Switching From Pc To Mac?

[gilly]

Hey, all!

So, I haven't actually gotten into the apparently daunting task of working with music software yet because I'm still working on a game plan as far as hardware goes. I'm starting college in about a month and a half and they're giving me a new laptop as part of my scholarship, so I'm kind of stuck until I get that.

The scholarship computer's specs from last year:

Dell Latitude E6510 http://www.dell.com/us/business/p/latitude-e6510/pd

*2.53GHz IntelCore 2-Duo 15-540M processor

*15.6" Full HD(1920x1080) Wide view Anti-glare LED display

*250 GB Hard Drive

*10/100 Gibabit Ethernet

*light sensitive webcam and noise canceling Digital array mic

*Intel Wi-Fi LInk 6300

*4 GB RAM

*Intel HD Graphics for Latitude-D6510

*Windows7 Professional, 64bit

*Dell wireless 375 bluetooth module

*8x DVD+/-RW Drive

This year's should be the same or better. So, a few questions.

Is this computer sufficient for working with a program like Sonar and whatever else I need as a beginner? If not, should I upgrade it or buy a Mac?

If so, and I use the PC, is it worth it to switch to a Mac after a year or two? Would that mean that I lose all my work or would the transfer options Apple offers allow me to save whatever I've done when I start using Garageband and later Logic Studio?

If/when I get a Mac, would it be better to go for a Macbook Pro or just use an iMac desktop setup?

Thanks!

[Prometheus]

Is this computer sufficient for working with a program like Sonar and whatever else I need as a beginner?

With ease.

If not, should I upgrade it or buy a Mac?

Macs are vastly overpriced and much more difficult to repair and upgrade than PC's.

If so, and I use the PC, is it worth it to switch to a Mac after a year or two?

Personally, I wouldn't even consider using a Mac.

Would that mean that I lose all my work or would the transfer options Apple offers allow me to save whatever I've done when I start using Garageband and later Logic Studio?

You should make backups of all your work as you do it. Hard drives don't buy the farm very often, but it does happen.

If/when I get a Mac, would it be better to go for a Macbook Pro or just use an iMac desktop setup?

I would stick with a PC. Same spec or better for a quarter of the price. I would personally use a desktop for recording, or even a PC custom built for that purpose. I'd make sure to upgrade to a soundcard or alternative Analogue to Digital converter specifically designed for recording music at 24 bit quantization and above Nyquist's limit.

To record on a laptop, you'll maybe want to look at USB interfaces, since the soundcard will probably not be upgradeable.

[gilly]

Hmm, alright. Thanks for the insight! Is there a particular brand of desktop PC that's best for this? The music store I went to the other day only had iMacs set up, but I imagine you couldn't really split your time between a Windows 7 laptop and an iMac.

EDIT: I also need a set-up for video editing, which is part of why I'm interested in a Mac. The arguments that Mac offerings like Logic Studio and Final Cut are intuitive and sort of, like, user friendly seem pretty compelling.

Edited June 28, 2011 by gilly

[Prometheus]

Hmm, alright. Thanks for the insight! Is there a particular brand of desktop PC that's best for this?

Any PC that's been built in the last ten years will be more than up to audio work with an inexpensive sound card upgrade. For video Editing I'd suggest you have at least 1 Gig of RAM and at least a 256 Meg graphics card that isn't an onboard one.

The music store I went to the other day only had iMacs set up, but I imagine you couldn't really split your time between a Windows 7 laptop and an iMac.

There's no reason not to split the time between the laptop and the Mac. Having both of them would actually be advantageous. In any case, audio and video editing programs tend to be able to import and export Mac and PC formats.

EDIT: I also need a set-up for video editing, which is part of why I'm interested in a Mac. The arguments that Mac offerings like Logic Studio and Final Cut are intuitive and sort of, like, user friendly seem pretty compelling.

A PC gives you Adobe AfterEffect and Coral Video and a multitude of other excellent video editing programs. All my video editing is done on PC.

[gilly]

Ok, thanks a lot. If it's reasonable to use both, then I think I'll get an iMac to go with whatever the PC is. Though, I might sell whatever the professional model is that I get and buy a customized Dell XPS to work better with media applications. Thanks again!

[Prometheus]

Ok, thanks a lot. If it's reasonable to use both, then I think I'll get an iMac to go with whatever the PC is. Though, I might sell whatever the professional model is that I get and buy a customized Dell XPS to work better with media applications. Thanks again!

Not a problem...

Both a PC or a Mac will handle anything you need in audio and video work... In terms of performance you can't really lose either way.

[JohnMichaels]

I use a MacBook pro, and it provides way more power than I've ever needed for recording software. I mostly use Ableton Live.

That specs on that Dell should be enough to run some serious software, so I would just try it out and see if it works. If it does what you want then stick with it...the problem is that when you go with PCs it can be very hit-or-miss, because there's so much inconsistency between models and companies.

