good laptops for Recording??

[jmather]

Hey everyone - pretty soon I'll be in the market for a laptop to do off sight recording. I use Sonar and plan to use a 2 input interface with it. Any advice as far as brands, good deals and what to look for internally in the computer when purchasing? Thank you!Justin

[che]

Wow,You must be reading our mind. We will be in the market for exactly what you just said. We use Sonar also. We are traveling to LA this summer and need to set up a laptop studio while there so that we aren't out of commission while away.We are considering getting a E-MU sound card check out this link http://www.emu.com/products/welcome.asp?category=505&We are looking into the 1616M by them but would love feedback from someone who's been down this road already. Am also very interested in what computer is suggested. I can really go spec crazy if left to go it alone. We have 9 computers currently (2 of those are laptops) so I have a general idea what we need, but maybe someone can suggest what' s worked best for them.

[ncc1701]

Well, I can tell you the SigmaTel Audio sound card that comes in the Dell XPS M140 laptop does NOT work with Sonar.Grrrr. Kathleen

[mazz]

If you're considering a Windows machine, I'd strongly suggest buying a machine that is purpose-built for audio. The folks that do this all day long really know how to tweak the machine, OS and soundcards so when it shows up at your doorstep, it's plug and play. You don't want to have to troubleshoot .dll files when you should be recording, particularly live shows! If you like futzing with computers, then by all means go with off the shelf, but every time this subject comes up I ask two questions: 1. If you weren't messing around with your computer, how much music would you be writing? 2. How much is your time worth?I don't know much about this company and am not recommending them but they are in the DAW business and they came up on a Google search for "DAW laptop" http://www.pcaudiolabs.com/daws.asp?cat=compGood luck!Mazz

[jmather]

Thanks a lot Mazz - I guess that was question: will the off the shelf computer do it? I'll check out your link.thanks againMather

[guscave]

Quote:If you're considering a Windows machine, I'd strongly suggest buying a machine that is purpose-built for audio. The folks that do this all day long really know how to tweak the machine, OS and soundcards so when it shows up at your doorstep, it's plug and play. You don't want to have to troubleshoot .dll files when you should be recording, particularly live shows! MazzTotally agree with Mazz here. I've seen too many cases where Windows based laptop can not handle the man hours involved in mobile recording, and either crash or get stuck somewhere in the middle of the project.I as well as some other friends have used mac laptops for live mobile recording (5 to 7 hours) and they never gave us any trouble.I really don't know of any laptop off the shelf that is as reliable for what you want. If you're going to go with Windows, definitely get an audio specific system. p.s. Don't flame me for being a mac boy

[jmather]

Hey guscave - thanks for your input. I have considered switching over to mac but I use a pc in my studio and I'm comfortable with it, so I need to stay consistent. Mather

[che]

The Mac vs PC debate is always interesting around here. We are strictly PC based, but keep threating to get a mac for studio purposes. Since we use Sonar and are very comfortable with it I think our laptop will be PC based mainly for compatibility purposes. We hadn't considered using a company that specializes in this...duh. We were just gonna modify an off the shelf version seeing as we deal with computers alot. But MAZZ statement "1. If you weren't messing around with your computer, how much music would you be writing? 2. How much is your time worth?"brings up a great point. Good luck Mather. If you figure anything out it'd be great if you'd post the info.

[che]

One more note.... Just looked at one of the DAW systems and those specs or better are actually in some of the off the shelf laptops I've been researching. They also seem to use 1/8 jack inputs which I am not comfortable with. We will probably go with something that connects through Firewire and had 1/4 jacks etc on an outboard box like the E-mu mentioned earlier. It's running $400 for the best model. I'd rather spend more on my sound inputs and outputs. Also I would suggest at least 160 - 200 gig Hard Drive and no less than 2 gig of ram with a Intel dual core or AMD 64bit processer. We currently have the E-mu 1212m in our studio computer. We chose the model that has the M after it because it has "Mastering grade 24 bit/192khz converters - the same A/D converters used in Digidesign's flagship Pro Tools HD 192 I/O etc..."I think I have a little more clarity.... thanks again for the thread

[mazz]

I would also recommend going with an external hard drive. Unless you get a laptop that can handle 2 internal drives (not likely but maybe), then you are better off with a 7200RPM Firewire external drive dedicated to recording the audio. You probably already know this but just in case!I got the Emu 1212 for my new computer but I'm going to be using the ADAT outputs exclusively, no inputs. But I've been using the analog outputs for right now and it sounds just fine.Also, specs alone aren't telling the entire story. Most off the shelf computers are designed for business or home users and the operating systems are loaded up with a bunch of crap that just eat up your system resources. Someone who really knows DAWs can streamline the OS to the point that just the necessary "stuff" is in the system. They are the experts on this. You are an expert in music, they are experts in computers. Personally, that experience is worth a few extra bucks to the price of the computer because my time is better spent composing rather than cursing Bill Gates.Your mileage may vary!Mazz