Acme ten Best Laptops For Music Production
[Updated: fourteen April 2018] – Nosotros've curated the best laptops for music product this yr. Become forth and make music!
Choosing a skilful laptop for music production shouldn't be too hard but it is a critical decision to make.
What y'all want is a laptop powerful enough for recording and music product. On height of that, it will last yous many years to come, eventually making sense of your investment.
You possibly travel a lot every bit well and want a laptop to produce music, that isn't bulky or heavy.
I totally empathise. In fact, in my years of producing music, I owned over 5 laptops, Macs & PCs in the past ten years of producing music.
How To Cull A Good Laptop for Music Production
Offset of all, you need to think about the Bone you'd like to produce music on. Will yous primarily make music on a Mac or PC?
I've covered this topic about choosing a computer for music production previously, but just to add together, choosing an OS to make music on usually depends on the DAW software you want to apply.
Personally, I started my music product journey in 2006 with Logic Express. Since then, I have switched between multiple DAWs such as Cubase, Studio One, and even switch between using Mac & PC a few times only to finally finding myself ownership a MacBook Pro Retina to use Logic X most 10 years afterwards in 2016.
Choosing a adept laptop for music production boils down to three main factors:
- Main DAW software y'all'll utilize
- Processing ability – Yous'll want the fastest processor you can afford.
- RAM – You need more than RAM for VST intensive production. I recommend a minimum of 8GB.
Don't make the mistake I did, past jumping into buying a laptop that didn't quite similar for music product. I bought the Asus GL552VW on impulse. Proficient affordable laptop only non without some badgerer.
See the review video:
Of course, things such as battery life for making music on the go, available storage space to shop your samples or available ports are important too. Just there are frequently workarounds for those.
Let'due south get started.
Best 10 Laptops For Music Product in 2018
Hither are the all-time 10 laptops that you lot can consider buying in 2018 for music production. I'll also briefly explain the pros and cons of each.
1 – MacBook Pro Retina 2015
I of the best laptops to get for when it comes to music production is the MacBook Pro.
Why? Because it only works. I'1000 not going to discuss the war between PC or Macs for music production but having used both & while it really boils down to personal preference, I yet prefer using a MacBook Pro over any Windows laptop to produce music.
With a MacBook Pro (the Retina 2015 model), you get everything you lot need to brand music immediately. Fast SSD drive, Cadre Audio, RAM, bombardment life & CPU power to take on most music production demands.
Hey, what well-nigh the latest Macbook Pro? To be honest, the current MacBook Pro model with the touch bar isn't bad. The reason I didn't feature it here is that of the demand for more ports on a laptop for music production. The electric current model does not have plenty ports without using a dongle.
About MIDI controllers & audio interfaces all work on a USB3 connectedness. And to be honest, the bear on bar on the new MacBook Pros doesn't really help your production workflow.
One more thing. If y'all're planning to buy the MacBook Pro & need to add together more RAM, don't buy the 13″ model & upgrade the RAM. Instead, it makes more than monetary sense to purchase the 15″ base model as it comes with 16GB RAM installed, together with an i7 processor.
Pros
- Gear up to utilise out-of-the-box.
- Solid performance & quality.
- Niggling driver or software issues with a Mac organisation.
- Comes with Garageband (which is great for beginners)
Cons
- Pocket-sized SSD space. Not enough for keeping large samples.
- Expensive.
- May lack plenty ports.
- Non very upgradable.
- RAM only upwardly to 16GB.
- Slower processor compared to many other Windows laptop.
two – Razer Bract Stealth 13.iii″
If yous've been around the net looking for a high-quality laptop, you may have heard nearly the Razer Bract Stealth. This laptop is great in many means for music production and hither are some reasons why.
It has the 8th generation Quad Core i7-8550U that will bargain with all your DAW & plugins processing. It comes with 16GB of RAM which sadly isn't upgradable but should definitely do the fox for a travelling producer. In add-on, it likewise has an NVIDIA® GeForce GTX 106, which will exist an actress help for your RAM usage when producing music, as information technology'll help with some plugin processing.
A nice characteristic is the touchscreen display, and then you could in fact, use the touchscreen to tweak your sound plugins & depict automation. The standard SSD storage that comes with it, is a 256GB SSD, just you tin can upgrade information technology to 512GB. The 1TB version volition price you quite a bit more than, and I foresee virtually music producers using an external hard disk drive with the Razer Blade.
