Buying a Macbook/Laptop

SmallBalls

Lads I'm looking for some help choosing a refurbed Macbook or Laptop.
It'll be used solely for DJing, running DJ software from Serato called Scratch Live.
I'll post minimum specs below. My budget is about 500-600 euro.

Laptops: iSeries processor's are out as theres a known issue with them
and Serato, and Microsoft have so far been unwilling to work with Serato
to sort it out :mad: AMD are also out. So I've sort of narrowed it down to a
Intel Core 2 Duo. Everyone says stay away from Vista also. Maybe 15" screen.

Macbook: iSeries processor's are fine as Apple have worked with Serato
to solve the problem, but on my budget I don't think I'll be able to
find anything. So it's pretty much Intel Core 2 Duo aswell. Think I'm limited to 13" screen.

I've posted on the DJing forum and the majority have come back saying
Macbook is by far the better option for stability, reliability etc. Also on the
Serato forums it's mostly thumbs up for a Macbook.

So that seems to be the direction I'm heading. I am open to laptop
suggestions, a few people have mentioned Lenovo as being a fairly
soild machine. I'm not a big techie so not overly confident
when buying these things. Any help/advise appreciated.

I've been looking on ebay and this dude has
7 Macbooks under 600 euro for sale, which is around about my budget.
Some have bigger HDD, some bigger RAM, other than that they
look pretty much the same to me. Is there anything else between them?

Also found this Lenovo not sure though, looks old.

Just wanna get whats best for my few quid.

Any opinions/suggestions welcomed

Also posted something similar on the DJing forum, hope thats okay.

Minimum specs:

PLEASE NOTE: These are the minimum requirements to run Scratch Live. For best performance and for use in professional situations we recommend you use a higher spec computer. We also recommend Intel processors.

Mac

Intel 1.8 GHz Core Duo (2.0 GHz, Core Duo for SL 4) or better (See Note 2)
2 GB RAM*
1024 x 768 screen resolution
OSX 10.5 or higher
Available USB port (USB 2.0 required for SL 2, SL 3, SL 4 & Sixty-Eight)
Windows

Intel processor, 2.0 GHz Core Duo or better (See Note 1 & 2)
2 GB RAM*
1024 x 768 screen resolution
Windows XP with Service Pack 3 or higher
Windows Vista with Service Pack 2 or higher
Windows 7
Available USB port (USB 2.0 required for SL 2, SL 3, SL 4 & Sixty-Eight)
*If you have a large library, you will benefit from having more RAM.

Note 1: Please read these FAQs first if you are looking at buying any of the following:

Windows based PC with Intel iSeres (i3, i5 or i7) processor
Windows based PC with Pentium P6xxx processor
Windows based PC with AMD processor
Note 2: If you are using Scratch Live 2.x's more system intensive features such as DJ FX or AUX Deck plugins and are having issues you may need a higher spec computer for best results or make sure you have optimized your system: Windows 7 and Vista / Mac OS X.

SmallBalls

Not really what I'm looking for Niall.

niall_h

How so? Selection's massive on there & cheapest too. They have refurbished versions of most products also from Amazon-certified sellers.

SmallBalls

Sorry Niall, I'm just looking for a bit more input than a non-specific Amazon link.

SmallBalls

Anyone??
Also looking at this ebay seller.

niall_h

As I mentioned earlier: scan through that Amazon search url, check out the customer reviews & pick up a bargain.

Jaafa

Em I'm not sure where your getting your info from but you see kinda behind the times, the iseries have been out for a long time and even had their second revision last year, with the next revision in a few months.

Vista is pretty much gone too, all laptops come with windows 7 now.

Are you sure there's an issue with them and that program? I don't see why they wouldn't work. What exactly is it?

Intel core duo is old by now, really isn't worth investing in them, and you'll only find second hand or refurbished laptops with them anymore.

Also I wouldn't buy from ebay, plenty of other shops to buy from, saveonlaptops, komplett etc.

mathepac

Jaafa wrote: »

...
Also I wouldn't buy from ebay, plenty of other shops to buy from, saveonlaptops, komplett etc.

or even Apple's own on-line refurb store - http://store.apple.com/ie/browse/home/specialdeals/mac

Deals tend to get snapped up quickly so you'll need to keep vigilant. Prices slightly higher than you budget but so are specs and you get warranty.

Forgot to mention what might be a deal-breaker for you - to run Apple's Lion (OSX 10.7) you need an absolute minimum of an Intel Core 2 Duo

As new releases of your applications software become available, they may require higher revi8sions of the OS and / or the CPU so don't get caught behind the upgrade curve.

partyatmygaff

This is probably the most powerful Core 2 machine you can get within your budget.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ACER-ASPIRE-LAPTOP-7738G-904G100MN-Q9000-4GB-RAM-1TB-HDD-BLUE-/270890883961?pt=UK_Computing_Laptops_EH&hash=item3f125adb79

You're unlikely to find anything actually new with a Core 2. They're well out of date at this stage. Spending €500+ on a Core 2 laptop of any kind isn't a very sound investment but the Q9000 in the above laptop performs almost as well (In threaded applications) as second generation i3s/i5s which are also in the same price bracket. The only major disadvantage you'll have is older architecture and higher power usage which shouldn't be a problem providing you aren't planning on using it on battery power.

Buying a Macbook on the other hand would be madness. If you absolutely have to stick with Core 2 then you should get the laptop with the most powerful Core 2 CPU available to you. Even a heavily used Macbook of the Core 2 era would cost more than €500 and would have underpowered hardware to boot.

SmallBalls

Jaafa wrote: »

Are you sure there's an issue with them and that program? I don't see why they wouldn't work. What exactly is it?

I'm using a piece of hardware called TTM 57SL which uses USB 1.1
A lot of users have had problems using this with Windows and iSeries processors.

