Laptop + SSD + multi-track recording ??

[drew_drummer]

I'm just curious really.... has anyone tried putting an SSD in their laptop (macbook or PC laptop, doesn't matter) and then tried recording 8-16 tracks on it???

I tried with my Macbook once, with my Profire. 5400 speed hard-drive, and it couldn't do more than 3 tracks without dropping out. I'm curious if an SSD would handle the data throughput.

 

[aortizjr]

Well you would have to check the specs. Some SSD drives (especially the affordable ones) actually don't perform any better than some 7200 RPM drives. The write speed is generally slower with SSD drives even the read speed is much faster.

So I would go the 7200 RPM route for now. More space and good performance these days with SATA and such.

Also consider that you really shouldn't be recording onto your application drive. Separate drives are necessary due to bus speeds and virtual memory and such. I would consider an eSATA drive or a firewire drive.

Firewire you start sharing the bus which can be a problem, but should allow a decent count.

USB has such high overhead in most chipsets that I would avoid them. Also make sure they are 7200 RPM drives in there as well and get the highest cache size you can get. In the old days you had to get the Oxford 911 chipset for Firewire.

These days I use an eSATA drive with my laptop and I have had no trouble doing 28 track simultaneous tracking and overdubs on top of that.

 

[drew_drummer]

Interesting. Thanks for that.

 

[JeffTD]

I've recorded drums just fine via FW on my 7200rpm internal drive, FWIW.

 

[setyouranchor]

Thanks aortizjr intertesed in this myself

Anybody recommend a decent 7200 firewire drive to use for multitracking with a macbook?

 

[John_C]

What matters is sequential writes, find some reviews and check what sequential write speeds were measured to accurately compare DAW performance.

Also, TRIM support can be important to maintain good performance from the drive over time, as many SSDs without it have a tendency to slow down with use.

For laptop recording, unless the laptop in question is huge and can fit 2 drives, an SSD as a system and applications disk and a 7200rpm eSATA external for files is likely the best balance of price and performance

 

[AudioGeekZine]

Thanks aortizjr intertesed in this myself

Anybody recommend a decent 7200 firewire drive to use for multitracking with a macbook?

LaCie Quadra D2 running on FW800

 

[JeffTD]

Ugh, avoid LaCie like the plague. Fucking awful drives.

Do you mean internal or external?

 

[setyouranchor]

Really? I've read some pretty good reviews. External brah!

 

[Melodeath]

I imagine your issue was more with the 5400 RPM.
I've recorded 9 tracks simultaneously with no issue on a 7200 RPM internal Macbook Pro drive. I've read it's actually easier on the computer to record to the internal drive than to an external one through firewire.

 

[John_C]

I've read it's actually easier on the computer to record to the internal drive than to an external one through firewire.

It is easier on the CPU, yes. Primarily though SATA can just push more bandwidth than firewire

 

[AudioGeekZine]

Ugh, avoid LaCie like the plague. Fucking awful drives.

In what way?

TC Chip
No fan
Quiet
variety of ports
metal case
Hitachi drive inside

These are really common drives in pro studios and media production shops.

 

[JeffTD]

In what way?

These are really common drives in pro studios and media production shops.

In the way that I've never seen a single company produce so many drives that die RIGHT after their warranty expires. Murphy had the same exact experience.

Beyond shit customer service, as well. Cheap product at a high price. I'll stick with the WD Book series for my money, or G-Tech/Glyph if I want to spend a bit more.

 

[drew_drummer]

Agree with Jeff. I've seen loads of Lacie drives die in the past. Loads of Seagate ones too.... and guess what you'll find inside your Glyph drive??

 

[Djunn]

Loads of Seagate