The Murciélago Mini-Stack: Two Macs, One Keyboard, Zero Subscriptions
After months of tinkering and a few detours, this is where I landed — a 2010 Mac mini stacked neatly with a 2022 M1 Mac mini. I finally have a setup that feels like it’s on my terms.
Even if Adobe still sold boxed versions of their software on physical media, I was eventually going to step off the upgrade treadmill. I never wanted to withdraw from the digital world or become the old man shaking my fist at the clouds. I just wanted a practical way to keep using the hardware and software I already own.
Photoshop is a fabulous program that has changed the design world, but I already paid for my copy. I don’t want to keep handing over a monthly fee just to stay “current.” Adobe isn’t entitled to an ongoing slice of my productivity. I own the versions I bought, and that should be enough.
Adobe has made all the money it’s going to make from me.
To clearly show how the Murciélago Mini-Stack comes together, I created the isometric illustration I use in this post in Affinity Designer on another heirloom — a 2012 Mac mini. It took me straight back to high school mechanical drawing class. I measured every piece and drew them to scale. (I’d forgotten the old isometric sizing formulas, but Affinity 2 made it easy.)
It also reminds me of the first digital freelance work I did on my old Packard Bell Pack-Mate 386/25, but I digress…
Let’s get on with the show. Here’s the stack from top to bottom:
The secret weapon and crown of my vintage setup is a 2010 Mac mini. This was the first Mac mini to feature the sleek unibody aluminum enclosure that Apple used for over a decade. It was also the last mini with a built-in optical drive.
I scored this one on eBay for a great price. I already had an SSD cloned from my old 2009 Mac Pro, complete with Snow Leopard and a full installation of Adobe Creative Suite 4 (installed from the original physical discs). I performed some minor surgery: installed the SSD, refreshed the thermal paste on the CPU and GPU, and maxed the RAM out to 16 GB.
Because Snow Leopard no longer receives security updates, this 2010 Mac mini lives completely offline. It’s used only for the vintage Adobe CS4 suite I already own. No internet, no subscriptions, no modern risks — just reliable, familiar creative work whenever it’s needed.
Next is a simple but perfect spacer: an ELDSTJÄRT trivet from the IKEA in South Philadelphia. Made of compressed bamboo, these are designed to protect tables from hot pans or casseroles. They create a nice air gap between the stacked computers and cost just $5 for a pair.
-
The third item is an M1 Mac mini (2020 model), which we bought new in late 2022. This
machine is still fully supported by Apple and handles modern apps and secure web browsing. It’s the computer my wife Tina uses for anything that requires newer software.It’s currently running macOS Monterey. We could update it to the latest version, but we both prefer Monterey’s cleaner interface over the newer visual effects.
- The fourth item is the USB-C hub we bought with the M1 mini. Apple has always been stingy with ports and storage. The base model only has 256 GB, which fills up fast with photos and artwork, so this hub adds extra USB-A ports, an SD card reader and space for a built-in mechanical hard drive for additional storage. It matches the footprint of the minis perfectly.
-
Another ELDSTJÄRT trivet (green this time) sits below the hub. It may not be strictly necessary since the hub doesn’t generate much heat, but it keeps the stack looking consistent.
- At the very bottom is the Murciélago cigar box — hence the name of the whole project. I originally bought a couple of empty cigar boxes years ago from a smoke shop in South Philadelphia. They sat forgotten until I realized this one was the perfect base for the stack. (I had planned on using just the trivets and hoped to find a suitable box at IKEA, but the Murciélago turned out even better.)
Inside the cigar box lives the real hero of the setup: a KVM switch (Keyboard, Video, Mouse). With the press of a button, Tina can instantly switch between the vintage 2010 machine running her familiar CS4 setup and the modern M1 mini.
A KVM switch without the rat’s nest of cables.
machine is still fully supported by Apple and handles modern apps and secure web browsing. It’s the computer my wife Tina uses for anything that requires newer software.
The fourth item is the USB-C hub we bought with the M1 mini. Apple has always been stingy with ports and storage. The base model only has 256 GB, which fills up fast with photos and artwork, so this hub adds extra USB-A ports, an SD card reader and space for a built-in mechanical hard drive for additional storage. It matches the footprint of the minis perfectly.
At the very bottom is the Murciélago cigar box — hence the name of the whole project. I originally bought a couple of empty cigar boxes years ago from a smoke shop in South Philadelphia. They sat forgotten until I realized this one was the perfect base for the stack. (I had planned on using just the trivets and hoped to find a suitable box at IKEA, but the Murciélago turned out even better.)
I’d never used a KVM switch before, but a quick internet search turned up plenty of budget-friendly options. This one fit the bill perfectly.
Yeah, I bought it for the bat logo.
The cigar box would hold the switch which isn’t very large and some of the cables which are still a rat’s nest but a more manageable one. All that was required was a couple of holes so that cables could be routed out of either side.
The KVM switch tucked neatly inside the Murciélago box, with cables routed out the sides.
The finished stack is compact — just 6.5 inches tall. One button press is all it takes for Tina to jump between the latest Mac experience or a rock-solid, subscription-free desktop publishing setup that still runs great after 16 years.
You really have to hand it to Apple — they built machines that last.
