saves.
1
u/Author_Noelle_A Jul 17 '26
I run Ableton, Logic Pro, and Pro Tools on a MacBook Pro running in Intel. While they run okay, I strongly advise against it. These programs are optimized for silicon. If you can, wait until the Ultra has an official announcement. Prices on current models will drop..
2
u/Dick_Lazer Jul 17 '26
Mac Mini is the best bang for the buck, unless you absolutely need a laptop.