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Gear / Technical Help => Post-Processing, Computer / Streaming / Internet Devices & Related Activity => Topic started by: Tim on October 27, 2002, 08:50:17 PM
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Hey guys, hope your weekends went well. Here's the deal my school is getting ready to move into a new building in august, one which will have *no* computer labs. Instead they are requiring all of us to purchase laptops.
I had no interest in laptop taping but if they're going to force me to buy one I may as well use it for taping too. Basically for school I'll be using Word (I am a windoze man) and doing online research, that's about it. Will a computer that is not dedicated strictly to taping be stable enough??
Anyone want to recommend anything to keep in mind or to stay the hell away from? This is all kind of preliminary research for me so I'll take recommendations on specific machines as well as specs to keep in mind.
FWIW - I'm an average computer user.. I know enough to make myself dangerous :)
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Well...you can make about any semi-new/new laptop suitable for recording. Anything new is going to have a fast enough processor and plenty of RAM (look for 256 or more megs of RAM). One other thing to think about is the operating system. I doubt you can still get win2K on a new laptop but if you can, go for that. If not, xp pro should work alright. Also get a nice big, fast HD. Battery life is another very important consideration. That's one reason so many choose the sony picturebook series (and the overall size). I think that's it about is as far as the actual laptop goes. Recording interfaces are a whole different post...
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yep, the picture book is a great laptop to look into. I would still purchase another battery though. I was running my USB Pre into my VAIO the other night, and finally had to plug in the power to the wall. Electrofuel(I believe thats thier name) makes a product called the Powerpad. It's a flat battery that can boots recording times up to 6+ hours I believe. Does come with a hefty price of about 400, but it's worth it. Also, if your a mac fan, you got the powerbook's nad iBooks....... good luck !
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Sony makes a quad length battery for the picturebook (400 dollars) that will power the picturebook for ever! It really lasts about 6 hours recording, I've tried it :-)
Jonny
PS- I don't only push getting this batt for the picturebook, i own one too :-)
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I'll agree with jp about the sony quad battery. I got mine for about 250 (factory refurb, but was the same as new since it hadn't seen a single cycle). One other thing I'll add is I've been able to get closer to 8 hours of recording time with my quad by keeping the lid closed (the screen is definitely the biggest drain on power). The picturebooks rock!
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Thanks for all the info guys. I was thinking of going with a VAIO picturebook but I was just guessing :-)
Batteries are freaking expensive!
Tim
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Look on ebay for those picturebooks and batteries. got my picturebook for 900 on there :-)
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That's a nice savings.... ebay, what other wonders do you hold :)
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Definitely look on ebay, great deals. I paid a bit more for my c1vn but that was over a year ago now.
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So what about the split: Half recording for shows and the other half using it as a word processor. Will this bring about any problems??? Can you also use the internet>
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It shouldn't cause any problems whatsoever. The laptop I use for recording also sees a fair amount use at home. It's not my main computer at home but I do use it for transferfing DATs, internet browsing, playing back music, talking on IM, etc.
If this is going to be your only machine and you're planning on using this it for everyday stuff as well as taping I'm going to pull my recommendation for the picturebook just because of the size of the screen and the size of the keyboard. Both are a bit small for everyday use and can be annoying IMO.
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Any model picturebook can be connected to an external monitor and an external USB keyboard to make it easier to use while at home. They also make foldable or roll-up-able full size keyboards. The one's I get roll up to about the size of a Sony D8, and have full stroke/size keys. And my picturebooks get used regularly for just about everything from word processing to packet sniffing/network analysis as well as taping and editing/mastering audio.
I know many people (including myself) that use their picturebooks as desktop replacements with some simple items like a USB hub, keyboard, mouse, monitor, and firewire drives. And the newer picturebooks have a higher resolution screen in the same form factor, so screen size is not as much of an issue anymore.
-Dan Heend
High Fidelity Microsystems
www.highfidelitymicro.com (http://www.highfidelitymicro.com)
"Join The Resolution Revolution"
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Wow! Thanks for that post. very helpful indeed.
Tim
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right no dan...didn't consider the usb keyboard or external monitor...