M1 MacMini Re-Revisted - Some Non-Scientific Experiential Tinkering With AetherSX2 and PCSX2 Emus

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lactobacillusprime

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Published on January 14, 2025 9:35:40 PM ● Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdHOSR4cMT8

Game:

Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec (2001)

Duration: 0:00

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#m1macmini #pcsx2 #aethersx2

AetherSX2 and PCSX2 are both popular PlayStation 2 emulators, with AetherSX2 actually being a port of the 1.5 release of PCSX2. But there are some differences when it comes to running them on an Apple Silicon M1 Mac Mini.
AetherSX2 is specifically optimized for Apple Silicon (M1 chips), which can result in better performance and smoother gameplay compared to PCSX2 on the same hardware. PCSX2, on the other hand, is more optimized for Windows and Linux, and while it does work on M1 Macs, it might not be as efficient. That is when you compate 1.5 PCSX2 and 1.5 Aethersx2.

AetherSX2 was designed with Apple Silicon in mind, so it might support more games and features natively on M1 Macsn as PCSX2 has to run through Rosetta 2 to translate the intel programming code to the ARM M1 CPU.

But the biggest caveat is that AetherSX2 has not been updated in a while due to the developer stepping away from the project. This means it does lack some of the latest features and improvements found in PCSX2 which at the time of making this video is at 2.3.107. PCSX2, is being actively maintained, receives regular updates and improvements.

In summary, if you're looking for the best performance and ease of use on an M1 Mac Mini, AetherSX2 might be the better choice for easy to run very compatible games. However, if you prefer need the latest compatibility features with the tougher to run games you're better off with PCSX2 despite it being an intel only MacOS app on intel ARM.

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NOTICE 1:
The Soundtracks / Music used in this video have all been licensed from Epidemic Sound

NOTICE 2:
"Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use."

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