New Computer - specs..opinions

[Tuco]

worked like a charm

thanks mick!!!!!!!

[Archetype]

[quote name='fragility' post='1167017' date='Mar 18 2011, 01:05 PM']Proposed spec:

Processor (CPU)
Intel Core i7 Quad Core Mobile Processor i7-740QM (1.73GHz) 6MB Cache

Memory (RAM)
8GB SAMSUNG 1333MHz SODIMM DDR3 MEMORY (2 x 4GB)

Graphics Card
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5650 - 1GB GDDR3 Video RAM - DirectX® 11

Hard Disk
500GB WD SCORPIO BLACK WD5000BEKT, SATA 3 Gb/s, 16MB CACHE (7200 rpm)

Thanks![/quote]

Back to the topic,
These are some good specs, should run very well, but I assume its a laptop so i would make sure it has express card slots to upgrade later.
The mackbook pro is also a fantastic spec, and includes the the firewire and Thunderbolt ports that audio and video worlds will be picking up on soon.
Tested it myself and the port is a powerfull one!

You will also get the advantage of being able to use all your memory in OS X and things working very well, but you would need an external drive t be at the best.

Overall I woud take the mac hands down, Great machine and performance and they last a life time (mine has huge dents and warps in the case from being in a few drops, never been an issue)

As the for the whole windows version debate, I agree if its not broke etc etc.
But with XP 32bit which most seem to use you are limited to 3.5GB ram, not 4 as windows reports. Less if the graphics in the machine takes a chunk.
Windows 7 64Bit has been more stable than vista and I never have an issue with it, even as an IT technician. You do need to check hardware compatibility though.

G

[BTGAndy]

The new MacBook Pros are well worth the extra money, a better purchase than the current iMacs. If you get a Mac it will last you longer, there is more available support and I should imagine you'll enjoy owning it a whole lot more.

[urb]

HI Fragility

The specs you're looking at are way enough for recording with - I'm another Mac user and would go the extra mile for one of the latest MB Pros - the one thing as well and I know it's not the coolest of programs, but the latest version of Garageband is bloody amazing, and it's free with any new Mac with iLife installed on it - plus you can grab a few 'Jam Packs' for better loop and instrument libraries, but it already comes with a ton of useable loops and all the VSTs and effects pugins are pretty snazzy too - plus they've given the interface a makeover too so it looks cooler and is er, more logical, probably more so than Logic!

I just used it again today for the first time in ages and it's so easy it's amazing - lastly I'll say from experience - I can't do drum programming in front of the TV as it's far too absorbing and TV is the actual distraction - my advice is turn the bloody thing off and make music instead

M

[leprechaun]

Another vote for a 2011 MBP, been running some frankly huge sessions on mine without any problems at all....beats my quad core mac pro..

[clagooey]

I guess it depends on what OS you prefer, and how much money you're willing to spend. The basic Macbooks and Macbook Pros start off at fairly reasonable prices but, as soon as you try to upgrade the internals, the prices shoot way up. I have a Dell laptop very similar to your specs (same proc, 6GB ram), and it cost me around [b]£1100[/b], including 3 years next day warranty, 2 USB 3 ports, 15" 1080p screen and blu-ray player. To get a comparable mac (without the blu-ray as Apple won't support it, and with a lower resolution screen) would cost [b]£2154[/b]; almost double the price I paid! The Mac has many advantages (build quality, much better battery life, looks pretty), but it also has many disadvantages, and certainly nothing to justify paying over £200-300 more, let alone the £1000 more they're actually charging.

To sum up: get a decent windows laptop, it will cost you around £1000-1200.
Unless you're rich, then it depends on which OS you prefer.

[funky8884]

Buy Apple and be Happy forever after !!!!

[leprechaun]

[quote name='clagooey' post='1185468' date='Apr 2 2011, 01:01 AM']I guess it depends on what OS you prefer, and how much money you're willing to spend. The basic Macbooks and Macbook Pros start off at fairly reasonable prices but, as soon as you try to upgrade the internals, the prices shoot way up. I have a Dell laptop very similar to your specs (same proc, 6GB ram), and it cost me around [b]£1100[/b], including 3 years next day warranty, 2 USB 3 ports, 15" 1080p screen and blu-ray player. To get a comparable mac (without the blu-ray as Apple won't support it, and with a lower resolution screen) would cost [b]£2154[/b]; almost double the price I paid! The Mac has many advantages (build quality, much better battery life, looks pretty), but it also has many disadvantages, and certainly nothing to justify paying over £200-300 more, let alone the £1000 more they're actually charging.

