You ain't looked no where if you did not fimd the answer go and get a macbook pro for video.
Macs run video great pcs do not as only windows 7 supported, open gl is glitchy as hell and intel graphics are not supported and some laptops with intel and a dedicated gpu do still not work. Also you will have to tweek the crap out of your pc. A mac you just press the on button install and boom done. plus loads more reasons but if you search you will see that its all about mac with video.

+1

You are right,
All in this Video forum its all about MAC. Just wanted other options and it looks like there are none. Looks like I'm getting a Macbook Pro 15". Any recommendations for addons to get or what to stay away from? I've never used anything but XP and Windows 7,so I have a bit of learning to do. I know that Windows 7 64bit woke up when I put it to 8gb of ram. Will I need anymore than 8 on a Macbook Pro? Are the internal HD's on a mac fast enough or do you use external? What specs do you recommend?

internal is fast enough if you get a 7200RPM drive. I use a 7200RPM external via FireWire with my MacBook Pro. Flawless when spinning video and using M.E. Decent performance with S.V., but videos seem slightly delayed. My specs are:

MacBook Pro (Early 2011)
i7 Quad core 2.3 ghz
500GB Internal HDD 7200rpm
750GB external HDD 7200 Firewire
8 GB Ram
1GB Radeon Dedicated Video Card.

other comps can and might work.
macbook pro is the only one that consistently DOES work.

internals are fast enough.
8GBs is more than fine but can be upgraded.


btw does anyone here use 16GBs in the mbp?

Pretty sure Nyce does. I've seen him mention it before.

Do you get the Delay with the internal drive also or just the External?

This is awesome though, thanks everyone for all the input. I do not know how to shop a Mac.

yeah i threw 16 gb in the mac. i couldn't resist. it was just so cheap at OWC. anything over 8gb is overkill. seriously even when i use NukeX i don't get past 50% mem usage.

anyways PancraZ, i love pc's i use them for everything but spinning video. for spinning video mac is the way to go. i spent a little over a year trying to get 3 top of the line pc's working with video-sl. it was futile. i got a used mac and it just worked.

internal HD's are more than enough for audio and video. if using an external try to use a FW. even tho usb has the bandwidth, serato users have experienced better external performance via FW.

and if it's in your budget you can upgrade the main HD to SSD and replace the optical drive with a 750gb or 1TB HD (or use an external).

The delay happens with both external and internal.

FYI, Macs are designed to run windows with no hacking or tweaking what so ever. My macs have both win 7,xp and mac osx installed with no issues what so ever because its designed to work that way. Its the best of both worlds. So now you can keep your comfort of windows and mac for djing. As you will learn, you wont need to learn much to dj on a mac. It really is that simple.....

all of my macs are refurbished an are just as good as new just cheaper with same warranty....buy it here....store.apple.com

Thanks everyone for all the help! I am going to buy a Macbook Pro 15" today. Here are the specs:

2.5 i7
8GB RAM
128 SSD for OS
750GB HD @ 7200rpm for media
Intel HD Graphics 3000
AMD Radeon HD 6770M with 1GB GDDR5

This is the only computer I have NOT tried with video yet. I was messing around with my desktop PC last night and it could not handle the mixing beeple w/mp3 to an actual music video. Does anyone have any issues with beeple content? Obviously I do not have lots of music videos yet so I was trying to mix regular tracks that I don't have video for to some music videos I have. I attached a beeple to the music track and it started locking up the video portion of the software. Thankfully I still had complete control over the Itch software so It just took the video portion out and still had music. What Im trying to say is I'm glad if the video locks up I still have music and it wouldn't be a show stopper. I could reset when I'm done with the set.

Also,
Another thing I've noticed is mixing standard def videos was no issue. HD music videos seems a bit choppy. I hope to see a big improvement with this Macbook Pro. Just doesn't make any sense since my desktop has better specs than the Macbook Pro witch is why I was so hesitant.

Sweet. I also recommend upgrading to the Hi-Res Anti-Glare Screen, it will save your life in a daytime gig.

HAHA!! I just figured that out, I went to check them out! Glad I didn't jump the gun to order. But now I need to wait for one to come back up on the referbished with new specs. Gunna have to go about this a different way now to get the SSD with the 750 installed now.

