Need new laptop and am so confused

Samwise Gamgee · May 28, 2014

kallekenkel said: ↑

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.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the post

Ive taken on alot of what youve said. The thing is the Macbooks are a bit too pricey for me. The ones I can afford, from what Ive researched do not perform that greatly with the software Ill be using and how Ill be using it.

This laptop (yes its windows) seems to tick all the boxes for me. Could anyone give their opinion on it and how it may or may not work well with NI software..?

makar1 · May 28, 2014

There is no way to know how well a certain Windows laptop will work, unless someone else has tried it already.

What software will you be using that requires more processing power than Macbooks in your price range? DJ and music production software doesn't need much power at all.

Samwise Gamgee · May 28, 2014

makar1 said: ↑

There is no way to know how well a certain Windows laptop will work, unless someone else has tried it already.

What software will you be using that requires more processing power than Macbooks in your price range? DJ and music production software doesn't need much power at all.
Click to expand...

Thanks mate

Ill be using Reason 7 and Ableton and Traktor. At least two will be running at the same time.

I looked into a Macbook (i5) with Reason 7 and it does max out as soon as I start using anything more than what the software comes with.

Ideally an i7 mbp with ssd and high gig but that is like double the price of this machine.

mastermc · Jun 6, 2014

get pc not mac

kallekenkel · Jun 6, 2014

lol @makar1 for rating the previous post "informative"

Scaper7 · Jun 8, 2014

Samwise Gamgee said: ↑

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.
Click to expand...

I got one of these about 18 months ago and it just rocks, DELL Vostro 3560
(i7/8gbRAM); http://www.dell.com/au/business/p/vostro-3560/pd

best DPC specs I've seen on any laptop (tested dozens) backlit keys, HD monitor (awesome for Traktor) cost me AU$1000 ...
easily the best lappy I've had for audio ... highly recommended ...

one small issue ... beware USB3 ports ...many soundcards have issues with USB3 ... if you run Win7 you can uninstall USB3 drivers and all ports function as USB2. Not so with Win8 I believe.

makar1 · Jun 8, 2014

Since you bought it so long ago, that laptop is now discontinued..

Scaper7 · Jun 8, 2014

to test DPC specs on different current models, I loaded the DPC latency checker app onto my USB stick and took it shopping with me. I'd go to a retailer with a lot of different laptops on display (like Harvey Norman in oz) and pop my USB stick in the first one run the DPC app, and do the same with all the laptops I was interested in ... then return to first one and review the results in the same order.

makar1 said: ↑

Since you bought it so long ago, that laptop is now discontinued..
Click to expand...

yes i noticed that ... after posting

Scaper7 · Jun 18, 2014

DELL are doing some nice deals on the new Inspiron range right now ... this for under AU$1000 in oz at the moment. i7, 16gbRAM, HD screen ... i'd still go for Win7 OS but that my personal pref (and no touch screen) ... very nice laptop .. if I needed one today I'd buy this in an instant.

here's the link to the current deal ... http://www.dell.com/au/p/inspiron-15-5547-laptop/pd?model_id=inspiron-15-5547-laptop&oc=dx510412au ... deal ends soon ... 19th of June last day ...

mastermc · Jun 29, 2014

kallekenkel said: ↑

lol @makar1 for rating the previous post "informative"
Click to expand...

Lol@your lol

shadow23 · Jun 30, 2014

@OP what did you end up getting mate?

SirReal · Jul 1, 2014

I'm going to guess, confused.

Need new laptop and am so confused

Samwise Gamgee New Member

makar1 Forum Member

Samwise Gamgee New Member

mastermc NI Product Owner

kallekenkel NI Product Owner

Scaper7 NI Product Owner

makar1 Forum Member

Scaper7 NI Product Owner

Scaper7 NI Product Owner

mastermc NI Product Owner

shadow23 NI Product Owner

SirReal NI Product Owner

Useful Searches

Need new laptop and am so confused

Samwise Gamgee New Member

makar1 Forum Member

Samwise Gamgee New Member

mastermc NI Product Owner

kallekenkel NI Product Owner

Scaper7 NI Product Owner

makar1 Forum Member

Scaper7 NI Product Owner

Scaper7 NI Product Owner

mastermc NI Product Owner

shadow23 NI Product Owner

SirReal NI Product Owner