Today’s M2 Ultra Mac Studio setup puts one of Apple’s most powerful desktop computers front and center, driving a pair of beautiful Studio Displays.
And while the user pointed out his machine packs only base specifications, that’s still a hell of a lot of computer for most people. And if you max it out, the thing is astonishing. Check out the options below.
Sometimes a setup post on social media can express a common problem or disagreement quite well. Today’s Mac Studio and dual-Studio Display rig is pretty good example, showing the divide between users of Magic Mouse and one of its top competitors — Logitech MX Master 3 (and 3S) wireless mouse. So Magic Mouse vs. Logitech MX Master 3 is on.
Commenters split themselves into pro Magic Mouse and pro Logitech MX camps. And a bunch of them sought middle ground, finding things to like — or hate — about both mice.
In the computer setup arms race over bigger and better external displays, one monitor reigns supreme (with a price tag to match) — Apple’s phenomenal Pro Display XDR. Today’s M3 Max MacBook Pro rig just added one to its two other displays, including the oddly square LG DualUp.
High-quality speakers in MacBooks and Studio Displays and the like are all well and good. But if you want great sound in your computer setup, you’re better off with studio monitor speakers like those in today’s MacBook Pro setup. They’re IK Multimedia iLoud MTM speakers.
The powered pair of studio monitor speakers pump out 100 watts of sound apiece. And right now they’re 25% off at $300 each. Find them in the gear list below if you want to level up your setup’s sound.
Is bigger always better? Nope. And the debate rages on over how big an OLED smart TV display should be to best-suit a computer setup. Would you go large at over 50 inches, or stick to, say, 42 inches or smaller?
Today’s MacBook Pro setup raised the issue again, surfacing some sensible advice. And the smart TV in question is on sale!
Pimping out a computer setup with vintage gear is super-cool, even if the old stuff doesn’t get much use (or is solely for display purposes). Today’s M1 MacBook Pro setup recently added a new Studio Display, and both of those modern machines bask in the glory of a nearby classic Macintosh SE from the 1980s.
The ancient all-in-one computer still works and it even gets some use.
If you’re going to make and manipulate music or other sound with your Mac setup, odds are you need a good audio interface. Today’s Mac Studio workstation relies on a Focusrite Scarlett 2i4 USB audio interface when the user makes YouTube videos, for example.
Check it out below, along with the rest of the setup’s gear.
Some people love peace and quiet. Others love mechanical keyboards. That clackety-clacking noise is the very sound of productivity, isn’t it? The feel of the keys. The way you can practically make a lifelong hobby out of customizing a “hot swappable” model with different keycaps, switches and more. Today’s Mac Studio and Studio Display setup relies on a Keychron K8 mechanical keyboard.
The user swears by it, having chosen it over a couple of well-regarded Razer keebs. He’s still got the Razer wrist rest, though.
When new Apple gear comes out, sometimes it pays to wait a bit and grab it when the iPhone giant and other sellers start offering refurbished versions of it. Today’s setup boasts a Mac Studio desktop computer and a Studio Display, both refurbished, and the user said he had a hard time telling they’re not actually new.
Satechi makes an awfully cool USB-C hub and stand for Mac mini that also suits Mac Studio perfectly. We’re surprised we don’t see that particular Satechi hub and stand more often in computer setups online.
But today’s Mac Studio rig with three big 4K displays makes perfect use of it. It greatly expands the machine’s capability and it blends right in like it’s not even there.
How many external displays would you consider ideal in your computer setup? Surprisingly, a lot of folks who assume it’s at least two end up regretting the idea. Today’s Mac Studio rig with triple 4K displays — three 32-inchers — sparked some debate on the matter.
That’s an awful lot of screen real estate that calls for a lot of head turning.
What kind of performance boost do you get when you go from an M1 MacBook Air to an M3 Pro MacBook Pro? A pretty big one, if today’s MacBook Pro setup from an investor is any indication. They made sure to purchase a model with plenty of unified memory — 36GB — to ensure no number of open tabs would slow them down too much.
