Macbook help

cossie · #1 08-14-2006, 06:17 AM

Hi,

I was hoping someone could give me some extra advice/info before I delve further into the technical details myself - always helps to be pre-warned or told "keep any eye out for this or that"

Currently, my music "recording" amounts to me programming everything in Fruity loops on a 5 year old Dell laptop. I can't record my bass directly on to it as the sound card is kuh-rap.

I'm going back to college in October and i'm going to buy a new laptop, and my sights are 85% set on a Macbook or Macbook Pro (probably the Pro as it has the 17" screen, vital for programming nerds like myself!).

I'm also looking at a Toshiba Satellite P-100.

Macs have the reputation for being great for Digital Media but would it be a better brand than a Windows laptop overall? I kind of want to maintain a balance between my college work (MSc's are tough) but also my musical hobby.

I'm not looking to produce studio quality tracks but i want to be able to record bass, guitars and maybe some vocals in a better than average/budget way.

And I want to improve my song writing but also use it as a motivational tool to study more musical theory - i've learned a lot from listening to mix desk recordings of gigs my band has done.

On the off chance, any programmer - musicians out there?

Luke73 · #2 08-14-2006, 06:19 AM

Get the Mac, enjoy OSX and Garage Band, and when you must run Windows Apps run a dual boot with Windows XP with Boot Camp.

thehurlatron · #3 08-14-2006, 07:25 AM

I have a MacBook and so far I am nothing but pleased. I use a MOTU firewire interface for the inputs.

The Garageband software is a great starter recording program, and can be upgraded to logic express 7.2 for more possibilities. Although garageband is more than plenty for "casual" recording. If you don't want to use an interface, they sell a cable that is 1/4" to the macbook and also a XLR to macbook.

And now with all the co-mingling of apple and PC, you can get MS office programs OR you can even run bootcamp to use WINDOWS XP. (but I don't recommend it)

Blkholesun · #4 08-14-2006, 08:00 AM

Definately Go with the Macbook pro. I got one back in June for school and it is amazing. OSX is heaven compared to windows and Garageband is about as easy to use as it can get. I use a presonus inspire Interface to record but I think I may get something different soon, probably one of the simpler cables. And as thehurlatron said, you can get Microsoft office for OSX (everything is completely compatible, I had to move several word files and my entire music collection from my old PC) and you can also run Windows on the Macbook Pro through bootcamp (although I'll never do it, I think Windows is the reason computers go bad in the first place

)

cossie · #5 08-14-2006, 08:28 AM

Thank you all for the advice, i think i will end up getting a Mac although they are quite dear here in Ireland, 21% VAT sucks a$$!

Just another question that i should've probably asked the first time, how much RAM is enough? Should i stick with 1gb or try to upgrade to 2gb? I'm going to wait as RAM prices always get cheaper (esp. when bought from a 3rd party!) but for music i'd imagine more RAM = better performance (from the machine, not the musician (me))

thehurlatron · #6 08-14-2006, 08:44 AM

For ram, Just take what it comes with. Apple charges like $199 to upgrade each 512!! In the case of the macbook and pro, they have only 2 slots, and they have to be matched so you need 2 1gb chips for 2gb total. Second party is much cheaper, and it's a 5 min job by yourself.

NJL · #7 08-14-2006, 08:48 AM

I just upgraded to 2 gigs of ram.. it's like night and day.. try to max out on ram when you can. I got mine for 160 shipped and i still need to send out for my 25 rebate..

**Joelc73** · #8 08-14-2006, 10:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NJL

.. try to max out on ram when you can. I got mine for 160 shipped and i still need to send out for my 25 rebate..

This is good advice. OSX loves RAM as do audio programs like GB or Logic. Don't buy it through Apple though. Go to someone like Crucial.com.

