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miak46923753
Participant
April 11, 2023
Question

After effects running on M2 macbook pro?

  • April 11, 2023
  • 5 replies
  • 14470 views

I'm planning to purchase one of the following and wondering if After effects will run smoothly and sufficiently. 

-M2 Max 12core CPU, 30core GPU, 64GB memory. 

or  -M2 Pro 12core CPU, 19core GPU, 32GB memory. 

 

I don't do motion graphics for a living, but I am a graphic artist using other adobe programs daily and planning to use after effects often. 

I am wondering because I heard many rumors about the current version of after effects not compatible with M1 or M2 chips or not being able to take full advantage of the memory allocation system of M1 or M2 chips.. 

For those who are running after effects on macbook pro, please advise me! Thanks in advnace!!

    This topic has been closed for replies.

    5 replies

    M
    Muhammad330889827khh
    Participant
    October 22, 2023

    Either of the options should run After Effects sufficiently, but the M2 Max with 64GB memory is the better choice for smoother performance in After Effects, especially for graphic artists. The current version of After Effects is compatible with M1 and M2 chips, but having more memory can be advantageous for graphic-intensive tasks.

    S
    Steve McGarrigle
    Participating Frequently
    October 23, 2023

    Thanks Muhammad.

    That's the setup I'm running, I'll take a look at this asap.

     

    S
    Steve McGarrigle
    Participating Frequently
    October 18, 2023

    Warren Heaton
    Community Expert
    Warren HeatonCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    October 18, 2023

    Are you running macOS Sonoma 14.0?

     

    There should be a featured post about which folders to check to make sure After Effects launches as expected.

    S
    Steve McGarrigle
    Participating Frequently
    October 18, 2023

    Yes, I'm running Sonoma on an M2 Max MBP. I have AE 2023 and 2024  and it doesn't like either of them. Even in safe mode.

    R
    Community Expert
    Rick GerardCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    July 16, 2023

    I am running successfully and very happily on a 16" M2 MacBook Pro with very similar specifications. Make sure you allocate an even multiple of 4GB of ram to other applications, cut down the Disk Cache size to something like 40GB so you don't have to wait a long time to clear the cache, and be ready to roll back a version of AE using the Creative Cloud app if one of the builds introduces some problems. I have had my M2 since they came out and have had to do a rollback twice because of temporary problems with the builds. Every plugin that I have, except for Knoll Light Factory, but the Knoll Light Factory EZ included in Universe is fine. That includes the entire Maxon, Boris FX, AE Scripts (all that are current), and Video Copilot plugins. I have not updated any of my Re-Vision effects plugins for a very long time, and they are not installed because I don't use them, and I would have to update them. I have not seen any reports of problems with Twixor that can't be fixed by using the recommended workflow. 

     

    I hope this helps. Get all the Ram and Storage you can afford, then dig into savings and buy a little more. You won't be sorry. 

     

    Make sure that you use only the best-quality Thunderbolt 4 cables to connect to external drives and devices. Transfer speeds can be reduced by as much as 80% if you use cheap cables. 

      Warren Heaton
      Community Expert
      Warren HeatonCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      July 15, 2023

      After Effects runs extremely well on Apple Silcon based Macs (M1, M1 Pro, M1 Max, M1 Ultra, M2, M2 Pro, M2 Max, and M2 Ultra).  So do Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere Pro, Bridge, Character Animator, Audition, and Media Encoder.

       

       

        ToolfarmJP
        Community Expert
        ToolfarmJPCommunity Expert
        Community Expert
        April 13, 2023

        You see the system requirements. M2 is supported.

         

        https://helpx.adobe.com/after-effects/system-requirements.html

         

        Chris T.N.
        Chris T.N.
        Participant
        July 15, 2023

        Thanks but your link has conflicting info on Apple silicon

        In one place it says: min specs Apple Silicon; rec specs: 8 core and above.

        In another it says: After Effects version 17.5.1 supports macOS Big Sur on Intel but Apple Silicon is not fully supported at this time.

        Warren Heaton
        Community Expert
        Warren HeatonCommunity Expert
        Community Expert
        July 15, 2023

        @Chris T.N. 

         

        After Effects has been Apple Silicon native since version 22.3.  It runs really well under Intel emulation as well.  Unless using a third party plug in that hasn't been updated or GoPro Cineform, it should not be needed though.

         

        https://helpx.adobe.com/after-effects/kb/after-effects-apple-silicon.html


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