That you for a very details answer. It completely makes sense. Looking around for alternatives while considering the fact that Macs don't lose value the same was as all other tech, I keep leaning more towards a high spec 15" rMBP.. But it would kill me to realize that it wasn't powerful enough - though it would be weird.jlgrimes wrote:GusHage wrote:ABLETON LIVE 9.2, expecting to update regularly.
I am aware that higher processing speeds and more ram are always a benefit, no matter what you are doing, but I am looking for at portable work station for everyday life as well..
I've looked at a lot of Retina MacBook Pros (I am currently using a windows desktop) and even though they look nice and feel nice in general, I am not sure if they are the right choice for music production.
I have an old (7 years I believe) 2,4 ghz quad core processor, 4GB of ram and I am running into some strange performance issues.. It might be that my PC is simply old and tired, because I recently upgraded to Win10 from Win7 and it seemed snappier for some time and then struggled again..
I have projects with up to 30-40 tracks sometimes most of them with multiple effects on them.
I have a PUSH which I am fond of and planning to carry around with my future laptop. I might perform live, but that is not a main concern.
- well, my actual question is:
1 are the current MacBooks the right choice for me / are they worth it?
I don't mind buying a used one (I'm from Denmark) and I don't mind waiting a little longer if someone thinks a performance upgrade is around the corner.
2 is there an alternative that makes sense?
I search the forums daily, but felt the need to ask directly.
Thanks in advance.
I'm guessing RAM/HD performance is what is messing with your system.
30-40 tracks can put a bind on you. I remember having performance issues with Live years ago on Windows because I only had 2-4 gigs of Ram. It worked fine in Sonar but I think that is Live being more geared for Live use, utilizing probably more RAM than other applications that doesn't require gapless playback.
That said I went Mac, Mac mini 16 gigs of Ram and do not have any issues doing multitrack projects although I tend to do multi-track projects on other DAWS like Studio One/Reaper because of workflow reasons when it comes to dealing with large track counts and mixing/automation capabilities.
I would think the two biggest performance increases are going to like 8 gigs or higher of Ram and SSD type drives. If you are on a mechanical drive, it can only handle so much (especially if your program doesn't have the best disk streaming code) but even then it takes time for the drive to find the proper files it need especially when the disk gets near full. With SSD, there is no moving parts and it the performance is almost as fast as RAM access, so it will be much faster doing alot of things.
Performance wise I don't think Mac vs PC makes much difference but it is more what components your Computer has. In general Macs tend to use higher end components, so it can be harder to go wrong with a Mac but that said even with Macs you get what you pay for. A MacBook Retina Display should be able to do about any task you need audio wise provided you get one with enough Ram. The processor should already be pretty powerful. A MacBook Air will be a different story though. From a SSD perspective, MacBook Airs load up very fast but their processors tend to be pretty outdated. Good for recording/mixing audio, but not so great for using Softsynths as they only have dual core processors. Going PC you could save some money but there will be some tradeoffs most likely. But that said with Mac or PC, you should be able to make music in the end.
My friend has a 13" rMBP and I was quite disappointed with its performance, I suppose the dual-core is to blame first, right? I believe he has 8 gigs.. I used it with my Steinberg and push, and though the CPU-meter ran lower, it didn't perform very well..