I used to have a Dell Inspiron 1505 and had SO many problems trying to run recording software on it. Like, disgustingly stupid problems...where the audio would just grind to a halt for no reason whatsoever, and the software would become unusable for hours. I'm a pretty computer savvy person, and I investigated this thoroughly, so I wasn't just doing something dumb. It was a Core 2 Duo, more than enough ram and memory. I even bought and installed Windows 7, because I read that the problems could be related to Vista. Nothing.

I finally junked it and upgraded to a macbook pro, and ALL my headaches are gone. Things just work. USB devices are way easier to use too...I used to have to restart everything when I plugged in a midi controller just to get the computer to recognize it.

However, I have a friend that swears by his HP, and runs some pretty demanding recording software on it on a regular basis. So it all depends, but I personally will never buy a Dell again.

Also, Macs are NOT overpriced. They cost more than PCs on average because they only use quality components. You can't buy a Mac with a crap graphic card or a junky processor--they just don't make them. Also they just work, and people know it. They're the industry standard among musicians and photographers for a reason. Because Mac controls the development of both the hardware and and software, there are almost none of the compatibility issues you get with PCs (Where Windows makes the software, Dell makes the computer, and a bunch of other companies make the components).

Also, they are difficult to repair and upgrade, but that doesn't matter because it's really unlikely you'll need to do either. I was an idiot once and left mine on the hood of my car after a gig, and it flew off when I was going 50 mph. I found it in the middle of the street with the screen open and on. It still works perfectly. No joke.

Between the iMac and the MacBook, I would definitely recommend you go with the MacBook. I was really torn between the two before I bought my MBP, so I did a lot of research on them. The iMacs aren't noticeably faster or more powerful, unless you go SUPER high end, in which case you'll get some seriously diminishing returns on your investment. The big screen is cool, but you can just get a $100-200 monitor with the money you save. And you'll REALLY miss the portability of having a laptop if you get an iMac.

So anyway, ranting aside...if your Dell works then I see no reason to upgrade. But if it doesn't I'd look into a Mac!

[gilly]

I'm now pretty sure I'm buying a second laptop for gaming as well as media work and mostly using the Dell for schoolwork, and I'm actually leaning toward an HP Pavilion dv7. The only shortcoming of a Mac is it doesn't seem nearly as equipped for gaming as a properly configured PC. I still really want to use one though, so I'll probably end up buying either a Macbook Pro or a Mac desktop in the future. I'm thinking you're right though and it would be better to go with a MBP and another monitor than just an iMac.

Thanks so much for all the advice!

[JohnMichaels]

I'm now pretty sure I'm buying a second laptop for gaming as well as media work and mostly using the Dell for schoolwork, and I'm actually leaning toward an HP Pavilion dv7. The only shortcoming of a Mac is it doesn't seem nearly as equipped for gaming as a properly configured PC. I still really want to use one though, so I'll probably end up buying either a Macbook Pro or a Mac desktop in the future. I'm thinking you're right though and it would be better to go with a MBP and another monitor than just an iMac.

Thanks so much for all the advice!

No problem Yeah, I really can't speak to the gaming side of Macs but I have heard a lot of good things about HPs...

Best of luck with whichever one you choose!

[Prometheus]

They're the industry standard among musicians and photographers for a reason.

To be fair, I think that's a bit of a stretch. I know a lot of musicians and sound engineers I've worked with over the years, and I can't think of any who use a MAC. Some of them don't even use a MAC or a PC.

I don't know anything about photography, but the vast majority of audio studios I've been in, which is a shitload, use PC's. Could just be because most people who run studios are poor, I don't know... The only people who ever paid me well were corporate gigs, and that was really soul destroying stuff that I tried to avoid, recording cheesy ditties for truck roll-outs and suchlike, so buying a MAC would have been an extravagance I couldn't afford even if I didn't think they were overpriced and over-hyped.

I served a year of my time on a Pro Tools rig on a MAC G5, and it was a highly unpleasant experience. The amount of hours lost due to the thing crashing would have been risible if it wasn't so serious. I don't know if there was some kind of conflict between the MAC and D-A interface or what, I never got to examine the problem, but the MTBF on that set up was best measured in minutes. I don't remember ever doing any recording work where the MAC didn't buy the farm at least once.

If you buy your PC to order purchasing only high quality components, you'll get twice as much audio processing done per dollar you spend, and then some.

[Prometheus]

I'm now pretty sure I'm buying a second laptop for gaming as well as media work and mostly using the Dell for schoolwork, and I'm actually leaning toward an HP Pavilion dv7. The only shortcoming of a Mac is it doesn't seem nearly as equipped for gaming as a properly configured PC. I still really want to use one though, so I'll probably end up buying either a Macbook Pro or a Mac desktop in the future. I'm thinking you're right though and it would be better to go with a MBP and another monitor than just an iMac.

Thanks so much for all the advice!

Whatever you choose, I'm sure it'll work out fine.

[TheBrewer]

Being a computer engineer for a couple of years, i can tell you that i was only using PC's before for everything i was doing. When i started making music, i first used my best PC and i realized quickly that i didn't fulfill my needs (i tend to be a CPU power user :-P). I switched 2 months ago for an IMAC and i'm in heaven since then...

