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Thread: Help with Laptop setup/Timecode Vinyls

  1. #1
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    Help with Laptop setup/Timecode Vinyls

    Hi, Can anyone recommend a better laptop setup for DJ'ing Timecoded vinyls using a DJM-850 Mixer? I currently have a Macbook (2015) running 1.2Ghz Intel Core M on 8GB memory, its super slow with serato, often crashing & freezing. Quite often It'll lag through playback and occasionaly skips tracks out of sync. It'll also just lose connection to one of the record players at some point and require a whole restart to get going again (sometimes even then it doesn't work) It also only has the one usb-C port so I need to use a hub/extender to allow me to plug in the mixer. I've read on some posts that a direct connect to the mixer would be preferred over using a USB hub.

    I was considering a refurbished 2015 Macbook pro, as the newer versions are wayy to expensive and also only have usb-c ports. But I've also heard of people having issues with 2015 Pro's with audio dropping out and latency in serato???

    Can anyone help me here? Any tips on preferable laptop specs? Is a more powerful laptop really going to help resolve the issue or is there anything I could try with my current setup to get it working properly?

    Thanks

  2. #2
    BanHammer™⚒️ Manu's Avatar
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    Thread moved to Digital Djing Tools

  3. #3
    The 1.2GHz Core M has a passmark score of only around 2000, which is pretty low even for 2015.
    To give a comparison, the Thinkpad T420 I'm typing on right now, which is a vintage-2011 business laptop, with an i5-2540M (2.6GHz), passmarks at 2233...

    Go to cpubenchmark.net to get these numbers for the processor in any laptop you are considering.

    Anyway, is a laptop with a passmark around the 2000 mark still useful.. yes, definitely.. since I use mine every day. And my machine did run older versions of Serato Itch and Traktor with ease. Especially Serato, which historically has been pretty efficient. But times change.. my laptop struggles with Rekordbox, I'm sure it would be touch and go with other software. I have an SSD (two of them) and enough RAM.. those both help.. but ultimately a machine in this class is going to be borderline at best for most DJ software.

    I use XDJ's but if I were using a controller I'd def upgrade.

    Anyway, check that passmark on any used machine you get.. if it's not in the mid 3000's or better I wouldn't consider it. More would be better for future needs.

    I can't help you with mac models cause honestly.. I won't buy them. I used to love Apple, but now I think they're a ripoff brand.
    I don't love Windows.. but Apple products are so freakishly overpriced. I could buy a very good used laptop that'll run DJ software on Windows for half the price you can get a macbook.

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