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// RUN — FITS
Can the Apple M3 Max 36GB run Yi-1.5-9B?
Yes — here's how fast and up to what context, with real measured numbers.
Yi-1.5-9B on the Apple M3 Max 36GB
| Quant | Fits? | Max context | Speed | Beyond context |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FP16 | yes | 101k | 11.6-13.9 t/s | ~0.4-0.5 (slow) |
| Q8 | yes | 168k | 23.1-27.9 t/s | ~0.8-0.9 (slow) |
| Q4 | yes | 198k | 41.3-49.7 t/s | ~1.4-1.7 (slow) |
Estimate (memory-bound). Beyond "max context" the KV cache spills to SSD swap and speed drops to the "beyond" figure.
FAQ
Can the Apple M3 Max 36GB run Yi-1.5-9B?▶
Yes. At Q4 it generates ~41.3-49.7 tok/s and fits up to 198k context; beyond that it spills to SSD swap and slows to ~1.4-1.7 tok/s.
How much context fits?▶
At Q4, up to about 198k tokens stay in fast memory; longer context spills to SSD swap and throughput collapses.