Withal, a quick workaround is to use the USB-C port, where you tin use an external SSD or HDD to load any of your projects, plugins or virtual instruments with ease. While the USB-C is pretty fast, make sure you lot get an external drive, preferably an SSD that is fast enough to load & save samples.
Though the Razer Blade Stealth is marketed for gaming, where y'all'll be putting downwardly coin for design & the graphics card, the laptop will perform smashing for any music production usage.
Pros
- Solid functioning and quality.
- Has USB-C. Ane of the most powerful USB connections to engagement.
Cons
- Expensive.
- Little option for upgrades.
- There are cheaper alternatives if y'all're in a pinch.
3 – Dell XPS fifteen
The Dell XPS series is a laptop series that has been around for some time. The Dell XPS 15 is also 1 of the sexiest fifteen-inch laptop you can buy for music product.
Dissimilar many other Chinese-made laptops which can exist quite flimsy with its build, you lot'll capeesh the strong & premium build of the XPS 15, its prissy borderless display, the touch deck & how slim-profiled the laptop is. It's seriously a beauty of a laptop.
Performance wise, in that location are few models you can choose from, depending on your budget. Merely be informed that the Dell XPS is pricier than other laptops with the same performance, due to the build and component quality.
The entry model starts at $999 with the 7th gen i3 processor. I'd advise you lot to bump your budget up and become the $1249 model that comes with the 7th gen i5 processor at a blank minimum. Or better yet, get the model with the i7 processor to future-proof your laptop purchase.
The entry model sports a 7200RPM hard disk which would exist fine for music production, simply if you lot're afraid of striking into bottlenecks with the storage drive speed, get the college end models that come with SSD.
The RAM on every model is upgradable to 32GB, making information technology ideal for music production. There'due south also enough of ports from USB3.0 to Thunderbolt, so connectivity in the studio shouldn't be an issue.
Pros
- Beautifully designed & solid
- Very prissy display
- Powerful. Expensive models come with Nvidia graphics card.
Cons
- No pick to take ii storage drives.
- Pricier option. Yous pay for the build quality & brand
iv. PCAudioLabs (MC Mobile M7S)
PC Audio Labs makes laptops and computers for music producers. What you get is not off the shelf basic PCs, but specialized Windows systems, tweaked specifically for professional audio. Compared to many off-the-shelf laptops, where drivers are built by Windows, PC AudioLabs have it farther by tweaking the drivers specifically for music production.
The MC Mobile M7s comes packed with an Intel® Core™ i7-7700HQ, information technology has the ability to handle all of your processing in your DAW. In fact, the systems built by PCAudioLabs (including the MC Mobile M7s), has been used to score films, power DJ performances and becoming the middle of many commercial recording studios. Why yous could upgrade the RAM to 64GB if you want!
Storage wise, you lot take an Grand.2/PCIe or an selection for an SSD or an HDD. All of the storage can be upgradable to your needs.
In addition to the purchase of this laptop (other PC AudioLabs' products/custom PC included), PC AudioLabs also comes with pro sound grooming from OBEDIA, a well-known company which profession is in helping music producers with training and solving technicalities. This largely separates them apart even from big companies similar Apple. They as well come with costless lifetime phone and email tech support fifty-fifty when your warranty has already come to an end.
In summary, this laptop just shouts customisability and if you'd like the idea of having a laptop built specifically for music production, this one is a go.
Pros
- Made for music production.
- Lifetime phone & email back up by pro audio hardware & software techs.
- Extremely customizable towards your needs & budget.
- Comes with pro audio training from OBEDIA.
Cons
- It'll come up with a toll.
- Favors intermediate & pro producers who know what they desire. As a beginner, yous might do OK on normal laptops.
5 – HP Pavilion Power 15
The HP Pavilion Power 15 is a nice laptop with enough screen size for busy DAW edits. Packed with an Intel® Core™ i7-7700HQ, y'all'll have plenty processing power for big music arrangements and recordings. On the opposite, it only packs 4GB of RAM in which can be upgraded to 16GB simply (max). The battery is a plus on the Pavilion if you similar to do a bit of writing out of the studio.
