Laptop for music production

[subaro0o]

Does it look like the OP wants a 17.3-inch notebook?
And no, it's not an odd reply if he wants a 100% stable system that doesn't have any kind of issues.
Yes, the HP's are ok, but far from ideal for everyone.

 

[djblastyfone]

Does it look like the OP wants a 17.3-inch notebook?
And no, it's not an odd reply if he wants a 100% stable system that doesn't have any kind of issues.
Yes, the HP's are ok, but far from ideal for everyone.

+1

Using a laptop as a hackintosh is far more trouble than it's worth. The quality of hardware and stability you get with Apple notebooks is well worth the premium.

 

[willpower101]

Does it look like the OP wants a 17.3-inch notebook?
And no, it's not an odd reply if he wants a 100% stable system that doesn't have any kind of issues.
Yes, the HP's are ok, but far from ideal for everyone.

There were several replies between the time I read yours and I actually posted. I was just saying it was odd that he was asking about a hack I thought he was asking about a hack, on a hack forum, and wasn't getting the suggestion of a hack.

As far as macbook air vs pro there are some really nice 2011 i7's out that are affordable and still workhorses. Yeah the 1.8 isn't great for speed, but multi-tasking on it is a beast http://bit.ly/O3HBfO

And macbook vs hackbook? Iimho they are comparable if price is taken into account.
My friend just bought a 4530s 15" 750gb hd, (going to put 120gb ssd in second bay), i7 2630QM with 8GB ram for $460 shipped. We spent 1 hour setting it up with the 4530s auto-installer and it works amazingly. I may not be impressed as much with the build quality as a true macbook, but we have a Presonus 8x8 running off of it, a roland kit, two monome's, 4 mics, a guitar and a bass all through Ableton live. The thing doesn't even hiccup when recording.

Those specs in a MBP start out at $1500 and go up to 2k+ http://bit.ly/NxfW6j

 

[Keppada]

Thanks for another great answer! It would be amazing to have specs of an macbook pro for 450 dollars coz then i could put more money into other studio stuff like monitors. Btw, if i ended up making a hackintosh and if i wanted to run logic 9 on it, i should then buy Lion from applestore? I dont have any previous macs and i only see upgrades in the store so i dont fully get how that works

 

[willpower101]

Thanks for another great answer! It would be amazing to have specs of an macbook pro for 450 dollars coz then i could put more money into other studio stuff like monitors. Btw, if i ended up making a hackintosh and if i wanted to run logic 9 on it, i should then buy Lion from applestore? I dont have any previous macs and i only see upgrades in the store so i dont fully get how that works

Here is the guide, I had a previous copy of snow so I upgraded. Maybe someone else can chime in with more details on a fresh install directly to Lion.
http://tonymacx86.blogspot.com/2011/10/ ... using.html

The one thing you will have to deal with, which is why others are wary to purchase a non mac laptop, is that drivers and components are very sensitive to updates. They can and will break the system if you blindly update the point updates (7.3->7.4 etc) without reading the forums first. However since so many components of the most popular laptops here are the same as the macbook pro components, most of the installs are relatively painless. (I did it in an hour, but I've been doing this for a while. From scratch I would factor in 4-6 hours including reading and troubleshooting.) Also, if you choose that path, don't skimp on recommended components, (eg., proper wifi cards)

 

[Keppada]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/HP-ProBook-4530 ... 894wt_1163

For example this one seems to be kinda cheap for that hardware. So probook 4530s is the easiest one to make a hackintosh from? Will the usb2 and 3 ports, hdmi etc work if the "transformation" is done in the right way?

I dont mind doing some research, trial and error and things like that to save some money, as i think it's fun and when you get something to work after troubles, it feels great!

 

[thelostswede]

Sorry, I wasn't being clear, I was talking about the resolution, not the actual quality of the display.

http://www.toshibadirect.com/td/b2c/laptop-model.jsp?family=portege&model=R930&lid=CFAMportege_SeriesLinkR930

Only bad thing is the display resolution. Less than 1.4kg...

Or http://www.lenovo.com/products/us/lapto ... ries/x230/ but again not that great screen...

Disagree entirely on the x230 display. If you get the IPS display ($50 upgrade) you have one of the nicest screens available on laptops. Period. The resolution is low, yes, but it's high quality and I know I personally wouldn't want more than a 1600x900 on a 12.5" screen.

 

[thelostswede]

Keep in mind that you might run into issues if you want to use external displays, as the D-sub connector doesn't work in OS X which leaves you with the HDMI port and that's it.
Go have a read through this sub-forum to get an idea of what's involved before you spend any cash http://tonymacx86.com/viewforum.php?f=259

 

[sputnik13]

This is a case of where you need to evaluate what your time is worth to you. Is saving $1000 on hardware going to be worth the several hours you'll spend setting up the machine, and the risk of bricking your osx install any time there's an update to OSX? What do you lose if you have to spend a few hours rebuilding your OS because some update made your kernel panic at boot? I have a mid 2010 15" MBP I got for $1500 refurb from Apple prior to going the hackintosh route. Best decision ever. I keep my hackintosh desktop and my MBP sync'd up so I always have a fallback if I mess up my hackintosh. I don't have to get nervous and pray that the thing boots up any time I update OSX.

 

[thelostswede]

Comprehensive review of the new MacBook Air models http://www.anandtech.com/show/6063/macb ... 2-review/5
Even last years MacBook Pro is significantly faster in most tests.