Pascal

[Prometheus]

Being a computer engineer for a couple of years, i can tell you that i was only using PC's before for everything i was doing. When i started making music, i first used my best PC and i realized quickly that i didn't fulfill my needs (i tend to be a CPU power user :-P). I switched 2 months ago for an IMAC and i'm in heaven since then...

Pascal

You must be doing something a lot more processor intensive than audio editing then... Anyone who can't record, edit and mix audio with a 1Ghz processor and a half gig of memory or above is not doing it right.

Even in terms of processing power, a high end PC will always give you more than a MAC. The open hardware configuration of PC's induces far more competition and ensures they always stay on top.

[TheBrewer]

I guess i have a clue why...

Would it be less demanding on the CPU if i would have my Kontakt's plug-in opened up in the same Kontakt player than having one opened for every Kontakt's plug-ins? I mean, i freeze all my tracks to be sure i won't use too much of CPU and memory, but doing what i assume is going to help me??

Thanks!

[Prometheus]

I guess i have a clue why...

Would it be less demanding on the CPU if i would have my Kontakt's plug-in opened up in the same Kontakt player than having one opened for every Kontakt's plug-ins? I mean, i freeze all my tracks to be sure i won't use too much of CPU and memory, but doing what i assume is going to help me??

Thanks!

I'm afraid I'm not familiar with that particular software.

[Retrosaurus Rex]

I guess i have a clue why...

Would it be less demanding on the CPU if i would have my Kontakt's plug-in opened up in the same Kontakt player than having one opened for every Kontakt's plug-ins? I mean, i freeze all my tracks to be sure i won't use too much of CPU and memory, but doing what i assume is going to help me??

Thanks!

Loading all the sample sets for multiple instruments would probably cause issues due to the amount of memory in use before any CPU problems. Still, it would be somewhat more CPU efficient to load several instruments into one instance of Kontakt, than to load multiple instances. Kontakt has plenty of outputs to use it this way as well.

[TheBrewer]

I figured out i used the word CPU instead of MEMORY... This is what i wanted to mean... Thanks Ret Rex! I'll play with Kontakt and Logic a little bit tonight to verify...

[edshaw]

The terms of the scholarship are a little unclear. Where does the latitude enter the picture? Are you talking about buying another computer for sound work? Why? You're not exactly hurting with a 2.53G dual core Intel, although if you have a choice, find out the minimum specs for Avid Media Composer. I think it's 2.4 but can't remember exactly. Whatever it is, try and get it.

I mention Media Composer because the Avid Suite uses ProTools for sound, and that is a great place to be.

PC based Protools, not Mac Based. There's not a damn thing wrong with Mac. I can tell you, as fast as technology changes, your software support needs to run to keep up. Apple has traditionally been on top of all those changes, especially in web based and broadcast digital video. They slipped when the iPod made them rich, from what I hear, and Avid has jumped into the void. As a student, you can buy MC5 and ProTools student discount from Academic Superstore. Pinnacle never used to do this. It is a company with a marketing department on the move. Learn about Avid. Final Cut, I think, was built from parts bought from Avid, the traditional Hollywood favorite.

You didn't mention your major. That's a very important item. If you plan to major in media, they should have specified the graphics card and the HD should be 7200rpm. The cache needs to be right, too. I forget, L2 or L4. While you are at it, have them ship with a couple of extra 500 - 1000 hard drives, Seagates if you can get them, both for backup and speed.

When you say transfer options, I wouldn't worry about that. Most of us save the finished work and shelve the hard drives or erase the original data. By the time you graduate, 100 GB Sandisks ought to be about ten dollars

So, there's a bunch more stuff to think about.

If I were a student and had the money, I'd get the Power Mac Tower before the MacBook Pro, even though I love my MBPro

Edited October 9, 2011 by edshaw

[Kerryn]

I only want to mention that there is a platform-specific software that runs only on either Mac or PC. Thus, if you are considering moving from PC to Mac eventually, I recommend using programs that run on both (e.g. Ableton Live) so you won't lose your work after switching. And if you think of Logic, it would be better to buy Mac straightaway.

Besides host programs, some plug-ins are also Mac-only or PC-only. For example, Cakewalk z3ta softsynth runs on Windows, and you would be very disappointed to find that you can't use all the custom sounds (presets) you created. Yes, you can install Windows on Mac and work with it there, but, in all honesty, it is a terrible idea. For this reason, always check whether certain software runs on both operational systems or not.

[Prometheus]

I only want to mention that there is a platform-specific software that runs only on either Mac or PC. Thus, if you are considering moving from PC to Mac eventually, I recommend using programs that run on both (e.g. Ableton Live) so you won't lose your work after switching. And if you think of Logic, it would be better to buy Mac straightaway.

Besides host programs, some plug-ins are also Mac-only or PC-only. For example, Cakewalk z3ta softsynth runs on Windows, and you would be very disappointed to find that you can't use all the custom sounds (presets) you created. Yes, you can install Windows on Mac and work with it there, but, in all honesty, it is a terrible idea. For this reason, always check whether certain software runs on both operational systems or not.

A very good point raised here.