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Hybrid DAW - Mac vs PC

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by
bigtree
, 01-22-2011 at 03:05 PM (1554 Views)
I've been a Mac guy long before public opinion even thought about Mac's. They have been the A/V champs for good reasons and worth every dollar if you are comparing them to poorly configured and cheaply built PC but...

People that think Mac's are the only choice for a professional DAW, are following old news along with the diminishing Pro Tools generation influence.
The reason for this is very clear.
Pro Tools (alsihad), being the pro audio DAW of choice (including other DAW software) doesn't run well on off the shelf PC's, period. Digi support had difficult time trying to deal with it all so lets just settle it all and forget the PC in pro audio. The personal PC that seem to work fine for most other apps, seriously lacks stability for a pro audio DAW thus... the higher priced stable Mac evolved to be the choice. Its a no brainer.

All of us who had the expensive Macs where running pretty stable Pro Tools rigs while the PC geeks were having endless problems as they still do today. You can't build a Mac cheap like you can a PC so... quality control sufferers and the trend towards Mac and supporting DAW software grows because of this.
These are the facts and what many "post" 2002 DAW users don't fully understand and/or are unaware of. They are following this trend like a fashion today.

Custom built recording PC are nothing to poke at. They are the new hybrid DAW system evolving because you can build them just for audio. Just like a fine built boutique preamp. They are streamlined and definitely more value for your money. I have three audio PC's and one Power Mac today. I only use the Mac for the internet now, the opposite from what I did 10 years ago. Mac's are great for the internet and all the online apps that go with it, but, a streamlined, audio optimized Custom Built PC, now we're talking!

Audio PC's need to be professionally built by a reputable company proficient in Pro Audio (still cheaper than a new Mac) ... or DIY, but do your homework very well if you plan on building one yourself. The $800 off-the-shelf PC is not in the same league as the beasts I use for my hybrid system. This is where all the Mac/PC misinformation started and still lingers. Things are changing now so think twice before you dump a bunch of unnecessary money on a platform with its best years behind it.

So many are still following the bloated Mac/Pro Tools echo that started back in the 90's. The big hype is really old and outdated.

What ever choice you make, both platfroms do a fabulous job if you keep it within DAW specs. Pro Tools was (notice I say was) a very pro turn key system so it couldn't help but become popular. I'm not saying Pro Tools is fabulous, I'm simply stating why both Mac and the "turn key" Pro Tools package became what it is today. Are are better systems, better value out there?
If you know what you are doing and see outside the commercial hype ... You get far more for your money starting with a custom built PC over a trendy and way over priced Mac any day. Big savings can be invested in higher end DAW systems that make the Mac/ProTools HD generation look kinda trendy and boxed in.

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Updated 01-25-2011 at 06:46 PM by bigtree

Categories
Hybrid Pro Audio

Comments

  1. JohnTodd's Avatar
    PCs used to be junk...that's why I used a Commodore Amiga!

    But the plethora of commodity parts available now makes a home built PC DAW a very viable option. You can't home build and compete on price with a Walmart computer, but your home built PC will be much better than anything ready made. It has exactly what you want and nothing you don't.

    Give it some thought. Maybe I should do a blog entry detailing my homebuilt DAW,
  2. sarNz's Avatar
    Prebuilt = Definitely Mac. Even as far as laptops go I'd say...

    Build one yourself (really not that hard!) Definitely a PC. Granted, I'm pretty sure the Mac OSX and such are still more stable. But I priced out a PC (decently high end) and the equivalent mac was LITERALLY twice as much money. Though, I don't build computers that are solely for audio, I am probably going to be building another soon (and give this one to my mom) that can handle recording and graphics / 3d, so my builds including monitor are usually around 15-1700.

    Though granted, I also use fruity loops which is not a very mac friendly program. I've always liked PCs because if it breaks it's very easy to get under the hood and fix it yourself. The mac on the otherhand is like a volkswagen or something, reliable and nice, but pricey to buy and pricier to pay someone to fix it!
  3. lambchop's Avatar
    Personally, I thank the day many years ago when my friend sat me down and showed me how to build my own PC. As has already been said, the beauty of using a PC for recording is that you are able to get "under the hood" if something goes wrong (not that you ever really have to if you built it right and optimized it correctly to begin with).
  4. joshuac's Avatar
    very good argument for the pc. unfortunately i cannot afford a dedicated pc just to run my daw not to mention a high end mac, so we will just keep plugging away with the old imac.
  5. bigtree's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by sarNz
    Prebuilt = Definitely Mac. Even as far as laptops go I'd say...

    Build one yourself (really not that hard!) Definitely a PC. Granted, I'm pretty sure the Mac OSX and such are still more stable. But I priced out a PC (decently high end) and the equivalent mac was LITERALLY twice as much money. Though, I don't build computers that are solely for audio, I am probably going to be building another soon (and give this one to my mom) that can handle recording and graphics / 3d, so my builds including monitor are usually around 15-1700.

    Though granted, I also use fruity loops which is not a very mac friendly program. I've always liked PCs because if it breaks it's very easy to get under the hood and fix it yourself. The mac on the otherhand is like a volkswagen or something, reliable and nice, but pricey to buy and pricier to pay someone to fix it!
    Which brings us back to a custom build PC . The beast's I have in my studio are less expensive than a Mac and every bit a proficient, if not more. These audio PC's are "prebuilt" and streamlined for audio and that's it. Now that Win7 64 is here, its really a no brainer to me.

    3 years ago I would never have thought this. Today, bye bye Mac solely because it is over hyped because of the mentioned home PC being used for pro audio and seriously over priced, too expensive to fix or upgrade.
  6. ClarkJaman's Avatar
    So who built your three recording PCs, Chris? Do you build them yourself or do you have a builder?
  7. JohnTodd's Avatar
    Zombie thread is with us again...bruhahahaha!

    But seriously, BT, good question.
  8. ClarkJaman's Avatar
    Haha sorry to resurrect this thread. I was just curious.