Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

You are here: MacNN Forums > Community > MacNN Lounge > Apple Silicon Macs

Apple Silicon Macs (Page 4)
Thread Tools
Laminar
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 8, 2021, 09:46 AM
 
Installed Batman Arkham City and played a bit of that, it runs nicely.

Apple also included 3 months of Arcade, so I found a few fun-looking games there and downloaded them so the 8yo would have something to play that didn't specifically involve constant murder.

I offered 8yo the controller but he prefers keyboard and mouse for gaming.



While the wired XBox controller works with Steam, it doesn't work with Arcade games. Apple says a Dualshock 4 or a bluetooth XBox wireless controller will work. I ran out and grabbed an XBox controller as that's the form factor we're used to. They had two versions in store - one listed compatibility with XBox, the other listed compatibility with XBox, PC, Android, and iOS, so I picked the latter. Turns out that was the wrong one?? From what I can gather on the internet, the one I got was version 1914, which is too new and also NOT COMPATIBLE WITH iOS. Apparently updates are coming to Big Sur and iOS that will eventually add compatibility for the 1914 controller.

Okay cool, so I'll grab the Big Sur 11.3 beta and get it working. I installed the beta and upon reboot my screen was dead. No video at all through the USB-C ports and the HDMI was flickering and showing static if it worked at all. A couple of reboots later and I had absolutely no screen. Luckily I had turned on screen sharing so I was able to get into it from my MBA and mess with the display settings a bit, finally got it working on HDMI but no USB-C video anymore.

Fine, as long as the controller works I'll deal with it. So I pair the controller and this time it recognizes it but says that the controller needs a firmware upgrade to be compatible. Cool how do I do that - oh with an XBox or Windows 10 PC. Fine, I have a PC. So I take the controller downstairs and try to pair it with the PC but won't even show up when I try to pair. Awesome. Okay, well you can plug it in, too. As luck would have it, I bought a 6" USB-A to USB-C cable for the Raspberry Pi project, so I was actually able to plug it into the PC. Then I had to go to the Windows App store and download the XBox Accessories app, which is different from the Windows XBox Experience app or whatever it is. Once I downloaded that, I was able to update the firmware on the controller.

Took it back upstairs, repaired with the Mini and....nothing. No response at all in Skate City. I downloaded a controller test app and I can see controller inputs there, but no response in game.

I guess I could go exchange the controller, as long as they're not too mad about me opening it up and installing the batteries and everything.

But it's frustrating.
     
Laminar
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 15, 2021, 09:45 AM
 
The latest in Apple Silicon world. I'm running the trial of Crossover to see if I can get some Windows stuff working. Unfortunately I'm not able to create any 64-bit Windows bottles. They sit there at "scanning" indefinitely so I can't install anything that would require 64-bit.

Oh, and I was able to get the right controller, turns out there was a "Wal-Mart exclusive" 1708 controller that was $10 less than what I bought originally, so win-win there.
     
MacNNFamous
Senior User
Join Date: Jul 2020
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 15, 2021, 01:55 PM
 
My old mac pro boots windows 7 and works fine.

Sounds like a lot of ****ery for newer machines. I did miss a deal on a dual CPU 5.1 for $200 the other day tho. Oh well. More will come. No reason to upgrade for now.
     
Laminar
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 16, 2021, 11:36 AM
 
Originally Posted by MacNNFamous View Post
Sounds like a lot of ****ery for newer machines.
lol

- Run firmware update and pray it doesn't brick
- Upgrade dual processors with takeoff units from eBay
- Cobble together 24GB of RAM from various sources
- Install SSD, hold in place with rubber bands and/or 3D-printed brackets
- Install Windows graphics card using suspect eBay mini-6pin to 8 pin adapter, lose boot screen
- Download mystery OpenCore bootloader to get Catalina running, hope it works
- Burn Windows 10 iso to DVD to get functional bootable install, still takes several tries
- Install scary eBay USB 3.0 PCI card
- Dims the lights in the room when it wakes from sleep
- Sounds like a wind tunnel while gaming
- Nearly unusable for first 10-15 minutes after boot due to photolibraryd or other related system tasks hogging the processor and disk
- Not snappy™

*or*

- Massive bump in single and multi-core performance
- Absolutely 100% silent in all cases
- Wild improvement in snappiness™
- Near instant boot, immediately responsive and usable
- Native support of latest OS

Yes, all sorts of ****ery there for nothing other than a "newer machine." Pointless upgrade for sure.
     
MacNNFamous
Senior User
Join Date: Jul 2020
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 16, 2021, 01:29 PM
 
Yeah I'm not having that issue.

