Micro PC or stick PC to run music software?

[Dood]

Hey all!

Just wondered if anyone is using a Micro PC or even a stick PC to run music software, even a basic DAW on? Would love to know if it's possible to run bass (via an interface) through some plug ins as a bit of a project. Just for fun at the moment. If I could, I'd run MacOS and Mainstage 3, but there are plenty of other options including using my favourite 'Reaper' by CockOS as the audio platform.

What should I be looking for in a Micro PC? I'd like lots of memory and an SSD, though the drive doesn't have to be huge.

Would love to hear your thoughts, especially of you have already experimented down this route!


Dood

[biro]

Short answer: yes, it is possible.

Long answer: it is possible, provided that you have a nice external soundcard running on Firewire or USB 2.0 (or greater) and enough processing power (which isn't too much).

But yes, of course, I've been playing live through my laptop since 2007 or so.

[Dood]

Thanks Biro - yes, the laptop is the easy bit and have a machine more than capable of doing way more than I need - but I'd like to see if one of these 'tiny machines' can do the job. I have an external interface that can handle audio and MIDI so that's the easy bit. I think the interface is actually bigger than some of those 'net-top' boxes and certainly huge in comparison to Stick PCs!

[biro]

Well, I mean, you might be able to do it. But the question is: if you get something like a Raspberry Pi, then you'll need a keyboard, a mouse, a display—you could have a touch screen one, but I digress. The external audio interface is a must for reasons of quality of sound and because the Pi (if that's what you're after) comes with just a combined audio jack. I fail to see how the whole thing is going to be less bulky than the average laptop plus sound card to be honest...