New M3 MacBook Pros - do you still need big RAM

Hi all,

Looking possibly at one of the new M3 MacBook Pros.
Is it still the case that Hauptwerk on these machines will still require a big chunk of RAM memory (64GB at least to manage big sample sets)?

It does make those machines quite pricey to spec them up to that size if Hauptwerk is the main app that requires such a big RAM allocation.

[mdyde]

Hello adelaideviewer,

Yes -- you still need to be able to able to load the whole sample set into RAM.

macOS is also rather memory-hungry, generally needing about a third of the physical RAM for itself. Hence I'd recommend deciding on how much memory you think you'll need for the largest sample set that you plan to use during the lifespan of the machine, then multiplying that be at least 1.5 to determine the minimum amount of physical RAM to buy with the machine. (With Apple's current/recent Macs you can't add more RAM later.)

In order to be able to use a reasonable range of current/recent sample sets, I'd certainly go for a Mac with at least 64 GB of RAM if feasible. (Even more would allow for a greater degree of future-proofing.)

Thanks so much Martin - a very clear explanation.

[mdyde]

Thanks. You're very welcome.

It does then make the M3 MacBook Pros exceedingly expensive given Apple's cost to spec the machine up to 64meg ram.
To get the 64meg RAM, it requires the M3 Max 40 Core at a cost of $6014 AUD!

Wouldn't a Mac Studio be cheaper than trying to load up a laptop with memory? The M3 isn't available on the Studio, but the 24 core M2 isn't feeble.

I have a 64 GB M1 max, and it's still plenty powerful. If you're not against getting a used one, that's a good option.