5.1 hex, fast enough for me.
32 gigs ram came with it.
SSDs jammed in without rubber bands cuz yolo
Flashed 7970 from 2015 still works great, with boot screens, no wiring issues
Quiet

Idk, I need windows for solidworks and keyshot. Newer apple stuff taking away bootcamp really sucks... idk what I'm going to do, I've been dual booting since 2007
     
subego
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Chicago, Bang! Bang!
Status: Online
Reply With Quote
Feb 16, 2021, 01:57 PM
 
I used to be a casual dual-booter, but the space crunch with SSDs killed that.
     
Laminar
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 17, 2021, 12:18 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
I used to be a casual dual-booter, but the space crunch with SSDs killed that.
I have a separate SSD and separate data drive for each OS.
     
MacNNFamous
Senior User
Join Date: Jul 2020
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 17, 2021, 01:01 PM
 
Same, except I upgraded to cheap $15 NVME PCIE cards, and NVME SSDs for boot and scratch disks... windows is still on SSD since it's just cad and rendering, not really disk intensive.
     
Thorzdad
Moderator
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: Nobletucky
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 17, 2021, 05:24 PM
 
     
subego
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Chicago, Bang! Bang!
Status: Online
Reply With Quote
Feb 18, 2021, 07:11 AM
 
Originally Posted by Laminar View Post
I have a separate SSD and separate data drive for each OS.
Originally Posted by MacNNFamous View Post
Same
That’s what killed it. I don’t want an external drive unless it’s absolutely necessary.
     
MacNNFamous
Senior User
Join Date: Jul 2020
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 18, 2021, 03:42 PM
 
Hence Mac Pro
     
Laminar
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 18, 2021, 04:22 PM
 
I have all four drive slots filled, plus the 5.25 to 3.5 adapter in the lower optical slot, plus two external drives.
     
OreoCookie
Moderator
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Hilbert space
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 18, 2021, 08:34 PM
 
Originally Posted by MacNNFamous View Post
Same, except I upgraded to cheap $15 NVME PCIE cards, and NVME SSDs for boot and scratch disks... windows is still on SSD since it's just cad and rendering, not really disk intensive.
How'd you manage to boot macOS off of a NVME-based SSD? I tried that, but it wouldn't boot even though it'd access the SSD after booting from a SATA-based SSD just fine.
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
     
MacNNFamous
Senior User
Join Date: Jul 2020
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 18, 2021, 09:12 PM
 
5.1s have native NVME support. Install mojave on it and that was that, just select it like normal.

http://blog.greggant.com/posts/2018/...html#nvmesleds
     
OreoCookie
Moderator
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Hilbert space
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 18, 2021, 11:56 PM
 
Originally Posted by MacNNFamous View Post
5.1s have native NVME support. Install mojave on it and that was that, just select it like normal.

http://blog.greggant.com/posts/2018/...html#nvmesleds
The one I used was the last cheese grater Mac Pro. It seemed the OS needed some drivers to access the NVMe SSD. But perhaps it was some weirdness specific to the machine. It also wouldn’t boot from the SATA SSD without the spinning platter harddrive that was in there before. I’m not using that machine anymore, so it’s fine, I have an 8-core 16” MacBook Pro instead.
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
     
subego
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Chicago, Bang! Bang!
Status: Online
Reply With Quote
Feb 19, 2021, 07:15 AM
 
Originally Posted by MacNNFamous View Post
Hence Mac Pro
I wanted a Pro, but the trashcan was silly, ancient hardware when it was time to buy. Got an iMac instead (about 6 months before the iMac Pro was released).
     
MacNNFamous
Senior User
Join Date: Jul 2020
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 19, 2021, 12:02 PM
 
Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
The one I used was the last cheese grater Mac Pro. It seemed the OS needed some drivers to access the NVMe SSD. But perhaps it was some weirdness specific to the machine. It also wouldn’t boot from the SATA SSD without the spinning platter harddrive that was in there before. I’m not using that machine anymore, so it’s fine, I have an 8-core 16” MacBook Pro instead.
Was it a 5.1 cMP? 5.1s work out of the box. 3.1s and 4.1s need some messing around to get it to work.
     
Laminar
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 19, 2021, 02:32 PM
 
Originally Posted by MacNNFamous View Post
Was it a 5.1 cMP? 5.1s work out of the box. 3.1s and 4.1s need some messing around to get it to work.
Even a 2017 iMac absolutely crushes a single processor cMP. A DP X5690 will edge out the iMac's multiprocessor score, but the use case of an application being able to utilize all twelve physical cores is pretty narrow, especially considering that everything less than full multi-core utilization will be much slower on the cMP.

https://browser.geekbench.com/v4/cpu...eline=11393678
     
MacNNFamous
Senior User
Join Date: Jul 2020
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 19, 2021, 03:17 PM
 
Yup. But then you don't get any internal expandability and have to use the iMac display. That's also a $1500-2000 machine.

