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the stats in your first para 1000 etc.
is that theoretical ? or real life ?

That was possible on a 2017 10 core iMac Pro with 32GB RAM—a number of videos out at the time and all stopped at 1,000. The reason no one posts those numbers anymore is because the max number of tracks is so high that the numbers no longer make sense. My iMac Pros were 14 Core/2TB and 18 Core/4TB with 128GB RAM. All the hype over the M series Macs is around Video, AV and VR. Audio is not an issue anymore.

My M2 Studio Ultra has 196GB Unified (integrated) RAM plus 8TB on board with another 16TB of storage over Thunderbolt. A 5K monitor plus another pair of 4K monitors and I still try to keep the number of screens open at any one time organized.

Problem is fitting all of that power on a 13" screen with one external monitor — those are the M4 iPad Pro's only real limitations. I am flat out uninterested. I make a good part of my living on a 2017 iPad Pro 2nd gen that I use live — but all heavy lifting is done on my M2 Studio.

Think about it: If you have to get 50 people from one place to another, which is better — the fastest sports car in the world or a bus?

BIAB 2024 Audiophile Mac
24Core/60CoreGPU M2 MacStudioUltra/8TB/192GB Sequoia, M1 MBAir, 2012 MBP
Digital Performer11, LogicPro, Finale27/Dorico/Encore/SmartScorePro64/Notion6 /Overture5