What Computer/Hardware to Buy For My Budget And Specific Needs (Which Includes Compatibility With An MP3 Player)

[The_Arcane_Pigeon]

Hi All.

I currently use a Chromebook for non-recording needs. I find it annoying, its getting up there in age, and I want to start recording music on a different device, so I need to figure out what I'm looking for in terms of a laptop/machine. I already have an old audio interface my friend gave me. I guess I should add that I have a condenser mic with phantom power, a small midi keyboard, electric guitar, acoustic guitars, some indigenous instruments and singing bowls etc.... and the necessary cables etc...

I scarcely know where to begin. I'm posting this thread really so I can start narrowing down what I'm looking for. I'm feeling a lot of overwhelm

I'm obviously looking for a machine (preferably a laptop) that supports music recording software. I don't even know anything about DAWs really, so I don't know if i'm looking to use Ableton, Logic or something simple like Garage Band. In an ideal world I'm looking for something that is really intuitive for simple stuff so I can get my feet wet and then mess with more complicated features as I learn. I have no idea if people use cracked versions or just pay for DAW software or how much software costs.

I also feel like I might want to avoid using really modern laptops/operating systems because technology has come to tend to become more and more cumbersome and annoying. See: Chromebooks. I don't want to have to connect to the internet for purposes that I really shouldn't have to. I don't want my laptop talking to me or adding too many bells and whistles. So if I'm looking to buy older models I need to know how to buy ones (refurbished perhaps/maybe used) that are very reliable with long life, where to buy them/shop for them. ETc... I'm looking for something as simple as it can be. I do not want to spend more than 700 dollars on a laptop/computer. I would just get a macbook but apple products are really expensive. I'm wondering: Are there other laptop models/brands/Operating Systems that musicians really tend to dig? I did consider a Mac mini but i'm not sure it would work for the following need:

One of the other (very important) purposes of this machine is for me to be able to download MP3s (safely) on the computer and then upload the music onto a mp3 music player. That might seem unrelated perhaps, but it's really not. It's very critical that I find a machine that can help me both record music, preferably in the least complicated way possible, and enable me to have the mp3 downloading/uploading ability going on too. I originally was dead set on getting a used MacBook or a Mac Mini so I could transfer my iPod library onto a machine and back onto a newly purchased ipod in case my current one stops working. But now I'm not married to that idea, especially considering how difficult that process is now that apple phased out itunes. I don't even know how people are downloading MP3s anymore. If you have mp3 hardware to recommend/knowledge of which ones are compatible with which types of machines etc.... that would be helpful. I don't know anything about handheld mp3 player hardware other than Ipods.

I guess I'll just add that I used to use Linux. I don't think I want to go that route. So I dunno... and old windows OS? I have no idea.

So many factors. So much overwhelm. Thanks to anyone who can help me start to narrow down the search.

Best,
The Arcane Pigeon

 

[bouldersoundguy]

An old OS is just going to be progressively less compatible with available hardware and software. I wouldn't go that route. Using a current OS isn't going to be any more annoying, all things considered.

You don't need a super high end computer to do audio work until you start doing a ton of simultaneous tracks and effects.

Any decent DAW will require learning a fair bit to get started, but once you learn the basics, you can do a lot. Then you can add new skills as you need them.

MIDI is its own set of skills. Maybe save that as a separate job to do once you get the DAW basics down. Some DAWs are better at MIDI than others.

I think most computers can download mp3 files and load them on a player, assuming the player is still supported by a modern OS. There are pro media players now that easily handle wave files, so maybe that's a better idea than some old mp3 device. What are you using it for?

 

[TalismanRich]

A good basic laptop with 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD is the starting point. 12th to 14th Gen Intel Core 5 or 7 processors will be plenty. AMD Ryzen 7s would be an alternative.

I've been using Lenovo for years. My daughter has HP laptops. Most current laptops have little if any expandability. My Lenovo (10th Gen I7) can take more memory and I added a second SSD as well. Newer ones have the memory on the motherboard, so you can't add more. Go for 16GB, as memory requirements are not going to go down. With NVME drives, you can clone the old drive to a newer larger drive if you need to. 512GB should be plenty for most things, and if you find you are doing lots of projects and need space, you can get a 4TB USB drive for $120 that will last you for years.

For DAWs, you have choices. I use Reaper. I have a couple of older entry level versions of Cubase. They were fine but limited. Reaper, at $60, is a steal. You can try for no charge (full version) for 60 days and it will continue to work after that (just with a nag screen). It's got a good support system (LOTS of Youtube tutorials). You can go basic for just recording and mixing with a bare minimum of plugins, or get at complex as you want (it's customizable if you want to go that far).

A few hours ago, I was working on a 25 track mix with 6-8 plugins on my ancient 4th generation I5 system with 12GB. No problems at all. You can import and export mp3, flac, wav, OOG Vorbis, AIFF, etc.