Earlier quoted context omitted.
I run Qwen 3.6 on my Framework Desktop 128GB, and it's very performant. I know Framework has had to raise the price since I preordered mine, but they're still well under half the cost of that Macbook.
I get ~55 Tok/s on my framework desktop with the 35B A3B q8 model, and so far am also very happy with the coding performance.
Qwen 3.6 27B is the sweet spot for local development
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Re: Qwen 3.6 27B is the sweet spot for local development
#112The article is based on running Qwen 3.6 on a 128GB MacBook Pro. For reference, a 128GB MBP currently starts at $6699 USD [0] Some people will be happy to pay that premium for privacy, but at roughly 10X the cost of a MacBook Neo, that money could also buy a lot of credits on OpenRouter or frontier labs. [0]: https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/macbook-pro/14-inch-space...
I have a 1500 dollar machine that can run it at 50 tok/s (3 V100s)
Re: Qwen 3.6 27B is the sweet spot for local development
#113Earlier quoted context omitted.
But you have to factor in that this device will last you 5-10 years. That said, I wouldn't spend almost $7k USD on this macbook lol.
Memory requirements of newer models will increase, so while the hardware may last 10 years it won't be able to run the latest models for 10 years.
at 128GB, you can find almost it's entire context for Qwen3.6 35B MoE.
Again, I think you have too much faith in extrapolation. It's like you got a baby at 0 months, then measured it at 12 months and expect it to be a giant.
Re: Qwen 3.6 27B is the sweet spot for local development
#114The article is based on running Qwen 3.6 on a 128GB MacBook Pro. For reference, a 128GB MBP currently starts at $6699 USD [0] Some people will be happy to pay that premium for privacy, but at roughly 10X the cost of a MacBook Neo, that money could also buy a lot of credits on OpenRouter or frontier labs. [0]: https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/macbook-pro/14-inch-space...
I’m running the same model on a 48GB MBP with a q4 quant and it’s pretty decent. You definitely don’t 128GB. That’s the scale for 70B models at q8 or something.
Re: Qwen 3.6 27B is the sweet spot for local development
#115Is there any hope for people that cant even run 27B parameters, Qwen3.6 or otherwise? Are there any quantized models that do well with tool calling at smaller parameter sizes? I do not have a crazy rig, a modest gaming one at that, but in trying to understand more about agents and their capabilities, I am SOL with my 16 GB of RAM and 8GB of VRAM. I can get most small, non tool calling models to perform well, but I've…
Re: Qwen 3.6 27B is the sweet spot for local development
#116Earlier quoted context omitted.
The maths there is pretty undeniable, but it is not where I'd make the split. Having a machine that can run some modest local LLMs, like the Gemma 4 12B, is really worth it. I don't know how much serious hands-free agentic coding I will ever do on my MacBook alone, but I do know that I would not have got so far into understanding this without tinkering with local models, llama.cpp, LM Studio, and LM Studio and all th…
I've setup to local paradigms for local coding: - opencode with it's webui - deer-flow with it's research/powered front end They both run websites so you don't have to baby sit them (eg, keep your mac open). I've build a pdf compressor over a few days by first having deer flow try and research the frameworks and pipeline. It stalls out because its not really a fluid programmer. Once it stalls out, I transferred it (m…
Have you tried Paseo?
I have opencode in a VM, and the paseo daemon running in the VM, and then the Paseo Mac app. Really nice.
(You can also use the Opencode GUI to frame a remote opencode web interface)
Re: Qwen 3.6 27B is the sweet spot for local development
#117None of the examples reflect 'real work', at least not what I'd consider real work. Being able to nail a zero-shot greenfield project is relatively easy even for a small model. There's not much context to build up and it can fall back to similar examples in the training data easily. So long as you're not asking it to invent something wholly new it'll probably manage. The real test is whether or not it can work with y…
> Being able to nail a zero-shot greenfield project is relatively easy even for a small model Not really germane to your comment but I hope I don’t sound old when I say I remember a time when spinning up a PoC was a week of work, and a statement like yours was pure science fiction.
Re: Qwen 3.6 27B is the sweet spot for local development
#118The article is based on running Qwen 3.6 on a 128GB MacBook Pro. For reference, a 128GB MBP currently starts at $6699 USD [0] Some people will be happy to pay that premium for privacy, but at roughly 10X the cost of a MacBook Neo, that money could also buy a lot of credits on OpenRouter or frontier labs. [0]: https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/macbook-pro/14-inch-space...
The model they reference can be easily run with 24gb+ of VRAM, and there are other similar models capable of running easily on 16gb of VRAM. It's not like 128gb is a requirement here.
Re: Qwen 3.6 27B is the sweet spot for local development
#119Earlier quoted context omitted.
The maths there is pretty undeniable, but it is not where I'd make the split. Having a machine that can run some modest local LLMs, like the Gemma 4 12B, is really worth it. I don't know how much serious hands-free agentic coding I will ever do on my MacBook alone, but I do know that I would not have got so far into understanding this without tinkering with local models, llama.cpp, LM Studio, and LM Studio and all th…
I just got Claude to download and install all the models and servers and agents and prepare all the launch scripts for me... no need to learn, just ask it to do it for you
I have a pretty deep, maybe paranoid need to be confident I have an intrinsic understanding, and I have found in my life that lessons come to you when you make yourself open to learning.
So I need to build on top of what I know, taking as much of the hard way as I can bear to take at any one time — it has to be not quite difficult enough to put me off.
I can't really explain what I have learned this way that is different, but I feel it in a way that I wouldn't if I'd simply pushed a button.
For the same reason, I have a really basic 3D printer that I've set up myself, set up Klipper, configured how I want it, learned how to calibrate, all that. And now I can say that I feel I have an understanding of 3D printing. I could hold my head above water in a discussion with a real expert, maybe find work in an adjacent field where my insights would keep me grounded.
I can afford a really good printer that has all that set up, and more, has no problems. But I'd just be someone who has a 3D printer.
(Also who am I kidding about the existence of a printer with no problems)
Re: Qwen 3.6 27B is the sweet spot for local development
#120FWIW I'm running gemma4 31b on my 5090 and it's pretty great as well. QAT, MTP, 128k context. I liked Qwen 3.6 27b too, it just seems that Gemma4 is a bit underrated.
Nice. I flip flop between Qwen 3.5 9B Q6_M and Gemma4 12B Q4_K_M on a 4080 Super. They run at about the same speed and I can have them review each other's plan or diffs. For smaller projects I find them very capable, and I can step up to a better quant for slightly more challenging work.