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Speaking of computers, what are you using - desktop, laptop, or tablet?


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I used a Mac G4 tower for about 12 years, running PTLE. Late last year, I upgraded to a 21" i5 basic iMac, upgraded to PT Native 10 and upgraded various plugins to current versions. I only record solo fingerstyle acoustic and classical guitar, and occasionally vocal/guitarists. No need for a powerhouse computer.

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eMac running PTLE

It's very stable, and very low-powered - with little more than 8 stereo tracks (16 mono) and an aux return or 2, it goes freak.gif

Within its limits, it's a great machine

I'm planning on installing PTLE on my HP laptop on monday to do some field recording. I'm expecting it to be far less stable than the eMac, mainly because of the puny amount of memory that the laptop has idn_smilie.gif

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Quote Originally Posted by Zooey

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My vote stays the same. For my daw (PT HD), an iMac is the functional equivalent of a laptop in a slightly less portable form factor. You can't use it without an external chassis.

 

Quite true. My desktop and laptop are running two different versions of the program. That's less of a limitation than it once was, but I definitely can't run all the same things on the laptop that I can on the TDM setup. I've been thinking about either getting a Magma chassis, or maybe a Apollo or a PT Native Thunderbolt or something along those lines for the laptop. Not sure which way I'm going to go yet, but I sure love the portability of the laptop. Seemed to me that while the iMac would have been a slightly faster machine, from a DAW standpoint, it does sit in that "in-between" zone - without the mobility of a laptop, but also without the card slots of a tower. A good deal for many people, but less of an ideal fit for my needs.
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Tower for me. I build my own DAW computers, usually based on hardware recommendations from the DUC. My current system was built for PT HD with a Jetway motherboard that has four PCI slots. Since then I've switched from HD to HD Native with the PCIe card, but the computer still works just fine. It'll probably be a while before I make any changes, unless something comes along that forces it.

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Quote Originally Posted by MrJoshua

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My current system was built for PT HD with a Jetway motherboard that has four PCI slots. Since then I've switched from HD to HD Native with the PCIe card, but the computer still works just fine.

 

Just out of curiosity, which specific mobo and CPU are you running?
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I voted desktop, but right now my work flow goes like this. Church services recorded off an A&H ilive through Dante into a Mac mini with a external FireWire drive in Reaper. Transferred to my MacBook Pro for editing, initial mixing and transferred to Pro Tools. Final mixing done on a hackintosh. I do occasional mobile recording straight into Pro Tools with my MBP. And I can do pretty much everything with my MBP but do push it's limits. The hack has plenty of power and my mc mix attached in my treated room. So it's def my go to preference. wink.gif

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Quote Originally Posted by Phil O'Keefe View Post
Just out of curiosity, which specific mobo and CPU are you running?
MB: Jetway JNAF92-Q67
CPU: Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz
RAM: Corsair 4x4GB (16GB total) DDR3-1333 memory
VIDEO: Onboard video from i7
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Pro Tools HD 9.0
HD|3 PCI-x Accel
UAD-2 Duo

I have switched from HD|3 PCI-x Accel to HD|Native, though.
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Quote Originally Posted by MrJoshua View Post
MB: Jetway JNAF92-Q67
CPU: Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz
RAM: Corsair 4x4GB (16GB total) DDR3-1333 memory
VIDEO: Onboard video from i7
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Pro Tools HD 9.0
HD|3 PCI-x Accel
UAD-2 Duo
Sounds like quite a cool setup. cool.gif Is that mobo still available? Have you had any issues with it?

I have switched from HD|3 PCI-x Accel to HD|Native, though.
Interesting. What was your reason for doing so? Don't you miss the ability to run TDM plugins?

I notice you have the UAD-2 Duo too. I'd love to add one to my HD rig, but I'm not so sure I'd want to switch from one to the other exclusively. Besides, I suspect that it would cost me a fortune in plugins to reach parity with what I already have.

How are you getting along with the UAD? Do you like it?
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Quote Originally Posted by Phil O'Keefe View Post
CME, what interface are you using with the Mac Mini? Do you transfer to Pro Tools when you move the files from the Mini to the Macbook Pro, or do you continue working in Reaper on the MBP for a while, then switch to PT?
Our iLive system has the optional Audinate Dante card. So we just run a cat5 cable into the mac mini and use the Dante Virtual Soundcard software. It shows up as 64-channels I/O inside of the DAW. And that is why I use Reaper for tracking. Pro Tools is limited to 32 I/O without HD hardware.

And I transfer the audio files off the hard drive straight into Pro Tools session on the MacBook Pro. I have separate templates depending on which band does the music. Then go from there. Every once in a while I try to set down and work in Reaper. I'm just so much more use to the Pro Tools editing/mixing work flow.

That said the Dante card + reaper allows from some really cool stuff. For our Easter drama I can control levels and monitor sends for backing tracks/samples inside a Reaper session. While also recording the live music and singers. Takes me a minute to think things through sometimes. Could do it in Pro Tools without thinking about it. But it does help me get a better grasp of Reaper. I've toyed with the idea of building a pretty powerful computer to actually use plugs on live audio. But that would probably require the Dante PCIe card, and still might be a little too latent. Plus the iLive really has all I need. Just would be cool to try. wink.gif
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Quote Originally Posted by gubu View Post
Just been pricing old g4 and g5 Macs on eBay.

Damn, they're hella cheap!

Would my Waves 5 bundle/iLok install on an Intel machine, or would I have to buy an upgrade from Waves?
I don't know if the first sentence is related to your question about Waves, but G4 and G5 towers are not Intel machines.
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