DJing Discussion

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 DJing Discussion
Laptop vs. Desktop/Tower
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Laptop vs. Desktop/Tower

Robert 8:43 AM - 4 August, 2004
I am just in getting my Technics 1210's and would like to know are people using laptops only bc of seize and weight issues? I mean if you get your own equipement and for example have a Vinyl bag wouldn't it be rather easy to have another bag in which you transport a desktop or Tower PC. Powersupply is needed always anyway also if you use a laptop if you wanne play more then a few songs.
Monitor could be asked from the organisation or if available a flat screen could also be transported quite easy.

My thoughts are that you get a lot more performance out of a tower for the same money as a laptop and that you can handly issues like cooling/overheating much easier with a tower than with a laptop. Bigger Harddrives are cheaper. Memory is cheaper.

So are there any Desktop/Tower users out there? And if yes what are the main disadvantages that you experienced?

Thx

Robert
nik39 11:16 AM - 4 August, 2004
Most places where I have spun, there is simply not enough space for a desktop pc plus keyboard plus CRT monitor. And if you use a flatscreen, then you nearly end up with the same price you'd pay for a laptop. Plus, I am happy, that I dont have to carry around those heavy heavy vinyl crates, and now I should carry instead my tower pc?! No way :-)
Detroitbootybass 1:57 PM - 4 August, 2004
I have 2.8 Ghz Pentium 4, 752k of RAM, and a 60 gig hardrive on my laptop for slightly more than $1000. The smaller size/weight of a laptop is worth the extra bill or two.
Robert 2:02 PM - 4 August, 2004
Ok so the performance doesn't seem to be a disadvantage if you use a laptop or at least not a to big one.
How about cooling do you use special cooling units placed under the laptop or do you just trust the normal cooling units in them?
nik39 2:20 PM - 4 August, 2004
Well, I never had any cooling issues with mine, but I use an IBM thinkpad, which is not cheap at all. But you get what you paid for. About other brands, I heard that if they get too hot, the CPU speed goes down, which could affect the SSL performance. Also, if you use an apple, make sure to get a cooling pad... I apple users reported here they sometimes have issues with heating.
nik39 2:21 PM - 4 August, 2004
Another thing, which is really a big minus on a tower (unless its fixed there), you have all these cables flying around, mouse cable, keyboard cable, monitor cable... You dont need none of these on a laptop. And really, I think if you use SSL (or FS) you have more than enough cables flying around, dont want to add more!
Robert 2:40 PM - 4 August, 2004
Hmm I don't think I could do without mouse on a laptop The touchpad is just not my thing so I would need a mouse anyway. I mean it all depends I guess if you are one guy in a row of lets say five and handover and everything has to be really fast tower is not acceptable I guess but if it would be comfy and unstressfull I would prefer to build up and plug together a tower system.

And to be honest I have a lot of friends who bought cheap laptops for school and stuff and most of them already regret it.
Detroitbootybass 3:17 PM - 4 August, 2004
I don't have issues with cooling... the regular fan does the trick. I have a Toshiba Satellite and couldn't be happier.

:)

P.S. - Cheap laptops (in regards to quality, not price) do suck... these would be Dell, HP, Gateway, and Compaq.
skutch 5:19 PM - 4 August, 2004
get a laptop----
i have a 12 inch g4 with a modified usb cooling fan double side taped to the bottom.

i can ride my bike to a gig.
BadCompany 3:45 PM - 5 August, 2004
get a laptop... not a CHEAP laptop though... i have a toshiba sat. A25, P4 2.7ghz runs stellar!
lancota 4:36 PM - 5 August, 2004
Quote:
get a laptop----
i have a 12 inch g4 with a modified usb cooling fan double side taped to the bottom.

i can ride my bike to a gig.


Does that fan really help? Which one do you have? the one from macmice.com?
DJ White Lightning 12:50 AM - 6 August, 2004
I thought I was having heating issues with my G4 but it seems to be another problem, and its already being worked on by Serato. So I bought the iBreeze cooling pad from mac mice, I dont think I need it but it keeps my Laptop as cool as it is when its closed ,so I like to use it anyways.

the one from MACMICE is the bomb
skutch 1:01 AM - 6 August, 2004
my notebook cooler is from antec--they have em at staples. I cut down the edges on a table saw and sanded the edges smooth. then i double side taped it to the bottom of my laptop sp now it's one thing instead of two.

it will help if you dj for long periods plus your comp will live longer.

my modified junx is the A-bomb
Robert 7:39 AM - 6 August, 2004
The Laptop with extra cooler sounds nice actualy :] I am still working on getting new turntables. I think that Scratchlive would work with the Laptop I am using now so that should be fine. So hopefully ebay will come up with a set of 1210 soon that I can afford. :/
Robert 7:42 AM - 6 August, 2004
As some of you mentioned that they want to avoid additional cables at the place do you use internal pointer devices of the laptop like touchpads or are you at least using an external mouse?
DJ Dynamight 1:33 PM - 6 August, 2004
I don't use an external mouse with my laptop, only the trackpoint (also referred to as the eraser-head or "nipple" hehehe).
DJ Dynamight 1:36 PM - 6 August, 2004
Oh yea, I'm more of a keyboard shortcut kinda guy anyway...
lo-fi 9:16 PM - 11 August, 2004
I wouldn't even THINK of bringing a desktop computer to a gig. Even with a TFT screen, its too big, messy and clumsy. Trust me, you don't want to do this. I know in PC-land there are these small square pcs that would be compact enough to carry, but I'd rather lug 200 records around any day.

