Laptop spec`s , are we number blind?

[Daryll]

Just wondering why we seem to need a laptop with spec that could run a small country`s economy.
For example , my main playout laptop.

Celeron 1.2mhz
512 ram
Cut down XP home

Never missed a beat , no blue screens , no drop outs.
Software is Ultramixer , karaoke , excel ( for karaoke look up) my dmx , and a few utilities.

Back up is more primitive
Pentium 3 1 gig
512 ram
win 2000.

Same software.



I see spec`s of Laptop`s with 3 gig + core speed , 3g RAM ,all bells and whistles , and I do ask myself why :confused:


Daryll

[DJ James Lake]

Just wondering why we seem to need a laptop with spec that could run a small country`s economy.
For example , my main playout laptop.

Celeron 1.2mhz
512 ram
Cut down XP home

Never missed a beat , no blue screens , no drop outs.
Software is Ultramixer , karaoke , excel ( for karaoke look up) my dmx , and a few utilities.

Back up is more primitive
Pentium 3 1 gig
512 ram
win 2000.

Same software.



I see spec`s of Laptop`s with 3 gig + core speed , 3g RAM ,all bells and whistles , and I do ask myself why :confused:


Daryll

Cause some of us run video and timecodes which require very low latency

[Daryll]

Cause some of us run video and timecodes which require very low latency


Point taken , but using just a music playout system , is there any need for super high spec , as you say .video is another matter , and I`me not sure what timecode is.

Cheers

Daryll


PS. looking at your site , I can see why a top spec laptop is needed , very nice :)

[Dynamic Entertainment]

Timecodes are what the likes of Serato use to control the software. Think of it as a audio signal which a peice of software can read and corrolate to an MP3. So if you scratch the dj with a CDJ, the software emutates that on the MP3 playback.

Just to go way off topic here, but James, after what Daryll said about looking at your site, i fail to understand it......you a god aweful homepage (sorry but im blunt, and realise its personal taste) in www.shokwaves.co.uk and an absolutely belter in www.shokwaves.co.uk/mainframe1.htm

Why have potential clients hit the page that looks frankly amaeturish first and have to click into the pro site? Im all for your business practice if it works, even if i cant understand it ;) :)

[Daryll]

Timecodes are what the likes of Serato use to control the software. Think of it as a audio signal which a peice of software can read and corrolate to an MP3. So if you scratch the dj with a CDJ, the software emutates that on the MP3 playback.



Why thank you :D , now I know , as is always said , the only stupid question is one that is not asked , and therefore a high spec machine is needed.

Cheers

Daryll

[ppentertainments]

Just wondering why we seem to need a laptop with spec that could run a small country`s economy.
For example , my main playout laptop.

Celeron 1.2mhz
512 ram
Cut down XP home

Never missed a beat , no blue screens , no drop outs.
Software is Ultramixer , karaoke , excel ( for karaoke look up) my dmx , and a few utilities.

Back up is more primitive
Pentium 3 1 gig
512 ram
win 2000.

Same software.



I see spec`s of Laptop`s with 3 gig + core speed , 3g RAM ,all bells and whistles , and I do ask myself why :confused:


Daryll
I have a total of 9 laptops for various roles. The one I mainly use for disco backup is 8 year old and only has 256 mb ram :eek: . I am unsure of the rest of the spec, although it is a Toshiba. The makes of computers make a difference. This one is comparable to a 1 gig ram Dell computer I have. Not sure of rest of spec again but know they are similar.

I also think not connecting to the internet makes a BIG difference to performance.

[Daryll]

Mine is a Toshiba Equium L10-300 , original factory spec , apart from cut down OS

Daryll


And looking , this is a 1.6ghz and not 1.2 , my mistake

[OllieJames]

I actually use a desktop PC for mine.

It's a Dell Dimension E520.
3 GB RAM
2.8GHz Dual Core

The laptop I use for ShowXpress is an old Toshiba laptop - which isn't really a good example of a less powerful laptop, as it's crap!

[welby]

I use an acer 5920G laptop with 3GB Ram - I run VDJ with HD Video and about three extra plugins, and on top of that I run my Text 2 Screen software and bluetooth Images.