For those who get by with audio from a laptop or display speakers in their computer setup — as good as that can be these days — an upgrade to desktop speakers offer a real treat for the ears. Today’s MacBook Pro setup from a Florida-based rapper just got a nice set of brand new Yamaha speakers and jacked them in to a huge subwoofer under the desk.
Mechanical keyboards are all the rage for folks who love their nuanced typing feel, customizability and all that clickety-clackety noise.
Today’s featured Mac Studio and dual-Studio Display setup boasts a great mechanical gaming keyboard, the NuPhy Halo75, with custom keycaps.
As we’ve seen so often in our endless tour of computer setups on social media, ambient lighting matters. Sure, you want proper lighting so you can see what you’re doing, but extra-mile work like setting Philips Hue ambient lighting — as in today’s Mac Studio setup — can make a big difference cosmetically and in more practical ways.
Dual Studio Displays are a popular-if-pricey choice among Mac users. In addition to making a case for going with the configuration in the first place, today’s Mac Studio setup offers some helpful tips for creating synced dual Studio Displays.
It suggests third-party tools to help sync audio and brightness levels across the two monitors.
We love it when an interesting computer setup on social media — something real and well-used, not staged — shows us a brand-new thing (new to us, that is). And this week that comes in an audio engineer’s iMac Pro setup featuring brilliant Focal studio-monitor speakers on stands above a massive Focal subwoofer under the custom-made desk.
We’re pretty sure Focal speakers have never appeared in setups featured on Cult of Mac. For one thing, they’re from France. That country comes to mind less for premium audio than the United States, UK, Germany, Japan and Denmark, to name a few leaders.
Before Apple’s powerful but sub-Mac Pro-level desktop Mac Studio even existed, there was iMac Pro. We don’t see the premium all-in-one desktop computer in the wild often compared to regular iMacs, but it clearly still has its fans.
Today’s featured user, who records and masters audio in a home studio, refuses to give up his 7-year-old iMac Pro until absolutely necessary. Because it’s still great. And for some people, it could be a great bargain on the used market (check out a few options in the gear list below).
The other day we featured an M1 Ultra Mac Studio setup. We wanted to loop back to call out a couple of cool components in it — namely, a Loupedeck streaming media console and a Keychron Q1 Pro Mechanical Keyboard. It turns out Loupedeck Live is great for video editing (photos, too!).
The M1 Ultra Mac Studio set a new benchmark for computing power in a package smaller than Mac Pro when it came out in spring 2022. Today’s setup sparked discussion about the relative merits of the powerful desktop machine, with one user citing a surprising point of praise — the Mac Pro braided power cord!
One of the interesting gadgets we see more and more of in computer setups is the Elgato Stream Deck and its various interations. Today’s MacBook Pro user relies on one to make YouTube videos, and the company’s key light helps with pro-level lighting, too.
Sonos audio products are popular for a reason — they sound great and they’re not too far from affordable. Today’s MacBook Pro and Studio Display user thinks the monitor’s built-in speakers are good for many uses, but when they really want the big sound — for gaming, it turns out — they’re all about their Sonos One SL speakers and Sonos Beam soundbar.
Trend alert: We’re seeing more computer setups cutting down from dual apple studio display setups — or sometimes a few — to one external display. This is no scientific survey, but today’s setup looks like another example of several we’ve seen popping up on social media lately where a user wants to simplify and focus in that way.
And commenters compared the choice of display that remained — a Dell 4K gaming monitor — favorably to Studio Display.
With all the computer setups out there with two, three and even five displays, sometimes you’ll see them stacked. But a dual-Studio Display setup that stacks one on top of the other is a rarity.
Today’s Mac Studio user, who is also an avid PlayStation 5 and Ninendo Switch gamer, said the stacked displays work well and don’t cause any neck pain from looking up all the time.
Paired for stereo sound, two full-size HomePod smart speakers — the original or second generation — are a thing of auditory beauty. And they don’t just sound great, they look good, too. Yet we don’t see paired HomePods much in computer setups (HomePod minis yes, the big ones, no).
Today’s MacBook Pro setup takes full advantage of Apple audio, however, and the user couldn’t be happier. Well, except with Siri, that is. Check out their setup’s cheerful day version (above) and moody night version (below).