The big matter to shout well-nigh with this machine is the fact that it has a dual storage selection. With the adequacy of having an SSD and an HDD, you tin can put your programs on your SSD and dump all of your plugins and VSTs on your HDD which can be upgraded upwardly to 2TB.
Video editing or some light film score on this laptop will work too, with an NVIDIA GeForce 1050. The Pavilion Power 15 makes a bully laptop for the beginner or intermediate music producer who enjoys making music and doing other tasks. Only make certain y'all get the specs you want correct from the manufacturing plant, to save troublesome upgrades later on.
Pros
- Huge storage w/ dual storage option.
- Adept amount of ports including USB-C.
- Long battery life – upwardly to xiv hours.
Cons
- RAM upgradable to 16GB but.
- Plastic-built
half dozen – Dell Inspiron 15 7000
An affordable gaming laptop that looks just twice as expensive the Dell Inspiron 15 7000 is a workhorse, that should be considered. With models that start from only $799, the Inspiron 15 7000 comes with the latest 8th generation Core i5-8250U processor.
It packs a lot of power for the intermediate music producer.
In that location are as well dual drives built into the laptop, with an SSD as its master bulldoze, then DAW will experience snappy on this laptop. While the laptop comes with a large fifteen″ brandish, giving yous plenty of existent estate for working in your DAW, the display is somewhat not as vibrant as compared to many other laptops.
This volition be slightly discouraging if y'all plan on making videos with it likewise as the colors are not exactly accurate. However, if producing music is your main focus and nothing else, then Dell Inspiron 15 7000 is worth a consideration – without spending as well much!
Pros
- Long bombardment life – up to 11 hours.
- Decent operation at its price.
- Slap-up build, looks professional and solid.
Cons
- Dull & inaccurate brandish
- Heavy.
- Bottom of the laptop can get pretty hot with more need for processing.
7 – HP Spectre x360 (2018)
Another well fabricated laptop, the Spectre X360 allows you to use information technology like a normal laptop or as a tablet. Although a piffling modest, it's very well congenital. Also, expect great battery life on the Spectre X360. Information technology is capable of running upward to 8 hours with continuous online browsing.
Now sporting the latest eighth gen Intel Core i7, you'll take all the power to record & produce music. You could upgrade the Spectre's storage to a whopping 1TB SSD, so streaming your tracks with it should be fairly fast while having all the space you need.
Where it used to autumn short, now the RAM can be upgraded to a max of 32GB. This means the Spectre x360 while beingness a touch-screen laptop is capable of processing intensive music piece of work such as film scoring.
The bummer would be the bachelor ports on the laptop. There'southward only single USB3.0 port that you could utilise for your audio interface or MIDI controller. On the correct side of the laptop, there'south another two USB type-C port which is meant for charging and a Thunderbolt three port. Using the HP Spectre X360 for music product means investing in some USB-hubs, unfortunately.
If y'all notice yourself travelling a lot & like a thin laptop that yous tin produce music on, then consider it. Still, at the tech specs, y'all're getting, the Spectre costs considerably more than other laptops in its range – mostly due to the build quality and slim profile.
The graphics card that comes with the Spectre X360 is non as powerful as the other gaming laptops I mentioned before, but for some low-cal photoshopping or video editing, information technology should exercise fine. Just don't expect to play games with loftier graphics intensity on it – which I'll dubiousness since you'll be more busy making music.
Pros
- Great battery life for travelling & producing.
- Very nice 4K display.
- Can be upgraded with the latest processor, large SSD and RAM.
- A silent laptop.
Cons
- Very few ports. Need to get USB hub.
- Heats upwardly pretty quick due to its thin build
- Decent graphics carte.
- Gets expensive with all the upgrades.
8 – Asus GL503 xv.half dozen″
The Asus GL503, (refresh from the FX503) is a gaming laptop that works well for music product. Why? Information technology's pretty damn powerful for its size and weight. You lot get the latest Intel Cadre™ i7-8750H processor that would take on any recording and plugin processing without a hiccup.
As with nigh gaming laptops, the GL503 comes with a very powerful graphics bill of fare, an NVIDIA GTX 1050 Ti with 4GB GDDR5 VRAM – which essentially is an overkill for any music production piece of work, simply very much welcomed if you're doing some video editing and film scoring as well. You could upgrade the RAM to 32GB, should you lot be a heavy plugin and effects user.
