Imac or Macbook

[spencer]

Most of you guys play ernieballs so you must have some brains..

I know nothing about comptuers, well harddrive wise..

All I want to know is if I should get a Imac or Macbook. They are both pretty portable which is what I need however I will decide wether to get the laptop or desktop, what I want to know is if this enough Hardrive Ram ECT to get me what I want and not too much more..

13" Macbook with
2.0GHZ [2.16 if needed]
1GB RAM [2gb if needed]
80GB HARDDRIVE 160 [if needed[


All I will really be doing is downloading/transferring/playing music, recording multitrack music at once and mixing it later might do a little photoshopping on a few things [probably not] and use a word processor.

I have a slight Idea what ram/harddrive ect is but not the greatest.

I want to know if thoes specs will be enough and if not what should I upgrade? Im considering 2GB of ram, I think the 80 gb will be enought for me since i will have most downloaded music on the Ipod. But then agian Im not really sure.

I might go with a IMAC for around the same price with
20"
2.0Ghz [2.4 if needed
1GB [2GB if needed]
250GB [320GB which im sure I won't need.]

But like I said I want to know what I should get without going overboard for what I will be doing with it.

 

[phatduckk]

ok so a harddrive is a MECHANICAL device where your data is stored. so when u save an MP3 to your computer (desktop, some folder etc) it goes somewhere on your harddrive. harddrives are mechanical so theyre slow... things have to spin etc to located data on a harddrive. in computer terms a milisecond is slow... just keep in mind harddrives are slow.

RAM is related but not the same. RAM has no mechanics to it. theyre digital, hence nice and fats.

theyre both a place to store data but with a couple key differences. RAM is fats whereas harddrives are slow. and when you're performing on operation on some data the operating system will pull as much of it into RAM as possible so it can operate upon it quickly.

so assuming you have a HUGE photoshop file open... if the whole file can easily fit into RAM then you'll be able to manipulate the image w/o having send data back and forth to the harddrive. this will get slow. however if it all fits in the available RAm you'll have quick access to the data.

Now this is all transparent to u as a user. the operating system (OS X, windows etc) will deal with that for u... but when things get slow, then youll notice.

so more RAM means more data can use operated upon (used) at the same time comfortably (w/o noticable slowness). so with more RAM you can have a big photoshop file open, 3 word docs, 1 movie, an mp3, this and that and use your computer with comfort w/o noticing speed issues. with less RAM you'll still be able to open as much stuff but youll notice some slowdown (the extent depends on what youre doing and how big the files are).

that's a quick explanation. its not the most technical way of explaning it but i hope it made sense.

here's what I do and im a heavy computer user. I personally LOAD UP on RAM. I buy as much as will fit in the computer (currently that's 2 GB in a macbook). I also could care less about how big my harddrive is... why? i have a 300GB external disk i got for $150 to store my data. and by "data" i mean, MP3s, photoshop files etc (not installed programs like Excel or iTunes)... just data. so when i wanna do work on my data (listen to music, deal with a big photo libraray) i sit at my desk and plug in the external drive. but when im on the couch browsing the web i unplug it and just go chill.

so... im not gonna tell u what to do but i recommend RAM upgrades as it makes your computer use more pleasant. as far as a big harddrive, well, i explained how i make due w/ 40GB drive (only 1/2 full) but YMMV. and as far as iMac vs Macbook... depends on how portable u want it. an iMac is portable but you cant take it to a coffee shop or sit on the couch w/ it

-arin

 

[spencer]

Very nice, that helped alot. So either way I want lots of Ram and Im sure 80Gigs will be fine.. One more thing, I think its processor Speed or that thing with the GHz behind it, whats up with that? [not sure if I want the black macbook or the base white one..]

So now I can pretty much narrow it down to what type of portability to go for.

 

[Jimmyb]

80 Gb is fine for on board, but like Phatty said, use an external drive as well. I've found with the limited audio multi-tracking that I've done that uncompressed audio files can get quite large.

 

[greenwizard]

+1 on external drives over disk space upgrades. Why spend 150$ on 80GB of extra space when you can buy a 160GB Portable Drive for 100$?
My official opinion is: Buy the cheaper one, and use the extra money towards your next EBMM!

 

[tristan]

I use both with a fiirewire HD and 2 go of RAM...perferct for logic pro...but the Imac is always turned on, I just use the macbook on tour.

 

[Big Poppa]

I need help on my setting up garage band with a m audio firewire410 arrrrrgh

ALways save music files to a separate hard drive

 

[MikeVt]

ALways save music files to a separate hard drive

I've found this to be a good idea as well. Granted, I'm not yet a Mac user, but I have found that running the multitracking software from one drive and recording to another makes a difference in performance....

Mike

 

[phatduckk]

i use an external drive because i just assume my computer will die some day and i dont want to spend hours ripping my MP3s off CDs again. also - theyre cheap and huge. ya, they can die too but i dont keep it on very often so they should last longer.

 

[Chewie]

I'm old school. I prefer an old crappy computer sitting on my home network and just throwing in internal hard drives as I need them. I think I have over a terabyte now. Seems like a lot, but I pretty much have my entire DVD collection backed up and accessible to view on any TV in the house.

Though the Airport Extreme is pretty cool though cause it has a USB connection so you can share an external drive over the network. Now external drives with ethernet are getting more common in the home consumer market too.

I just like the flexibility of not having to plug the external drive directly into whatever computer I happen to be using.

