tech computer

hey im going tho college and studying technical theater and as a student i need a computer. i plan on building my own so i can get what i need and what i want or go the money rought and by a nice laptop

i would like to gear this new computer to technical theater but want to now what type of hardwear i need ot include for sound recording and editing light control and designing. and of course school work

but so far here is what i think i need
cd/dvd burner and drive
cd drive

good graphics card so i can do cad and lighting designs aswell as run two monitors

and a good sound card that allow midi

so if you guys have any thing that i should add to my new computer just say so

 

GET AN HP LAPTOP. That is my strongest reccomendation. Get one that has the SD card reader and a good drive. Make sure to get as many ports on it as you can, because you never know what you will need to interface to. (I have a Dell 600M with 1/8" ports, VGA, serial, parallel, network, phone line, and four USB.) Try to get one with firewire or get a firewire PCIMCA card, as many high-end audio interfaces run on firewire these days. Also, get one with an "everything drive". DVD+-RW/CDRW, as you never know what kind of media you will encounter. My dad has an HP business laptop right now, and it works great, and he hasn't had to take it to IT more than twice in the two or so years that he's had it. And he uses it every day, for a majority of the business day. Also, when you get it, get one of the business models (in my opinion) so that the networking is easier, and the business models are, for some reason, usually more durable. The business models for HP also have the point-stick. Make sure to get the best (internal) wireless card that you can get so you can hook up to whatever networks you find.

Also, make sure to get the longest warranty available, WITH accidental damage coverage. If you don't do this, you may very well end up having to buy another computer because you accidentally mess up the one that you get. The warranty should be included in the price these days, as the reason that computer prices are going down (one of the reasons) is that companies are using cheaper components. So get the nice four-year extended warranty w/accidental damage coverage.

Also look at the refubished section. I got my laptop from the refurbished section (FROM THE MANUFACTURER), and it works like a new one. The refurbished models are the ones that people ordered and then didn't want, so they can't sell them for the full price. It's just about exactly like buying a new computer, except for the price, where you can save a huge amount of money.

Also, get XP Pro. Don't go home edition. And get Office '03 with all the goodies.

If you really want to pursue the audio recording deal, get one of the small two-mic/line interfaces from PRESONUS. These should fit in your bag.

Hope this helps,

 

ETC's Express software runs on XP, because I've got it on this computer right now, and it works. But I don't know about the Obsession stuff, or if it even has an offline editor.

 

I call bullsh*t. ANYTHING that works on 9x will work on XP with the appropriate compatibility settings set. It sometimes takes a bit of tinkering though.

Definitely go for a laptop if you can afford the extra - I'd actually recommend a Toshiba much more than a HP.

 

LOL! That is so true!

 

Well, I could not disagree with your post any more!

HP/Compaq Sucks. Big time. Their "customer service" is god awful, and their laptops are poorly constructed peices of junk. I used to own one. I now have a Dell, and it has so far served me well.

Don't bother with the extended warranty. HP will just try to screw you and make you pay dearly even if you have a warranty. They claimed I spilled something into mine, and even emailed me (fake) pictures of my system board. I say fake because my board did not have the damage shown in the pictures.

XP Home works just fine. The only real diiference between Home and Pro is remote access, which you don't need.

As for office you really only need Word, Excel, and Powerpoint, so I would not reccomend getting the full package.

And the Presonus interfaces are too expensive. You can get the same thing from M-Audio for less, with the same quality.

 

Andy

Be careful with blanket statements such as your's that "HP/Compaq Sucks. Big time. Their "customer service" is god awful, and their laptops are poorly constructed pieces of junk. I used to own one. I now have a Dell, and it has so far served me well".

Folks tend to jump all over you with comments about how your one particular experience does not indicate that every HP laptop ever made is a POS, or that Dell is the cats meow.

