Music Production On Mac | Tips You Should Know
May 06, 2024
Macs are one of if not the most popular computers around, especially for musicians. They offer speed, ease of use, high compatibility, and a powerful CPU in a beautifully designed package. So, it’s no wonder that many musicians have switched or are switching to Macs.
If you’re not sure which Mac you should go for, check out my article, where I've introduced the best Macs in 2024 for music production for all kinds of budgets.
Whether you’ve been using a Mac for music production for a while or have just recently purchased one, there are many tips and tricks you can utilize to make the most of your Mac. These tips will help you organize your Mac better and improve your workflow.
In this article, I'll provide tips on which settings and functions you should turn on or off to avoid data loss and interruptions when producing music, tips on the best keyboard shortcuts to improve your workflow, and some general tips for features and functions you may not be aware of.
Practical Tips When Setting Up Your Mac
- Turn off FileVault
This built-in feature secures the data stored on your disk by encrypting it. That might sound cool at first; however, if you forget your password or your drive dies for any reason, you'll probably lose your data since it's tough to break the encryption, and it will cost you a large sum to retrieve that data.
To do this, choose Apple menu > System Settings, click Privacy & Security in the sidebar, then click FileVault. (You may need to scroll down.) Click Turn Off.
- Turn Off Siri
Siri can be a pretty useful feature for iPhone users. However, on a Mac, you don't want this feature turned on, especially as a producer, since it can be a nuisance. If the phrase "Hey Siri" or anything remotely close to that is said, it can interrupt your work, for example, when you’re recording and ruin it.
To do this, go to the Apple Menu in the upper right corner of the screen, choose system preferences, choose Siri, uncheck the box of "Enable Ask Siri".
3. Utilize Do Not Disturb
The "Do Not Disturb" function may not exactly be a hidden feature, per se, yet many Mac users don't make use of it. This feature can help you focus on the task at hand and avoid distractions like notifications flying onto your screen, ruining your workflow and productivity.
Additionally, you already have other devices like your phone and smartwatch to manage your notifications and calls, so there really isn't a reason to have yet another device showing you notifications and distracting you.
To turn Do Not Disturb on, navigate to the Mac Menu Bar, click on Control Center, click on the Do Not Disturb icon to turn it on indefinitely. You can also open the Do Not Disturb control to choose a duration.
4. Turn Off Swipe left For Notifications Gesture
One of the first things you should turn off on your Mac is the gesture for the Notifications Center column. Plenty of times, you'll be in the middle of a Logic session or whichever DAW you prefer, and you'll accidentally open the Notifications Center column instead of, let’s say, your arrangements, by swiping left, which can be quite irritating and, again, will ruin your workflow.
To turn off this function, go to system preferences, choose trackpad, choose more gestures, and uncheck Notification Center.
5. Make Use of Audio MIDI Setup
The Audio MIDI Setup is a handy built-in program on your Mac that you can use to manage and modify your interfaces and MIDI controllers, change sound settings, etc. On the topic of MIDIs, if you’re unsure about which MIDI controller you should buy, then check out my complete guide on MIDI controllers.
To open the Audio MIDI Setup go to Applications > Utilities > Audio/MIDI Setup. If the MIDI Studio window does not appear automatically, go to the menu bar at the top of the screen and select Window > Show MIDI Window. The MIDI Studio window will open and display all of your current MIDI devices.
6. Turn Off iCloud Optimize Storage and Get Two or Three Hard Drives
In theory, this function sounds great; you never run out of storage, and your files and documents are safely uploaded to your iCloud. The problem is that the files and documents that are uploaded and deleted from your Mac are randomly chosen.
This results in unfortunate situations where a song, session, or file you're working on is deleted and uploaded to iCloud if you're running out of space on your Mac. Now, you'll have to waste time and internet data downloading that file, and once again, this will ruin your productivity and workflow.
Instead, if you're running out of space, you should purchase a few hard drives. Even if you don't have storage issues, which you'll eventually have, you should definitely have a few hard drives on hand as a producer. These hard drives will help you stay organized and safely store your backup files, instruments, etc.
Open System Preferences > Apple ID and click "iCloud" in the sidebar. Below the pane with the iCloud applications and above the iCloud Storage bar you will see the checkmark for "Optimise Mac Storage".
7. CheatSheet for Mac
Keyboard shortcuts can be pretty handy for increasing your workflow and productivity as a music producer. A helpful app for this is CheatSheet, a free Mac application that detects the keyboard shortcuts for any installed application.
After installing the app, you can access the relevant keyboard shortcuts for an open program by simply holding the Command key. Note that this app doesn't show every shortcut but usually lists most of them.
Useful Mac Features and Functions
- Batch Rename
You can utilize the batch rename function in three ways: replace text, add text, and format. The replace option is especially helpful for removing added text from file names. When you perform certain operations on audio files, like “bouncing” on Logic or freezing or flattening in Ableton, a "(Freeze)" text is added to the beginning of the file names.
To remove them all in one operation, simply type the text you want to remove in the “replace” section and leave the “replace with” section empty.
“add text” can be used for labelling, for example, by adding a date at the end of the file names or for labelling instrument samples by adding the instrument's name at the beginning or end.
Lastly, the “format” function can be used to organize your samples by numbering them.
- Time Machine
Similar to the restore point function on Windows, Macs come with a Time Machine feature that backs up your data, allows you to browse through your folders' histories, and recover lost or deleted files.
This is where the aforementioned extra hard drives become handy since you can dedicate a partition on your drive for backup through disk utility. The system then automatically backs up information onto that drive every time you connect it to your Mac.
- Aggregate Device
If you do DJ work and only have two outputs, without a dedicated controller’s interface, you’ll be limited to choosing between stereo output and no cue or mono output with a cue.
One of the most helpful functions of the Audio MIDI Setup I mentioned before is the aggregate device feature. This allows you to add your interface & system output so you can cue out of your laptop's headphone jack.
From the Finder, choose Go > Utilities, then open the Audio MIDI Setup application.
Click the Add (+) button at the bottom of the sidebar of the Audio Devices window, then chose Create Aggregate Device.
