• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Replacing my WIN10 Laptop

tothemax

tothemax

Nov 1, 2013
1,464
1,701
Annapolis Area
#1
My old Acer laptop with WIN10 has seen better days and I'm a PC guy so I'm not interested in making the jump to Apple.

That said, my Acer with a 2.4 Ghz Intel i5 and 16GB RAM has been pretty functional for mixing content from my studio. I'm thinking that going for something closer to the 4.0 Ghz range with 32GB will probably be an improvement without breaking the bank. I use Cakewalk as my DAW, while is appears to be compatible I'm not sure about making the jump to WIN11 yet.

I'm looking at this as a replacement, looks pretty decent for $699 and has pretty good reviews. My old Acer has been pretty dependable for the last 5 years. Any thoughts? Suggestions?

Acer Aspire 5 Slim Laptop, 15.6" Full HD IPS, AMD Ryzen 3 3350U Quad-Core Processor, 36 GB DDR4 RAM, 1 TB SSD
 
#2
win11 is a free, no hassle upgrade to anyone with w10. YOu can try it today and ditch it tomorrow if you want.
A 16gb i5 should be more than needed for any audio editing/production. The only area in which you may profit is having a full SSD.
If your current PC doesn't have a SSD I'd upgrade it and leave it at that.
Graphics may also improve but you gave no detail.
Now if you want to change it's fine but likely not necessary.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AGCurry and tothemax
#3
Thanks,
The existing laptop is starting to bog down and a number of the keys no longer work... it's been a good little machine over the years. It's my personal laptop and not dedicated for DAW work. Graphics are not a big deal for me as I use a remote monitor, the most that I watch are YouTubes and the occasional video. I could probably replace the HD with an SSD and reload it, but I'd still be updating an older PC that has a lot of hours on it. I have 32 GB on the desktop in my studio and it handles plugin's and effects without any lag which why I'm thinking a little extra horsepower won't hurt.
 
#4
100% replace HD with SSD and install new copy of win10 then upgrade to 11 if you want.

I have a dell that was sold with an HDD. Practically unbearable to use. After replacing the HDD with another HDD I finally picked up an SSD and am loving my laptop now.

Make a WIN10 bootable install disk on a USB drive. It will take 20 mins once you have the ssd installed.
 
  • Like
Reactions: tothemax
#5
Modern computers are hundreds of times more powerful than most multi-track audio processing applications require. CPU and RAM are not the important place to focus for specs on an audio PC. You want fast disk. Solid state for sure. M.2 if you can find it. CPU and RAM, anything modern will do.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jazz Ad and tothemax
#6
The config listed in the OP seems solid enough. I would add at least one external SDD as your work drive (1-3 TB). Also, I am not a fan of AMD powered computers as the ones I have used would often have conflicts with upgrades, drivers and software. You could also walk the RAM up to 64. I also advise you check your DAW, interface and plugin requirements against your proposed config.
 
#7
And I said:
Modern computers are hundreds of times more powerful than most multi-track audio processing applications require. CPU and RAM are not the important place to focus for specs on an audio PC. You want fast disk. Solid state for sure. M.2 if you can find it. CPU and RAM, anything modern will do.
Click to expand...
I would say this has not been my experience. If you use a lot of in-the-box effects and pluggins, your CPU will choke, RAM will max out, and things will get flaky. That has been my experience anyway.
 
#9
There are "stress tests" that one can do to get actual metrics on these things. These can be found online. Every situation is different and the DAW and interface (quality and price) can make a huge difference in terms of processing load. Also, the buffer size can make a huge difference (usually at the cost of latency). I saw a large performance gain when I went from an older i7 laptop to a 2021 model (and upped the memory from 16 to 64 in the new system). YMMV
 
#10
I appreciate the feedback. Like I mentioned this laptop has been pretty reliable except for the keyboard, was replaced once under warranty and a few years later a few more keys stopped working. USB keyboard resolves that. Looking at the LOE to reinstall all my software after replacing the HD, I'm thinking that going with a new unit will save me some time down the road and add capability. This unit is maxed at 16GB and is not WIN11 compatible.
I've also noticed that with certain plugin's that the resources are taxed a bit. I never see that on my studio desktop. It's become a moot point at this juncture - AC evaporator is leaking and my PC funds are being redirected...

Cheers ;)
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back