It needs a bit of uuumph! lol

Oh and I have a little advent Netbook to run MyDMX

So I think you need something decent.

[ppentertainments]

I still remember my first PC. Would be about 18 year ago, can't remember the exact spec but remember the guy saying - 'this has 4mb ram, you will never need to use that much but means the computer should last forever' :eek:

If I remember correct it was a 16gb hard drive. I ran loads of software including autocad which is a mega size program.

TBH apart from the internet, software has not really developed greatly IMO yet when I got this machine it ran as fast as any modern computer.

I always wonder why software demands more and more from a computer for no apparant reason.

[Daryll]

Know what you mean mate.
many moon`s ago.

DX2 66
256k ( yes k) of RAM
630mb hard drive

win 3.0 and DOS , running Lotus 1-2-3 :eek:

now compare that with my current home PC.

MD Dual Core Athlon II 240
3gb RAM
twin 1tb drives


WinXP pro / untubu Linux , Microsoft office 2007.




Boot time....................exactly the same :confused:


Daryll

[DazzyD]

I used to advise Apple clients what to buy to suit their needs. My advice to corporate clients was buy what they could afford as this always gives scope for upgrade and improvement in the future while still being flexible for current application.

However, my advice to family and friends was somewhat different. For example asking them why pay for stuff they will never need?

[DJ James Lake]

Timecodes are what the likes of Serato use to control the software. Think of it as a audio signal which a peice of software can read and corrolate to an MP3. So if you scratch the dj with a CDJ, the software emutates that on the MP3 playback.

Just to go way off topic here, but James, after what Daryll said about looking at your site, i fail to understand it......you a god aweful homepage (sorry but im blunt, and realise its personal taste) in www.shokwaves.co.uk and an absolutely belter in www.shokwaves.co.uk/mainframe1.htm

Why have potential clients hit the page that looks frankly amaeturish first and have to click into the pro site? Im all for your business practice if it works, even if i cant understand it ;) :)

The whole site is being reworked at the moment. The main reason there is a frontpage which has got messy over the years is because the site is frame based and search engines don't like indexing frame based sites.


But anyway back on topic. The reason top spec laptops are needed depends on the program, for instance with Traktor, Serato and VDJ the key lock is just one example. To get good quality audio in real time with key lock requires a lo of processing power, without it when the music is sped up and the key is held you would hear digitising of the audio.

A lot of the real time effects also require lots of horsepower.

If your simply playing one track after the other then agreed you dont need a very high spec laptop

[Twinspin]

Toshiba Satellite L300 1G8 here

dual core 2.2ghz Intel pentium processor
4gb ram
160gb hdd
wireless, dvdrw, Windows 7 etc etc. i got in touch with toshiba and had my cd drive upgraded to a Blu-ray writer cost me over £100 but worth it so i can backup my data onto blu-ray (25gb per disc single layer 50gb on a dual layer)

however its my personal laptop which i use to log music requests and software like the denon music manager but if need be i would run it for music if my 2 music sources failed.

[Charlie Brown]

I use this...

http://www.memory-express.co.uk/893437.html?utm_campaign=froogle&utm_source=Froogle&utm_medium=lead

and would swear by it. Very robust and hasn't let me down yet!

Music, school work, video editing, recreational, games, accounts - does it al!

[ianforest]

I use a Macbook Pro...and it's perfect for everything.

[DiscoPromotions]

I use a Macbook Pro...and it's perfect for everything.

MAC's are great...

The only Window's Operating system I have found to be stable enough to with stand my activities is Win 2003 Server pure basic. I.e no unnecessary services, drivers etc loaded.

[Larry B Entertainment]

Im still running a 5 year old Advent P4 laptop. Used it for DJing, karaoke, internet access, video editing, mydmx, music production, web design, photoshop CS3, basically any pc task I have done in the last 5 years and it hasnt missed a beat. It has never needed reformating, the hard drive has clocked up nearly 5000 hours of use and it is still going. The best £899 I have ever spent. It is very well maintained and looked after and sleeps with a cushion in its hard case to protect it :D Dont see the point in getting new laptop when this one still refuses to give up.