Now that I need a new computer: Which DAW and which computer

[harom]

Hi,
I'm on the point of buying a new computer for my music-creating.
At this point I'm using a DEL-Inspiron-530-PC with Cubase 7.5 Artist.
I've been experimenting with Reaper and slowly I am falling in love with its logic, its routing-powers, its pricing ( ), its overall possibilities, its efficient computer-resource-handling, and so on. It's available for windows and Apple OS... You can hear me coming... Mac or PC?

The most important arguments that are pushing me to Mac are:
[*] There are DAWs that are only available for Mac and not for PC: Logic, Protools. I can not estimate the importance of being able to run these DAW's. I read and hear that they are the most popular DAW's in professional environments... So buying a machine that will not be able to run those might be a bottleneck in the long/short(?) run. Or maybe it does not matter and the created elements of a song in my DAW of choice can be transferred to the other DAW's using midi or wav? Does anyone have an idea of the 'importance' to switch to Logic or protools for interchangeability with the pro's when a song gets selected for further 'development'?
[*] A MAC can run Windows so all my windows-programs that I still use and do not have a Mac-substitute (like microsoft Access) can run on the Mac.
[*] My daughter has had a Mac for three years. The stability of the OS is superior to Windows...


The arguments that are pushing me towards a Windows-Machine:
[*] A mac is extremely pricy. Within the same budget the processor-hard disk-ram that I can put in a Windows machine is about 'times 2'. But again, maybe a Mac does not need as much power to deliver the same user experience. Can anyone give me some information on this comparison?
[*] I'm not bad with computers and built up quite some expertise in using them, so the argument of the apple OS being extremely user-friendly is not an issue for me.

I'm willing to invest in a mac if there is a sufficient added value.

I welcome your ideas and advice...

[andygabrys]

IMO:

I would choose a DAW that works on either Mac Or Windows.

In no particular order:

Reaper
Pro Tools (it's not just Mac)
Cubase
Digital Performer
Ableton Live

If you intend to mix projects recorded in large commercial studios ten using Pro Tools is an asset because at this point most studios have continued to drink the Kool-aid and maintain Pro Tools as their medium regardless of whether they are the "industry standard".

As far as a machine:

No question that PCs can be had very powerful for fairly little $$$. If you like that, go for it.

You can also get a custom PC build that has a Hackintosh operating system - and these can be very powerful but do have their own set of quirks.

In my case, I run Logic (which has only been available for the Mac since 2006 btw) and I run it on a Mac Pro.

If you are interested, you can find massively powerful Mac Pro 5,1 from the era of 2010 -early 2013 on eBay and from second hand dealers that are very inexpensive. That might be out of the comfort zone with no warranty and such, but there are a huge number of the machines out there and lots of spare parts available.

These have the advantage of very overbuilt server grade processors with 12 cores (24 total processing threads) with up to 128 GB of RAM, and internal storage for 6 hard drives plus SSDs streaming from a PCI card. As long as you don't need a Hunderbolt port you won't find anything wanting in these.

There is a growing group of us who have bought these machines recently, and they are bomber gear.

Most recent was a 12 core x 3.46 ghz 5,1 from 2012 with 64 GB of ram, for about $1500. Compare that against anything out there.

If you do a fair amount or virtual work (sample libraries, orchestral mock ups etc) you will have lots of power on tap.

If you value portability or have other needs (thunderbolt etc) it may not be for you.

Good luck!!!

[harom]

Hello Andy,
Thanks for sharing your opinion.
I'm looking on ebay and am impressed by the price-specs-balance of the power mac's from some years ago.
Are those machines silent enough to be in the same room where vocals are recorded?

Also thanks for pointing out my mistake about pro-tools. This is probably one extra argument to go Windows if I would decide to buy a brand new machine .

Kind Regards,
Hans

[andygabrys]

Good question on the noise.

I have found them to be not an issue with quiet acoustic guitar or vocals, but I also have mine tucked under my desk away from the mic, and in general I use an SSD system drive and SSD sample drives on the aforementioned PCI card and all of those are very quiet in operation.

As they say YMMV - Your mileage may vary.

