Are you thinking about buying a computer and don’t know what specifications it should have for music production? This is a very common question among students and beginner producers.
In this article we will try to clarify the main doubts and define the key aspects your future machine should meet to work comfortably with DAWs, plugins and sound libraries.
Mac or PC?
This is a classic debate that has been going on for years and will probably never end. At EUMES we work with Mac, mainly for the following reasons:
- Viruses: we work with many students who bring hard drives and USB sticks. With Macs, so far, we haven’t had virus problems. Although there are viruses for Mac, their incidence is much lower than on PCs.
- Logic Pro X: one of the DAWs we work with is Logic Pro X, which is only available for Mac.
- Ease of use: the Mac operating system is very intuitive and enables a more agile workflow.
That said, this is not about promoting Apple as the only option. A well-maintained Mac and a well-maintained PC with the same technical specs can perform equally well for music production.
Personal opinion: once you try a Mac, it’s hard to go back to PC.
CPU (processor)
The processor handles plugins, synthesizers and the DAW. It is a key component, but it should always be evaluated together with the rest of the elements.
If we do not consider that samplers and audio depend mainly on RAM and the hard drive, we may encounter performance issues. It’s common to see computers with very powerful processors that nevertheless suffer DAW overloads.
RAM
RAM memory is essential for working with samplers and libraries (like Kontakt) and with audio. Keep in mind that:
- The operating system already consumes approximately 2 GB of RAM.
- If you work with many libraries, 16 GB of RAM is a highly recommended amount to stay safe and avoid memory errors or overloads.
Hard drive vs SSD
Nowadays, buying a computer with a conventional hard drive makes little sense for music production. An SSD is:
- Much faster (especially in reading audio in the DAW)
- Much quieter, an important factor in a studio
Mechanical hard drives have been for years the bottleneck of many computers: machines with a good processor and lots of RAM that didn’t perform as expected because of the hard drive.
Summary
In music production, balance is the key. For example:
It’s better to have an i5 with 16 GB RAM and an SSD
than an i7 with 4 GB RAM and a conventional hard drive
Always look for a balanced configuration between processor, RAM and storage to ensure good long-term performance.
If you want to fully understand how to choose the right computer, software and equipment to produce music without technical limitations, the Diploma in Advanced Music and Sound at EUMES teaches you to work with professional criteria, from day one.
