Macbook Pro VS iMac?!?!?!

Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2008 4:13 pm

I am buying a new computer which will be used exclusively for recording and I have narrowed it down to the 2.4 ghz, 15" macbook pro or the 2.4 ghz, 24" iMac. I already have a gateway laptop so portability isn't really an issue, but it would be nice. Which is the better machine? I am using logic 8 and wondering which computer will run it with the least latency. This will be my first Mac, but I have used the quite a bit at school. They appear to be far superior to PC for recording purposes. Which of these two for perform better and last longer? I appreciate the help. Thanks

Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2008 7:27 pm

You mention latency. My understanding was that latency was caused primarily by the interface used, although the CPU etc does make a difference if you can stay ahead of processing power needed for plugins for longer.

Perhaps I'm mistaken.

So long as you don't drop stuff, land a bad bit of hardware or pour lemonade on the keyboard (done that once and a bit of trouble typing my password to log on) then each should last equally as long and still work.

You also need to consider memory and things like that, it's not just the speed of the processor that matters.
Also, someone will hopefully give you some advice about firewire ports. General consensus is you need 2, one for your interface (if it needs it) and one for an external drive (do not record to your system drive).

Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2008 10:17 pm

Both of those model have a firewire 400 and 800 ports. Couln't you also use the external via USB? I just want the best running machine possible for my buck.

Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2008 10:57 pm

i actually was faced with the exact same decision a couple months back. i went with the imac because, even though they have the same sized processors, the front side bus is bigger in the imac than the macbook pro, which affects processing capabilities almost as much as the size of the processor. plus the imac is a couple hundred cheaper, and you can use that money on a 2gb stick of 3rd party ram. so basically for the same price as a macbook pro you can get a more powerful imac with 3 gigs of ram. i'm just sayin'...

Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2008 11:35 pm

I think you'll find that the latency issue is also dependent upon how many plug-ins you have running.

So when you are recording, you really don't want any plug-ins running. Nor when you are doing overdubs. You have the ability to select the amount of latency by choosing the appropriate buffer size for the job at hand. I.e., whether you are recording or mixing. When you're mixing, latency isn't even an issue. So to reiterate (i.e. illiterate rant) when you are doing overdubs, you don't want your mix to be overly saturated with plug-ins, just for overdub purposes. Remember the KISS principal and always know that LESS IS MORE. Except when it comes to buffer size and latency. That's where less is less and more is more. Where men are men, women are women and some of us are recording engineers.

Latent
Ms. Remy Ann David

Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2008 11:58 pm

Quote:

Where men are men, women are women and some of us are recording engineers.

And the rest of us are mere fader pushers...

Laughing

Posted: Mon Mar 24, 2008 3:13 am

if portability isnt an issue id go the mac pro 8 core Very Happy

Posted: Mon Mar 24, 2008 3:00 pm

igotnosmoke wrote:

if portability isnt an issue id go the mac pro 8 core Very Happy

If I could only afford it =(

Posted: Mon Mar 24, 2008 3:23 pm

bent wrote:

Quote:

Where men are men, women are women and some of us are recording engineers.

And the rest of us are mere fader pushers...

I thought it was...where men are men and sheep are nervous.

Former 4-Her
Bob

Posted: Mon Mar 24, 2008 7:24 pm

To answer the original question:

A Macbook Pro is identical to an IMac.
You get more screen real estate with an IMac

Posted: Tue Mar 25, 2008 5:33 pm

one more thing to note: you don't need multiple firewire ports. most audio firewire-based hardware is firewire 400, from what i understand, and they can be daisychained together and run off one port. I run a firewire external hard drive into my Macbook pro and a firewire interface connects via the external hard drive. Sure I've got a firewire 800 port as well, but i've yet to find anything that runs off it.

Posted: Tue Mar 25, 2008 5:41 pm

Oh right. Think I've heard of daisychained stuff although it seems a bit wooly to me.

And, BobRogers:
"I thought it was...where men are men and sheep are nervous."

Why did the Scots start wearing kilts?
Cause the sheep got used to the sound of zips.

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