Apple have worked with Serato to solve the problem so no problems with
iSeries and Macs. However Microsoft haven't been so helpful so the problem
remains with Windows based machines.

Any particular reason to stay away from Ebay?

From the Serato website:

Problems with Windows based PCs with i3, i5 or i7 processors when used with USB 1.1 devices


Some users are encountering issues with computers featuring the newest Intel i3, i5, or i7 processors when used with USB 1.1 devices such as the Rane SL 1 or TTM 57SL.

Users may encounter USB dropouts and / or hardware disconnection problems.

We have discovered that there may be a compatibility problem between the computer's BIOS and the new controller chipset Intel uses with these processors.

We are also currently investigating our own work-arounds for these issues.

SmallBalls

partyatmygaff wrote: »

If you absolutely have to stick with Core 2 then you should get the laptop with the most powerful Core 2 CPU available to you. Even a heavily used Macbook of the Core 2 era would cost more than €500 and would have underpowered hardware to boot.

With a Windows laptop it has to be Core 2 as theres issues with iSeries
and my hardware.
If I had the dough it'd be iSeries Macbook but funds are too tight thats why
I'm looking at Core 2 in the Macbook aswell.

Edit: The Acer looks a decent machine for my needs (strictly music only, nothing else)
They don't ship to Ireland though

partyatmygaff

Ah so it's a USB controller issue. This seems too simple to not have been attempted yet but have you tried an external USB interface?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Expresscard-Express-card-34-54-2-x-USB-3-0-Port-Adapter-Fully-Inside-Laptop-/290632457885?pt=UK_Computing_ComputerComponents_InterfaceCards&hash=item43ab0b5e9d

Something like that? USB3 is currently not supported natively on any Intel chipsets so this ExpressCard ought to be independent of the chipset issue causing the dropouts with your control surface.

partyatmygaff

SmallBalls wrote: »

With a Windows laptop it has to be Core 2 as theres issues with iSeries
and my hardware.
If I had the dough it'd be iSeries Macbook but funds are too tight thats why
I'm looking at Core 2 in the Macbook aswell.

If the USB3 ExpressCard idea doesn't work you can always buy a modern iSeries Windows laptop and install Mac OS X on it. Providing you choose the right laptop, Mac OS X should run fine.

SmallBalls

partyatmygaff wrote: »

Ah so it's a USB controller issue. This seems too simple to not have been attempted yet but have you tried an external USB interface?

My old laptop was core duo so never really had any issues with dropouts
hence never any need to try any workarounds.
Its only now that I'm looking for a new machine that I'm seeing the potential
pitfalls. Really don't need to get stung.

Providing you choose the right laptop, Mac OS X should run fine.

Any thoughts on a machine? Any potential for this to cause me hassle
in the future, bearing in mind my techie skills are average at best

partyatmygaff

The Lenovo G570 apparently works fine on Mac OS X. The only issues it currently has is that the brightness cannot be reduced below 50% and the card reader isn't supported.

Here's the full list of tested laptops:
http://wiki.osx86project.org/wiki/index.php/HCL_10.7.2/Portables#G570

Here's the G570 in all its different configurations
http://www.saveonlaptops.co.uk/products/keywords/g570/ex/clearance%2cdummy%2ctradepack%2cdummy-warranty%2cdummy-peripherals

Ask someone on the Serato forum who already has an i3/i5/i7 laptop to try the USB3 ExpressCard idea. If it works for them, follow suit. If not... well back to the drawing board.

SmallBalls

partyatmygaff wrote: »

Ask someone on the Serato forum who already has an i3/i5/i7 laptop to try the USB3 ExpressCard idea. If it works for them, follow suit. If not... well back to the drawing board.

Word is the ExpressCard idea wont work.

The Hackintosh thing is frowned upon so hard to get info from
the forum but the bit I did get said it was a bit hit and miss.
Works great for some, not for others.

General opinion was USB 1.1 was much more suited to Core 2 as
both are older technology. So the search continues :rolleyes:

The Acer you linked dosen't ship to Ireland, any idea where I might
look for something similar?

partyatmygaff

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/LENOVO-THINKPAD-T500-2089-15-4-2-53GHz-4GB-Laptop-WARRANTY-/330674625563?pt=UK_Computing_Laptops_EH&hash=item4cfdbe5c1b

Here's something cheap. Send the seller a question asking them if they'll ship to Ireland. Most usually won't have a problem. I really wouldn't spend any more than that on a Core 2 era laptop.

_AVALANCHE_

niall_h wrote: »

Just do a search on Amazon for models within your price range with best customer reviews

Amazon.co.uk - Macbooks

niall_h wrote: »

How so? Selection's massive on there & cheapest too. They have refurbished versions of most products also from Amazon-certified sellers.

niall_h wrote: »

As I mentioned earlier: scan through that Amazon search url, check out the customer reviews & pick up a bargain.

Sneaky whore, referall links and subsequent dumb questions/posts.:mad:

partyatmygaff

Are there any issues with AMD cpus?

If not, there are always laptops like the Lenovo E525 or Dell Vostro 3555. So long as you get the A8-3500M CPU it should be more than adequate and not all that expensive.

SmallBalls

partyatmygaff wrote: »

Are there any issues with AMD cpus?

If not, there are always laptops like the Lenovo E525 or Dell Vostro 3555. So long as you get the A8-3500M CPU it should be more than adequate and not all that expensive.

AMD are not recommended, Intel only.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/LENOVO-THI...item4cfdbe5c1b

Here's something cheap. Send the seller a question asking them if they'll ship to Ireland. Most usually won't have a problem. I really wouldn't spend any more than that on a Core 2 era laptop.

And this dude is trying to rape me with shipping fees :eek: