Members noizyb Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 Man I'm back and forth on this...I've got the funds together, I can't decide Macbook Pro 2.2 with 200gig 7200rpm drive and Logic 8 express....(around $2450.00) or an ADK Pro Audio custom windows laptop Santa Rosa 4 gig Ram, 7200RPM 200 gig drive running Sonar 7 producer. Either will be interfaced with a Novation X-station 25 or XIO synth 25 for audio and controller duties. I'd love to hear everybody's thoughts... I know the usual apple/pc battle may ensue, and I'm not trying to stir the pot...It just helps getting as much input as possible before laying down the bucks. I've been a cakewalk guy forever, but Logic Express 8 looks damn capable and extremely friendly to learn. Thanks ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members r33k Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 Mac vs. PCnotebook vs. desktopLogic vs. Sonar Why just the two scenarios? Why not a Mac desktop running Logic, or a Windows laptop running Sonar? Tell us more about what you're trying to accomplish with this setup and we might have some opinions. EDIT: I missed the fact that your proposed PC solution was also a laptop. So I'm changing my reply to: Who really cares? Buy one and start making music. These kinds of choices just don't matter very much, apart from personal preference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members keybdwizrd Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 These sorts of threads can be found on virtually every forum that has to do with keyboards, recording, and/or music production. Mac users love their Macs. PC users say their PCs aren't nearly as bad as Mac users think they are. Personally, I believe this to be the case. People who switched from PC to Mac are generally happy with their decisions. Many are ecstatic. (I am one of those people.) I don't recall many, if any, threads about musicians dumping their Macs for PCs. That's about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members qtuner Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 i own one of the SR notebooks from ADK. Overall it is a great machine for music. I can use ableton live 6 at a 64 sample buffer. Here's what I don't like about the machine,- screen resolution could be higher- i'm not a fan of gloss screens- the screen could articulate further back. - the volume of the built in speakers is really low- asio4all doesn't work well with the built in sound card. I have to set it at a 512 buffer to work with Live. other than that, i think the machine is fantastic. I will buy another one in the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members noizyb Posted February 20, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 Mac vs. PC notebook vs. desktop Logic vs. Sonar Why just the two scenarios? Why not a Mac desktop running Logic, or a Windows laptop running Sonar? QUOTE] Because I want a laptop (fairly obvious from the two choices). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members noizyb Posted February 20, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 These sorts of threads can be found on virtually every forum that has to do with keyboards' date=' recording, and/or music production.QUOTE'] Thanks, I've read a good share of them...I prefaced the query by acknowledging the coverage of the topic...that's why I got specific on the exact pieces I was looking at, hoping for some specific remarks and not just the general "mac vs pc" which is already addressed in that popular TV commercial. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members noizyb Posted February 20, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 i own one of the SR notebooks from ADK. Overall it is a great machine for music. I can use ableton live 6 at a 64 sample buffer. Here's what I don't like about the machine,- screen resolution could be higher- i'm not a fan of gloss screens- the screen could articulate further back. - the volume of the built in speakers is really low- asio4all doesn't work well with the built in sound card. I have to set it at a 512 buffer to work with Live. other than that, i think the machine is fantastic. I will buy another one in the future. Great to hear from an ADK owner...I think their website could do better on images of actual machines to give you a better feel for the build and appearance of the machine too. How was your purchase experience with the company ?How much do you use the built in soundcard....do you also use an audio interface ..usb, firewire ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members qtuner Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 My buying experience was awesome. I live in Cincinnati,20 minutes from their shop. So I went down and looked at the machine before I purchased it. I dealt with the owner directly, and we worked out exactly what was good for me. Here are my specs 2.2 ghz core 2 duo2 gb ram200 gb 7200 rpm HDD I use a motu traveler as my main sound card and it works great. I'm looking for a smaller sound card to use tho. I find it is a pain in the ass to lug the traveler around sometimes. I'm thinking about picking up a rack that has a space for a laptop in it. another quirk that I forgot to mention is that the firewire (ilink) port is on the front of the machine. I was in the same situation as you last summer. I wanted a music laptop and it was a choice between adk and mac. I went with adk because it was significantly cheaper. I've been really happy with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members girevik Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 Thanks, I've read a good share of them... The problem with the majority of those threads is the software gets overlooked. The question you should really be asking is Sonar vs. Logic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members qtuner Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 What kept me from going with the mac was- I wanted windows xp, and I didn't feel like dealing with bootcamp- The fire wire 400 and firewire 800 port are not separate on the mac- the bus powered firewire port on the mac was pushed to the edge when running a motu traveler. - 7200 rpm hdd would be an expensive add on- my adk system was under 2 grand out the door. - Adk is 20 minutes from my house, so if I had a problem i could bang on their door. