Owen
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I7 Quad Core, what's the point?
I have been casually nosing around the laptop market and thinking about a purchase sometime this year. It seems as though the processor speeds in most of the I7 quads are slow and somewhere around the 1.7 G Hz range. This would seem to put it out of the recommended processor speed for the new X1 cakewalk software. Is there any point to having an I7 when the individual core speed is low. Is an I5 with a higher core speed, the better option?
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syntheticpop
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Re:I7 Quad Core, what's the point?
2011/01/25 01:12:47
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steer clear of the 740QM, 840QM if you're considering an i7 mobile processor. JSchild recommends the dual core 640M which runs at a faster clock speed of 2.8 Ghz. The 640M will also give you lower latency. You could go with an i5 to save some $, but get the fastest one you can afford. Get a laptop if you absolutely need one - if you plan on doing mobile recordings or for live use. A real studio computer that houses a DAW is a desktop. There is the exception of the $3K laptop that Scott could hook you up with. But if you plan on getting a laptop, there are things you want to look for besides a really fast processor - such as the ports. your laptop should have a firewire port (if planning on using a firewire interface), expresscard port - to add firewire if it doesn't have it, e-SATA (for your external e-SATA drives). Oh and a web cam to capture all those frustrating moments you'll have with your new laptop.
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jcschild
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Re:I7 Quad Core, what's the point?
2011/01/25 08:14:53
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"""Oh and a web cam to capture all those frustrating moments you'll have with your new laptop. """"
now thats funny!
to the OP as mentioned forget the quads the faster GHz duals are better.
there are a few good laptops to be had is using firewire interface but not from the big names..
if using USB then your chances are better but its still a minefield
Scott ADK Home of the Kentucky Fried DAW!
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Owen
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Re:I7 Quad Core, what's the point?
2011/01/25 11:54:33
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jcschild
"""Oh and a web cam to capture all those frustrating moments you'll have with your new laptop. """"
now thats funny!
to the OP as mentioned forget the quads the faster GHz duals are better.
there are a few good laptops to be had is using firewire interface but not from the big names..
if using USB then your chances are better but its still a minefield
Sounds like a thumbs up for the faster GHz I5 laptop. I'm not in a big hurry but trying to research to save some cash (am not planning on running 100+ tracks). I'm also interested in the future of USB3. I know you can be more powerful for cheaper by going desktop but I think I will get more use out of a laptop. I'm still researching types of hard drives because I'm not really up on the technology and don't know esata from eharmony.
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syntheticpop
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Re:I7 Quad Core, what's the point?
2011/01/25 13:56:33
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i5 580m is a good choice if not going with the 640m.
eSATA is going to be your enclosure; eSATA will allow your drive to transfer larger amount of data at a faster rate. That's why it's important to have a laptop with this connection or a expresscard slot to add it. go to Newegg.com and type in esata enclosure in the search field.
you'll need two unless you're on a tight budget.
grab a Western Digital Caviar Black 3.5" with a 32mb cache or the 1TB model that has the 64mb cache. You can use this drive for your projects.
do the same thing for your samples drive - but keep in mind that it can be larger than your projects drive.
Seagate Barracuda is pretty popular too, the .12 model is the newest.
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Jim Roseberry
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Re:I7 Quad Core, what's the point?
2011/01/25 16:38:11
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grab a Western Digital Caviar Black 3.5" with a 32mb cache or the 1TB model that has the 64mb cache. You can use this drive for your projects. do the same thing for your samples drive - but keep in mind that it can be larger than your projects drive. Seagate Barracuda is pretty popular too, the .12 model is the newest. And if you want an even faster HD, grab a 1TB Samsung F3. 
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Owen
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Re:I7 Quad Core, what's the point?
2011/01/25 18:54:50
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Jim Roseberry
grab a Western Digital Caviar Black 3.5" with a 32mb cache or the 1TB model that has the 64mb cache. You can use this drive for your projects. do the same thing for your samples drive - but keep in mind that it can be larger than your projects drive. Seagate Barracuda is pretty popular too, the .12 model is the newest.
And if you want an even faster HD, grab a 1TB Samsung F3.
Are these all external hard drives for the purpose of samples and or project files?
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Owen
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Re:I7 Quad Core, what's the point?
2011/01/25 19:06:31
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OK, I see the esata enclosures on newegg. It's clear that this is what you put the drive in for an external.
Can more than one drive hook through the same port on a laptop?
They look to be powered via wall outlet which is ok
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syntheticpop
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Re:I7 Quad Core, what's the point?
2011/01/26 00:47:24
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Each port is dedicated to just one drive. What you will find in some laptops is a eSATA, expresscard, firewire and USB ports. I did some research on a few brands and found that HP Probook and Elitebooks have these ports. Dell Vostro and Latitude models under their Small Business section also have them. Then there's the option of getting your laptop customized through Scott or Jim or some other custom pc builder. Here's what I would do: Use an eSATA enclosed drive with the eSATA port for your projects drive (the drive that will house all of your recordings), a USB enclosed drive through a USB port for your samples, the expresscard port for your firewire. Depending on what's bundled with your laptop, it may already have firewire (but the chances of it working depends on the chipset and a few other factors like Wi-Fi being On or Off or the driver of your manufacturer's interface). Once you know the on board firewire works, you can use that expresscard port to add an additional eSATA port which can be used for your samples drive.
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syntheticpop
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Re:I7 Quad Core, what's the point?
2011/01/26 00:56:06
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And if you want an even faster HD, grab a 1TB Samsung F3. Gonna look this one up, hope it's not that more expensive than the WD's.
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Jim Roseberry
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Re:I7 Quad Core, what's the point?
2011/01/26 01:19:46
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Gonna look this one up, hope it's not that more expensive than the WD's. Less expensive...
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Freddie H
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Re:I7 Quad Core, what's the point?
2011/01/26 02:41:32
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Jim Roseberry
grab a Western Digital Caviar Black 3.5" with a 32mb cache or the 1TB model that has the 64mb cache. You can use this drive for your projects. do the same thing for your samples drive - but keep in mind that it can be larger than your projects drive. Seagate Barracuda is pretty popular too, the .12 model is the newest.
And if you want an even faster HD, grab a 1TB Samsung F3.
Yes, I agree 100% I think I have 7, Samsung 1TB F3 myself.. Some hard-drives I use in RAID 1 Windows 7 fake raid. Fast and reliable and very quiet. Regards Freddie
-Highly developed spirits often encounter resistance from mediocre minds. -It really matters!
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