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Music Production: PC vs Mac

post #1 of 5
8/3/04 at 11:00pm
Thread Starter 
I'm going to be purchasing a notebook specifically for music production and some web surfing. I've been hearing all kinds of conflicting things about the advantages of a Mac vs a PC (and vice-versa). I had my mind made up on a PC, but now I'm being told this isn't what I want to do. I have about $3,000 to work with for the system. I'm familiar with PC's and have never used a Mac. Is one really better than the other? Any tips from anyone who has some experience with this? I'm starting all of this from scratch and any help/advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks!!!!
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post #2 of 5
8/3/04 at 11:30pm
Thread Starter 
Oh, one more question. I'll be using drum and bass samples on the computer, but recording guitar and vocals also. I want the result to sound like a 4-piece hardcore band. What audio cards would you recommend? I really dont have a need for more than 2 inputs right now. Any other software suggestions would be great too. Thanks again.
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post #3 of 5
8/7/04 at 3:21am
What you need to do is look at the software you want to be running. What platforms do they run on? That's the computer to get. Apple used to dominate, but not so anymore. And with the advent of the newer operating systems, Apples are not as crash proof as they used to be. I work in a small music production studio and I am the PC guy. My partner is the Mac guy. With OS9 on Mac and Win98SE, I was the crashing one all the time. But with WinXP, I have crashed maybe twice in a year and a half. My partner on OS10? Crashes everyday. This is all subject to change because as os10 and beyond matures, the software will become more stable. So really, it boils down to the programs. Acid? PC only. Logic? Mac only. Digital Performer? Mac only. Cubase-cross platform.(and my personal choice). Sonar? PC Only. And so on.
With regards to audio hardware, get the most you can right now, because you may not think so, but you will grow into those extra inputs and outputs quickly.

HTH,
P
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post #4 of 5
8/7/04 at 4:53pm
The above post has good suggestions. What software are you familiar with? If PC software works well for you, stay with the PC platform. I would never want to have to learn another OS and another program based on someone else's say-so.

As for soundcards, I recently acquired the Echo Indigo I/O. With a decent microphone and phantom power supply, you can then record directly into the Indigo's line ready input and into your multitracking software.
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post #5 of 5
8/10/04 at 4:34pm
Pranaearth has good advice. I use my Sager laptop for performance, but I have Cakewalk Sonar and Adobe Audion installed in it as well. They both work extremely well. The Indigo is an excellent sound card, but if you are looking for something with more audio ins and outs like some sort of firewire box, make sure you can return it if it doesn't work. There can be some IRQ conflicts that might be harder to deal with in a laptop than a desktop.
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