new computer/Mac user here- HI!

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Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
Hi all



First I wanna say I do appreciate this site & the help & advice you more knowledgeable techies offer. Im gearing up to buy my first Mac, and some advice on which one to go with would be much appreciated. It will be used mainly for music production & recording, and internet...possibly some video production/ editing in the future. It wont be used for creating video games n stuff.



Ive had my eye on the MacBookPro, but then I came across the iBook and it looks interesting. here are a few general questions..



Is the iMac designed for portability at all?



Is the iMac good for music production & editing?



what are the pros/cons to buying a refurbished MacBookPro?



how well will the MacBook (not the pro) do in music production & editing?



is buying a refurbished Powerbook for music stuff a bad or good idea?







you guys get the gist of my inquiry. Thanks so much for any feedback!

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 14
    All the people I know that use the Mac for studio work use g5 towers. It gives you way more flexability to install cards hard drives ect. Not sure how important potability is to you...
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  • Reply 2 of 14
    backtomacbacktomac Posts: 4,579member
    Whatever machine you get, make sure you get an INTEL Mac. Do not get a PPC Mac at this time. Leopard will probably be the last version of OSX that will run on PPC Macs and there is a good chance that it won't run well on anything but dual core G5 machines.
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  • Reply 3 of 14
    the macBook will do soundtrack editing and such just fine.



    if you were to get into VIDEO editing, then the video card in the pro would have an advantage in rendering effects during editing.



    My experience has been that the plastic macBooks are actually MORE durable than the aluminum pro's. My current aluminum PowerBook is dented in several places to the point that plugging in the power cord or firewire requires a special angle and lots of force! (oh well... still works) .... but my previous iBook was treated just as roughly with no damage whatsoever.



    Unless you really want the bigger screen, or need the separate vid card, I'd go with the MacBook, not the Pro.

    And definitey NOT a pre-Intel one!
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  • Reply 4 of 14
    HI

    I'm not new but the first time to reply.

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  • Reply 5 of 14
    buddhabuddha Posts: 386member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by hurrypoter View Post


    HI

    I'm not new but the first time to reply.





    Don't spam.



    Back on topic, an iBook is an older model, the Macbooks and Macbook Pros are the newer ones. The Macbooks all have 13" screens so if you need something larger get the Macbook Pro. Whichever you choose I would recommend getting 2GB of ram.
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  • Reply 6 of 14
    1301313013 Posts: 5member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by buddha View Post


    Don't spam.



    Back on topic, an iBook is an older model, the Macbooks and Macbook Pros are the newer ones. The Macbooks all have 13" screens so if you need something larger get the Macbook Pro. Whichever you choose I would recommend getting 2GB of ram.



    The Macbook Pros all come with 2GB of RAM now. Or do you mean an additional 2?



    I just bought my first Mac (MacBook Pro) Monday night and should get it the first week of September. Then I'm going to order a 2GB stick off Newegg.



    Is the performance that much better with 4GB over 2GB?
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  • Reply 7 of 14
    thanks for your replies, guys (and girls)



    in the initial post, I meant an iMac, not iBook. my mistake!
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  • Reply 8 of 14
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by KingOfSomewhereHot View Post




    I'd go with the MacBook, not the Pro.



    Hey King, thanks for replying.



    would you go without the Pro only because of the plastic housing, or does it have to do with other factors?
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  • Reply 9 of 14
    In addition to being more durable, the MacBook is just a better value (unless you have a particular need for the graphics card or larger screen that is only offered in the Pro's.)



    The processor is nearly as powerfull, but much cheaper... I've found that I have no use for the ExpreeCard Slot... no use for FW800 ... etc, etc...

    Now, If you don't have a desktop Mac to go along with it, those features might make it more worthwhile to consider the ProBook.



    ** Opinion, of course**
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  • Reply 10 of 14
    nvidia2008nvidia2008 Posts: 9,262member
    My opinion is definitely MacBookPro.



    1. Portability - studio, onlocation, performing, etc.

    2. Speed, RAM - 4gb RAM, 15" LED Backlight very nice screen

    3. 2.2ghz or 2.4ghz important if using laptop as synth sound generator or mixer or on-the-fly resampler, etc. etc.



    The way I see it, there is so much stuff to lug around when doing music. Might as well go with a MacBookPro for live gigs, otherwise Mac Pro for serious studio work.
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  • Reply 11 of 14
    nvidia2008nvidia2008 Posts: 9,262member
    Technically if you *are* a 1337 electro-musician, then you could get by with a MacBook13" with 2x2gb of RAM (max 3gb... yup, Core2Duo MacBooks "secretly" supports up to 3gb RAM). But for more margin and overall better experience MacBookPro LED Backlight 2.2ghz or 2.4ghz 15" with 2gb RAM is the way to go.
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  • Reply 12 of 14
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by KingOfSomewhereHot View Post


    In addition to being more durable, the MacBook is just a better value (unless you have a particular need for the graphics card or larger screen that is only offered in the Pro's.)



    The processor is nearly as powerfull, but much cheaper... I've found that I have no use for the ExpreeCard Slot... no use for FW800 ... etc, etc...

    Now, If you don't have a desktop Mac to go along with it, those features might make it more worthwhile to consider the ProBook.



    ** Opinion, of course**



    I didnt know that the processors were comprobale(sp) in power- thanks. this is the info I really need- the folks at the apple store just wanna sell & dont care about my feelings, lol.
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  • Reply 13 of 14
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by nvidia2008 View Post


    My opinion is definitely MacBookPro.



    1. Portability - studio, onlocation, performing, etc.

    2. Speed, RAM - 4gb RAM, 15" LED Backlight very nice screen

    3. 2.2ghz or 2.4ghz important if using laptop as synth sound generator or mixer or on-the-fly resampler, etc. etc.



    The way I see it, there is so much stuff to lug around when doing music. Might as well go with a MacBookPro for live gigs, otherwise Mac Pro for serious studio work.



    yea thats what I assumed about the desktop as far as serious studio work goes
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  • Reply 14 of 14
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by anyguy_usa View Post


    I didnt know that the processors were comprobale(sp) in power- thanks. this is the info I really need- the folks at the apple store just wanna sell & dont care about my feelings, lol.



    There IS a difference ... but MOST people would never notice it ...

    The Pro runs a bit (.2Ghtz) faster and has a faster FSB... but unless you're doing a lot of real processor intensive stuff (video encoding comes to mind) ... you probably couldn't tell the difference.
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