My laptop is very simple Ed. Just a 2.8 gig P4 and 1024 mb ram. The hard drive is a mere 40 gb, but I'm going to be upgrading that eventually. It also has a USB quattro soundcard / midi interface. It's basically the "synthesizer" and effects box portion of my setup. I sometimes run my Motif ES midi output into it as a controller, via Usb. I do have Sonar 4 on it, as well as FL studio, so it can become a portable recording daw as well, but it's main purpose is to be the host for my Vst's. The Vst's on it include Absynth 3, Pro 53, Jamstix, Imposcar, NI's B4, RGC Pentagon, Chris Gill's Superwave series, and Arturia's CS80v and Moog Modular. Effects include various kjerhaus and Voxengo plugins, Ampltitube and Guitar Rig, and the Antares microphone modeler. I also have Steinberg's Hypersonic, Edirol's Super quartet and Kontakt, with several commercial and freeware soundfonts, and quite a bit of samples. The samples are the reason I need to upgrade the hard drive. It's getting filled up quickly.

My PC ,a 2.4 gig Athlon with 768 mb of ram and 80 gb hard drive, is the "tape recorder", and sequencer-daw, and that's where I'll normally use Sonar and those type of apps, especially if the laptop is running some CPU intensive plug-ins. I also use apps like Jammer pro and even Band in a Box, and if need be I can simply switch the Motif Es to non usb midi mode and run it into the PC as a controller via midi cables into my Midiman Audiophile card. I also kept my SB live, mainly just to host / edit soundfonts. I use Mackie Acuma labs plugin, along with a few Voxengo plugins, Steinberg's wavelab, and sometimes Adobe Audition for mastering.

So, I have a good bit of stuff, I guess, but neither computer is very extravagant. My next one will be a dedicated machine, with a couple of seperate hard drives. Stripped of as much of the unneccesary windows apps as possible, although in both of my current computers, I've removed as much as I can think to get rid of.


I might even bite the bullet eventually and get a basic Pro Tools system, and some higher end soundcard / midi interfaces, since we are slowly moving more toward making this a commercial studio setup.

I'm not even entirely sure that Pro Tools is worth it, or that it's going to be so much better than what I have now, but .. it's generally what the pros use, for better or for worse, and I suppose most modern studios have it, although I see Nuendo in a few as well.

AJ


[This message has been edited by Bluezplayer (edited 05-02-2005).]