denistu Posted October 23, 2006 Share Posted October 23, 2006 Hello, I would like to buy a MAC to use for live perfomance. Basically I would like to use MAC to play soft synths and run drumming sequences that would complement the drummer. I came accross a used iBook G4 with 1.07 GHz and SDRAM 768MB but I am not sure if this is good enough. I would like to know what is a minimal configuration that I should be looking for in a MAC to make sure everthing runs smoothly and stable on the stage (playing soft synths and running drum sequences). Also, if you have any suggestion which type of midi-interface & sound card should I purchase to satisfy my needs, please let me know. Thank you very much ! Dennis Nord Electro 3, Motif ES-6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kanker. Posted October 24, 2006 Share Posted October 24, 2006 If you can swing a MacBook, I would go for that. Otherwise, you should be able to use that iBook for what you want as long as you're not looking at doing too many synths at once. A ROMpler is just a polyphonic turntable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
denistu Posted October 25, 2006 Author Share Posted October 25, 2006 Thanks ! Do you have any suggestions for the sound card ? Cheers, Dennis Nord Electro 3, Motif ES-6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cd8 Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 It depends on what you're playing...If you want to use 2 Gigabytes worth of samples, then you'll probably have to look higher. However, I know of a guy who still uses a G3 600 Mhz for live use (B4, reason, some soft synths) and has never had any trouble (so much that he still doesn't see the point in uprading) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sven Golly Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 Originally posted by denistu: I would like to know what is a minimal configuration that I should be looking for in a MAC to make sure everthing runs smoothly and stable on the stage (playing soft synths and running drum sequences). This depends entirely on what sequencer package and which softsynths you plan on running. There is no single answer to this question. You can research this yourself by visiting the websites of the various programs you're considering, and examining the minimum system requirements of each of these. That will give you a starting point. The more programs/softsynths you're running concurrently, the higher the drain on the system, and (obviously) the higher the minimum requirement will be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gliderproarc Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 I am totally with Sven. What host do you intend to run your soft synths on? I use Logic express and Reason, and they both Barely run at the same time on my 1.4 Gz G4 2Gb of RAM iBook. I even ran out of room on my hard drive and now I have to keep all my Reason files on an external hard drive. iBooks work for introductory level applications, and in my case semipro. But my computer chokes while trying to run complex synth patches from Arturia's Prophet V (which requires at least a 1.5 Gz processor). It runs on my 1.4, but just barely. As my Dad put it to me: "Decide how much you want to spend and get the most RAM, CPU speed, and hard drive space as you can." The question is not what is the minimal configuration (unless you want minimal results) , the question is, how much are you willing to spend to get the sound you want out of your rig? If you just want a cheep solution, an iBook should do fine. Just make sure you have as much RAM in it as you can. GIGO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kanker. Posted October 25, 2006 Share Posted October 25, 2006 Originally posted by gliderproarc: I use Logic express and Reason, and they both Barely run at the same time on my 1.4 Gz G4 2Gb of RAM iBook.Wow. I ran Logic Pro and Reason 2.5 on a 800MHz G4 iMac without any issues. A ROMpler is just a polyphonic turntable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
denistu Posted October 27, 2006 Author Share Posted October 27, 2006 In mu case the host would be Cubase SX3. Soft synths: 1. Vangard 2. Korg Wavestation 3. Korg Legacy Cell 4. Korg MS-20 5. Korg Polysix 6. Albino 7. GrooveAgent 2 Is this too much for this iBook ? Thanks ! Dennis Nord Electro 3, Motif ES-6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
denistu Posted October 30, 2006 Author Share Posted October 30, 2006 Anybody ? Thanks ! Dennis Nord Electro 3, Motif ES-6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sven Golly Posted October 30, 2006 Share Posted October 30, 2006 Well, given that the minimum system specifications for just Cubase SX3 include the following: Mac OS X v10.4Power Mac G4 1 GHz Minimum (PowerPC only)512 MB RAM I'd say you're pushing your luck, even before you add any of the softsynths. If you have spent any time at all on the Steinberg Cubase website (you have, haven't you?), you've probably come across this page which discusses hardware requirements for various platforms running Cubase SX. Looks like you're probably going to want to keep looking, or change your host. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
denistu Posted October 30, 2006 Author Share Posted October 30, 2006 Sven, You are right. All this might be too much for a iBook. Thanks, Dennis Nord Electro 3, Motif ES-6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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