Every bit for storage space, I'd recommend you go for the 256GB SSD to install all your softwares and upgrade to the 7200rpm HDD (not the 5400rpm), to store and load your samples quickly. The build of the laptop isn't the all-time one out there, but if you can alive with gaming-looking laptops, with lots of led lights and mostly a plastic build, you'll practise fine.
While the GL503 does boast about its cooling proficiency, it does get a little warm when you're doing lots of processing on it. As with nearly gaming laptops, the bombardment isn't that great when the laptop starts putting lots of load on the processor. But if you're going to exist plugged in when making music, the Asus GL503 will perform similar a charm.
Pros
- Very powerful for its size & weight.
- Enough ports for most music production needs
- Customizable & upgradable to the ability y'all need.
Cons
- Bombardment life isn't as good.
- Gets hot with lots of processing.
9 – Samsung Notebook 9
Want a laptop that is thin & light, but doesn't sacrifice on operation? The Samsung Notebook ix is a corking 15″ laptop that is powerful, given that it comes with an i7 processor, 256GB SSD drive & 16GB RAM.
The Samsung Notebook 9 is thinner than a MacBook Air and despite that slim built, it too comes with a dedicated Nvidia 940MX GPU built in. While the Thou.2 SSD 256GB SSD might seem small, it tin can be upgraded up to 1TB.
Blueprint for the traveler in mind, there'due south also a USB-C port on the Samsung Notebook 9 that you tin can use to charge the laptop with a standard telephone charger. Samsung claims that a 20-min charge would requite enough battery juice for the laptop to last for 2.i hours.
For united states of america as music producers, there are also plenty of connectivity with USB 3.0 ports, HDMI and strangely a microSD port instead of a standard sized SD port on the laptop.
Pros
- Extremely portable and ideal for the travelling music producer
- Prissy brandish and screen existent estate
- Upgradable SSD to 1TB a win!
Cons
- RAM only upgradable up to 16GB. Won't be able to handle samples which are too huge.
- Weird to have a microSD slot instead of a total standard sized SD card.
10 – Asus Zenbook Pro
Adopt a thinner ultrabook, not as chunky as nearly gaming laptops, but is slick, slim and gets the job washed? The Asus Zenbook Pro is an amazing laptop for music production with its powerful Intel i7 processor. In one case again like most HP laptops, the RAM is only upgradable up to 16GB only.
This laptop has many ports and if y'all're a MIDI controller person, you'll be happy to know there'southward enough. Storage on this guy is not that peachy but you lot'll be relieved to know that they are PCIe SSD storage. This means you'll have fast transfers speeds despite the low storage count.
In all seriousness, I think this laptop may be a niggling underrated but it seriously does its job every bit a slim, slick, powerful ultrabook.
Pros
- Bang-up functioning & build quality.
- First-class display.
- Decent amount of ports including Thunderbolt.
Cons
- RAM upgradable to 16GB only.
- Low storage capacity.
Bonus #11 – Eluktronics P650RP6 Gaming Laptop
Never thought I'd recommend this beast of a auto here merely upon studying it, this is a must-have on this list.
The Eluktronics P650RP6 is a beast for a laptop, created by the Eluktronics, a US company who feels that 5400RPM hard drives shouldn't be placed within modern laptops anymore. They pride themselves to use the best components and parts in the laptops they build.
Of the many models offered, the Eluktronics P650RP6 is i that shows promise in performance and also serving as a laptop for music production. With the top models, you lot tin can beef up the laptop, powered by a powerful i7 processor, 1TB SSD, 7200RPM HDD secondary bulldoze & RAM upgradable to a whopping 64GB.
With all this packed into a laptop, it makes the Eluktronics P650RP6 possibly one of the nigh powerful and best laptop for music production. Packed with a truckload of connectivity options for all your audio devices, it's also a no-brainer if y'all use a lot of MIDI controllers or if you lot're planning to hook up multiple displays in the studio. Battery life on the laptop is likewise decent with approximately 4-5 hours of non-intensive usage.
