Archetype

Check out Red 5 Audio at [url="http://www.red5audio.com"]http://www.red5audio.com[/url] We use them in the studio all the time and live. sounds amazing for the price! The RV6 is a few bob over but well worth it. Or the RVD30! We use it on vocals live and on guitars in place of the SM57/58's. Fraction of the price and LOADS better! You won't be disappointed In fact if you are around Glasgow I would happily show them. G

[quote name='fragility' post='1167017' date='Mar 18 2011, 01:05 PM']Proposed spec: Processor (CPU) Intel Core i7 Quad Core Mobile Processor i7-740QM (1.73GHz) 6MB Cache Memory (RAM) 8GB SAMSUNG 1333MHz SODIMM DDR3 MEMORY (2 x 4GB) Graphics Card ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5650 - 1GB GDDR3 Video RAM - DirectX® 11 Hard Disk 500GB WD SCORPIO BLACK WD5000BEKT, SATA 3 Gb/s, 16MB CACHE (7200 rpm) Thanks![/quote] Back to the topic, These are some good specs, should run very well, but I assume its a laptop so i would make sure it has express card slots to upgrade later. The mackbook pro is also a fantastic spec, and includes the the firewire and Thunderbolt ports that audio and video worlds will be picking up on soon. Tested it myself and the port is a powerfull one! You will also get the advantage of being able to use all your memory in OS X and things working very well, but you would need an external drive t be at the best. Overall I woud take the mac hands down, Great machine and performance and they last a life time (mine has huge dents and warps in the case from being in a few drops, never been an issue) As the for the whole windows version debate, I agree if its not broke etc etc. But with XP 32bit which most seem to use you are limited to 3.5GB ram, not 4 as windows reports. Less if the graphics in the machine takes a chunk. Windows 7 64Bit has been more stable than vista and I never have an issue with it, even as an IT technician. You do need to check hardware compatibility though. G

The biggest issue is more sustained bandwidth from USB. It would handle the inputs but running with outputs would have a big delay on them. Plus add an external drive as internal laptops won't keep up. I would suggest 3 things at this point. 1- use the USB which is limited, or FireWire with lower spec. Or 2 interfaces. 2- sell the 2 laptops and upgrade 3- forget the interface and get a portastudio device. 3 would Probably be the best route as you can record and transfer to the laptop to edit and mix. I think some double as a USB interface too. G

One idea, You will get A LOT more performance from that i5 Processor, So why not go for a firewire interface for recording on that laptop and a small USB one for mixing using the same software. G

Hey Brig, Its not somethng that can be done sadly, Does it not have any express card slots? Gordon