Computers! Specs, what to look for in a music production computer, etc

[AUTOSTEREOGRAM]

I've dealt with garbage computers for as long as I've been making music. Started out with a decent but outdated desktop PC as a kid, then bought myself a horrible 2009 Macbook that I somehow made work for aaaaaages. "Upgraded" to a 2012 Macbook Pro in like 2018, and "upgraded" to a 2013 iMac in 2021.

As the years have gone on and the music I make is becoming more complex, I'm running into more and more issues. RAM usage, samples cutting out, and of course, all the usual Apple bullshit. Macs pretty much always have a ten year lifespan before they start really breaking down, and whaddaya know, 2023 hit and my 2013 iMac has been running pretty rough. I think it's time to actually upgrade instead of just buying these crappy $200 used Macs that I burn through in a matter of years.

So what's the move? Is it time for me make the switch from Apple back to Windows?

I quit PC gaming as a teenager, and since then, I've kinda stopped caring about computer specs. While I've been shopping online for computers I've been looking at anything with at least a terabyte of storage (on an SSD, i'm thinking my audio issues now are bc i'm on an HDD) and 16 gigs of RAM - any other specs that I should be aware for smooth music production and video editing?

[Geekygami]

At 6/29/23 04:00 AM, AUTOSTEREOGRAM wrote: I've dealt with garbage computers for as long as I've been making music. Started out with a decent but outdated desktop PC as a kid, then bought myself a horrible 2009 Macbook that I somehow made work for aaaaaages. "Upgraded" to a 2012 Macbook Pro in like 2018, and "upgraded" to a 2013 iMac in 2021.

As the years have gone on and the music I make is becoming more complex, I'm running into more and more issues. RAM usage, samples cutting out, and of course, all the usual Apple bullshit. Macs pretty much always have a ten year lifespan before they start really breaking down, and whaddaya know, 2023 hit and my 2013 iMac has been running pretty rough. I think it's time to actually upgrade instead of just buying these crappy $200 used Macs that I burn through in a matter of years.

So what's the move? Is it time for me make the switch from Apple back to Windows?
I quit PC gaming as a teenager, and since then, I've kinda stopped caring about computer specs. While I've been shopping online for computers I've been looking at anything with at least a terabyte of storage (on an SSD, i'm thinking my audio issues now are bc i'm on an HDD) and 16 gigs of RAM - any other specs that I should be aware for smooth music production and video editing?

The moment you're asking about video editing, you've pretty much set yourself up for needing a graphics card, if you want it to be a decently smooth experience.

It doesn't need to be fantastic, but something along the lines of the GTX 900 generation or higher, or something higher than Radeon HD 7970, may be decent these days, if you're planning to cheap out, and if they're not as horrendously overpriced as their newer counterparts.

As for the rest, 16 gigs of RAM is completely fine.

Most software won't use a whole lot of cores, so something along the lines of a 4th generation I5 or a low to mid-tier Ryzen CPU from any of the Ryzen generations would do you perfectly adequately.

You really don't need that much unless you're running stupidly unoptimized plugins, like Serum or Vital.

(As a side note, for a long time now, Apple computer devices have had specs that were horribly behind even for their time, where you could get better specs for less money, and upgradeability to boot.)

[EvilRaccoon]

What kind of music would you like to make, with what software as it determines hardware. :)