Is Macbook Air (2013) appropriate for music production?

I heard from a friend that the macbook air does not have an audio interface port. I'm not sure what this means, but I'm purchasing a macbook to be my overall computer for normal day-to-day tasks as well as to produce music (via logic pro). I'm just wondering if he is reffering to the firewire port which is absent on Macbook Airs or if there is something else that I am unaware of. I'm leaning towards the Air because I don't need a whole lot of processing power, and I plan to travel a lot in the upcoming year (Europe), so portability is a must. Anyway i won't be producing massive electronic tracks or anything like that. More along the lines of indie/alternative music that probably wouldn't ever go more than 10-15 tracks. Most likely I'd stay in the area of 5-8 layered tracks. I don't really want to spend any more that $1500. I won't be gaming on this device, I really just want it for normal tasks, minor video editing, and recording/mixing, etc.
Thanks a lot in advance.

He probably means 1/4'' port. It does have 3.5mm standard stereo port. The MBA would be appropriate for your planned usage.

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MacBook Air or Pro for Music Production

Hello!
So, I am a music producer for a couple of years now and I am working with my 5/6 years old MacBook Pro 15" with a Core2Duo, 4GB (RAM) and 160GB HHD (5200rpm - I think) and is very frustrating to be able to have multiple vst's / plugins to work simultaneously (Using Logic Pro X and Ableton Live 9).
I'm with some doubts among the MacBook Pro (15.4 ") i7 Quad-Core (2.0 GHz) with 8 GB memory (RAM) and Iris Graphics Pro, MacBook Pro (13") i5 Quad-Core with 8GB (RAM) or a MacBook Air i5/i7 with 8GB (RAM).
I do not have much money to spend at the moment, so was wondering if any of these MacBook will last me a few years?

It is not possible to change anything on the Retina models once they are purchased. Everything but the SSD/Flash storage is soldered onto the logic board (That is the main system board better known as the Motherboard). The SSD/Flash storage module is of a proprietary design and shape and although there are some companies offering replacement units for the older, original, Retina display models I don't know if those same companies will make one for the newer models. Only time will tell. But if you do repplace it for a bigger, more storage capacity, unit that voids the Apple warranty.
I also suggest you factor in the cost of the Applecare extended warranty because to fix any Mac computer once the warranty is over it is very expensive. So much so it is almost better to buy a new system. This is even more so for the Retina models because of all the component soldered to the main system board.

MacBook Air i5 for Music Production?

Does anyone have any experience of using a 2013/2014 13" i5 MacBook Air for music production? Specifically, I want to know if Reason 7 will run okay with a reasonable number of instruments, effects etc, but if anyone has experience of using another DAW on it I would be interested to know. Cheers.

Hi whopkins85
Well I ended up going with the 16GB Retina MBP. For the simple reason that the 8GB would've seen me constantly second guess my decision. Plus I wanted to "future proof" myself as best as I could knowing that these babies cannot be 'upgraded' with additional ram at a later date due the whole soldered RAM issue. So yeah I shelled out some extra money, bought my rMBP from B&H in NYC through their webstore and saved a ton on not having to pay sales tax since I am not a resident of NY state.
Another thing I'd like to recommend to you is that if you plan on running a number of VSTs or AUs with your DAW especially of the nature of heavy sound libraries such as Spectrasonics Omnisphere or KOMPLETE then I would highly highly recommend purchasing a Lacie 2 or 3TB 7200 RPM external drive. I wish I had known this earlier but an incredibly efficient (and correct) way to run DAW with sound libraries to load your VSTs on an external drive which is either a fast SSD or at least a 7200 RPM. This way your system drive doesn't get overloaded reading and writing at the same time between multiple programs running in parallel. Once your system drive runs the DAW and the system accesses the sound libraries through and external drive, it makes for a much more efficiently managed read/write process.
I hope this helps. My mantra for technology is, when in doubt go with max specs on a machine.
Thanks for your post

Which is better for music production: macbook air or pro?

Which is better for music production: macbook air or pro?

The MacBook Pro has higher specifications, depending
on the model, and then CTO additional upgrades.
The Air does not have a Retina display, but has lesser
specs, so that may make a difference. They still offer a
low-end MB/Pro w/ optical drive, w/o Retina; specs vary;
it may work in your instance. You'd have 14 days to take
a new Apple computer back, so keep that in mind.
Good luck!

Macbook pro 15 mid 2012 2.7 ghz vs late 2013 2.0 ghz for music production. what to choose ?

