computer studio newbie

[andrewbrewer]

yes. i know i can search teh interwebs and find what i need but i'm trolling for opinions. y'all are smart and have perspective.

so: my friend wants to switch to a laptop/studio set-up. he claims he can start from scratch so i'm trying to make some suggestions for him. his current interests:

- flexibility, to capture ideas
- portability
- rugged enough to use for performing
- dependable and not difficult to troubleshoot or maintain

he already has mics and monitors (krk rokits)

he likes what he has seen of ableton and is pretty convinced that can give him all of the flexibility he needs.
knowing him, i'm thinking a MAC laptop setup. it's less hassle than PCs (though, i love PCs)
where i draw a blank is: what soundcard? what midi controller?

he's accustomed to his roland xv workstation, so the most important need of the midi controller would be decent keys and some standard expression controls, pitch, modwheel, maybe a few sliders or knobs.

that leaves me with:

computer: MAC laptop (what model?)
software: ableton
soundcard: ?
midi-controller: ?

alright guys, so what are your suggestions ?

[smaucher]

computer: MacBook pro 17", Intel i7, 7200rpm HDD http://www.apple.com/macbookpro/
software: ableton live 8
soundcard: http://www.focusrite.com/saffirepro14/ or http://www.rme-audio.de/products_fireface_400.php
midi-controller: http://novationmusic.com/products/midi_ ... /launchpad plus http://www.presonus.com/products/Detail ... roductId=2

if I had the (economic ) ressources, this would be my setup!

[UKRuss]

I'd agree except, I think for flexibility/portability, the new macbook 13" with 4gig ram is fine, plus an apc40 and a motu ultralite soundcard.

Portable, flexible, controllable.

[smaucher]

good point. I was thinking rather from a (home) studio than on-the-road perspective. although 13" is a bit small if you have bigger arrangements, but at home you could use a 24" external display. options, options, options...

[greatwhitedope]

I am in the process of putting together an all new setup and I am going this way:
-Ableton Live 8
-Komplete 7 (If I can get the money together)
-Axiom 25
-APC 40
-MOTU Ultralite MK3
-Monitors I am still undecided on
-Macbook Pro 15" 2.66GHz i7 8GB RAM 500GB @7200RPM with 1TB external firewire drive
-24" Samsung P2450h LCD

[andrewbrewer]

you buys rock! thanks for the input. taking all this into consideration.

[andrewbrewer]

I am in the process of putting together an all new setup and I am going this way:
...
-Axiom 25
...

An m-audio suggestion ... interesting. So, have they improved in build quality? I seem to remember a problem w/ quality some years ago, maybe just gossip

[greatwhitedope]

I am in the process of putting together an all new setup and I am going this way:
...
-Axiom 25
...

An m-audio suggestion ... interesting. So, have they improved in build quality? I seem to remember a problem w/ quality some years ago, maybe just gossip

My friend has had one (the first gen, which you can still buy) for a couple of years and has had no problems. Plus it is one of the most feature packed 25 key usb controllers for the money. I have heard some people are not too keen on the second gen's build quality so I am planning on picking up a first gen one for $169 on amazon.

[BadGrrmmr]

I like the apc40 and the mpk49. They're solid and not overly expensive. The only problem I find is their faders etc, share code somewhere. So somethings can't be mapped solely to one or the other. There are ways around it and I'm sure someone will post after this the solution but if you're (or he's) using it for mixing down etc, you can control 16 channels at once. (16 channel mixer)

I've got a MacBook which is very portable and reliable. Would prefer a MacBook pro though.

[jimdrake]

I am in the process of putting together an all new setup and I am going this way:
...
-Axiom 25
...

An m-audio suggestion ... interesting. So, have they improved in build quality? I seem to remember a problem w/ quality some years ago, maybe just gossip

My friend has had one (the first gen, which you can still buy) for a couple of years and has had no problems. Plus it is one of the most feature packed 25 key usb controllers for the money. I have heard some people are not too keen on the second gen's build quality so I am planning on picking up a first gen one for $169 on amazon.

i have the original axiom 25, it's goodly solid, not as hard as nails like a nord or something, but good. definitely much more robust than things like korg microbullshit.

encoders are rubbish.

pads are good i think.

i had something funny go on the power supply (when running on USB), but got it replaced on warrantee.

[leedsquietman]

If he's not some girlie weakling, the 17" mac gives the advantage of having an expresscard bus so can run UAD-2 solo laptop (not possible with 13 and 15" as Jobs cheaped out) and gives a lot more real estate to see what's going on without squinting (a bit less battery life is the tradeoff).

Soundcard - depends on how much I/O he need, but if not much I/O RME Babyface USB 2.0 and a bit more RME Fireface UC 2.0, which performs better than the FF400 and has some extra features in the totalmix routing software. Although the Lucent Agere firewire chipset is OKish in Macs (avoid in PC like the plague), it's still a cheap and nasty solution not up to par with the old Texas Instruments chipset and with Mac, the Fireface UC USB 2.0 typically runs at lower latencies than the similar FF400. A Motu Ultralite mk3 is viable for those with a smaller budget in mind and good on Macs.

COntrollers - depends what he needs. Anything from a BCR/BCF2000, Novation SL Remote keyboard with a Launchpad, M-Audio Axiom, APC40, Edirol/CME whatever. He needs to decide what is important in terms of keys, pads, faders, knobs, etc. and match up the devices which fit best.

[H20nly]

I have an Axiom 25 ori-gin-al and its built well and has been going for about 5 years... it came with Live lite 5.5 and was my intro into the minds of Ableton. Its very light, but real sturdy. the keys are solid and pressure sensitive. It doesn't feel flimsy at all to me. I'm no synth snob or expert by any stretch but for the money and flexibility its a nice unit and you get transport control and decent drum pads so 169 is not a bad price. Much cheaper than I paid for mine at the time.