I have a Dell Latitude i5, 4Gb, Intel HD3000 standard graphics and it's fine, but I don't do video (other than playback movies). Heck, my 6 year old HP laptop still has the balls to run all my DJ software. Just not all at once.
new laptop
- Thread starter DJ T-BONE
- Start date
this is my laptop and i'm very pleased with it,runs really cool and it handles everything i throw at it so far.
http://us.toshiba.com/computers/laptops/satellite/P770/P770-ST6N01
http://us.toshiba.com/computers/laptops/satellite/P770/P770-ST6N01
+1 I've had really good luck with Acer's across the board except when I spill cereal on them. Not sure if I can blame that on Acer though.My Acer rocks and rolls
It's almost 2 years old now, and never gets turned off. It's an i5, which with hyper-threading, is essentially mimicking a quad core (Windows shows 4 cores).
I can mix videos all day, while chatting here, having my compiler up, and a separate editor, and look at pics on Paint Shop Pro.
4 gig of RAM, and an NVidia 330M.
Doesn't even get warm
My next laptop will be either an Acer or Toshiba. The MSI netbook I have now is pretty much useless for more than a few browser tabs. I need more horsepower!
I've got an Acer 3000 with an 80G HD and 512 megs of RAAM that has been to hell and back all the while performing flawlessly under abuse. It has never been reformatted and I've never seen a blue screen. My 10 year old son is currently abusing it and loving it. Even the hinges work flawlessly, no dead pixels, it's awesome.
Rick, I though you couldn't mix video using Rockit?
Rick, I though you couldn't mix video using Rockit?
My gigging laptops has always been Acer. If you take care of your laptop it should last you 5 to 6 years. Mine is 3 years old now and it is as new.
2 Dells- circa 2006/2007 (1501, 1525). One runs XP; the other Vista. the XP box has 1 gig of ram; the Vista unit - 2 gigs. They both were reformatted once, last year, after installing 320 gig hard drives in each. I run VDJ 7 on both; no issues with audio at all.
Technically no with the current release version (by design BTW)...
I have almost every DJ Software on the market though -- pays to both know your competition, and also have other tools in your toolbox if needed. I don't limit myself to one software for a certain task (even my own) -- I need a straight screwdriver, a phillips, some vice grips, and a boat load of duct tape in my toolbox...
If you really want to see what a computer can do, load Vegas Pro, drop 15 videos in it, maybe 20 audio tracks, and then hit play -- mine works fine, and I can play Rockit at the same time, and post here
It's not so much the computer, but more as to how you have it setup...
I have a dell XPS 15 damn near identical to your second build. Picked it up BNIB as surplus @ $800 with a 3 year Dell extended service plan.
Keep in mind the XPS 15 uses a mini display port to output video. Plan accordingly. I prefer my 17.6" screen HP and ASUS. All are fast quad core i-7's.
The big laptops allow the use of a second drive internally where the XPS 15 does not. I added a second internal to both of the bigger lappies, now I can have all my music library on the laptop itself, where if I play out with the Dell, the screen size is not optimal and I must use an external for my music. Both the HP and ASUS have standard HDMI and VGA outputs.
Nowadays the Dell is for photo processing duty. I have wireless capability with 2 of my Nikon DSLR's. I use it to instantly broadcast pics at receptions as they are shot with a projector. Can you say value added!
Best,
Paul
Keep in mind the XPS 15 uses a mini display port to output video. Plan accordingly. I prefer my 17.6" screen HP and ASUS. All are fast quad core i-7's.
The big laptops allow the use of a second drive internally where the XPS 15 does not. I added a second internal to both of the bigger lappies, now I can have all my music library on the laptop itself, where if I play out with the Dell, the screen size is not optimal and I must use an external for my music. Both the HP and ASUS have standard HDMI and VGA outputs.
Nowadays the Dell is for photo processing duty. I have wireless capability with 2 of my Nikon DSLR's. I use it to instantly broadcast pics at receptions as they are shot with a projector. Can you say value added!
Best,
Paul
2 Identical Dells with Core 2 Duo Processors running W7 Ultimate have been flawless, Still have HP's with AMD and Intel Processors and a Vaio also with an Intel processor they all work and are used for other things.
i also have a dell 1525 with no issuses running xp..but when i want to play with videos thats when i run into issues....
ok still looking..how about thiese specs? it is a dell xps z..