My experience with a HP 7010 laptop mirrors yours with the Dell, terrific value, very reliable, a workhorse. I use mine in a very busy performing arts center as a desktop replacement. I wanted an IBM or Dell, but neither offered a 17" screen, which is a very good thing to have when doing CAD work. In fact the only 17" unit at the time outside of a Mac, was a Toshiba, which at the time had a poor reliabilty rating compared to the HP. The HP has actually exceeded my expectations and a quick web search yielded this: https://www.pcworld.com/reviews/article/0,aid,123409,pg,9,00.asp about laptops/notebooks in general.

One thing I've learned about computers in 10 years of having them in the home and 25 years of use at work is that such ratings are very rough and never seem to reflect actual usage. My first home computer was a Gateway, who's reputation at the time was as the most reliable with the best cucsomer support. My unit had 9 terrible months of problem (registry errors) with countless calls (3-5 times a week) to service. I had to threaten legal action to get them to send me a new and DIFFERENT computer, which they eventually did. After that I never purchased another Gateway. My experience with HP, on the other hand is that I have never had to call tech support. I was so happy with the reliability of the laptop that I purchased a desktop for the home 2 years ago, which also has run fine.

As to XP Home vs. Pro ?. It's a tough call. XP Pro does offer better network support and usage and is required for certain functions, such as accessing ETC Net2 systems, CEM Plus On-Line and remote console in Emphasis. These may well not be something most folks need, but if the computer comes with XP Pro, take it. It may well be that you can get more features on a machine with XP Home - more USB Posts ?, a DVD burner ?, who knows, and that may have more value. But if it's apples to apples and one machine has XP Pro, then that's a better choice.

My $.02

SB

 

I stand by my statement.

 

I'll repeat what I said that my dad has an HP business laptop and he has had very few problems with it. And he has had it for about two and a half years. I have had a Dell for a year and a half, and it has been full of bugs. I'm not making blanket statements, but I'm adding a plus for HP and a minus for Dell. And in my experience, Dell has had SLOOOOOOWWW customer service, and didn't have my service call number (two hours worth of answering questions and they guy on the other end clicking check boxes) when I called back. I've already had to replace my Dell hard drive once, and I'm going to have to do it again soon, as it is getting scratched again. Again. And this is the lousiest time to need this done, as the musical is fast approaching.

So, basically, all companies have their problems. Every company gets their fair share of cases that they just can't handle. That's just the way computers work. But, from what I have heard, Dell is introducing lower quality components in their new laptops and desktops. I can't confirm this from the Dell site, but I know that I read it as a report (not as a passing rumor) somewhere (can't remember where).

 

Last I knew, the US government uses HP computers to keep the national time. Just food for thought.

 

"Last I knew, the US government uses HP computers to keep the national time".

Of course in the last 6 years it's seemingly going backwards to the '50s

Just a little politcal commentary (grin).


Well worded comments by Gafttaper, by the way

SB

 

Personally I have a gateway laptop, and I cannot recommend it. I have had horrible service on it, countless defects, and my mobo is f'd up to the max. I would go HP, Dell, or Toshiba (or IBM really) or if I could afford it Alienware. XD

 

I just switched from being a loyal DELL person after the worst computer experience I've had. Both in customer service, and quality. Dell seems to have been riding on their name over the past few years, and letting everything else go down the tubes. That laptop (Inspiron 8500, P4 2.6 GHz) was one of their flaships, and supposed to be one of the best things Dell had out. Well it had 2 new motherboards/processors, 1 new housing, 4 new wireless cards, 2 bluetooth cards, 3 sets of RAM, 1 new Heatsink/Fan assembly for the Proc.

The only thing that actually came with the laptop was the LCD Module itself, and the HDD.

So I am now using a Toshiba Qosmio G35 AV600 and couldn't be happier. The only thing that I would rather have had is a Sager computer. They're quite expensive, but you will find them all over the place in the live production world. They're well built/deisgned, have great customer service, and stand behind their gear. (and IMHO, are better than Alienware).
http://www.sagernotebook.com/index.html

I ended up with the Toshiba because I needed the machine ASAP, because my DELL died (again) and I needed a computer for work. So I ended up with a store bought.

Just my $0.02