To sum up: get a decent windows laptop, it will cost you around £1000-1200.
Unless you're rich, then it depends on which OS you prefer.[/quote]

Same processor as a MBP 2011?

My 2011 MBP with 8Gb Ram AND an SSD was cheaper than the Dell, will most likely be worth at least double when I come to sell it too. Blu-Ray has no bearing as it isn't used at all in music (most laptops will have no optical disc drive at all very soon), and as for USB 3 it is dead already. The hardware manufacturers will be releasing thunderbolt compatible interfaces/drives in the future, until then USB 2 is fine. Where is your FireWire port for external HDD? Without that you can't record using Pro Tools...

[clagooey]

[quote name='leprechaun' post='1185570' date='Apr 2 2011, 09:17 AM']Same processor as a MBP 2011?

My 2011 MBP with 8Gb Ram AND an SSD was cheaper than the Dell, will most likely be worth at least double when I come to sell it too. Blu-Ray has no bearing as it isn't used at all in music (most laptops will have no optical disc drive at all very soon), and as for USB 3 it is dead already. The hardware manufacturers will be releasing thunderbolt compatible interfaces/drives in the future, until then USB 2 is fine. Where is your FireWire port for external HDD? Without that you can't record using Pro Tools...[/quote]

Debates on Mac vs PC always remind me of this gem: [url="http://xkcd.com/386/"]http://xkcd.com/386/[/url]
Anyway...

No, the same processor that they listed in their specs.

The cheapest MacBook pro I found with an i7 (dual core only), 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD and 3 years warranty is £1822; this is on the base 13" mode with the 1280x800 screen. A 17" Dell XPS with a 1600x900 screen, quad core i7 2630QM, 6GB RAM, a 640GB 7200rpm HDD (no SSD option) and 3 year next business day hardware support costs £1079. The extra £750 can't justify an SSD, lesser processor and 2 more GB of RAM... If you can show me where it's cheaper I'd love to know as I seriously considered a MacBook Pro, but the price was just too high.

I realise now that he said it was just a music machine, so I removed blu-ray from the options. As for USB 3 being dead already; that's a matter of opinion, and I believe it's doing pretty well, and will continue to do so. Thunderbolt is great, and the possibilities are fantastic, especially when it gets optical. However, there's only one port, and it's also the only option for macbook users to power an external display; if there were more then great, but having 1 is very limiting. Optical drives will continue to do very well until the internet speed in developed countries (i.e. countries where people have the money to buy the films) is high enough that people can download the films in a normal amount of time; this isn't likely to happen for a good 3-5 years.

I've never used pro tools; is firewire necessary, or is it just any external HDD/ SSD, as USB 3 wipes the floor with it. And the laptop has eSATA as well...

Sorry for going off on a tangent there guys, but I hope I've been helpful to the OP!

Cheers,

Tom

[thisnameistaken]

I'm quite enjoying using my MBP for work, but the UI isn't as mature as Windows and bits of it either don't work properly (Finder in particular) or are inconsistent, which is funny when Apple are promoting it as the most advanced operating system in the world.

I also enjoy sharing an office with a pair of tragic Mac fanboys and winding them up by pointing out all the parts of Snow Leopard that Windows does better in computers that cost half the price.

[BottomEndian]

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='1185733' date='Apr 2 2011, 12:52 PM']...bits of it either don't work properly (Finder in particular) or are inconsistent...[/quote]
Oooh, tell me more. No, seriously, I'm intrigued. I've been using OS X since 10.1, and I've never come across any weirdnesses. The only problem I've ever had with Finder is the bloody name. Makes me feel like a child.

[thisnameistaken]

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='1185738' date='Apr 2 2011, 01:00 PM']Oooh, tell me more. No, seriously, I'm intrigued. I've been using OS X since 10.1, and I've never come across any weirdnesses. The only problem I've ever had with Finder is the bloody name. Makes me feel like a child.[/quote]

Well the main thing I've noticed that is inarguably broken is if you're using column view and ask it to create a new folder it gets created in the first visible folder in that window, not the folder you're currently viewing.