NJL · #9 08-14-2006, 10:50 AM

Even then, as good as Crucial is, you can get great product from other sellers for even less...

cossie · #10 08-23-2006, 09:58 AM

With added cost of college i can't afford to get a Macbook anymore, i'm really disappointed but it would've cost me nearly 3 thousand euro to get what i was after

So can anyone recommended any other laptops that would be good for audio recording? Please!

After paying some fees i think the best i could afford right now is a Dell - it sucks ass big time.

msquared · #11 08-23-2006, 10:18 AM

You don't need a Mac to do quality audio. It is extremely nice to have one, but a Dell will do it just as well. It's all a matter of how virus free your computer is, how much RAM you have, and what software you're using.

cossie · #12 08-23-2006, 10:23 AM

Quote:

You don't need a Mac to do quality audio. It is extremely nice to have one

You're right, i know but i sort of had my heart set on one for awhile now - i was completely drinking Steve Jobs Kool Aid for a few weeks.

A friend is coming to the rescue with some software for me, he can get me a good discount so i guess not all is lost!

And i can always put an Apple sticker on my Dell

pty-rock · #13 08-23-2006, 10:35 AM

Just got a macbook intel dual core with 1gb ram and a 500gb external hdd, alesis console runing cubase le. great package... recomend ir highly since you can use the console live also... it's analog so you can plug voice and instruments and run directly to the amps/eq and send a line to the mac, record the live sound with each instrument in a different channel.. it's great fot mixing later on after the gig...

Trully recomend this setup..

msquared · #14 08-23-2006, 03:57 PM

If you are so set on having a Mac, consider getting a G4 laptop instead of the shiny new Intel stuff. The bottleneck with audio apps isn't CPU power, it's system bus speed (for real time audio processing) and hard drive speed (for multitrack recording). Pretty much any G4 laptop that ever came out is going to be able to hang with serious recording on its own, and if it won't you can simply get an external firewire drive and be doing as good or better than if you'd bought something new and expensive.

One thing that needs mentioning: You are going to need an external analog to digital converter regardless of which laptop you go with. The electrical "noise" (EMI) inside of a laptop is almost always going to kill any chance of doing decent recording, and is probably why you mention the sound card in your current machine being crappy. In reality the sound cards available with PCs have been capable of recording stereo CD quality sound for over a decade now but cheap parts and electrical noise make it sound less than stellar.

You mention being a programming nerd, and I'd say that if you aren't getting a Macbook Pro that you should stay away from Macs altogether. Pixel density is important for cramming a ton of text onto a screen and only recently has Apple decided to give lip service to high pixel density. The Thinkpad A21p I used to use had 1600x1200 in a 15" display and it was fabulous. Moving to the G4 Powerbook I used to have was kind of a pain, and it only really worked because of the Dell 2005FPW I had hooked up to it. I don't know how much programming you're going to be doing away from the desk but if it's a lot, I'd say you should stick with a PC. Otherwise there are a lot of great+cheap LCDs out there nowadays.

winston · #15 08-23-2006, 05:12 PM

My wife just got a Mac Book last week and I'm so jealous. I've been using PC for years and a couple years back I became a Linux nut so I'm excited that I can fool around with all 3 OSs.

Don't despair if you can only afford a PC laptop--there are plenty of great intuitive recording/sequencing apps for Windows (free ones like Kristal and Reaper--inexpensive ones like EnergyXT, Audio Mulch, and Tracktion 2) and free VSTs). When v2 of EnergyXT is released it will include a Linux port--and thus will be born the era of pro-level Linux recording.

If you're gonna be studying CS/programming I'd recommend using some sort of UNIX (OSX--based on BSD, or a Linux partition--not too hard to add to a Window$ box). It will give you a much better taste for nuts&bolts command line system administration than Windoze, and there are many available desktop environments/window managers that can be optimized for whatever your screen size/resolution.

msquared · #16 08-23-2006, 05:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by winston

My wife just got a Mac Book last week and I'm so jealous.

I'm in the same boat as you.