- Includes XPS 15z notebook PC, eight-cell lithium-ion battery, AC adapter, manual
- 2.8GHz second-generation Intel Core i7-2640M processor; 3.5GHz with Turbo Boost 2.0
- 15.6" diagonal WLED display with Full HD 1920x1080p resolution, 300 nits brightness
- 8GB shared dual-channel DDR3 RAM
- 256GB solid-state hard drive
- Slot-loading CD/DVD+/-R reader/burner drive
- Bluetooth 3.0
- Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6230 wireless LAN
- NVIDIA GeForce GT 525M graphics with 2GB graphics memory, Optimus technology
- Waves Maxx Audio 3
- 1.3 megapixel built-in webcam with facial recognition
- 10/100/1000 ethernet
- 9-in-1 memory card reader
- Two USB 3.0 port; USB 2.0 port
- USB/eSATA, HDMI 1.4, RJ-45 ports
- Headphone/microphone
- Mini Display Port
- Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium, 64-bit
- Microsoft Office starter
- 15 months of McAfee Security Center
- 1 yr of 2GB Dell DataSafe online backup
- Roxio Creator starter
- Adobe reader
- Measures approximately 15-1/2"W x 1"H x 10-1/4"D, weighs 5.54 lbs
- UL listed adapter; 1-year LMW
- Made in China
I wouldn't suggest i7....Not too much to gain IMO for the money.
Grab an i5 2500K mobile processor.
Discreet Video card at least 1GB
Definitely 8GB of ram and make sure your hard drive spins at 7200. Better yet, go SSD for Boot and external 7200RPM drives for data. USB 3.0 ports for USB 3.0 drives.
Do it under $1000.
One thing I did for cooling is buy a monster sized aftermarket battery that actually juts up the back of the lappy from your surface. No further cooling needed. If the bottom of the lappy can breathe you'll be great.
I use HP.
I recommend HP, ASUS, Toshiba...but they ALL have limitations.
For video I'd even recommend Apple for longevity.
Grab an i5 2500K mobile processor.
Discreet Video card at least 1GB
Definitely 8GB of ram and make sure your hard drive spins at 7200. Better yet, go SSD for Boot and external 7200RPM drives for data. USB 3.0 ports for USB 3.0 drives.
Do it under $1000.
One thing I did for cooling is buy a monster sized aftermarket battery that actually juts up the back of the lappy from your surface. No further cooling needed. If the bottom of the lappy can breathe you'll be great.
I use HP.
I recommend HP, ASUS, Toshiba...but they ALL have limitations.
For video I'd even recommend Apple for longevity.
Yes...If you are multi-tasking and doing other things besides DJ'ing.
The better question is what is software is he going to use and will it even use an maximum of 8 cores? i5 and i7 are both quads...but the i7 can unlock 4 more cores. SOOO..if his software can actually utilize all 8 then yes...go i7. If it only does 2 cores for video then it would be a waste.
What kind of improvement vs. cost is associated with the non use of said cores I wonder?
well for the laptop i will only be using it for dj/vj... i will be using virtual dj ... and no multi tasking at all
T...
Funny how they can't spell Recommended right...anyway....from the looks of the basic specs you won't need an i7 but you will need a fairly healthy video card. If you ever add a controller to this setup I think the better the video card the better the ability to control pixelation and/or lag.
I say if you want to do this right..build a rack mount desktop with a nice video card or spend the duckies to get the right lappy with those specs. I think you can build the desktop with an SSD and a HD with i5 16GB ram and a video card for under $1000....probably a little less specked out lappy for under $1400....
Heck I don't know really...ask them on their forum. I've used video on my core 2 duo with 4GB ram with 1GB video card and its been fine...but not for more than a few minutes. I'm not a VJ
Here's from their site:
MINIMUM system requirements:
Funny how they can't spell Recommended right...anyway....from the looks of the basic specs you won't need an i7 but you will need a fairly healthy video card. If you ever add a controller to this setup I think the better the video card the better the ability to control pixelation and/or lag.
I say if you want to do this right..build a rack mount desktop with a nice video card or spend the duckies to get the right lappy with those specs. I think you can build the desktop with an SSD and a HD with i5 16GB ram and a video card for under $1000....probably a little less specked out lappy for under $1400....
Heck I don't know really...ask them on their forum. I've used video on my core 2 duo with 4GB ram with 1GB video card and its been fine...but not for more than a few minutes. I'm not a VJ
Here's from their site:
MINIMUM system requirements:
- Intel® Pentium® 4 or AMD Athlon™ XP
- 1024x768 resolution
- DirectX compatible soundcard
- 512MB RAM
- 50MB free on the hard drive
- Intel® Core™ 2 or AMD Athlon™ X2
- 1280x1024 resolution
- Multi-channel DirectX compatible soundcard
- 1024MB RAM
- 200MB free on the hard drive
- 2048MB (2GB) RAM
- ATI™ or NVIDIA® video card w/256MB of Dedicated DDR3 RAM
- Video card must support dual-screen output
OOPS...I read that wrong...256MB of ram on the video card....I thought it said 2GB Video card...
Massive mistake.
My bad. Forget what I wrote.
ANY lappy you've made will do just fine. Keep it cool.
Massive mistake.
My bad. Forget what I wrote.
ANY lappy you've made will do just fine. Keep it cool.
I used a Lenovo for DJ'ing for about 6 months. Had issue with the hinges. Processing power was pretty good, but the hinges (actually screws on the hinges kept wanting to back out and cause issues with the laptop not opening and closing properly. Just my humble opinion. YMMV