Laptop Suggestions anyone??

[gaspode]

I've had good luck with the EGOsys AG... it isn't quite as high end as what you're looking at, but their higher end stuff might not be so bad.

The only thing that I will point out about this device is the installation was a complete nightmare. I kind of skipped half the notes because I thought I knew what I was doing since I've installed a ton of drivers before, and even had to 'hack' them in the way they make you since they aren't certified...

However... they certainly are a bit different, has to do with the way you need to install the driver to get it to work properly for ASIO. If you're not okay with mucking about on your system to try and get the drivers installed... I'd probably stay away from them unless you read otherwise from somebody else. I'm only saying this because if one driver install is a pain, I can only guess that the other devices may likely be a pain as well...

[Mbazzy]

I think I've heard bad things about the Quattro. Think they were on this forum too...

What do you need from your laptop audio interface? 24-bit, 96KHz? How many inputs and outputs? Analogue only? Would something like the Indigo I/O do you? (What's the bandwidth of PCMCIA? Surely even faster than Firewire/USB2?)

Indigo I/O or Indigo DJ doesn't cut it either as only solution , as I would need ànd inputs ànd prelisten on seperate channel in one interface.
PCMCIA indeed gives the best performance throughput [vs. FW/USB] ... RME multiface or the new RPM would be ideal but not workable pricewise. [ motu 828 - Presonus FirePod are in the same league ]

I'm a bit reluctant on going the USB route as there are potentially more problems possible - though I don't say that is/would be the case ... I prefer to use the USB for controller duties alone.

The only USB2 interface I'm aware of is the Edirol but I'm a bit cautious of becoming a potential betatester of new technology.

Not the Quattro, but Quatafire , a new Firewire - http://www.esi-pro.com/viewProduct.php?pid=16&page=1 - audio interface by Esi-Pro , with following main spec :

- 4 channel analog Input (24-bit/96kHz)
- 8 channel analog Output (Supports up to 24-bit/192kHz)
- 24-bit 96kHz 2 channel S/PDIF [coaxial] digital I/O
- 2 MIC/INST Preamps with +48V Phantom Power
- 2 port MIDI I/O [32 MIDI channels]
- Headphone Amp with volume control
- Powered by FireWire bus or external power supply
- Support for WDM, MME and ASIO2.0 driver

24bit/96 khz isn't that important [ yet/for the moment] but always a plus if it's there ... for the moment I'm still working 16/44 ...

The spec above resumes quite good what I'm looking for as to features.
FW410 - Quatafire - Edirol FA101 are all in the same league with some minor differences in between them.
My main issue is stability ànd live ànd in the studio ... and portability.

I've had good luck with the EGOsys AG... it isn't quite as high end as what you're looking at, but their higher end stuff might not be so bad.

What I've read about EGoSys/Esi-Pro is kinda mixed as well, though I have the impression they are gearing up to make a move towards the lower end of the pro-audio stable, especially with this Quatafire.

My only experience with them is the release of their new drivers for the Hoontech audio cards [taken over by Esi_Pro ] which I'm using now in my desktop . After a few unstable Release Candidates they brought out a very stable driver that slashed my latency from 12 ms to 2.5-5 ms ...

Also their DirectWire technology looks very interesting : http://www.esi-pro.com/directwire.php in order to pipe audio from eg. not Rewirable solutions in eachother.

[Btw, I'min the process of ordering the Toshiba P10-221 laptop ... very nice bang for the buck -posted the spc in this thread : http://www.ableton.com/forum/viewtopic. ... 2&start=15 ]

[FORMAT]

The TiBook / Motu 828 combination works reasonably well for me... it's not without crashes, but fairly reliable and sounds great.

F.

[screamingFit]

The TiBook / Motu 828 combination works reasonably well for me... it's not without crashes, but fairly reliable and sounds great.

F.

I'll have to second that. Except I don't have crashes. I've used lots of kit and this setup (Powerbook, MOTU 828 and Live) is by far the most stable, responsive and "just works" computer-based rig I've ever had the pleasure of using!

[FORMAT]

I'll have to second that. Except I don't have crashes. I've used lots of kit and this setup (Powerbook, MOTU 828 and Live) is by far the most stable, responsive and "just works" computer-based rig I've ever had the pleasure of using!

So tell me, how did you do that?
I crash infrequently but it does happen......

[gaspode]

I've forgotten more about OS X than I remembered... but when you crash, do you get a core dump of any kind... is it the UI crashing or does the entire system go down?

I just find it rather odd that the entire system would blow up... can you check to make sure all of your binaries haven't been corrupted, do a memory test... anything like that? Once in a while I hear about non-apple authorised memory upgrades causing problems due to BIOS(?) issues... just a thought.

Unfortunately I just don't remember all of this stuff as my last G4 350 bought the farm and can now only boot up well enough to make the booting noise, and nothing else.

[FORMAT]

Well mostly it's the "Program quits but system not affected" kind. Sometimes kernel panics too but very rarely.
Programs quitting include IE, Word, Live, Logic.....

[Moody]

I can not nescessarilly recommend something but here is my setup and it works.... it works very well and you can get going with this setup for less then some laptops out there you may be looking at.

Laptop: Compaq Evo N610c
Pentium 4 M 2.2 ghz
512MB RAM

Audio: MOTU 828MKII
2 Preampped Inputs
8 Analog Inputs/Outputs
1 ADAT Input/Output

Audio: Behringer Ultragain Pro-8
8 Preamped Inputs/Outputs
1 ADAT Input/Output

Head to eBay and pickup this laptop for under $1000 US. Hastle whoever you have to to get a brand new MOTU 828MKII for around $800 US and the Behringer (if aditional preamped channels are nescessary) for $200 US. Now all this will provide you with a rig that is under the cost of most new laptops and will provide not only some good audio but some serious multitrack recording. I run the Behringer Utragain to the MOTU 828MKII via the ADAT channels so I can mic up drums or guitars for some interesting sounds. And for the most important recommendation I can give is if you use a MOTU 828MKII please calll there presales help and find out which PCMCIA firewire card to buy. There are only a few brands that work well with this product and it is well worth your time to go and find one of these.

[gaspode]

check www.8thstreet.com and www.audiomidi.com I think they've got motu 828mkII for around $725-$750 if you don't mind ordering online.