Dumping Q6600 Tower in favor of Notebook.........IF

Computers
Dumping Q6600 Tower in favor of Notebook.........IF

2012/07/14 13:44:52

TomBO77

Hey Guys,

Cakewalk user since version 1 on 5/1/2 floppy. Been building my own Workstations soon after that.

Since I am retired, My projects anymore consist of music beds, for website developers , iphone games, restaurant ambiance loops ( apparently these guys don't like paying ASCAP/BMI/SESAC for music not one is really listening to.

My last build was years ago..(Q6600) and has served me well. I don't use a whole lot of samples or soft synths except for Superior Drummer. The Tyros/Motif combo has excellent voices for my purposes.
What I want to do is ditch the desktop, the Presonus Firebox/Motif X8 Firewire and use a notebook,
I though about this since i am ready to get a new notebook to replace my MX11R2 and build a new Studio DAW. I though if i could stand a 15" screen I could kill two birds with one stone so to speak.

My wife is doing tracks for her gigs pn an old Inspiron 1501 ( Athaln X2 UA25 interface) with no issues. Her track counts are less than 8 . she creates the project on the Tyros or Motif then runs the stereo file into the Notebook and adds tracks and any vocals there

I belive I can do the same on a much more pwoerful notebook that may eclipse my desktop. I don't spend a whole lot of time on projects.. I mean $500 for an iPhone game means using the Tyros 4 for the base Rhythm section arrangement and not spending more than a few hours to finished project which is upload to a sharing site. For that kind of money I am not spending a week sequencing individual tracks or getting live players. This is not brain surgery nor it require Hans Zimmer quality requirements. Few laymen would guess the projects were done within hours. But an larger projects which I don' take much any more, and my own material I do use the Motif and some live stuff but still rarely use more than 16 tracks. KISS is my way of working.

I know i can do this on a Sager/Clevo (many of which the pro builders use) I want to dump the Tower and use the notebook as a replacement IF

1. The note book allows two external monitors (VGA ok) natively using the HDMI and VGA outputs.
2. I can use the Hybrid Seagate and external 3.0 7200 RPM drives for project Storage
3 Since I will be using this a portable set up as well I prefer a smaller screen The Sagars amd MSI have 15" that seem to fit the bill.
4. I won't be using the Presonus Firebox as the mouse generated "zipper noise" is prevalent unless it is powered separately. Going to buy a new interface. Probably the Roland Quad 4

Possibe?

My idea is go with an I7 because Sonar is optimized for them...I also used Cubase but don't care for the work flow and always return to Sonar.

2012/07/15 15:37:15

IK Obi

What kind of budget are you setting aside for this machine? An i7 tower will be far cheaper than an i7 laptop, but there are a ton of options for what your needs are.

2012/07/16 01:38:18

TomBO77

IK Obi

What kind of budget are you setting aside for this machine? An i7 tower will be far cheaper than an i7 laptop, but there are a ton of options for what your needs are.

I am looking at building a tower for around a $1000 Already have the case ,PS SATA drives etc.
My thought is becasue I really don;t do a lot of tracks or use VSTI synths I could ditch the desktop and get a Quad notebook (ala sager 9120 or even their 11" ) and attach it to use two of the the monitors. Then I can take my work anywhere and also replace my 11" Alienware I use in the living room. The tower is loud and I could keep it intact and use it as qn office machine to replace an aging Dell Optiplex

Years ago I could run all the tracks I needed on a P III surely a notebook can handle Sonar X1 with a Roland Quad Capture or Yamaha Audiogram until USB 3 Interfaces go mainstream..

Most of my PC tracking is stereo tracks from the Tyros ot motif already mixed. i add vocals and a few more over dubs. I want to get away from the Presonus and FW in general.

2012/07/16 14:56:05

IK Obi

That sounds like a plan and a realistic budget for what you want. Though I would double check on the double monitors. I learned quickly with my last 2 laptops that only 2 can be used unless you have a high end graphics card installed. So you may be able to use 2 monitors at once, but may not be able to use the laptop monitor at the same time, if that makes sense.

2012/07/17 09:52:03

Jim Roseberry

know i can do this on a Sager/Clevo (many of which the pro builders use) I want to dump the Tower and use the notebook as a replacement IF

If you're talking in lieu of a tower/desktop, I'd make sure the laptop is a beast.
You're looking at $3000+ for a laptop that's anywhere close to the equal of a fast tower.

If you choose an off-the-shelf laptop, be aware that DPC latency won't be nearly as low as a well configured tower. This is primarily important if you're wish to work at ultra low latency settings.

Unless you really need the portability, I'd opt for the tower option.
Offers a lot more performance for the buck... and it can be upgraded (not possible with the laptop)

None of the limitations of a laptop...

2012/07/18 00:21:59

TomBO77

Intel i7 2860QM (four cores @ 2.5GHz) ·
17.3" Display 1920x1080 ·
HD6990m video (2GB) · 8GB DDR3/1600 ·
500GB 7200RPM Hard Drive · 8x DVD/RW ·
802.11GBN WiFi, Bluetooth ·
Windows 7 x64 · 1-year warranty

$2300

============================================================

FREE!! UPS GROUND SHIPPING (Use Coupon Code "FREESHIP" in Checkout - U.S. Only, Not Available to Alaska and Hawaii)
- 17.3" FHD 16:9 "Matte Type" Super Clear Ultra Bright LED Matte Screen (1920x1080) (SKU - X1R553)
- ASUS Zero Bright Dot (ZBD) 30 Day Pixel Guarantee - (Included on ASUS Standard NON-Upgraded Displays)
- 3rd Generation Intel® Ivy Bridge Core™ i7-3610QM (2.3GHz - 3.3GHz, 6MB Intel® Smart Cache, 45W Max TDP) (SKU – X2N300)
- Stock OEM Thermal Compound ( IC Diamond Thermal Compound - CPU + GPU Provided FREE with Processor Upgrade!)
- - nVidia GeForce GT 650M 2,048MB PCI-Express GDDR3 DX11 w/ Optimus Technology (SKU – X3R526)
-- 16GB DDR3 1600MHz Dual Channel Memory (2x8GB SODIMMS) (SKU - X4N194)
- Standard Finish
- Standard White Logo Backlight
- 500GB (w/ 4GB SSD Memory) Seagate XT 7200RPM NCQ Hybrid 32MB Cache (Serial-ATA II 3GB/s) (SKU - X5R404)
- 750GB 7200RPM 16MB Cache Buffer (Serial-ATA II 3GB/s) (SKU - X5R310)
- 6X Blu-Ray Writer/Reader + 8X DVDRW/CDRW Super Multi Combo Drive (SKU - X7R551)
-- Internal 3-in-1 Card Reader (SD/MMC/MS)
- No Back Up Software
- Bluetooth Included (See “Wireless Network” Section Below)
- Intel® Advanced-N 6205 - 802.11A/B/G/N Wireless LAN Module (Dual Band) (SKU - X8R103)
- Built in 2.0 Megapixel Camera
- - Sound Blaster Compatible 3D Audio - Included
- No Carrying Case
- Smart Li-ion Battery (6-Cell)
- Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit Pre-Installed + Drivers & Utilities Disk - [ Upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for $14.99 (Directly through Microsoft) ]

- 2 Year ASUS GLOBAL OEM Warranty 24/7 Support / 1 Year North America (N.A.) Accidental Coverage (Accidental $1,647.00

Sub-Total: $1,647.00
Even adding the extreme processor the price of the sager is 30% less and with better primary drive and TOL Video card warranty.

I think I can beat my current set up easily for half of $3000. with a Quad card. I don;t see How I could not get 24 tracks on a much better equipt unit than a $16000 unit would buy. There is no comparison between these units. My wife gets 16 tracks easily on an AMD X2 Dell 1501 using Sonar 4 with a Cakewalk ( formally Edirol) UX25 Interface

2012/07/18 00:37:42

TomBO77

IK Obi

That sounds like a plan and a realistic budget for what you want. Though I would double check on the double monitors. I learned quickly with my last 2 laptops that only 2 can be used unless you have a high end graphics card installed. So you may be able to use 2 monitors at once, but may not be able to use the laptop monitor at the same time, if that makes sense.

I only need two external. Won't need the internal in the studio.

Looking at this: $1559 ASUS Also Sager and MSI Don;t want a cumber some 17" display. rather use the 15 or carry a 19" if needed off site.

15.6” FHD 16:9 LED Backlit Wide screen (1920x1080) Super Clear Matte Type Screen (SKU - X1R354)
- ASUS Zero Bright Dot (ZBD) 30 Day Pixel Guarantee - (Included on ASUS Standard NON-Upgraded Displays) - 3rd Generation Intel® Ivy Bridge Core™ i7-3610QM (2.3GHz - 3.3GHz, 6MB Intel® Smart Cache, 45W Max TDP)
- nVidia GeForce GTX 660M 2,048MB PCI-Express GDDR5 DX11
- 8GB DDR3 1600MHz Dual Channel Memory (2x4GB SODIMMS)
– - Standard Finish - Standard White Backlit Keyboard - 80GB Intel Solid State mSATA II (Primary Drive w/ O.S. Installed)
- Remove Hard Drive - 500gb (w / 4GB SSD Memory) Seagate XT 7200RPM NCQ Hybrid 32MB Cache (Serial-ATA II 3GB/s) in ODD Bay - Internal 3-in-1 Card Reader (SD/MMC/MS)
-- Intel® Advanced-N 6235 - 802.11A/B/G/N Wireless LAN Module + Bluetooth 4.0+HS Combo Card (Dual Band)
Built in 2.0 Megapixel Camera -- Sound Blaster Compatible 3D Audio - Included e Boost -
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit Pre-Installed + Drivers & Utilities Disk - [ Upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for $14.99 (Directly through Microsoft) ] -
Keep factory installed operating system -
1 Year ASUS GLOBAL OEM Warranty 24/7 Support / 1 Year North America (N.A.) Accidental Coverage (Accidental Requires Registration

- FREE!! UPS GROUND SHIPPING (Use Coupon Code "FREESHIP" in Checkout - U.S. Only, Not Available to Alaska and Hawaii)

2012/07/18 10:45:12

jcschild

at those prices i dont know why you are not buying a for audio laptop from a daw builder..

2012/07/18 14:50:50

TomBO77

Good idea Scott but I have found (as indicated above) the latest components are not neccesarily found in the in the custom DAW machines but the prices are the same or in some case even more. Plus I will use this as a n all around PC as well. I am keeping my Q6600 system until I am sure I can get what I need done using the notebook. Prices are a consideration as well. If I was building a desktop i would be more inclined to use a DAW builder ofr the noise vs power issue as well. My home built PC is louder than you guys would make and run cooler as well.

With the limited amount of tracks and VSTi's I use I don't need completely "optimized for audio" hardware. I have found I can eliminate many useless Windows 7 processes I don't need or use them on demand. Firstly I am looking for the most up to date components for the money at this point. I know I will have a lot of overhead but I do some video editing as well. Maybe even some gaming.

My biggest concern is dual monitor support as can be seen from my home set up. The third monitor is a VGA feed from the Tyros 4. Only using two for Sonar.

My wife has been tracking great glitch free tracks on an old Dell with an AMD and I thought I should be able to do the same and more on something with a 3rd gen quad and the new GTX video card is a bonus. Another solution I am looking at is the sager 11" with the same specs. That could in effect replace my M11X I use on the end table in my living room for Internet use. I have too many PCs to keep up with.

3 notebooks and three desktops. LOL I could eliminate 2 notebooks and a desktop with a new powerful notebook IF I can get the video support. I think I prefer the Seagate XT hybrid over the SSD at this point after reading and seeing some benchmarks. Seagate is pretty good.

This has come to pass because I am putting an add on to the studio and have decided to abandon FW and look forward to USB 3 interfaces as well as not have to be in the studio to tweak material and send it off to clients. I can do it from the comfort of my couch LOL!

If I can hook up few connectors (USB, Video, and use BT keyboard and mouse) and throw the notebook in a rack slot drawer and run my studio that would be great.

Just deciding between 15 and 11" I think what i should do is use the M11X and see what kind of issues I run into. This thing is a gen 2 with a i5ULV

Another choice I am looking at is this 11" bad boy $1074

Sager NP6110 / Clevo W110ER - FREE!! Continental (U.S. Lower 48 - UPS Ground Only) Ground Shipping on ALL Sager Laptops (Enter Coupon Code: "SAGERFREESHIP" during order process) -
11.6" HD "Glare Type" Super Clear Bright Glossy Screen (1366x768)S1R204) -
- Sager - 3rd Generation Intel® Ivy Bridge Core™ i7-3610QM (2.3GHz - 3.3GHz, 6MB Intel® Smart Cache, 45W Max TDP)
nVidia GT 650M 2048MB PCI-Express GDDR3 DX11 with Optimus™ Technology
- 8GB - DDR3 1600MHz Dual Channel Memory (2 SODIMMS)
500gb (w/ 4GB SSD Memory) Seagate XT 7200RPM NCQ Hybrid (Serial-ATA II 300 - 32MB Cache)
Internal 9-in-1 Card Reader (MMC/RSMMC/SD/Mini SD/SDHC/SDXC/MS/MS Pro/MS Duo) -
- Sager - Intel® Advanced-N 6235 - 802.11A/B/G/N Wireless LAN Module + Bluetooth™ 4.0
- Built in 1.3Megapixel Camera -
Sound Blaster Compatible 3D Audio -
Included - Smart Li-ion Battery (6-Cell) - -
Sager 90W AC Adapter with Intel 2nd Gen. i5-2450 / Sager 120W AC Adapter with Intel 3rd Gen. i7-3610 - ~Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit (64&32-Bit CD Included) + MS Office Starter 2010 -[ Upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for $14.99 (Directly through Microsoft) ] -
LIFETIME Ltd Labor* 1 Year Parts Warranty Lifetime 24/7 DOMESTIC Toll Free Telephone Support (Labor through XPC)
Includes FREE Shipping Both Ways for Parts Warranty Repairs (SKU - X9R009)

2012/07/18 15:09:14

jcschild

i hate to post this... have you even looked at my site?

1 2

Dumping Q6600 Tower in favor of Notebook.........IF

Use My Existing Forum Account

Use My Social Media Account