Recommend Laptop for a CHEAP Mobile Recording Setup

Luke19Boarder

Luke19Boarder

Jul 5, 2001
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Chicago, IL
lwke.bandcamp.com
#1
Hello Hello!

I'm currently in the market for a new laptop, mainly to be used as a mobile recording setup. I plan to pair it with the following interface:

Behringer U-Phoria UMC404HD

I use a focusrite 2i4 in my home studio, but plan to have the Behringer for my mobile rig in order to record 4 tracks at a time.

My home computer is a desktop PC, which is what I will be doing the majority of editing/mixing, so the laptop will be primarily for tracking only (REAPER as my DAW; minimal, if any, VSTs active while tracking).

I have been searching the internet for the best deal possible, and have found really really reasonable prices on NewEgg refurbished laptops - here's a link to my search results, and you can see the filters I used to narrow down:

http://bit.ly/2dNoTxn

It really seems that I should be able to use most any of these, right? Are there other specs that I should be concerned with? I have been doing home recordings for over a decade on computers with fairly pathetic specs ... but never more than 2 tracks at a time.

Other than what I've found on this site - can anyone recommend other options? I know that a refurbished computer isn't ideal, but I really want to keep my budget under 300. I could increase to maybe 400, but I'm looking to make the purchase quick and have to be reasonable.

Any input would be greatly appreciated!
 
#2
Luke19Boarder said:
Hello Hello!

I'm currently in the market for a new laptop, mainly to be used as a mobile recording setup. I plan to pair it with the following interface:

Behringer U-Phoria UMC404HD

I use a focusrite 2i4 in my home studio, but plan to have the Behringer for my mobile rig in order to record 4 tracks at a time.

My home computer is a desktop PC, which is what I will be doing the majority of editing/mixing, so the laptop will be primarily for tracking only (REAPER as my DAW; minimal, if any, VSTs active while tracking).

I have been searching the internet for the best deal possible, and have found really really reasonable prices on NewEgg refurbished laptops - here's a link to my search results, and you can see the filters I used to narrow down:

http://bit.ly/2dNoTxn

It really seems that I should be able to use most any of these, right? Are there other specs that I should be concerned with? I have been doing home recordings for over a decade on computers with fairly pathetic specs ... but never more than 2 tracks at a time.

Other than what I've found on this site - can anyone recommend other options? I know that a refurbished computer isn't ideal, but I really want to keep my budget under 300. I could increase to maybe 400, but I'm looking to make the purchase quick and have to be reasonable.

Any input would be greatly appreciated!
Click to expand...

Dear Luke19Boarder,

Please allow me to introduce myself; my name is Sam Daniel and I am a Care Specialist at Music in Las Vegas, NV, USA, where we service and manage spare parts for all Music brands.

I would be glad to answer any further questions you may have concerning the UMC404HD. Please PM me directly or contact me via email through [email protected] to discuss further if necessary.


Let’s keep in touch


Sam Daniel

Specialist, Customer Care

Music

Behringer

Ph: 702-800-8290 Ext: 5726
 
#3
Do you have a computer that you're using for DAW purposes now?

If so, I might recommend sticking with that and getting a portable recorder like the Zoom H5 or H6. It would be much higher quality and last a lot longer than a cheapo laptop, and is meant to be used for recording 'in the field'
 
#5
Hard to say, is you were shopping new, I'd say that there are always compromises made to achieve that price point and to step up a tier to the 500-700 laptops. But this is refurb, so all bets are off and there's no telling what is (was) wrong with these. I'll agree that on specs alone, any will get the job done (depending on how many tracks/how high quality the audio is/how many real-time effects you're applying at once), so pick the one that has the most agreeable feature set. It's a guess, every manufacturer has good models and cheap garbage, so don't base your choice on brand.
 
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#6
TheEmptyCell said:
Do you have a computer that you're using for DAW purposes now?

If so, I might recommend sticking with that and getting a portable recorder like the Zoom H5 or H6. It would be much higher quality and last a lot longer than a cheapo laptop, and is meant to be used for recording 'in the field'
Click to expand...

I use my home desktop for DAW purposes currently, and I do have a Zoom H4N (2 external mic inputs), and I can make that work for the most part.

However, one of my friend's bands wants me to record a demo for them in their practice space, so I'd like to have my DAW on hand for that (and other similar situations, should they arise). Also, the zoom can record 3 tracks simultaneously (well 4, but 2 are the recorder itself so I only count that as 1), and I would ideally like to get 4 mics on the drum set.

Additionally, I kinda just want to have a laptop again - my college laptop died a couple years ago, and I miss it at times.
 
#7
seamonkey said:
You can also use an iPhone or iPad
DAWs can export wave files for Reaper.
Many USB interfaces work fine. If you have a camera adapter it plugs right in. The new USB3 Camera lightning adapter lets you charge at the same time.
Click to expand...

I'm Android through-and-through, and they are unfortunately behind in audio production software vs. apple. I've considered getting an iPad at times, but I don't think I can justify the price.
 
#8
CatSquare said:
Hard to say, is you were shopping new, I'd say that there are always compromises made to achieve that price point and to step up a tier to the 500-700 laptops. But this is refurb, so all bets are off and there's no telling what is (was) wrong with these. I'll agree that on specs alone, any will get the job done (depending on how many tracks/how high quality the audio is/how many real-time effects you're applying at once), so pick the one that has the most agreeable feature set. It's a guess, every manufacturer has good models and cheap garbage, so don't base your choice on brand.
Click to expand...

Thanks - you pretty much nailed my thought process on it. I typically would shy away from used/refurbished computers, but I got my home desktop used from my office, and it's been incredibly reliable for the few years I've had it. I would love to be able to drop 6-700 bucks on a new laptop, but I don't really need it, so I'd be much more willing to gamble $250 ish, as long as I can get like a 1 year warranty.
 
#10
If you are just using it for the recording part, and don't have more than four channels, then almost any laptop will do.

Latency is only interesting if you need to monitor end-to-end (e.g. with plug in effects) and four channels can be handled easily with any disk.
 
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