Ableton Forum

Hi,

Looking to get a new laptop and start working on Live 10. Bedroom musician, with a few plug ins, keyboard, guitar, trigger pad. Budget of around £1500. I'm not picky on brand/type. I'm not techy when it comes to computing so any suggestions welcome.

Thanks!

Hello, I would say the next specs would do:

* i7 Intel
* 16 Gb Ram
* SSD for OS, and SSD for Data
* Enough USB ports for pheriphials

* An audio interface for serious recording/playback - enhances the stability - would set you back another $150,= or more

Laptops with i7 processors often have CPU throttling, which makes them not that much better than i5. Some gaming laptops and others are exceptions.

The new intel i5 are quad core now, so that should see a big improvement over the old i5/i7.

Yeah Martin you are right about throttling. On some laptops it can be disabled though, but not all indeed! Maybe a fast i5 is the way to go, although as far as I know i5 CPU's don't have 8 threads......

Thanks for the tips all.

Is there specific models you could suggest? Also seems that not everyone uses a Mac book, which I thought was the standard.

I don't know if you can buy a Macbook Pro for $ 1500,= In fact I do know - you can't buy a new one for that amount of money. I doubt a Macbook Air is good enough for the task. I'm not into Mac's so better wait until a Mac guy/girl chimes in if you want a Mac......

I'm still using a Macbook Pro mid-2012 (i7, 2.6ghz quad core) and it will take absolutely anything I throw at it music-wise - multiple instances of Diva, recording on loads of channels, running High Sierra, loads of apps at the same time etc. You can pick one up 2nd hand nowadays for about £600.

Then its just a case of:
Sticking 16gb in it (2x8gb sticks = approx £65)
Swap out the HDD with an SSD (Samsung EVO 250gb = £80)
Remove the CD Drive + put the old HDD in as a 2nd drive (£20 + a few quid for screwdrivers)
Put the now removed CD drive in an external enclosure (£20 again)
Get an HDMI adaptor to use a 2nd monitor (£20)

So that approx £800 and you've got yourself basically a world beater. I haven't seen any benefit in upgrading for about 5 years and I used to be a fiend for running out of processing power. Then blow the remaining £700 on plugins and a decent soundcard or monitors

Okom, does it really have to be a laptop? £1500 could get you a great desktop/tower, which will offer you far better opportunities for future upgrades.

I've just gone 64 bit (due to Live & Cubase now being 64 bit only) with a new PC from an audio specialist that's custom built and stress tested by them before shipping.

It was a little more than £1500 but I chose to beef up certain things.

I did exaclty the same as 102455, and bought a specialist PC in an 19" server case. I bought it in the Netherlands, see: https://www.soundsupplies.nl/PRODAW/PRODAW-max-19-inch

These are build and tuned to make music, and are bang for the buck!!!

if you're a bedroom musician (like me) save your money and get a desktop - twice as powerful, half the cost and twice the screen

and it looks so cool on the tube...

It's for day to day stuff as well, so the laptop is needed unfortunately. I had thought a built desktop would be more powerful and cheaper, and also easier to upgrade as time passes. And it's not just for me, so a laptop is more practical for our joint needs.

any laptop will run live - just make sure it has a few usb ports on it for your audio interfaces and you're done

get a nice screen though:-)

The ASUS ROG gaming laptop range is popular with DJs - especially those who play video. I'd say one of those would be a safe bet.