Need new laptop and am so confused

Hi guys

I need a new laptop for digital dj-ing (Traktor Pro) and music production (Reason)

Ive been reading heaps online and asking advice from other forums (mainly it seems gamers) and Im still none the wiser.

I have learnt alot but if my computer is just for dj-ing and making music do I really need to think about top fo the range i7's and the best monitors available?

All I want is a laptop around 1000aud that wont overheat when I play out, wont suffer from dpc latency, has a lit keyboard, doesnt stall when mixing and is a good laptop for what I need it for.

Can anyone help me as I feel like Im going round in circles?

 

You don't need an i7 for DJing or music production.

If you're a student you can get a new Macbook Air for around 1000 Aud which should meet all your requirements (DPC does not exist on Mac OSX).

If you're not a student you could look at the Refurbished models. Or look at second hand units elsewhere.

 

Thanks mate

The thing is Id like to stick with PC. Simply because 'it seems' the specs you get on PC for the money is better.

Gaming computers seem way too heavy for what I need plus they are so expensive empty! You have to keep adding stuff to them. And Ive heard they are really noisy

 

Macs are just as good at running Windows as other laptops. And I've yet to see any Windows PC with the same specs as a Macbook Air at the same or lower price.

 

if you're a guy like me who is using traktor scratch the old fashioned way just with a small controller to select and load tracks in decks and play them out with scratch vinyls and don't like looking all the time on the screen, then a 11" or 13" will do a great job

if you're a controllerist, maybe a 15" or 17" will be the better choice

check the minimum specs, any dual core processor with minimum 2GHz, 4GB RAM and a clean windows installation, turn off any network gear and it will work fine, you do not need a I7, don't buy discount gear, but you don't have to spent 1000€ or $ or whatever

i'm doing three to four times a month 4-6hrs sets with a five years old lenovo x200 and it does a nice and smooth job, the only reason I will buy a lenovo yoga soon is, there a 11" models and you can turn the display 180 degrees so I need less space on the desk for my notebook which I can use for beer glasses

 

Thanks guys

I think a 15 would be good as I will be using alot of effects however Ill be mostly listening so a 13 would be alright too.

Mmm, Im still a bit stuck as although it seems a lower spec will run Traktor ok, how about other products such as abelton and reason at the same time as traktor...?

Anyone used a gaming comp for dj-ing before?

 

Gaming comp = desktop PC.

Why would you need Ableton, Reason, and Traktor at the same time? An i5 with 8GB+ RAM should be able to handle it though.

 

Thx guys

Yeh thats good to know. Takes the pressure off alot

Can anyone recommend a laptop to perhaps think about?

 

I can't find any Windows laptops worth buying in Aus for your budget. They all have bad screens (1366x768), no backlit keyboard, weigh a ton, and there's of course no way of knowing how their DPC performance is.

Lenovo and ASUS are decent Windows options but their decent laptops are all in the $1500+ range.

Compare these two for example..

$1644 for the Lenovo with backlit keyboard and decent resolution screen
http://shopap.lenovo.com/au/en/laptops/thinkpad/t-series/t440

$1200 for the Macbook Air (they all have backlit keyboards) that's thinner, lighter, and has an insanely faster SSD.
http://store.apple.com/au/buy-mac/macbook-air?product=MD760X/B&step=config

 

Thanks mate

But this is my issue. The macbook air's processor is only 1.7ghz, the ram maxes out 8gb..?

For a windows laptop around 1000-1200 I can get a decent i7 2.4ghz , a 125ssd drive that can be upgraded, ram that maxes between 16-32 and a backlit keyboard. I must add pc's are easier to repair and upgrade.

I see your point but do I need a really good screen if the comp is for making music and dj-ing...?

 

Just don't buy anything with a 1366x768 screen, whatever you do. You need some real estate for production.

Where are you finding these $1000-1200 laptops with a 2.4GHz i7 and backlit keyboard?

8GB RAM is more than enough for your uses, as are the Air's CPUs.

 

Ive been looking at metabox and msi.

They all seem quite good, just soo tired with it all

 

The base model Metabox looks pretty nice, and good value too. There's no backlit keyboard from what I can tell - and no operating system.

 

Yeh they look ok but what do you think about this one?

http://www.gigabyte.com.au/products/product-page.aspx?pid=5024&dl=1#sp

Come to just under1200

If I can(can i?) put an ssd in there it should be pretty good!

 

Seems reasonable, but they aren't out yet so there are no reviews.

 

The only thing missing is the backlit keyboard (which might be the biggest part when playing out) :-(

 

Processor/Ram etc. specs don't tell you jack about how well the laptop will perform for DJing / music production.

 

Thanks

Interesting point of view , can I ask why you think that? If they are not important what do you consider are important for music production/ djing?

 

I was in the same boat as you a few years ago.. Let's maximise the specs I can get for my money.
Over the years, I came to understand that "performance" is not just hardware alone. It is hardware, and how efficient it is being addressed by software (drivers & applications). Apple and their partners can do a better job in making this relationship efficient, as there are fewer configurations and Apple has tight grip on the hardware, OS and drivers. They chose what works best and optimise the software to work as efficiently as possible. Even external developers only have to develop for a hand full of configurations - not a million custom configs you find on the non-Apple-side.

In my experience, that's why a lower-spec Mac often performs better than a higher-spec windows machine.

But I do not want to turn this into an Apple-vs-PC discussion. Windows machines can run Traktor & other software just as fine. Nothing forces you to buy a Mac. Even when you compare two windows machines, you may find a lower-spec machine to perform just as well (or even better) than a higher-spec. I have come to look at other things:

- SSD (speed?) .. often times makes a bigger difference than i5 > i7
- graphics card (Nvidia cards often cause problems with Traktor).. This is not a gaming PC, so iris is fine.
- Resolution.. A 17" does not offer more space than an 11" if they have the same res
- Will you take the laptop with you? Then built-quality, weight, battery life, non-reflective screens etc. play a huge role
- Esp size.. I personally find anything north of 14" to be too big for travel. For me, 13" retina (or high-DPI or whatever you want to call it) has proven to be an awesome compromise of size & resolution
- At home, you may even consider investing in a high-res (WQHD.. 4K is still too early imo) monitor. So you could chose a 13" laptop, as long as the graphics card supports output of WQHD (ports? Displayport?)
- Support.. What if the machine breaks down. Are you covered through extended warranty? Are you sure the manufacturer will help you when you face an issue?
- In production, you will be working with raw files, which can get very large. This does not necessary mean you need a large hard disk! Every file on your machine needs to be backed up. So if you have a 1TB drive, you need another 1TB external backup solution (better two).. I'd rather go for a smaller internal hard drive and rather spend some cash on backup.
- training.. I would set aside some budget for training & lectures. No need to have an i7 when you are overwhelmed with Ableton and cannot really do anything
- Experience: Have other users had problems with a particular machine (e.g. the Vaio series is reported to cause issues many times)

You see.. all these things need to be considered imo. "The best specs for my budget" is a childish thinking that won't get you anywhere professionally.

 

You'll only be using 5-10% of those gaming laptop's processing power at most when it comes to production/DJing. They're also very heavy and bulky without much battery life, with unnecessary powerful GPU draining power.

Macbooks have some of the fastest SSDs in laptops by the way - at least twice as fast as any you might install yourself (SATA).