Hello !
Im between macbook pro 15 mid 2012, 2.7 ghz, 1tb hhd, 8 gb ram 10.7 OS & late 2013 2.0 ghz, 256 gb ssd, 8gb ram 10.9 OS
What is the best choice for music production ? Mid 2012 is not retina but i dont need good grafics at all....i need a powerfull quadcore machine that will coast not more than 2000 US Dollars
what to choose
thank u

no but im checking it out now .
...looks cool !
thnx !

Webcam not working for Macbook Air 2013 after upgrading to OSX Mavericks? Yahoo/ Google/Skype cam chats not working. Facetime works though. Any updates of Mavericks released to fix this?

Webcam not working for Macbook Air 2013 after upgrading to OSX Mavericks? Yahoo/ Google/Skype cam chats not working. Facetime works though. Any updates of Mavericks released to fix this?

I have a MacBook Pro Retina display: 15.4-inch late 2015 with OS X Mavericks install, only on second week.
Insight works on FaceTime, Skype, but yahoo program does not show insight cam in dropped down.
Now when I got my new MacBook Pro, I down loaded all new Skype (worked tested), FaceTime (Worked Tested), Yahoo (not worked)
Fix:
With the new Maverick you have to use there messager program Version 8.0 (4218). Once I add my yahoo account video works again.
It also supported AOL, AIM, Google Talk, Jabber.
Guess I miss it frist time... hope this helps...

Macbook air 2013 needs power button pressed for 10 seconds before it turns on?

macbook air 2013 needs power button pressed for 10 seconds before it turns on? also I've tried resting PRAM but when i press the 4 buttons before the start up screen it never restarts again? please help!

Reset SMC. http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964
Choose the method for:
"Resetting SMC on portables with a battery you should not remove on your own".
If this does not help, contact Apple.
Genius Bar reservation:
http://www.apple.com/retail/geniusbar/
Best.

"Insufficient Space" error preventing app download from App Store for MacBook Air 2013

Hi,
I am using a MacBook Air 2013 model with OS 10.9.4 (Mavericks). It has a 120 GB HD with about 17 GB of free space.
I am unable to download from the Mac App Store as I get an 'insufficient space available" error whenever I try to purchase a larger App (> 2 GB).
After looking through the forums I can confirm the following:
- Both the Finder and "About This Mac" report that 16.5 GB of space is available.
- I have toggled Time Machine and restarted my computer with it "On" and "Off".
- The application description does not mention needing more space for installation (specifically I am now trying to download BioShock 2 which needs about 9 GB).
I tried to contact Apple Support for the App Store and they informed me it was a hardware issue. I do not have Apple Care and do not think this is a hardware issue so would rather not pay the 20$ for support.
Cheers,

If you're trying to add a large amount of data all at once, and you get an alert of insufficient space, then from the menu bar, select
 ▹ System Preferences... ▹ Time Machine
If the padlock icon is closed, click it to unlock the settings and authenticate. Turn Time Machine OFF, then back ON and close the preference pane. Restart the computer. Test.

MSI GT60 review for music production (former MacBook Pro user)

Due to the upgrade limitations of MBPr (Macbook Pro Retina) I decided to try Windows after 7 years of using OSX. I chose the MSI GT60 over a Mac product by a close Margin and I still have doubts about windows 8.
The GT60
The hardware:
1. The casing - coming from a Mac, this casing is disappointing. It's not cool, sexy or anything. It's "plastiky" and the design looks like something from the late 90s. you're not impressing any chicks with this one and it's nothing I'd take to Starbucks.
2. The Keyboard - Excellent. It has a nice feel and the lights are kinda cool, but don't make up for the ugly design.
3. The Mouse pad - too small and cheap looking. It tries to hang with a MBP mouse, but it's not as responsive and fluid.
4. Connections - I can't think of any other connections I would want.
5. Ram Capacity - Blows away the Mac at 32GB. This comes in handy for music projects loaded with plugins and is one of the major reasons I went for this box over a Mac.
6. Super raid 2 - This is another cool option Apples don't have in their laptops. The ability to add 3 ssds in addition to another storage drive really makes this a lucrative music machine. Loading samples quickly greatly improves workflow.
7. Screen - This screen is good, but vs a retina...well...you know.
8. Optical drive - Mine is ...strange...sometimes it works sometimes it don't. Maybe w firmware update will fix it?
Performance - I loaded a Cubase project that even my Older 12 core Mac Pro had to wrestle with. That Mac Pro had 40GB of ram. Well, this GT60 pass with flying colors and with the most resource hungry plugins loaded it operated at an average of 60% CPU and 10 of the 12 GB of ram. I'm interested to see if more ram may help improve performance and/or reduce CPU usage.
Heat Myth - I read in other forums (and ofcourse ASUS) of the
so called" heating issues with the MSI Laptops. I do believe, by theory the ASUS gaming box may run cooler, but all the jibba jabba of overheating I never experience. The GT60 is not loud and it's not hot.
Overall, I find this to be a cool laptop for music production but if I didn't need all the extra ram or drives I'd probably stick with a MBP. They look way cooler. If MSI had put this hardware inside of an enclosure like that GS70 (but bigger), It would be cool.

