Ableton Forum

Why is your instant reaction to troll this list? Do you have nothing better to do?

Thats what it comes down to. More money for a stable OS, connectivity, and standerdized parts and service. PC's are great, fast and cheap, but if you have the money Mac is the way. Things are wee bit weird w/ the OS changeover but it's worth it to have an intuitive, stable working environment. 2Ghz processor doesn't mean much when your starring at the blue screen of death, or your new peripheral doesn't work. Just my humble opinion no flames please.
btw Core audio makes me very happy

what are some of the cooler looking pc laptops that are also good for power.

Those Compaq Presario 2800 notebooks look rather nice, and specs look good. Anyone tried them for audio yet?

k, as some of you might know already, i'm still totally loving my toshiba satellite . . . performance and features kick ass, but since we're talkin style here, i must say, i think it's a pretty sexy machine (i almost said 'for a pc'). it's got a unique design in that the screen is kind of 'cut-out' around the speakers, so it closes flush with the top curve of the speakers. when it's open, it kinda has this future-retro look. it's also got a wicked cobalt blue auto-body finish. k, it's not platinum, but imho it's still got style.

as far as weight goes, yeah, it's about 8 pounds with the battery, but i played it smart and bought a real nice tumi backpack, with lumbar supports/shoulder cushion, etc . . . so when i'm hauling it around town, i really don't feel the weight, cause the bag is calibrated so well. and this is with the laptop plus the emi 2|6, cables, headphones, etc . . imho, if you're going to dish out big bucks for the hardware, another two hundred for a really good bag should not be an issue (unless it is, of course. )

and here, one more time, is the product tour

cheers

:: | m e m e t i c | ::

I recently get a Presario 2818 : 1,7Ghz, 4OGo, 256DDR (i'll upgrade later when i get the money!), 15" display (max 1024*768 though), 2*USB2, ATI RADEON 64DDR, with a RME hammerfall DSP+multiface, an evolution 225C (little cheaper than the oxygen8) and... of course a copy of live/Spark FX. I was quite anxious to see all this stuff running for audio as it cost a lot of money... but it actually rocks!!! I love it!!

Even if the look was the last of my criteria when I bought my laptop It's always nice to have a good looking device (as Tibooks I guess). The presario with the rme in the same bag is quite heavy when you have to carry it for a long distance but I really don't mind.

For audio I haven't experiencing any problems with it. The sound is amazing (mostly due to the RME i think). I just had a couple of time an overload in Live (probably due to the use of some very CPU intensive plug ins and the lack of memory). Beside that it runs perfectly and I am sure it is as good as Vaios or toshibas. I'd love to use only for audio but it is also my study computer so...

I never touched a mac so I dunno what's the best. Only a matter of taste I think.

Have fun jammin' with live!

That's nice to hear because that's the same setup I'm thinking of going with Compaq Presario 2800 and RME HamerfalDSP.
What kind of latency can you manage on yours?

-- http://www.cnet.com/techtrends/0-6014-7 ... tml?tag=ld

Can't tell if it has a PC Card slot or not...

-Alex

It was me talking about my 2818/RME system.

Using Live with buffer set on 128 : 2ms latency...

I think the last 2800s are up to 2Ghz or maybe more... but 1.7Ghz is quite enough and the price are dropping quite fast. It is in my opinion, one of the best choice at the moment... for pc laptop.

I just hope that 512mo DDR PC 2100 will be available soon.

I think RME is the ultimate I/O for laptop... or maybe the metric halo but it seems to be more expensive.

cheers.

r|

Alex Reynolds wrote:-- http://www.cnet.com/techtrends/0-6014-7 ... tml?tag=ld

Can't tell if it has a PC Card slot or not...

-Alex

Unbelievable! I just copied the exact URL to post over here in this thread . . . LOL. pretty sexy machine, tho. wish i could start a collection of them.

Yes alex it has one pc card slot. Two usb2, no FW, and memory (DDR PC2100) is expandable to 1024mo.

I am surely not an expert as most of you guys, and I am a LIVE newbie, but my impression is that I chose a great laptop. With full memory and maybe an USB2 HD it will be perfect.

r|

if the weight/discomfort of the laptop is your main concern, i would opt for a better carry-bag rather than getting a less powerful laptop that you'll hate later on...i was previously using one of those strap around your shoulder sidebags and indeed it did get a little painful on the shoulders...it's just the way that the weight is being carried, r.e. almost all on one shoulder.

so...i bought a nice backpack style laptop case and it is MUCH easier on the shoulders as it distributes the weight much better across your upper body and both shoulders vs just one, lugging the sidebag w laptop and misc other gear/cables etc through airports and such convinced me of the need to get a better bag.