I sold my mac pro 2.1 all modified for $300, and I bought a 5.1 hex core for $300. I swapped my 7970 from my old one, and spent $150 on NVME drives. So... $450 if you don't include me swapping my old videocard. If I find a deal on a dual cpu tray I might do it but honestly this works fine for me.
     
Laminar
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 19, 2021, 03:25 PM
 
Yes, less money for less performance, that's generally how computers work.
     
MacNNFamous
Senior User
Join Date: Jul 2020
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 20, 2021, 01:54 AM
 
So what was the point of your previous post? More expensive computer is faster? Is that news?
     
reader50
Administrator
Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: California
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 20, 2021, 08:28 AM
 
Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
The one I used was the last cheese grater Mac Pro. It seemed the OS needed some drivers to access the NVMe SSD. But perhaps it was some weirdness specific to the machine.
What you need is the 144.0.0.0.0 firmware, which adds NVMe boot. And fixes a few other odd issues. As mentioned, install Mojave on an internal (or attached) drive. The Moj installer will do the firmware update.
     
OreoCookie
Moderator
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Hilbert space
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Feb 20, 2021, 11:55 AM
 
Originally Posted by reader50 View Post
What you need is the 144.0.0.0.0 firmware, which adds NVMe boot. And fixes a few other odd issues. As mentioned, install Mojave on an internal (or attached) drive. The Moj installer will do the firmware update.
Ooooooh, I see. Well, I might dust off that machine. It was really nicely decked out, it has 64 GB RAM (essentially an infinite amount) and was rock-solid.

I wish I had something CPU-intensive for it to do, something that requires many cores … 
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
     
Thorzdad
Moderator
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: Nobletucky
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Mar 10, 2021, 06:23 PM
 
     
MacNNFamous
Senior User
Join Date: Jul 2020
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Mar 10, 2021, 07:37 PM
 
In other news I found a crazy deal on a dual CPU 4,1 with 16tb of storage and some upgrade cards, sold the cards on ebay, and bought two hexcore chips for $115, and threw those in, so now I have a 12 core beastie like Laminar. Love it. Selling my old machine so I think overall... if I do my math right... I gained another processor and made $50 out of it.

IF the rumors turn out to be true about a MINI mac pro, I'm going to go for it tho.
     
OreoCookie
Moderator
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Hilbert space
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Mar 10, 2021, 11:28 PM
 
For Adobe that was quick IMHO.
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
     
Laminar
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 26, 2021, 12:44 PM
 
Finally did some video stuff last night. I almost spit out my sparking water when I watched the Mini rendering speed in RaceRender and iMovie. It's absolute light years ahead of the 12-core 3.46 Mac Pro.
     
Spheric Harlot
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: 888500128, C3, 2nd soft.
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 26, 2021, 12:49 PM
 
Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
For Adobe that was quick IMHO.
I mean, they only *just* got their Carbon versions done...
     
OreoCookie
Moderator
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Hilbert space
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 27, 2021, 12:19 AM
 
Originally Posted by Spheric Harlot View Post
I mean, they only *just* got their Carbon versions done...
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
     
Thorzdad
Moderator
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: Nobletucky
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 28, 2021, 08:04 AM
 
     
Laminar
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 28, 2021, 12:06 PM
 
How dumb is this idea - a minitower that contains a dock for the Mini. The dock breaks out the Thunderbolt ports into a PCIe slot for an eGPU, a couple NVME slots, a couple 3.5" HD slots, 6 or so USB ports, etc.

Is that stupid? Would that almost make it a pro machine? You still can't upgrade the RAM, but that gives you the replacement graphics and storage that pros seem to want.
     
MacNNFamous
Senior User
Join Date: Jul 2020
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 28, 2021, 12:12 PM
 
Originally Posted by Laminar View Post
How dumb is this idea - a minitower that contains a dock for the Mini. The dock breaks out the Thunderbolt ports into a PCIe slot for an eGPU, a couple NVME slots, a couple 3.5" HD slots, 6 or so USB ports, etc.

Is that stupid? Would that almost make it a pro machine? You still can't upgrade the RAM, but that gives you the replacement graphics and storage that pros seem to want.
I love that idea.
     
Waragainstsleep  (op)
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: UK
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 29, 2021, 07:25 AM
 
Thats something a 3rd party could build too.
I have plenty of more important things to do, if only I could bring myself to do them....
     
