Reconditioning a 2009 MBP

re:dream · Post by **re:dream** » Thu Jun 04, 2015 5:40 pm

Hi there - I wondered if anyone has advice on how to optimise a 2009 13 inch MBP

My workplace has finally gotten me a new machine for work purposes, which means that my trusty 2009 laptop (Mavericks, 8 gig, 2009 dual core) can now become a dedicated music machine.

I don't need a lot of power. I do most of my music making on a desktop

But I would like to use the MBP for DJing and live performances.

My live sets will not be processor heavy - I plan to render most things to audio & then play with loops.

The people at the shop advise me to get rid of my old 500 gig hard drive and to replace it with an SSD.

Is this good advice? I have been picking up that there are some issues with SSDs.

empathy1 · Post by **empathy1** » Thu Jun 04, 2015 6:02 pm

I am in the process of doing the same. It is quite amazing how much life you can get out of an old macbook pro; so long as you don't fill the hard-drive to the seams; even then a simple back up and data-wipe can bring it back to life.

I would suggest following the advice of switching to an SSD; they operate exponentially faster and produce less heat; saving internal components from future malfunction. They're well worth the investment and I'm way behind on acquiring my own.

The other benefit of the old macbooks is the ability to swap ram out...I'd say the next step would be to replace the ram chips..it can hold a maximum of 8MB total; refer to this page if needed: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT1270

Other than that I'd say just try and keep the thing as clutter free as possible; keep all extra media/stuff you don't intend on using regularly on an external hard drive and you should be good to go!

Good lUck

S4racen · Post by **S4racen** » Thu Jun 04, 2015 7:39 pm

I put a hybrid drive in mine because it was in the days when sad was to be feared, as much ram as it could manage... Still works like a dream today!

Cheers
D

fishmonkey · Post by **fishmonkey** » Fri Jun 05, 2015 1:24 am

SSD and more RAM...

best not to get the cheapest SSD either. do some research on the known to be more reliable models.

re:dream · Post by **re:dream** » Fri Jun 12, 2015 2:34 pm

Hmm, my supplier is proposing to use something called the Crucial BX 100 which does seem to be one of the more 'budget' ones....

fishmonkey · Post by **fishmonkey** » Fri Jun 12, 2015 2:51 pm

i would still get an SSD, even if it is not a top shelf one. just make sure you are keeping good backups, as when an SSD fails, often there is no warning whatsoever.

re:dream · Post by **re:dream** » Sat Jun 13, 2015 11:15 am

Well I have automatic continuous back up as well as realtime sync with dropbox. A bit OCD, I know!

re:dream · Post by **re:dream** » Fri Jun 19, 2015 7:13 am

Hmm. That seems to have worked well. The little MBP now goes like greased lightning, once everything is up and running.

Now to start prepping some sets for live performance.

Thanks for the advice!!

fishmonkey · Post by **fishmonkey** » Fri Jun 19, 2015 7:16 am

no probs, you're welcome.

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