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Meatball Fulton Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 I would never advise you to switch OSes (and I'm a Mac guy) unless you have to. If you're already familiar with Sonar and Windows, why switch? It will take you a while (days? weeks? months?) to get up to speed in Logic...unproductive downtime! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members qtuner Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 I can't help you with the software choice. I use ableton live version 7. I just upgraded last weekend to suite. I'm still learning it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members noizyb Posted February 20, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 The problem with the majority of those threads is the software gets overlooked.The question you should really be asking is Sonar vs. Logic. It is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members girevik Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 It is. Well, I'm with Meatball then. If you can't think of a good reason to switch to Logic, stay with the Cakewalk platform. I originally got my Apple iBook to use Max/MSP, which wasn't available for Windows at the time. I'm considering Logic Studio in the future though, because of all the software instruments and effects you get for free. People used to have to pay $1000 for Logic Pro 7, just to use Sculpture and the high end reverb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members noizyb Posted February 20, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 I would never advise you to switch OSes (and I'm a Mac guy) unless you have to. If you're already familiar with Sonar and Windows, why switch? It will take you a while (days? weeks? months?) to get up to speed in Logic...unproductive downtime! I've spent a bit a time with Leopard at the Apple store...using Garageband, and Logic Express 8 on one machine....based on what I was able to bang out on an M-Audio controller on headphones in the store, I wasn't too intimidated.I realize there will be some things to learn and get used too, but I'm more interested in performance and capabilities I'm gaining by going in that direction. I don't want to ignore a better setup just to avoid a learning curve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cygnus64 Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 I would stick with Sonar unless you can think of a good reason to dump it. I cant, I can do anything with Sonar that I need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members idiotboy Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 +1. Stay the course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mildbill Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 On your choices of Logic vs Sonar and Mac vs PC, I'd most like Logic on a PC. Since that ain't gonna happen, I'd say the choice between DAWS is more important than the platform it runs on. I'd like Logic better than Sonar, but if you're using Sonar and are happy with it, you might as well stick with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Tony Scharf Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 If something works, why change it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members electrobaby Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 I dunno...but I love your avatar...makes me hungry for biscuits and taters...i reckon...uh-huhhhh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Awake77 Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 Never used Logic - but I'm a happy Sonar 7 user and don't think that will ever change with the consistant improvements Cakewalk has been making to that product. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mildbill Posted February 20, 2008 Members Share Posted February 20, 2008 Never used Logic - but I'm a happy Sonar 7 user and don't think that will ever change with the consistant improvements Cakewalk has been making to that product. Try recording midi release velocity from your A6 into Sonar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members noizyb Posted February 21, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 21, 2008 Thanks for all of the good input. I guess starting from scratch with platform and software was an option because I have completely liquidated my hardware home setup to make this purchase, and since I was starting over...I wanted to make sure that there wasn't a better way for my money. There is a certain pull and fascination with the Apple side, it being considered "the pro's choice", and used by so many at that level...but I certainly see sticking with a familiar and in some cases, much more accessible option with XP and a custom built machine. Scott at ADK has been awesome help thru emails, and I think I'm closing in on calling him and getting my laptop ordered. After having played a Novation X-station at GC, I'm sold on it as my audio/midi controller. Thanks again everyone ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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