15" 2015 rMacbook Pro vs. 15" 2014 rMacbook Pro

[squibsproductions]

Hello everyone, long time ableton user here, first time poster.

It seems as though it's finally time for me to upgrade from my ragtag 2008 macbook to a much nicer newer model.
However, the search for my best option has led to several questions.

The 15" mid 2015 rMacbook Pro vs. 15" mid 2014 rMacbook Pro are nearly identical except for the graphics card and SSD speed.

The specs for the 2015 are:
Intel Core i7 Quad-Core
2.5 GHz
6 MB
Installed: 16 GB
1600 MHz DDR3L SDRAM
Dedicated
Intel Iris Pro Graphics
AMD Radeon R9 M370X with 2 GB GDDR5 VRAM

The specs for the 2014 are:
Intel Core i7 Quad-Core
2.5 GHz
6 MB
Installed: 16 GB
1600 MHz DDR3L SDRAM
Hybrid
Intel Iris Pro Graphics with 128 MB
NVIDIA GeForce GT 750M with 2 GB GDDR5 VRAM

I believe the main difference is the supposed "2.5x faster flash storage"

How important are things like the SSD read/write speed, processor and graphics card in running ableton 9.5?
I always thought RAM was more important in this situation but I'm starting to see thats not quite so much the case as i'm researching more and more.

any help or input would be greatly appreciated

[beats me]

Drive speed always helps with audio and video production. And since you are looking to replace an 8-year-old computer (if that is a pattern) then I’d get the most recent version you can afford. Generally speaking it should last you at least 1 year longer than the previous generation. A lot could advance in the next 8 years.

[Tarekith]

I have the 2014 15" rMBP myself and when I was looking at upgrading this year to the 2015 like I normally do, I decided to skip it. The differences are too minimal IMO, the SSD in the 2014 is already WAY more than fast enough for audio work, ditto the graphics card. If you do a lot of video editing maybe it's worth it, but personally (depending on the price differences, which you didn't state) I'd go with the 2014.

[pepe castillio]

new mbp with sky lake processors are just around the corner to come out..so id wait to see and of course others will drop in price. they say the new processors are expected with a 10-20% boast in speed, but who knows what others goodies may come..id wait a little more , few months at most i think.

[Tarekith]

Agreed. The MBP hasn't had a major refresh in awhile, and given what they did with the new Macbooks, I have a feeling a new MBP is on the way shortly. Whether that's a good thing or not remains to be seen, but in less you're in a hurry it might be worth waiting a bit more.

Regardless of what you choose to do, you're getting a super nice laptop, it'll be a nice upgrade for sure. Kind of a win win situation.

[squibsproductions]

Thanks for all the input guys. I went with the 2015 model and I can't say I regret it. I definitely needed it sooner than later as my old set up was limiting my workload.
Hoping I'm not jealous of the 2016 model though.

I was only able to run 2048 samples in 96k previously so this is like heaven for me, running at the 500 setting. oh baby.

[Tarekith]

Congrats!

[regretfullySaid]

I was just watching a YT vid this morning about the difference between the 2 models last years vs 2014...
so
I'm holding out for the new one with Skylake. I'm hoping it has a 32gb ram option and Nvidia card, and USB-C...
Wasn't the AMD card on the last model already a bit dated?
I'd like to have a future proof laptop that can last at least 5 years...though it's possible I could be the kind to sell for each new version that comes out...

[Stromkraft]

Agreed. The MBP hasn't had a major refresh in awhile, and given what they did with the new Macbooks, I have a feeling a new MBP is on the way shortly.

Why would you expect them to arrive before summer specifically?

[Tarekith]

I never said before summer, just that they are likely coming soon. Here's a decent site that tells you how long the current product has been out, and how likely it is Apple will release a new one based on their release schedule over the years:

http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#Retina_MacBook_Pro

Obviously no one knows exactly when a new one will come, but Apple refreshes almost all of their products fairly regularly to keep people buying them. It's a guess, but like I said given how long it's been since the last MBP major update, a betting man would assume a new one is coming sooner rather than later.

[Stromkraft]

I never said before summer, just that they are likely coming soon. Here's a decent site that tells you how long the current product has been out, and how likely it is Apple will release a new one based on their release schedule over the years:

http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#Retina_MacBook_Pro

Obviously no one knows exactly when a new one will come, but Apple refreshes almost all of their products fairly regularly to keep people buying them. It's a guess, but like I said given how long it's been since the last MBP major update, a betting man would assume a new one is coming sooner rather than later.

Considering the Mac Pro all bets would seem off.

[Stromkraft]

Considering the Mac Pro all bets would seem off.

But here's for hope:
Possible Upcoming Mac Pro Reference Discovered in OS X El Capitan. While I'm planning my own 6-core build in old my G5 case for 2016, a new Mac Pro would offset second hand prices for the 2013 Mac Pro. Probably not to the extent to persuade me to not make the build though.

[Tarekith]

Considering the Mac Pro all bets would seem off.

LOL, I knew someone was going to bring up the Mac Pro.

[Stromkraft]

Considering the Mac Pro all bets would seem off.

LOL, I knew someone was going to bring up the Mac Pro. :)

The lack of a new Mac Pro is rising quickly on the controversy meter, so yes this should have been expected. :)
I can understand if mixers and master engineers think quadcores are enough, but for people running many many tracks of modern real time synths in oversampling mode, there's no such thing as too many cores, except the price factor.

[pepe castillio]

the Mac Pro is already a very competent machine and outperforms iMacs/laptops with same or even higher rated speeds.. simple reason is that despite online geekbench scores and the like which are short term transient speed tests , Mac Pro is meant to perform at its peak capacity and stay there without bulging or overheating unlike iMacs/mbp, experience failure or data corruption.. iMacs and laptops are not meant to run anywhere near full power capacity for long, for short bursts theyre ok (like rendering a film, rendering a mix) and designers know that because majority of people will back off at first signs of turbo fans kicking in . so in the big scheme of things one is actually getting more moneys worth and lasting value vs more convenience of portability, all in one designs.. hence no need to update as often.