Okay, I need another opinion now. New Macbook Pro's are coming out next month. Should I wait? They are coming with NVIDIA graphics instead of AMD.

If you don't NEED the new machine RIGHT NOW it almost always pays to wait.

All the rumors I've seen imply that the upcoming new MacBook models will be LESS favorable for Video DJ's, but even if that's true the now-current models should be easy to find used and as refurbs for awhile.

Also it's fairly often (all current rumors aside) that new MacBook Pro models will come out, and there will be some initial problems with the new hardware and Scratch Live (and other software) that need ironing out. That was true, for example, when the i5/i7 MacBook Pros first came out. No way of knowing of any such issues with new machines before they're released, of course.

Also worth a mention: any of the last several generations of MacBook Pro with dedicated GPU have plenty of horsepower for video DJ-ing, and the upcoming "Ivy Bridge" models will not offer that much of a speed increase (far less relative increase than was between the 2010 and 2011 models).

Sounds good, Thanks DJ Mark. Here is what I found and going to pick up on Friday as long as you guys don't see anything wrong with these specs.

MBP 15" Early 2011
Intel Core i7-2720QM (2.2)
Hi-Res Antiglare 1680x1050
8GB RAM
AMD Radeon HD 6750 1GB RAM
256 SSD internal
Snow Lepard 10.6.# (says I can update to any service pack. Sorry, still talking PC terms)
Also said I could have Lion but I've seen some complaints with Lion.

If none of you see a problem with those specs running Serato Video then I will be picking it up on Friday.

Thanks to all that have replied and please let me know if you see any concerns with these specs.

Thats is fine computer...256 SSD will get filled up fast though with videos...thank goodness for externals

That is currently about the best possible laptop for SV that you could buy. You won't be disappointed.

You're welcome. I agree with the other two answers. Nice to have the hi-res screen on the 15.

I would absolutely leave Snow Leopard on there unless something you NEED actually REQUIRES Lion.

in my experience with electronics... bugs always are present when companies start switching up/upgrading software/hardware. I wouldnt be one of the first ones to go out and buy the new macbook.

If i were you id go with the early or late 2011 model. and if you really want one of the new 2012 models that are dropping soon, id wait a little while before purchasing one, and wait and see if they have any problems or bugs.

spending 2grand on a laptop and then having to deal with issues, is a pain in the ass.

Except the SSD, this is the exact MacBook Pro that I own. I have Lion 10.7.4 installed and use a 500GB 7200 RPM HDD internal, and a 750GB 7200RPM external via Firewire to store all my music and vids for use in Serato.

It works great in every possible way.

Okay, thanks everyone! This thing is the SHIT!!! So smooth & looks great! I was just running from an external and still didn't look choppy. I still need to get the other internal drive installed so I don't have to hook up my external.

Can't believe how much for efficient it runs on this compared to my desktop either! My desktop has much more for processing and running video kept my resources always near red. Now they are hardly close to the middle with this MBP. Haven't been able to get it to hit red yet.

Very happy! THANKS!

Good to hear it. Happy mixing!

and now you know why everyone says mac.

Yea we knew that....

Yea we knew that too....lol congratz

another MBP owner added to the family... *tears forming* im so proud of you!!! lol j/k

congrats though, make sure you take the time and dig through this forum, there are ALOT of useful apps and programs to get your mac running @ peak performance.

Thanks for the heads up Nyce, just installed my 750 into the optical slot. Im all set for a while now! OWC had it delivered in 2 days, I was pumped! I'll put it to the MAIN test tomorrow night. All tracks are analyzed again and thing are running smooth!

256gb SSD & 750gb 7200rpm all internal!

SICK!

(btw, this has been the easiest laptop to take apart I've ever had!)

now update your profile from pc to mac then ya official...lol

haha

First official night using SV last night. Not one issue! Now I'm hooked...

*resisting urge*

go head and do it skinny guy, you know u want too! haha

Rrrrrrgggg....

Welcome...

I know, but I never had ME to experience with. I've seen videos from others posted on here with ME mixes, they look SICK! Just happy my stuff is working.

go try the free demo. go on. it won't hurt (unless you look back).