Advice - DP5 on Macbook 2.0 - HD and Interface Config?

paradeatw · Post by **paradeatw** » Tue May 22, 2007 1:32 am

Hey Guys,

I'm dumping my g5 1.8 for my macbook 2.0. I have kinda ran into a little challenge here...

The macbook has two usb2 and one firewire 400...

what would you guys suggest being the better config?
- ultralite on FW
- audio drive (7200 rpm, 16mb buffer, 8.9 seek time) on usb2

or
- usb audio interface (any suggestion)
- audio drive on firewire (rocstor

or
- ultralite on fw
- audio drive chained to ultralite (or ultralite chained to drive?)

any suggestions? i can't move forward without some help here... lol
also, i will be recording through my api a2d into the interface's spdif in, so my usually recording will be one stereo track or two mono tracks at the same time... my other use will be for djing off my laptop with ableton which will be running a stereo out (several tracks inside the lappy)...

here is the drive i would like to purchase - its both fw and usb...
http://www.technoavenue.com/g212ka-w1.html

ideas?

paradeatw · Post by **paradeatw** » Tue May 22, 2007 1:19 pm

really? no one has any idea? come on guys... i'm in a state of no DP usage right now

HCMarkus · Post by **HCMarkus** » Tue May 22, 2007 2:19 pm

It seems HD performance via USB2.0 is weak when compared to Firewire, but I haven't heard anything about how USB compares to Firewire for audio I/O. Search the threads in UNation and you should come up with some discussion of USB v Firewire, at least for HD. How do you work? Lots of VI's and Audio Tracks? You may fare beter using Firewire for your HD. Lots of I/O to external summing or devices? I'm not sure where you will get the best perfomance. Theoretically, USB2 outpaces Firewire 400. Of course, the 828mkII is available with either interface. Is the Micro also

paradeatw · Post by **paradeatw** » Tue May 22, 2007 2:35 pm

HCMarkus wrote:It seems HD performance via USB2.0 is weak when compared to Firewire, but I haven't heard anything about how USB compares to Firewire for audio I/O. Search the threads in UNation and you should come up with some discussion of USB v Firewire, at least for HD. How do you work? Lots of VI's and Audio Tracks? You may fare beter using Firewire for your HD. Lots of I/O to external summing or devices? I'm not sure where you will get the best perfomance. Theoretically, USB2 outpaces Firewire 400. Of course, the 828mkII is available with either interface. Is the Micro also

thanks...
usually, i run my omega or mpc through my api and record 1 or 2 tracks at a time... my track count may run upwards of 30 tracks mixed between mono and stereo... i don't use virtual instruments

zaster · Post by **zaster** » Tue May 22, 2007 3:38 pm

I think you definitely want to use firewire for the audio interface part. you could then experiment with the external drive. Myself, even on my PB g4, i never ran into limitations running the audio off my internal. I would use the external mostly for disk space reasons and it was connected to the firewire "thru" of the audio interface (digi002). the only time i really felt the need for the external was accessing huge vi samples like BFD. But any usb audio interface i've ever used has been a nightmare. I haven't tried any 2.0, but I'll remain skeptical until i hear otherwise. (BTW I know that "in theory" it's faster, but everytime someone brings that up they preface it with "in theory" so there you go.)

paradeatw · Post by **paradeatw** » Tue May 22, 2007 3:53 pm

zaster wrote:(BTW I know that "in theory" it's faster, but everytime someone brings that up they preface it with "in theory" so there you go.)

yeah, theory... thats all i keep finding... but you and i both know theory is kinda thrown out the window when it comes to real world performance... i would really appreciate if anyone using a macbook or pro or power book can clue me into how they work with audio...

a friend of mine said he uses his internal drive as well but a) i always thought that was not the most efficent means? b) my macbook drive is 5400 80gb - nt so great... if i upgrade it then i voide the $249 applecare i just purchased...