I am waiting for the alleged core 2 duo Macbook Pros to come out in September before I make the jump to another Mac. My ultimate goal is for quad-environment (Solaris, Windows, Linux, OSX) through Parallels.

cossie · #17 08-24-2006, 01:25 AM

Msquared thank you very much for all that information - i really appreciate it, if they gave out karma points on TB i'd give you buckets of them!

Quote:

You mention being a programming nerd, and I'd say that if you aren't getting a Macbook Pro that you should stay away from Macs altogether. Pixel density is important for cramming a ton of text onto a screen and only recently has Apple decided to give lip service to high pixel density. The Thinkpad A21p I used to use had 1600x1200 in a 15" display and it was fabulous. Moving to the G4 Powerbook I used to have was kind of a pain, and it only really worked because of the Dell 2005FPW I had hooked up to it. I don't know how much programming you're going to be doing away from the desk but if it's a lot, I'd say you should stick with a PC. Otherwise there are a lot of great+cheap LCDs out there nowadays.

I'll be doing an awful lot of programming, and my plan is to get a 15.4" laptop. If my budget allows it, buy a 20" flat panel monitor
to use when the laptop is on my desk, after a 4 year software engineering degree i know how vital a large screen is!

I''m buying a laptop instead of a PC because it's a lot handier for college, my campus room isn't the most spacious!

Quote:

If you're gonna be studying CS/programming I'd recommend using some sort of UNIX (OSX--based on BSD, or a Linux partition--not too hard to add to a Window$ box). It will give you a much better taste for nuts&bolts command line system administration than Windoze, and there are many available desktop environments/window managers that can be optimized for whatever your screen size/resolution.

I'm going to install ubuntu, which seems to be the most user friendly Unix based environment - it can be run off a CD without being installed, or so a reliable source tells me.

Quote:

I am waiting for the alleged core 2 duo Macbook Pros to come out in September

This was my plan too, but i think i just got caught up in the "do something different" frame of mind and really wanted a Mac. I've been saving solidly for the last 2 years to be able to afford my college costs and a pair of xbox games have been the greatest "luxury" i've allowed myself. So i really wanted to splash out.

Damn!

Youngspanion · #18 09-20-2006, 07:53 PM

I love listening, uh, I mean reading whats been said here. I am investigating the Mac Books now too. I want a laptop that I can use for picking apart songs. That is my main desire. I want an easy to use program that will allow me to play a song, cut and loop pieces of the song and play along with a song. Can a Mac book do this?

I also want to record my bass. I want a CD player and a burner. A DVD player too. Are the speakers good?

winston · #19 09-20-2006, 11:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Youngspanion

I love listening, uh, I mean reading whats been said here. I am investigating the Mac Books now too. I want a laptop that I can use for picking apart songs. That is my main desire. I want an easy to use program that will allow me to play a song, cut and loop pieces of the song and play along with a song. Can a Mac book do this?

I also want to record my bass. I want a CD player and a burner. A DVD player too. Are the speakers good?

You can do what you want--import WAVs/MP3s, play/cut/loop/play along with them--on just about any laptop as long as it has audio ins/out and an audio editing program--I'd recommend Audacity for starters.

The MacBook my wife got was about $1100 and has a CD burner/DVD-ROM. Builtin speakers are small and tinny--I'd recommend external ones (I like the Tascam VLS21) or a decent set of headphones. You can get cheaper Window$ laptops, but a Core Duo one will cost about the same as a MacBook.

Basshole · #20 09-21-2006, 06:28 AM

Have a Macbook. Booting both OSX and XP. Everything works on both sides (Bluetooth mouse, wireless G, canon scanner, various M-Audio music interfaces).

Trackpad is a little glitchy in XP, and lacks the wonderful gestures written into the OSX side, and occasionally I get a fruity boot with glitchy audio (both sides, but more often in XP). Battery life could be better, a real delete key would be nice, but on the whole, I'm very pleased.

Right now, it's the best laptop on the market, IMHO.