Mac Mini advice

[Pudu]

For the past several years I've been trying to make a single PC perform as music 'server', pc, and gaming rig. However it has finely gotten to the point that I want to be rid of the constant fan noise - especially when listening to music in the evening. I've tried to construct a quiet rig that is still capable of decent gaming, but I now think it can't be done and certainly not for a reasonable (even reasonably expensive) price - the trade offs are too great. So I'm giving serious consideration to running a mac mini for web and music, and only turn on my gaming rig when needed for games and increased computing horsepower. I have few questions about the mini though.

First off, is the mini as silent as everyone seems to say? Are there any must-do modifications to keep it running silently and smoothly - eg, is it necessary to replace the drive with an SSD or is the stock drive silent enough?

Does Bootcamp work well enough on the mini? I've been running Bootcamp on my 2006 13" macbook since I bought it 6 years ago and have no problem with Bootcamp, but wanted to know if there are any mini specific issues.

Is the wireless keyboard decent?

Is there a better solution out there? Since I have no great need of OS X, is there another manufacturer that makes equipment comparable to the mini that I ought to consider? Is there something I'm missing, some limitations I haven't considered, or something I ought to be asking?

I'd be running optical out to an external DAC. Thanks for any help, suggestions, confirmations etc.

Cheers

 

[Somnambulist]

With an HDD it's very quiet unless you're doing something demanding in which case the fan kicks in and it becomes audible. Just using it as a music server shouldn't cause this to happen though. An SSD would be silent but it'd also be a lot cooler. IMO it's always worthwhile with the Minis to upgrade the RAM yourself, and seriously consider an SSD just because of the load/boot times etc.
 
The Intel Mac Minis are fine performance wise so it'll do Bootcamp fine.
 
Wireless keyboard is fine. It's obviously no mechanical keyboard but it's not a POS.
 
You won't get anything as good looking as the Mini for the same price (esp if you get a refurb one). The best alternative would be a DIY build like the Computer Audiophile CAPS builds in a nice Wesena case or something. I'm partial to the Mini myself.

 

[warchild]

Why bootcamp?
I wouldn't want Windows on my machine. It offers nothing and takes away from performance in my experience.
The only time I get noise on my mini-server is when I'm encoding video.

 

[Pudu]

With an HDD it's very quiet unless you're doing something demanding in which case the fan kicks in and it becomes audible. Just using it as a music server shouldn't cause this to happen though. An SSD would be silent but it'd also be a lot cooler. IMO it's always worthwhile with the Minis to upgrade the RAM yourself, and seriously consider an SSD just because of the load/boot times etc.

The Intel Mac Minis are fine performance wise so it'll do Bootcamp fine.

Wireless keyboard is fine. It's obviously no mechanical keyboard but it's not a POS.

You won't get anything as good looking as the Mini for the same price (esp if you get a refurb one). The best alternative would be a DIY build like the Computer Audiophile CAPS builds in a nice Wesena case or something. I'm partial to the Mini myself.

Thanks for the input. I think SSD would, in that case, be in the cards, since the other issue I have here is heat - too much of it from now till November. And if it lowers the frequency of the fan kicking in, then it's worth it. I build all my own PCs but truthfully on this one I can't be bothered when the mini is a good pre-fab solution.

Why bootcamp?...

I already have a couple of Windows machines running on the network so it's just easier. In my opinion, OS X isn't any better and has incredibly frustrating mouse acceleration curves - and iTunes annoys me no end. My Macbook actually runs Windows faster than OS X and I don't need much speed since it's only for music and web.


Seems like the mini is the way to go. Thanks again for the guidance lads, greatly appreciated.

 

[Somnambulist]

No probs. iFixit have guides for installing the SSD yourself, although it means having the OS on a bootable stick or something - voids the warranty though (only RAM upgrades are covered by the warranty). The problem with buying through Apple is the SSD is only an option on the higher spec model and you can't choose anything under 256GB.
 
You can either add an SSD and keep the internal drive as well to use as a Time Machine backup or just replace the whole thing. The 2011 model on the refurb store is good value btw if you're just going to use it for music/web and upgrade it yourself, given the only differences are less stock RAM, slightly slower processor and the graphics aren't as powerful but for what you're using it for it's not a problem.

 

[Pudu]

Good advice!