 

[Tim O'Sullivan]

I'm old school. I prefer an old crappy computer sitting on my home network and just throwing in internal hard drives as I need them. I think I have over a terabyte now. Seems like a lot, but I pretty much have my entire DVD collection backed up and accessible to view on any TV in the house.

Though the Airport Extreme is pretty cool though cause it has a USB connection so you can share an external drive over the network. Now external drives with ethernet are getting more common in the home consumer market too.

I just like the flexibility of not having to plug the external drive directly into whatever computer I happen to be using.

I have 2TB (or terrapins as was suggested this weekend!) in WOPR, my self built computer. Then again, I am a complete hoarder, and have every digital file I have ever come accross, ever (more or less!)

 

[MrMusashi]

if youre gonna use it for music the most important thing is memory.. stick as much in it as possible!! 1 gig is barely enough to run anything in a good way
the imac is based on the same hardware as the laptops, so there wont be a huge difference in performance.
get a harddrive with as high rpms as possible.. 7200rpm in laptops are expensive but worth it. you also should have separate harddrives for the os, sample libraries etc etc, and the drive you record the actual audio on.
if you can, choose a model with the 4mb cache in the processors.. gives a boost in performance.

you should also know that apple is releasing a new imac series with new looks on em.. be more like the iphone (aluminum front.. a bit thinner..)
you can do a good deal on the old ones, or get a fancy new one!

hth

MrM

 

[phatduckk]

I need help on my setting up garage band with a m audio firewire410 arrrrrgh

ALways save music files to a separate hard drive

i can do this when i get to the desert if u want. just lemme know

 

[phatduckk]

Very nice, that helped alot. So either way I want lots of Ram and Im sure 80Gigs will be fine.. One more thing, I think its processor Speed or that thing with the GHz behind it, whats up with that? [not sure if I want the black macbook or the base white one..]

So now I can pretty much narrow it down to what type of portability to go for.

Ghz means: billions of cycles per second
so a 2ghz means... 2 billion cycles per second.

its a measure of how many cycles a processor goes thru per second. so... in turn it pretty much means "how fast can this processor execute instructions". thats the basic explanation.

without all the technical stuff it pretty much means "how fast is this computer".

 

[spencer]

Ok im going with the laptop,

Phatduck I need your help!!

[Both would have 2GB ram]

Should I pay the extra 200$ for the 2.16Ghz [v.s. 2.0] and a 120Gb Hard drive [v.s. 80Ghz] and a dvd burner I won't use?
Total $1,334.00

Or should I get the base one add a 2gb ram and 68$ for an extra 40Gb [120Gb total] Total $1202.00

Is the 130$ worth the processor speed?

And is an external hard drive any better than an internal? [I can get an extra 80GB hard drive [160 total] in the computer for 135$

 

[phatduckk]

Ok im going with the laptop,

Phatduck I need your help!!

[Both would have 2GB ram]

Should I pay the extra 200$ for the 2.16Ghz [v.s. 2.0] and a 120Gb Hard drive [v.s. 80Ghz] and a dvd burner I won't use?
Total $1,334.00

Or should I get the base one add a 2gb ram and 68$ for an extra 40Gb [120Gb total] Total $1202.00

Is the 130$ worth the processor speed?

And is an external hard drive any better than an internal? [I can get an extra 80GB hard drive [160 total] in the computer for 135$

If you can get the base model for $1,202 w/ 2GB RAM then do it. If you do that you'll have the same config as my laptop and mine has served me well.

If you're possitive you wont use a DVD burner then dont get it. but if you do a ton of photography or home movie making etc its nice to be able to burn and store that stuff and free up space on your harddrive.

as far as the 2.16ghz... dont worry about it. you wont notice the difference.

and as far as harddrives go... its up to you. are you going to want everything on the computer without having to plug in an external drive? that works just fine for me but YMMV

but IMO $1200 for the 2ghz w/ 2GB RAM is a good price for a good machine

Arin

 

[spencer]

hmm so a normal cd burner can't put photo's on a cd? You need a dvd burner for that? Didn't know that..

Anyways.
Looks like I will go with the base model +2GB ram and the upgraded harddrive..

If I decide not to go with the extra harddrive space, what would be a good portable harddrive to check out?

 

[spencer]

but IMO $1200 for the 2ghz w/ 2GB RAM is a good price for a good machine
Arin

Plus im getting a free Ipod well its really 50$ extra for the 30GB Ipod so..

 

[spencer]

Portable Hard Drive - Portable Storage USB 2.0 Hard Drive - Portable Backup Drive - USB Hard Drive
[email protected]

Home & Home Office: 500 GB 7200 RPM USB 2.0 External Hard Drive - My Book Essential Edition
[email protected]

Good?

 

[phatduckk]

hmm so a normal cd burner can't put photo's on a cd? You need a dvd burner for that? Didn't know that..

Anyways.
Looks like I will go with the base model +2GB ram and the upgraded harddrive..

If I decide not to go with the extra harddrive space, what would be a good portable harddrive to check out?

oh you can totally burn photos onto a normal CD - no problem at all. but if youre a photo hobbiest and take TONS of photos with super high resolution you'll potentially need to burn a "photoset" on multiple CDs. its totally doable.

as far as portable hard drives - i dont keep up with stuff as much as i used to so i cant recommend a particular model but i suggest you read some reviews and scope out which new external drives are most reliable (ie: nobody says they got one and it broke in 4 months)

either way im sure youll be happy w/ your setup

congrats!