Currently I'm using a 12" G4 powerbook that is small, sleek and beautiful. Trackpad is o.k. but a bluetooth mouse is better. No cables except USB and the (small and sleek) PSU.
DJ White Lightning 10:26 PM - 11 August, 2004
WOW - Blue tooth mouse? I want one. So there are no wires at all with the blue tooth mouse???
Serato
Josh 11:23 PM - 11 August, 2004
Apple make them now:
www.apple.com

As well as Microsoft and various aftermarket PC manufacturers like Thermaltake: www.thermaltake.com

I'd put my faith in Bluetooth over Infrared or old school RF anyday.
lo-fi 11:38 PM - 11 August, 2004
Quote:
WOW - Blue tooth mouse? I want one. So there are no wires at all with the blue tooth mouse???


No wires, no smoke, no mirrors.
Mine's from a company called MacAlly. I chose it over the Apple one because it has a scroll wheel (great for browsing tunes!) and the guy at the Apple Store said it's batteries last longer. Plus it was less than half the price of the Apple mouse.
DJ White Lightning 2:43 AM - 12 August, 2004
Quote:
I chose it over the Apple one because it has a scroll wheel (great for browsing tunes!) and the guy at the Apple Store said it's batteries last longer. Plus it was less than half the price of the Apple mouse.


Good lookin, I can't spin without my scroll wheel :P
SpinThis! 8:24 PM - 12 August, 2004
yeh i dunno why apple want to keep making mice without scroll wheels and at least 2 buttons. apple has all these professional customers.. you can't tell me they wouldn't be more productive out of the gate without having to upgrade their hardware.
lo-fi 9:22 PM - 12 August, 2004
Yeah, SpinThis... I am an Apple fan, but I agree they're being stubborn on the mouse thing. The first Mac Classic ads were all about the simplicity of operating a computer using just one button, and it seems they're holding on to that. But times have changed, and as much as I hate to admit it, the scroll wheel that came from PC-land IS better. (Not the big bulky MicroSoft mice though, and more than two buttons is overkill).
tehfoiler 4:54 AM - 14 August, 2004
The sad thing is that OSX comes out the box with multibutton mouse support, as do alot of apps. Apple put the support in there but won't offically do it. They are ego driven fools! lol.
SpinThis! 4:31 AM - 16 August, 2004
for new or non-power users, a lot of people could prob get by with pointing and clicking and not care. i just don't know why apple doesn't offer better mice (at least as an option) to their pro customers (like myself) with dual processors, gigs of ram, etc.
chubbsta 1:05 PM - 16 August, 2004
Guys. You have to remember, that Macs come with a long history of being design computers for layout etc. Since that involves lots of keyboard shortcuts to work much quicker, the "normal" mac user at the office doesn't actually need more than one mouse button because right hand=mouse, left hand = keyboard. And then, a right mouse click (which is crtl+click on the mac) is just as easy. And for those, who need more than one button - hey there's always MacMice, Micro$oft, Kensington etc.
SpinThis! 3:39 PM - 16 August, 2004
Quote:
And then, a right mouse click (which is crtl+click on the mac) is just as easy.

well that's totally subjective. the keyboard is much faster for a lot of tasks, but for some things the mouse has caught up in functionality... eg scrolling. you also have to remember not all apps include keyboard shortcuts for everything.

i'm a design guy myself and consider myself using lots of keyboard shortcuts. a second button adds functionality where you can set it up to do various things (such as moving ahead in a flash frame when you're doing animation, etc).
DJ White Lightning 1:04 AM - 17 August, 2004
How much you wanna bet the next generation of Apple Mice will have 23 buttons and a scroll wheel... they will change it when no one is buying their Mice, and I do believe that no one is currently buying their mice.
lo-fi 6:10 PM - 17 August, 2004
There's a point in what Chubbsta says. I have used Macs for about 10 years and I just FLY through the os and all graphics/music apps because I know so many keyboard shortcuts. Left hand-keyboard, right hand-mouse, it works for me. A second mouse button usually just replaces the controll key on Mac apps, but is nevertheless usefull. The scrollwheel is the one thing I really miss when using the apple mouse.
12micsn1 3:17 AM - 18 August, 2004
I think Apple went cheap somewhere an they provided this basic mouse so we could all go an choose our own. If you look at all the keyboards and mouse available there alot better offerings then what Apple has to offer.
SpinThis! 6:27 PM - 18 August, 2004
apple keyboards and mice were always decent imo... if basic, they were reliable. that is except for the smaller imac ones (and the horrible round mice).
lo-fi 6:56 PM - 18 August, 2004
Yes. Round mice. How that idea ever made it past the the drawing board stage is beyond me. Really. DUH!!!!
Serato
Josh 12:03 AM - 19 August, 2004
The infamous clawfinger hockey puck of death... Bet there was a bit of RSI caused by those horrible things...
chubbsta 12:24 AM - 19 August, 2004
I liked them... ;-p
nik39 12:26 AM - 19 August, 2004
chubbsta, you like everything fruity and juicy... I bet you love "Apfelschorle" (mix of soda water and apple juice, for those who dont speak german) ;)
Lord Kaseem 6:09 AM - 19 August, 2004
I couldn't see how to start a new thread but I wanted everyone to see this video of me using Seratoscratchlive www.seratoscratchlive.com
but you have to have quicktime to view it.
kuttnhaste 10:30 AM - 19 August, 2004
damn!!! Nice one Lord Kaseem.

Serato's looking tight!
Lord Kaseem 4:57 PM - 19 August, 2004
Thanx man.