zaster · Post by **zaster** » Wed May 23, 2007 6:50 am

You can always try using the internal for a little while and then add the external later, if you need to. I think, speaking of theory, that this is all theoretical until you run into some performance ceiling with the way you work. That's going to depend on what you're doing, how many plugins you're using, etc... I just got a MBP last week and, right now, the way it feels is like i'll never hit the ceiling. But that said, it seems most people do use an external for audio and also, you can periodicaly wipe it clean so it doesn't get all fragmented which you might be less inclined to do, if you were working off your main internal partition. There's debate as to whether defragmenting is necessary and I don't do it myself, but with an external drive you can just wipe it and start fresh.

http://www.motunation.com/forum/viewtop ... gmentation

jsd540 · Post by **jsd540** » Wed May 23, 2007 8:00 am

My set up is till suspect since I'm still testing, but...

I Use a glyph and I connect that to the macbook ad the Ultralite to the glyph.

I haven't had any issues with latency, but like I said I haven't run too many tests. Yet

zaster · Post by **zaster** » Wed May 23, 2007 9:27 am

I use a digi002 and the manual says specifically to put the digi 1st in the chain, then the external. it used to annoy me though cause when the hard drive was moving from some idle phase into action, it would make a weird gurgle sound come out of the digi's monitors. so now i just have a little belkin firewire hub and both things connected to that. if anyone wants to tell me there's something bad about using a hub, i wouldn't mind hearing about it. but so far, so good.

paradeatw · Post by **paradeatw** » Wed May 23, 2007 12:44 pm

Thanks guys. I heard from a few friends that running off my system drive isn't insane either. Maybe I was just geeked into external drives through marketing conspiracy. LOL. I mean, I know it the external helps but I am definitely curious as to how much it helps. Does anyone know of any sites or threads where people tested the same project on external vs internal OSX drives?

I think im returning my macbook for a MBP today. Something inside feels hesitant about the macbook. Maybe it's the no dedicated GPU (which will be helpful since I am a designer by career) or lacking the ports for audio (although they run off the same bus) or the back lit keyboard for performing in the club. lol. I dunno. Too much confusion for me switching over to Intel and Laptop.

Not to mention, I lose my UAD Master bundle

I LOVE that bundle. Looks like I am going to have to purchase Waves - errrrr.

zaster · Post by **zaster** » Wed May 23, 2007 3:15 pm

well the MBP at least lets you up the RAM to 3GB, which is helpful. Take a peek at the brand new MB model specs though, I saw it on apple's site a couple nights ago and I remember they upped it to pretty close to the MBP. 2.16 and 2 GB Ram. And a lot cheaper than the MBP, needless to say. I bet a new MBP model is a few months away now.

HCMarkus · Post by **HCMarkus** » Wed May 23, 2007 8:24 pm

You also get a port into which you can slide an eSATA adaptor and bypass this whole disc dilemma. Check BareFeats.com for discussions about the eSATA adaptors... some chipsets limit speed, which could be an issue should you want to get a SATA PM (Port Multiplier) setup going.

paradeatw · Post by **paradeatw** » Wed May 23, 2007 8:54 pm

zaster wrote:well the MBP at least lets you up the RAM to 3GB, which is helpful. Take a peek at the brand new MB model specs though, I saw it on apple's site a couple nights ago and I remember they upped it to pretty close to the MBP. 2.16 and 2 GB Ram. And a lot cheaper than the MBP, needless to say. I bet a new MBP model is a few months away now.

yeah, you can drop 3gb. not too many people know this either but - you can drop 3gb in the macbook as well. anyways, that's what i have been reading.

i returned the macbook and upgraded to the mbp. and honestly, i feel like all my headaches vanished. i mean, it may have similar specs but it def feels better built and nicer to the touch. the qwerty board feels a thousand times better (and i can see it in the dark). the fact i was able to change my display's color space was awesome - bam! adobe rgb (much better for design work)! the display on the 15 is def waaay nicer too.

so, now - i can not worry about chaining. just get back to work. thanks for all your help guys!