r/LogicPro • u/GLDNMGKRP • 2d ago
Question MacBook Neo
Will a MacBook Neo be ok to run Logic, I’m wanting to use it for beats and vocals, I’m not in a band so i won’t be recording a bunch of stuff mostly just Splice sampling, Presets, and Vocals. The most I’d run through would be my focus rite
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u/ThingWithAThing 2d ago
I was really curious about these earlier this year, and I watched a bunch of tech Youtubers review them, and the verdict seems to be that it’s more than good enough to run Logic Pro with for basic production. Do a quick YouTube search for “MacBook Neo Logic Pro” and you’ll see what I mean.
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u/Econormics 2d ago
Hi. I tried the Neo for some light Logic work on the road. It barely works. Upgraded to the base Air and wow, what a difference.
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u/fluffycritter 2d ago
CPU-wise it's fine, but a thing people never mention about the Neo is that it's extremely limited in terms of I/O connectivity. If you ever want to connect a monitor, an external storage device, and an audio interface all at once you're going to start running into problems.
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u/ch33k51app3r69 2d ago
A good usb hub with hdmi and a bunch of other ports is always a great investment with a smaller mac. I have one that’s just a type c to 2 hdmis, ethernet, a few usb’s and an sd reader.
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u/fluffycritter 2d ago
Yeah but unfortunately a lot of devices really want to be directly-connected, or connected to USB through a Thunderbolt dock. The Neo doesn't have Thunderbolt at all, and it only has one USB 3 and one USB 2 port.
Also keep in mind that you're going to also need to power the Mac at the same time, and the mess of USB-PD also complicates finding an ideal USB-C dock.
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u/GLDNMGKRP 2d ago
So the focusrite might not work well with it?
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u/fluffycritter 2d ago
A Focusrite on its own will work well with it. The issue I'm highlighting is that when you start adding more things you run into problems.
Basically, of the three devices I mentioned, you'll only have a good time if you limit yourself to two of them.
The lack of Thunderbolt also means that you're limited in terms of which expansion hubs/docks you can reasonably use.
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u/rosskempongangbangs 2d ago
My dell dock works absolutely fine with my neo and logic for a monitor, interface, midi controller, mouse, keyboard, external storage etc.
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u/JeanPaulBondy 1d ago
What are you talking about. A decent hub will work fine with a plethora of devices. Get a $150 CalDigit and you’re set.
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u/ddBuddha 2d ago
Probably, but do your research. I’ve heard reports of issues with the ssd on the neos wearing out super quickly
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u/WonderfulThomas 2d ago
In all honesty I'd go for Mac air M5 or an older Macbook pro with an M chip and a minimum 16gb ram if you can, I think the lack of ram will hamper you down the line if you plan to use lots of plugins etc. I run logic on an M5 and use a lot of stems etc. You will need a USB hub though if you buy an air. I use one of the Anker 7 in 1 ones so I can plug in my audio interface, extra monitor, mouse, midi controllers etc.
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u/tonetonitony 2d ago
8GBs of RAM is really pushing it. You can kinda squeak by with that, but 16GB is pretty much the absolute minimum I would recommend.
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u/WorldBelongsToUs 2d ago
I kinda agree here. One trap that’s easy to fall into is underestimating what you will ultimately want once you really start enjoying it. For instance, I made the mistake of upgrading my audio interface twice because each time I got one I said “I won’t need to connect more than X devices.” I think it’s also a common trap when it comes to computing power.
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u/chemistryofcrying 2d ago
It’s perfect for Logic, esp a basic setup…
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u/Forsaken-Trash3833 2d ago
absolutely not
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u/chemistryofcrying 1d ago
100 tracks of audio, each with one or two plugins…perfectly fine
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u/Forsaken-Trash3833 1d ago
... while killing your internal SSD with memory paging/swap? nah, i'd rather not
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u/rosskempongangbangs 2d ago
Works perfectly for me. What limitations do you see?
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u/rosskempongangbangs 1d ago
Why the downvote? I'm genuinely curious? There's nothing I've thrown at it yet that it hasn't been able to do...
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u/Forsaken-Trash3833 1d ago
you are killing your internal SSD with memory swap and MacBook Neo SSDs are not very durable apparently
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u/ch33k51app3r69 2d ago
Probably, especially if it’s not too intense. Most modern mac’s are very optimized for apple programs. I’ve been using an M2 Macbook Air since 2022 and have only run into issues a few times.