Do you know, if I choose to upgrade the drive on my own, will it still support SSD Caching - which is what I'm assuming their Fusion Drive is? Shame about their warranty thing.

Thanks again.

 

[RapidPulse]

Yes.  You can setup a fusion drive by adding an SSD.  I did this very thing last month.
 
Note:  Not sure if BootCamp is supported under this scenario...and this is not a trivial operation.

 

[rock-solid]

One more vote for SSD here - was worth the money.
Besides that my mini stands on spikes, so the air can easily flow around. Never heard the fan.
OS X is imho for your intention much easier to use, networking via smb is fine. I would give it a 2nd chance.

 

[davidcotton]

I use a mac mini for this very purpose.
 
Set up is :-
 
Mac Mini/1tb external hard drive (I've thought about swopping the internal drive for an ssd as I only have about a tb of music anyway).
 
This is hooked up via usb to a cambridge dacmagic (though optical is also an option). 
 
This in turn is hooked up via the analogue out to a denon m39 and a pair of mission 780's.
 
I also have it hooked up to a 32" sony tv via a dvi to hdmi cable.
 
Itunes (ergh)is set to rip cds at alac unless it's an audiobook.
 
I then use an ipad for remote app.
 
I also  have a logitech dinovo mini for when I need to change settings.
 
Cheers

 

[Somnambulist]

Their Fusion drives are a propriarty thing I think - basically intelligently moves files between the drives depending on usage in the background, without you being aware - so if you use Aperture a lot it'll be on the SSD, if you never use it, it'll get moved to the HDD automatically without you being aware.
 
You have to get a 3rd party Trim thingy for non-Apple SSDs as well.
 
To put a RAM in just requires opening the backplate and swapping the sticks out, to insert a new drive you literally have to take the whole thing apart, including the logic board which can easily be borked completely if you start sticking tools in the wrong places (see the iFixit guides for how it's done).
Quote:

Good advice!

Do you know, if I choose to upgrade the drive on my own, will it still support SSD Caching - which is what I'm assuming their Fusion Drive is? Shame about their warranty thing.

Thanks again.

 

[Sheldon N]

I use a Mac Mini to drive my main stereo system. The music server is upstairs on a PC with a network drive (wireless). The iTunes library on the Mac Mini points to the files on the network drive and I can use either an iPod with the remote app or the mouse/keyboard/TV to drive the stereo. Works and sounds great.
 
Mac Mini (ALAC, Amarra) -> USB -> Peachtree DAC*It -> Creek 5350 SE integrated amp -> Tyler Acoustics Taylo monitors + HSU VTF 2 Mark II subwoofer.
 
It was fairly quiet before, but I recently put in an SSD and that's made it essentially dead silent. I don't hear the PC fans since they are upstairs in the other room.

 

[Pudu]

Wow, thanks for all the input.

I think I'll go the mini route, with SSD (though not sure whether OEM or self installed). If can re-route some wires and put the Synology NAS outside my study, then the noise will limited to the odd step-down transformer hum. You often hear the best money spent on speakers is room treatment - I think this applies somewhat to headphones too. Listening to headphones in a noisy environment affects the sound quality substantially. This is why I think high end portable audio is a bit silly. Transportable I get, but lugging around a $700 brick on the metro just doesn't pay dividends.

Thanks again for everyone's guidance - big help, much appreciated.

Cheers

 

[Somnambulist]

Personally I'd do the SSD myself, because that way you can get either a 2012 base model Mini or a refurb 2012/2011 one and put a 64/128GB SSD in for a lot less money than the 256GB one Apple offer with the higher end Mini. If you can afford that go for it though. You can actually just remove the HDD, put an SSD in and recover the thing via the internet, so you don't even need the HDD in (I'd probably sell it).
 
The process isn't THAT hard with changing the drives, and while it does void the warranty, tons of people do it anyway.

 

[Sheldon N]

There's a whole lot of savings to be had if you install the SSD yourself instead of buying from Apple. Their component prices are far too high.

 

[Pudu]

Now I just have to figure out if I can :

a) install the OS on a new drive using restore over internet on a Mac bought in the US but living in India
2) install Windows through bootcamp using Windows 7 on a USB stick.

- the older model looks so much more appealing at this point if only for the optical drive.