Looking to buy a laptop soon, and I've heard that 1GB of RAM isn't enough to run Windows Vista properly.. But I don't recall whether that refered to Vista basic or Vista Home Premium... So, as far as this is concerned.. I just wanted to know if 2GB of Ram is enough to run the latter properly fast? And since I'm going to be using it and relying on it heavily for recording -as in music- I've been looking into different types of music recording software, but I'm not sure which is best.. Going digital and doing the recording myself is a first for me.. So I'm looking for some solid recommendations. Using 'search' from various online electronics sites have this constant as a top result: Sony Media Software ACID Music Studio 7. Anyone have any experience with this one? Lastly.. Is a built-in microphone enough, as far as quality is concerned for recording? Or are there specialized types made just for recording?
2G is a minimum imo, you want to do audio or video processing? might want to go ahead and load that laptop with 4G(most current laptops max out at 4G) better do heavy research into if Vista is currently playing nice with whatever software you choose to go with. Some folks are having issues with Vista and A/V work (not me, my freeware video encoding rig works fine with Vista) if you are serious about doing audio on it...get a real mic.
it really depends on how you work. a couple of basic rules for audio and computers: 1) have a seperate system drive and a seperate dedicated drive for the audio files - if you are going to be installing samples and software instruments then a third dedicated drive for those is suggested 2) the speed/read/write rate directly reflect how many tracks you can record and playback at a time 3) cpu and ram speed determine how low you can go in regards to latency. If you are monitoring via software or triggering software instruments low latency is a must 4) minimum amount of ram for serious audio work in XP = 1 gig / 2 gigs are suggested. Double this for Vista. Or do yourself a favor and go with XP instead... 5) The built in soundcard on the motherboard is a piece of crap. The crosstalk, signal to noise and dc garbage are scientifically verifiable. 6) ASIO audio drivers are a requirement for VST software instruments 7) The amount of ram and cpu speed determine what limitations you will have in regards to software instruments and effects during mixdown You should seriously consider investing in a firewire drive for your audio - a firewire sound card with built in mic pres (stay away from USB) and a decent microphone. A Shure SM-57 is a workhorse that will sound OK on most sources if you can only buy one mic for starters. ACID is a very easy to use program that is a good choice for someone just hopping into such things. Cheers, Brock
