Ableton Forum

I currently have two notebooks just sitting in my studio gathering dust.

One is a C2D 2.0Ghz with about 3gb of ram
The other is an first gen i5 with 4gb and 120gb SSD + 320gb 5400RPM.

I currently have a macbook pro 2011 as I realised after having those two notebooks the resale value on Windows PC's just isn't that much and no one is really interested in them.

So apart from the obvious "just sell them" what would you suggest in order to utilise at least just one of these notebooks?

Doesn't necessarily need to be music related.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

When you upgrade to Live 9 use one as a host for any lagging 32 bit only instrument plug ins you may have.
There are other solutions but this is obviously the most stable way.

No idea how a C2D 2.0Ghz or an i5 laptop could be considered as "old laptops".

You could always optimize them to play internet video games

Install XBMC or something and turn it into a cheap media centre.

Machinesworking wrote:When you upgrade to Live 9 use one as a host for any lagging 32 bit only instrument plug ins you may have.
There are other solutions but this is obviously the most stable way.

This could be an option. Although I am considering simplifying my setup in regards to plugins and using Live 9 instruments exclusively.

beatz01 wrote:No idea how a C2D 2.0Ghz or an i5 laptop could be considered as "old laptops".

Well they are old in comparison to my i7 macbook pro I suppose.
I know people do fine with the specs I consider 'old'. I managed to record an album on the C2D no worries and never failed me.

Eventful wrote: I would be interested in the i5 if it's for sale.
But I'm using a 2002 (I think) 1.xghz 512mb notebook for portable (and strictly) sample-based launchpad powering.

I live in Australia so that might be an issue. Otherwise if you live in Aus send me a PM

djadonis206 wrote:You could always optimize them to play internet video games

I was playing BF3 on the i5 but have been using the Macbook on Bootcamp recently to play.

jestermgee wrote:Install XBMC or something and turn it into a cheap media centre.

I already have a server which I utilise as a media centre.

Anyone else?

1. give to parents

2. be tech support ever after... it's your duty

3. important safety tip: make sure their browser history is set to auto-delete, or you may get a fright!

Smuttops for porn

Pitch Black wrote:1. give to parents

2. be tech support ever after... it's your duty

3. important safety tip: make sure their browser history is set to auto-delete, or you may get a fright!

The reason I bought a Macbook Pro with Applecare is so I could avoid that type of stuff myself.
Not going to subject myself to parental helpdesk requirements.

Soldering iron, plastic modeling resin, screws, aluminium plate (thin) etc.

Buy a cheap midi controller and see if you can marry the two together in a hybrid monster, with some clever shoehorning, their must be a way that the base unit of the laptop can sit underneath a keyboad and the sceen can be attached to the keyboard, then get a simple vst host and start mapping all the moves...



Could also take it out and do some field recording, sit in Cafes and generally look like someone making interesting a cool music whilst sipping coffee.

Notebooks can be good multimedia PCs if they have DVI or HDMI connectors.

I've got a Toshiba laptop I use for this. Made a few system tweaks to make it work best:

• Set it up so that it doesn't go to sleep when you shut the lid (because I keep it folded up on a shelf).
• Made it so it only shows a desktop on the external monitor
• Plugged in a wireless keyboard and mouse set so I can wake it up remotely by pressing a key or wiggling the mouse. I was annoyed because my mouse and keyboard were both Microsoft devices from the same product family, but both still require separate dongles to plug into the computer. If you only want one dongle, best to find a Keyboard/Mouse combo kit... recently got a Dynex set for a different computer at Best Buy which works pretty great off a single dongle.

I use this thing several times a week for Netflix instant, DVDs, or AVI backups from my DVD collection. Its HDMI connection supports HDMI power management so it goes to sleep automatically when I turn my TV off (which I want).

You could always donate them somewhere.

You could try out lots of Linux software.

distaudio wrote:

Pitch Black wrote:1. give to parents

2. be tech support ever after... it's your duty

3. important safety tip: make sure their browser history is set to auto-delete, or you may get a fright!

The reason I bought a Macbook Pro with Applecare is so I could avoid that type of stuff myself.
Not going to subject myself to parental helpdesk requirements.

good luck with that. Applecare just means that you call in and an Apple tech walks you through a bunch of stuff and then blames your router or some other piece of non-Apple gear for (at least) the first 2 or 3 phone calls. could be faster to fix it yourself if/when you use 'time = money' type mathematics.

having Apple care ultimately just means that they can't say "well if you had Applecare...." and that they have to press on instead. the pain/time factor is the same as it is with any large company. the only other benefit is if, after half a dozen phone calls, you can get them to admit the issue is [Apple] hardware related you get a replacement. you can get the same from any number of manufacturers.

+ 1 for donating. there are a lot of programs that take used electronics to 3rd world countries and/or other situations where the devices still have value... school children etc.