Mac Or Pc? Convert Me!, also cubase v emagic logic 6 v protools Options

[alexlively]

Ok here's the deal. I've been a PC user all my life. I know they're not sexy and crash lots. That's what has brought me to this forum. I want to change, but I need to be convinced.

I'm a singer/ songwriter in the need of a fairly decent set up to be able to write/ record and down the line do live performances with. To date I have been using other studios but it is about time I got to grips with the production myself. Some mates use Logic Platinum, some use Cubase. However I go it will be in the portable direction -laptop/ notebook. I want to go to the cheaper end- if it will do a good enough job ie buy up stuff that is a couple of years old. I will be doing mixture of midi and audio, with up to 10 inputs although for the time being it will mainly be one instrument at a time. So:

Mac or PC
Cubase or Logic or Protools. Which versions for value for money.
Any probs going laptop route?
I've got an old (4 years ago) Maxi Studio Isis interface (I think that's what it is)- is that still suitable for what I need.
What other software would I need if I went for one of the above, or should that be all I need.
What should I expect to have to pay- I'm hoping to do the whole thing for within 2k. Can go more or less, but it will all be a loan to add to my ever increasing debts!!!!

I've wandered round sites, read others posts. I'm a little tired, and confused and I'm needing a bit of tender loving care. If you can help, please do!

Lots of love Alex,

[ebuddy]

For any PC user looking to switch to Mac, you've come to the right place. For recording Music there's nothing better and it boils all the way down to the micro-chip. PC's use a CISC chip. (complex instruction set computing. INTEL chip) CISC chips have "built-in" commands per byte (if you will) which is supposed to quicken it's processing. There's a small problem with that when it comes to programming, and the number of worthless third-party software producers for PC's is endless. Hence; crashes, freezes, 3 hours troubleshooting for a plug and play device with one driver, everything worked fine on Tuesday, but not on Wednesday...Not to mention the amount of power needed to cool those bad boyz with fans whirring like buzz-saws to keep solder from oozing out onto your songlist. Ever wonder why your PC using enthusiast friends always have the panel off of their CPU's? In laymen's terms INTEL chips do not crunch math like RISC chips and their performance in heavy-processing is very inconsistent. ( RISC stands for reduced instruction set computing; Motorola, and now IBM for Apple. That's right, IBM ). For reading email and laming it out over Microsoft Office (which Gates himself admits works better under OSX than any other platform) any computer will do just fine. It's an old misnomer that Macs aren't competant in the business world when they've been integrating with Wintel machines for eons now. The reason 90% of us have PC's and not Macs? Cost. What business man (or most anyone else for that matter) in his right mind would say; "I know a PC can handle Office fine and I can build spreadsheets and read email, but I'd much rather spend another grand to have a Mac around." ? It won't happen. It's the old YUGO vs BMW debackle. They both get you to work, but...
When it comes to heavy graphics design, music production, drafting, etc...where math/processing is paramount, you will see Macs on every desktop. Now let's talk about OS's. Windows, DOS. eesh. still DOS or am I missing something here? OSX is UNIX based, won't crash unless user-error is to blame. Even then a simple closing and reopening of that app is all you should need. Granted, there is less software available for the Mac OS platform, but rest assured it will have gone through much greater scrutiny and attention to detail just like the computer it's running on did and you will not have the; "oh my god it doesn't work" problem. Haven't restarted my computer in I don't know how long and I'm using a 500mhz Tibook! (excellent laptop I must say).
What I'd recommend for you is this; iBook (because your goal of 2K is more attainable by not getting a Tibook), Digital Performer 4, a mic, a mixer, a midi keyboard, and REASON. You are ready to record radio-ready music out of the comfort of your own home with little effort at all. Now, this'll probably cost you closer to 3k, but then it's done. How much have I invested in my home studio? Don't ask.
My G5 w/ 20" Cinema display ships in August. The debate over who is manufacturing the fastest personal computer is finally over.