But there are other irritations if you're used to the convenience of Windows, like how there's no default setting to show folders before files in a list, can't create new empty documents in Finder, there's no move option in the context-sensitive menu only "copy", ... Nothing else springs to mind at the moment but I'm sure there are other things that bother me.

I haven't looked to see if there's a better file manager available, maybe there is. That's one benefit of Linux over Mac OS at least you have a lot of options if something doesn't work how you'd like. It almost seems like nobody at Apple expected their users to need to manipulate a lot of files or navigate a hierarchical file structure. Spotlight would bear this out - it's a good excuse not to use Finder so long as your data is easily selectable using very basic criteria.

[BottomEndian]

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='1186718' date='Apr 3 2011, 01:47 PM']It almost seems like nobody at Apple expected their users to need to manipulate a lot of files or navigate a hierarchical file structure.[/quote]
Well, I think you're bang on the money there (although I've never encountered the column-view-folder-creation problem... just tried it and it works fine for me, creating folders where I expect them to go). OS X seems to be built for idiots like me* who don't really want to delve too far into the inner workings. It suits me nicely; I see it as a playground.

In my day-to-day life, there are only two things that have managed to really boil my piss in OS X:

1) The inability to simply and quickly enter "special" characters like ½. Other OSs, you can usually just do Alt+0189. In OS X, you have to fanny about with character palettes. 5 keystrokes versus at least 30 seconds of clicking and scrolling? I'll take the keystrokes, thanks.
2) WiFi under Snow Leopard seems to take issue with the very concept of DHCP when it's sharing a network with a few other things. My Macs have to have manually-assigned IPs to work.

[size=1]* I used to be quite UNIX-literate, having spent my whole degree battling with CLIs and terrible X-Window systems, trying desperately to get L[sup]A[/sup]T[sub]E[/sub]X to simply compile a single fecking equation. Years of domestic Windows and Mac drudgery have dulled my computer senses to the point that a CLI makes me nervy. *sigh*[/size]

[funky8884]

Buy a MacBook Pro, I have just purchased a 13'' and it is wicked.
Much better than the plastic junk out there.

[thisnameistaken]

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='1191160' date='Apr 6 2011, 10:16 PM'][size=1]* I used to be quite UNIX-literate, having spent my whole degree battling with CLIs and terrible X-Window systems, trying desperately to get L[sup]A[/sup]T[sub]E[/sub]X to simply compile a single fecking equation. Years of domestic Windows and Mac drudgery have dulled my computer senses to the point that a CLI makes me nervy. *sigh*[/size][/quote]

The reason I bought a Mactop was because all my work is on the LAMP platform and I couldn't bear the thought of wasting several weeks auditioning an infinite number of Linux window and file managers that each have something I hate about them (something I seem to have done every couple of years for the last decade).

Unfortunately it turns out there are things I hate about both those aspects of the Mac. Ho hum! Well at least I can run Adobe software without having to resort to virtualisation, but then I end up resorting to virtualisation to run IE/Win anyway...

On balance I do like having a Unix notebook, it's very handy, I just find some of the GUI to be cumbersome and irritating. Sure this is true of all GUIs if you're fussy, but Apple's USP is their well-considered GUI so it's extra-irritating to find bits of it that don't work very well.

[BottomEndian]

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='1191562' date='Apr 7 2011, 11:34 AM']The reason I bought a Mactop was because all my work is on the LAMP platform and I couldn't bear the thought of wasting several weeks auditioning an infinite number of Linux window and file managers that each have something I hate about them...[/quote]
You could, of course, install all of them on the MBP as a multi-boot system. Then whichever system you choose to boot into, you can revel in the fury and frustration created by its foibles.

Seriously, though, I don't envy you programmers and developers. My hat goes off to you all.

[thisnameistaken]

[quote name='BottomEndian' post='1191596' date='Apr 7 2011, 12:11 PM']You could, of course, install all of them on the MBP as a multi-boot system. Then whichever system you choose to boot into, you can revel in the fury and frustration created by its foibles. [/quote]

I actually thought about creating an Ubuntu partition on this just to have the opportunity to A/B test it against OSX during a regular work week, but I think I would miss Time Machine too much that thing is a godsend. It would also be an arse to write all the scripts necessary to keep two sets of servers running the same configs, and I am too lazy to bother with it.