In my stance, the Eluktronics laptop falls short with its noisy fan racket nether heavy calculating load. This might non exist so much of a large deal if you work in a two-room recording studio setting. Simply if you record & mix in the same room, the noisy fans might be a nuisance when recording. Other than that, the Eleuktronics P650RP6 is a true beast of a laptop for music production at the right cost.
Pros
- Pricer but toll is correct for the operation & power.
- RAM upwards to 64GB. Run all the samples you lot need!
- Laptop with virtually connectivity in its course.
Cons
- Noisy fans under heavy load.
- Bulky and not very sexy.
Decision
In that location are and then many laptops you can cull to produce music on. However what matters at the finish of the day is that you put your craft into practise and really make music.
Many amateur music producers lust likewise much over new gear but don't spend the fourth dimension to record, compose & produce.
I hope you're non one & despite the laptop, yous determine to get, brand sure you produce music. And if you exercise, feel free to post them over on Audio Mentor'south Facebook page and then that the community can take a listen.
Lastly, what do you think of this list? What laptop are yous using currently to record and produce music? Comment below.
Best Laptops For Music Production From 2017
Nosotros've kept some of the best laptops from yesteryears here below. Think, choosing a estimator for professional audio is unlike from choosing one to play games. The key is to know what you need in a organization earlier getting one.
Feel complimentary to reference them from the list below!
1. Acer Aspire VX 15
The Acer Aspire VX 15 is an affordable gaming laptop with a starting price from just $800. Although catered more towards gamers, it serves well equally a music production and video editing laptop too. The entry model has an Intel i5 processor while the higher end models have an i7 merely no affair the model, solid operation is not lost.
RAM can just be upgraded up to 16GB. The starting model only has a 256GB SSD built in hence, you'll need to rely on external storage devices. A 2.5inch HDD bulldoze can besides exist added with some assembly required.
2. ASUS FX502VM-AS73
The is a powerhouse of a laptop with plenty of ports from USB three ports, USB-C, HDMI & even a mini display port. It is fitted with the latest seventh gen i7 core processor & upgradable RAM up to 32GB. This laptop performs well as a video editing laptop too as it is equipped with an NVIDIA GTX 960M graphics card.
The laptop comes with an exceptional, impressive cooling system that keeps everything at bay even with the heaviest CPU/GPU workload. Information technology is recommended to get the superlative end model because it comes with an SSD that is upgradable to 512GB and an HDD of 1TB then, y'all can install your programs on one and larger files on the other. The downside of this laptop is the battery life.
iii. Asus ROG Strix GL553VD
The main attraction for the Asus ROG Gl553VD is the two storage drives. An SSD of 512GB and an HDD of 1TB at 7200RPM. Running with the latest Kaby Lake Intel i7 processor with the RAM upgradable to 32GB, at that place is no sacrifice in operation.
Equipped with an NVIDIA GTX 1050, your DAW volition be able to take advantage of the GPU processing. There is a CD drive on the laptop too if you still need it.
This laptop falls short in which the bombardment life is limited and the touchpad is pretty lousy hence, it doesn't actually brand it ideal for producing music when travelling.
iv. Lenovo Legion Y520 Laptop
The [easyazon_link identifier="B06XWFCKYX" locale="US" tag="audiowebazon-xx"] is a laptop that shouts performance at a price that won't disappoint. Packed with the latest i7 processor, information technology is a pity that the RAM is only upgradeable up to 16GB. Fitted with an NVIDIA GTX 1050 Ti graphics carte du jour, it should be pretty snappy to practise some video editing or photoshopping on the side.
If you lot use a lot of MIDI gear, you'll be happy to know that there are plenty USB ports for them. You get to cull from a 256GB SSD, a 2TB HDD or a hybrid storage. Practise take note that the HDD is not a 7200RPM type, so I'd propose getting the model with an SSD and utilize an external drive to store your data.
5 – HP Envy xiii
Dissimilar the Spectre X360, the [easyazon_link identifier="B06XKW9M56" locale="US" tag="audiowebazon-20"]HP Green-eyed 13 is yet another slim laptop that packs a punch. You could go for the 15″ model if you like a bigger existent-estate for making music, however, for the added screen space nosotros personally felt the 15-inch variant wasn't priced for value. Again, information technology could make sense to go with the 13″ variant. Information technology'south modest, lightweight, slim and powerful.
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