real computer or iPad for recording?

[tonyknight]

Hi guys,

Well, my fourth computer in 8 yrs is crapping out on me which brings me to the same question as each previous time - give up on PCs and move to Mac (meaning that almost none of my music/graphics/video software will work), or just get yet another relatively high-end PC (prefer laptop) with sufficient real power to do heavy rendering of many tracks plus the usual addition of effects and processing.

But this time there is a sub-question as I haven't yet devoted the far too much time to research the best solutions: can an iPad replace a desktop/laptop? Apart from music recording, the main things I use a computer for are the creation and storage of all my music lessons, some video production, some software synths, and last but not least, my personal studies - I'm working very slowly on a doctorate and have thousands of files, articles etc, and a great need for basic computer apps such as word processing, graphics, and spread sheets. Perhaps an odd statistics programme here and there.

I thought that many of you will already have struggled with these questions and would have some meaningful insights - so thanks in advance

Cheers,
Tony

[ohlcv]

In general, you'll get more bang for your buck with PC (as opposed to Mac) and with desktop (as opposed to laptop/ipad).

[tonyknight]

Hi Norman,

I'm sure your right about the bang for the buck - I didn't imagine that would have changed. If the performance is there within all options, that means that this comes down to a subjective choice - is it worth paying the extra? It's less clear to me whether the iPad is a real contender to laptops though.

cheers
tony

[fep]

Tony, I don't know what you're running for recording... But check out Reaper, it's a pretty efficient program with a free 30 day trial. One license for noncommercial use is $40, that license is for one person multiple computers. You could put it on your current laptop, a new PC and a Mac if you want. (I'm not familiar with Ipads, maybe it will go on there too).

Can you get as good of interfaces and sound cards etc. with an Ipad? Will it run well enough to give you low enough latency?

[ronjazz]

Macs, in general, don't need sound cards, but I think you'll find the iPad frustratingly limited for music applications. It's interesting that your PCs don't last very long, I haven't had a Mac fail (except for hard drives) since 1984, although they are priced higher than PCs, in general. Now that the Intel chips are integrated into Macs, you may find that some of your software programs do work on the Mac platform. Most artist types do prefer the Mac, because one can be a real computer idiot (as I am) to make them go. The latest iMacs are fast and very powerful for the size and price, worth looking into.

[tonyknight]

Frank,

You're posing the same questions as I'm thinking which probably means that I need to do some real research into the capacities of the iPad - in which case I'll report back here with my findings.

In the past I've used Acid Pro (which although intended as a loop programme has been really good for single-track recording and multi-track overlays) and Vegas for video/music work. I've still also got a copy of Cubase which I don't really like. I've seen so many people recommend Reaper that I should also look into this as a software solution.

Ronjazz,

What you're saying matches the many years of experience I've had with the PC-Mac debate :-) My computers have failed for various reasons, mother board, graphic card (when integrated into a motherboard), etc. They have all been repairable, but the only one I bothered to do that with cost so much that it would have been better just to replace. Typically, the mother boards go out of date so fast that it becomes difficult to find a replacement, and if you upgrade, then it requires a new cpu - back to the cost vs performace issue. The last laptop I had was a high-end HP - it died within 18 months and is apparently a well known, world-wide issue with that machine as HP has denied all responsibility for apparently thousands which died due to a graphics card/driver issue. There's a class action going on in the States... I was seriously ticked off.

Methinks that you are on the ball with your comments regarding the iPad - I guess it has remarkable appeal either for gigs or for use on a desk, but it's probably still somewhat of a gimmick compared to heavier-duty PC/Macs. I'm definitely going to look into it technically a bit and get back to the thread with what I find...

Thanks a lot,
Tony

[reventlov]

An iPad is really just a more sophisticated iPhone - I wouldn't consider it seriously for recording music. Based on my experience of using Macs and PCs quite extensively for a number of years for a variety of applications, I'd say that the extra cash you need to finance a Mac is worth every penny - they are much more reliable machines, and you can partition your hard disk and install Windows on one of the partitions using a piece of software called Boot Camp, which comes with all new Macs - you don't have to give up any of your Windows software at all.

Also of course you get Garageband, which is a pretty decent piece of recording software.