[mojobone]

I have such a machine and use it in the same room where I do the tracking (often with very quiet acoustic instruments, like dulcimer) and noise has not been an issue, even with four large magnetic drives, only two of which are internal. Apple did a great job designing the little sleds the drives fit into, with the rubber grommets and all. The whole rig is way less noisy than the Win7 laptop I'm typing this on; in fact, I can't tell if a fan is running, unless I touch my skull to the case.

If I were buying now, I think I'd look at a RADAR system, but my needs are probably different from yours; I record ensembles and sometimes I track live drums, so I need more inputs than most folks, and I'm spoiled for preamps, clocking and conversion, already. I'm not sure the DAW matters all that much, except it's about workflow and what you're used to, how fast can you get around? I'll have ProTools on my studio machine so guests can use it, but I'm a Tracktion guy. Ableton is great if you do a lot of loop-based stuff, Reaper is very fully spec'ed and well-priced, Logic is a great starter, cuz almost all the included instruments are usable in a professional situation, Digital Performer integrates well with scoring software, maybe the best if you use tons of MIDI tracks and need to print out parts. Maybe have a look at Harrison Mixbus; it's very straightforward and focused, with a limited set of tools, which helps you work quickly.

[harom]

Hi mojobone,
Thanks for your information! Very useful.
I'm not so familiar with 'RADAR system' and googling does not help that much (lots of information about radar-systems to make plains land safely ).
Any links or extra information on that?

The machine you are using: did you buy a new or used one? In the latter case:ever had problems with hardware?

Kind regards,
Hans

[harom]

Hi mojobone,
Found RADAR... Looks great but a bit out of scope for my applications at this moment.

[mojobone]

I have such a machine and use it in the same room where I do the tracking (often with very quiet acoustic instruments, like dulcimer) and noise has not been an issue, even with four large magnetic drives, only two of which are internal. Apple did a great job designing the little sleds the drives fit into, with the rubber grommets and all. The whole rig is way less noisy than the Win7 laptop I'm typing this on; in fact, I can't tell if a fan is running, unless I touch my skull to the case.

If I were buying now, I think I'd look at a RADAR system, but my needs are probably different from yours; I record ensembles and sometimes I track live drums, so I need more inputs than most folks, and I'm spoiled for preamps, clocking and conversion, already. I'm not sure the DAW matters all that much, except it's about workflow and what you're used to; how fast can you get around? I'll have ProTools on my studio machine so guests can use it, but I'm a Tracktion guy. Ableton is great if you do a lot of loop-based stuff, Reaper is very fully spec'ed and well-priced, Logic is a great starter, cuz almost all the included instruments are usable in a professional situation, Digital Performer integrates well with scoring software, maybe the best if you use tons of MIDI tracks and need to print out parts. Maybe have a look at Harrison Mixbus; it's very straightforward and focused, with a limited set of tools, which helps you work quickly.

[kclements]

For me, the idea of learning a new DAW is too daunting. I am so comfortable with mine - even though there are new and shiny new DAWs out their that have attractive features and lots of things going for them, I am not ready to make the commitment to jump ship and take the down time to learn my way around. I flirt with other workstations, but when it's time to get to work, I go with what I know.

I think the same holds true for OS. There are not that many differences between the Mac and PC anymore - but when it comes to troubleshooting, your tricks on the Mac won't work on the PC and visa versa. And the little things may add up to decreased productivity and increased stress.

My advice, stick with what you know. If you have experience in Windows and Cubase - upgrade your machine and get the latest version of Cubase. Don't be lured into "This is the industry standard...." who cares? Unless you are required to collaborate in a particular environment, you can get anything you need to done in just about any DAW - certainly any major DAW available.

All these things are just tools. It's what you do with the DAW, not which one you use. Last time I heard, Donald Fagen was still using Atari ST for midi!

Cheers
kc

[fuzzbox]

Hi Harom,
I can only speak about a PC as I have never owned a Mac. I did the same analysis before I purchased a music computer. I came to the conclusion that a PC is the way to go.
This is because you can easily source parts that are readily available. They're easy to build and fairly easy to maintain. For example upgrading the RAM and swapping out HDD for SSDs (maybe the same for the Mac I don't know).

Wouldn't Cubase Pro 8.5 be the way to go if you've already familiar with Cubase Artist? You would probably get a deal on an upgrade path to C8.5 Pro.

Either way it's an exciting time to buy a new music computer!

Good luck ♫♪♫