Spheric Harlot
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: 888500128, C3, 2nd soft.
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 29, 2021, 09:00 AM
 
Originally Posted by Laminar View Post
How dumb is this idea - a minitower that contains a dock for the Mini. The dock breaks out the Thunderbolt ports into a PCIe slot for an eGPU, a couple NVME slots, a couple 3.5" HD slots, 6 or so USB ports, etc.

Is that stupid? Would that almost make it a pro machine? You still can't upgrade the RAM, but that gives you the replacement graphics and storage that pros seem to want.
This stuff has been available for years. Apart from the useless (for that particular purpose) eGPU, backline technicians have been building Mac mini-based 19" touring racks exactly like this for musicians at least since the quad-core mini hit the market.
     
Laminar
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 29, 2021, 11:01 AM
 
Fascinating! I like the power button.
     
MacNNFamous
Senior User
Join Date: Jul 2020
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 29, 2021, 12:25 PM
 
Edit: $999....

https://www.studiodaily.com/2019/06/...c-mini-server/

Hmmm... I mean that's not terrible. That means you get an M1 powered mini tower for what... $2400 all in? Might be my next machine.
( Last edited by MacNNFamous; Apr 29, 2021 at 01:03 PM. )
     
Spheric Harlot
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: 888500128, C3, 2nd soft.
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 29, 2021, 03:25 PM
 
Originally Posted by MacNNFamous View Post
Edit: $999....

https://www.studiodaily.com/2019/06/...c-mini-server/

Hmmm... I mean that's not terrible. That means you get an M1 powered mini tower for what... $2400 all in? Might be my next machine.
$799!

https://www.sonnetstore.com/products...28533878587426
     
Laminar
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 29, 2021, 04:05 PM
 
I have a MDD G4 just sitting in my basement storage, begging for something interesting to be done with it...
     
Thorzdad
Moderator
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: Nobletucky
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 29, 2021, 05:12 PM
 
Originally Posted by Laminar View Post
I have a MDD G4 just sitting in my basement storage, begging for something interesting to be done with it...
I have a dual 2gig G5 sitting around doing nothing, too. I probably should just recycle it, but that aluminum case is just so awesome.
     
Waragainstsleep  (op)
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: UK
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 29, 2021, 05:17 PM
 
Originally Posted by Thorzdad View Post
I have a dual 2gig G5 sitting around doing nothing, too. I probably should just recycle it, but that aluminum case is just so awesome.
I have two G5s. One of them is an old machine someone donated and the other is just the case, brand spanking new and never used.
I have plenty of more important things to do, if only I could bring myself to do them....
     
MacNNFamous
Senior User
Join Date: Jul 2020
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 29, 2021, 05:52 PM
 
Originally Posted by Laminar View Post
I have a MDD G4 just sitting in my basement storage, begging for something interesting to be done with it...
I had one of those. Quake 3, no question. And UT99.
     
Thorzdad
Moderator
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: Nobletucky
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 29, 2021, 06:17 PM
 
Originally Posted by Waragainstsleep View Post
I have two G5s. One of them is an old machine someone donated and the other is just the case, brand spanking new and never used.
I always felt the G5 was a real high point for Apple. The interior was so well thought-out. You could easily get to just about any bit a user might need to access, for service, cleaning, replacement, or expansion, without much fuss. And that clear airflow panel was pretty trick. It’s a big heavy brute, though.
     
subego
Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Chicago, Bang! Bang!
Status: Online
Reply With Quote
Apr 29, 2021, 06:59 PM
 
In contrast, anyone ever have a Power Tower Pro?

Memory swap was like, 23 steps.
     
Waragainstsleep  (op)
Posting Junkie
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: UK
Status: Offline
Reply With Quote
Apr 30, 2021, 09:10 AM
 
Originally Posted by Thorzdad View Post
I always felt the G5 was a real high point for Apple. The interior was so well thought-out. You could easily get to just about any bit a user might need to access, for service, cleaning, replacement, or expansion, without much fuss. And that clear airflow panel was pretty trick. It’s a big heavy brute, though.
True until they installed a water cooler above the PSU. Those PSUs were much harder to pull than they needed to be too.
I have plenty of more important things to do, if only I could bring myself to do them....
     
 
Thread Tools
 
Forum Links
Forum Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Top
Privacy Policy
All times are GMT -4. The time now is 07:17 PM.
All contents of these forums © 1995-2017 MacNN. All rights reserved.
Branding + Design: www.gesamtbild.com
vBulletin v.3.8.8 © 2000-2017, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.,