mybass Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 I wondered if anyone here knows of a source for Imacs that are being sold off from office closures? I'm looking for a 27" 2019 fusion drive (for music software application). I've viewed a lot of online re-sellers. Still pretty expensive agains John Lewis and Currys who have new 2019 ones only a bit above asking prices from re-sellers....any clues ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaytonaRik Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 (edited) My late 2014 model still has plenty of oomph for home recording so you may be able to cast your used net a little further afield and go for a slightly older model? This is running a 3.5ghz quad core i5 with 24GB ram and has more than enough for Reaper and all the Slate plug-ins I can throw at it without skipping a beat. The latest project has 17 tracks of audio and 12 tracks of Slate 5 midi Drums giving, with various instrument buses, a total of around 30 tracks with either Bias FX 2, Slate Drums 5 and Slate VMR plus other assorted Slate plugins or a combination of them on each channel. Edited October 15, 2020 by DaytonaRik Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OliverBlackman Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 2 hours ago, mybass said: I wondered if anyone here knows of a source for Imacs that are being sold off from office closures? I'm looking for a 27" 2019 fusion drive (for music software application). I've viewed a lot of online re-sellers. Still pretty expensive agains John Lewis and Currys who have new 2019 ones only a bit above asking prices from re-sellers....any clues ? You’ve got more chance of getting macs from colleges who specialise in arts. Might be worth contacting a few locally 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
songofthewind Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 24 minutes ago, DaytonaRik said: My late 2014 model still has plenty of oomph for home recording so you may be able to cast your used net a little further afield and go for a slightly older model? This is running a 3.5ghz quad core i5 with 24GB ram and has more than enough for Reaper and all the Slate plug-ins I can throw at it without skipping a beat. The latest project has 17 tracks of audio and 12 tracks of Slate 5 midi Drums giving, with various instrument buses, a total of around 30 tracks with either Bias FX 2, Slate Drums 5 and Slate VMR plus other assorted Slate plugins or a combination of them on each channel. This. Swap out the slow HDD for an SSD, and prepare to be amazed at the transformation. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_5 Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 Yup. Best upgrade to my ageing late 2011 MacBook Pro was a solid state drive. Honestly, it's like night and day! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaytonaRik Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 2 minutes ago, songofthewind said: This. Swap out the slow HDD for an SSD, and prepare to be amazed at the transformation. My model had the 1TB fusion drive from new - not quite SSD speeds but plenty fast enough for me 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mybass Posted October 15, 2020 Author Share Posted October 15, 2020 10 minutes ago, OliverBlackman said: You’ve got more chance of getting macs from colleges who specialise in arts. Might be worth contacting a few locally Good idea, cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mybass Posted October 15, 2020 Author Share Posted October 15, 2020 1 minute ago, DaytonaRik said: My model had the 1TB fusion drive from new - not quite SSD speeds but plenty fast enough for me I’ve looked at that, a bit confusing with comments online elsewhere saying certain (later?) models can’t be altered like that, only ram upgrade... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mybass Posted October 15, 2020 Author Share Posted October 15, 2020 3 minutes ago, DaytonaRik said: My model had the 1TB fusion drive from new - not quite SSD speeds but plenty fast enough for me I’ve had a good friend and dedicated iMac user of decades saying the same that fusion drive is heads above hdd. I think a 16 or better 32gb ram works well too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaytonaRik Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 (edited) Screen shots for CPU and memory usage (2014 iMac with 24GB RAM, Quad Core 3.5GHZ i5) running 40 tracks in Reaper comprising 17 tracks of recorded audio, 12 midi drum tracks plus various bus/processing tracks and a total of 47 channel/bus processing or virtual instrument plugins across 30 of those tracks. Edited October 15, 2020 by DaytonaRik 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burns-bass Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 You’re not going to find many colleges or businesses selling a 2019 Mac at a knockdown price. Do you know anyone who is at school, college or University? They can get you 10% off a brand new Mac. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
songofthewind Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 You can check everymac.com for models specs and upgradeability. My late 2013 iMac was quite easy to open and it was a piece of cake to swap out the drive for an SSD. You need spudgers to slice around the screen, and a set of adhesive tapes to stick the screen back on afterwards. I would not want to try to upgrade the RAM in the same machine: you have to remove almost all of the internals to get at the RAM. There are loads of instructional videos on YouTube, and parts on eBay. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaytonaRik Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 5 minutes ago, songofthewind said: I would not want to try to upgrade the RAM in the same machine: you have to remove almost all of the internals to get at the RAM. There are loads of instructional videos on YouTube, and parts on eBay. RAM upgrades on most iMacs (2009 onwards IIRC) are via a trapdoor at the back/bottom of the case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
songofthewind Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 Mine is the "thin edge" type, with no trap door. Also, I think the model in the pix above would have the screen held on with magnets. I helped a friend upgrade his identical one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaytonaRik Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 (edited) Mine is also the same as the model as above - ultra-thin edge, no CD Rom built in with the trap door below the rear vent behind the stand (introduced 2012) although this foolishly only applies to the 27" models,, not the 21.5" models. https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201191#note Edited October 15, 2020 by DaytonaRik Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
songofthewind Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 Yep, mine is the 21.5” version. I find its screen plenty big enough for Logic. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mybass Posted October 18, 2020 Author Share Posted October 18, 2020 thanks everyone... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mybass Posted October 20, 2020 Author Share Posted October 20, 2020 Eventually found one locally a grand cheaper than last years price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen Posted October 20, 2020 Share Posted October 20, 2020 Glad you got one for the right price. If anyone is reading this thinking their local college might be selling recent ones for a good price, think again. I work in a local college. There is NO chance that scenario would ever, ever happen. Ever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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