[JayX]

Another vote for the MBP here. I've run PCs from the late 80s through to current day and no machines I've ever owned give me as much peace of mind as my 2008 MBP and 2010 iMac.

The whole approach is so different to Dell, Asus etc where you can feel the 'thrown together from 3rd party components as cheaply as possible' approach and if you ever have to deal with Apple's customer service you'll be glad to have spent the extra money.

I paid nowhere near retail for either machine, as usual it's a case of buying smart and not just walking into a store and paying the full cost.

The NAB demonstration of Final Cut X was very impressive, if they do a new 64bit Logic X this year too... damn, the pro users have something to be happy about for a change!

[ben604]

I'm what you would describe as Anti-Apple, but we use Logic9 in school and I've got it at home on a MacBook Pro from school and it's hard to look past it. Stable, intuitive and easy to use. I used Cubase in the past and spent more time fixing than creating. If you've got the dough, get a MacBook Pro...

[cheddatom]

You know if you have the money for a mac, there are companies that make PCs specifically for audio recording/production. They use totally compatible hardware, the best components etc.

[xgsjx]

Wheesht all this PC nonsense! Get a mac & be done with it.

[Retroron]

I would go for the mac for sure. I changed over to a DAW in 2005, and got myself a 2.7 ghz dual core Powermac with Logic 7.3 at the time. It was a huge learning curve seeing as I was used to hardware set-ups before getting a mac. I got a uni-body, all singing, all dancing macbook pro last year with Logic 9, and I totally love it. I'm using a G-Tech external FW 800 drive, and an Apogee Ensemble interface. I got the UAD 2 Solo laptop card to run some of those tasty Universal Audio plug-ins (Neve eq's etc), and I just got the UAD Satellite which is daisy chained via FW 800 to my external drive, then my interface. I can still use the Solo laptop pci-e card, so I can now run three time the amount of Universal Audio plug-ins than I could with just the Solo laptop card. My whole set-up is sweet as a nut !!!

Logic 9 comes with some decent virtual instruments, especially the rhodes and hammond etc. I also use Arturia soft synths, and have the Jupiter 8V, Prophet V, and the Minimoog, all great sounding synths. If you scour ebay you may find someone still selling Arturia synths with the voucher that allows you to download 2 for the price of 1. Also for drums, check out Xln Audio's Addictive Drums !!! All I have to say is mac, mac, mac, all the way. You wont regret it !!!!

[xilddx]

I got the new 13" MacBook Pro 4Gb on Sunday. I'm totally new to Mac and it's been an absolute pleasure switching from Windows. Looks like a great machine too. I love it!

I've not really used a DAW before but I intend to get Reaper and a multi-channel audio interface, probably a Focusrite Saffire 24 VRM, unless anyone knows of a more suitable one. I hear it's only FW400 compatible though and may need an adapter, is that right?

[BTGAndy]

Yes you would need one of these [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sonnet-Technology-FireWire-Connector-Adapter/dp/B0000CDJPQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1303914869&sr=8-1"]Sonnet FW400-800[/url] this is the one that is recommend by Focusrite. I use the Saffire Pro 40 very successfully and I'm looking to get the 24 DSP for the speaker modelling and onboard EQ and Compression.

[BottomEndian]

[quote name='silddx' post='1212731' date='Apr 27 2011, 03:32 PM']I got the new 13" MacBook Pro 4Gb on Sunday. I'm totally new to Mac and it's been an absolute pleasure switching from Windows. Looks like a great machine too. I love it!

I've not really used a DAW before but I intend to get Reaper and a multi-channel audio interface, probably a Focusrite Saffire 24 VRM, unless anyone knows of a more suitable one. I hear it's only FW400 compatible though and may need an adapter, is that right?[/quote]
If you mean the Saffire Pro 24 DSP, then yes, it's only FW400-compatible. But adapter schmadapter; you just need an 800-to-400 (9-pin to 6-pin) cable and you're away.

I have a FW800 external hard drive for recording audio onto, so I run a 9-pin FW800 cable from MacBook Pro to hard drive, then a FW800-to-FW400 cable from the hard drive to the Saffire. As long as the FW800 stuff is nearest to the computer in the FW chain, you still get FW800 transfer rates for those devices, even when there's FW400 stuff beyond them in the chain.

The VRM's pretty cool, by the way. If you close your eyes for a while, you can [i]just about[/i] forget you're listening on headphones.