While this is a review, let me just comment on a few things....
Part of the reason that half of what you get is possible, is because of how large it is.
You wouldn't be able to get 3 mSATA SSD's if you didn't get a GT60/GT70.
You wouldn't be able to get 32 GB of RAM if you didn't get a GT60/GT70 (actually, I guess the GE60/GE70's can handle that too).
The GT series also has a more beefy video card that requires more cooling than the GE or GS series laptops.
Either way, the GT60 is a great notebook overall. The screen could be better, but it's not bad by any means either. Compared to many other similarly or higher priced notebooks, it's just as good or better IMHO.
The keyboard is actually very nice, and while the backlighting is somewhat gaudy at times, it's nice to be able to see the keys in the dark.
The biggest downfall (personally) is the screen hinge and the back of the screen and how flimsy it is. That's honestly my biggest gripe about the notebook. I always feel or think I'm going to break the screen when I open or close the notebook.
Have you messed with the built in sound card at all? Got any thoughts on that?

Macbook Air 2013

I just got myself a new Macbook Air 2013 and while I realized I couldn't expect the smoothest experience, I never expected this much hassle with it. So many differnet issues. No need to have a sad face about it, though - let's get together and figure out how to make this work! At least we only have one graphics chip to worry about this time around
This is going to be a pretty long post but I figured it's good to have it all in one place. Please correct me if you think this is the wrong way to post these things.
Installing and booting
Booting from a normal 2013.6 USB key works fine, but I couldn't seem to get either GRUB or Syslinux working.
I was able to boot by first installing Arch Linux following the Macbook guide at the wiki (having a separate FAT32 /boot partition). Skip the bootloader installation.
Installing rEFInd from OS X (important!) and installing the EFI stub loader made me able to boot fine.
Separate thread.
Stability problems
This is the big worry for me. Every now and then my system hangs for a brief moment and everything involving net or disk access just hangs there for a while and then it seems to work.
So far it only seems to happen when I run something disk- or CPU-intensive. Also had an occassion when I couldn't start X and just got this repeating all over my screen:
ata1.00: failed command: WRITE FPDMA QUEUED
ata1.00: cmd 61/08:f0:10:8c:c2/00:00:0b:00:00/40 tag 30 ncq 4096 out res 40/00:00:00:00:00/00:00:00:00:00/00 Emask 0x4 (timeout)
ata1.00: status: { DRDY }
On the next attempt it worked fine.
I did SMART short and long tests on my disk and they returned fine:
smartctl -a
There are some messages in my boot that indicate this could be disk and/or ACPI related.
journalctl -b
dmesg
This was on a boot when my NIC was renamed from eth0 to wlp3s0 as noted under Wifi - this should hopefully not be a big deal to fix. Will update when I look more into it.
uname -a:
Linux temperance 3.9.7-1-ARCH #1 SMP PREEMPT Thu Jun 20 22:45:32 CEST 2013 x86_64 GNU/Linux
WiFi
WiFi does not work out of the box. Installing wireless-bcm43142-dkms from AUR made me able to connect to my network. I haven't been able to get it stable yet -interface name changes randomly between wlp3s0 and eth0 between reboots and I get disconnected from my network every 30 minutes or so. Disconnects seem to correlate somewhat with the freezes mentioned above.
Separate thread.
Touchpad
Have only been able to get it to work like a one-button mouse using evdev for now. Looks like an upstream bug.
Separate thread
Audio
In order to get audio, I need to put the following in /etc/asound.conf:
defaults.pcm.card 1
defaults.pcm.device 0
defaults.ctl.card 1
I'm no ALSA pro, but I can only seem to get output from the headphone jack so far - no speakers yet.
Last edited by Legogris (2013-06-27 20:21:11)

While I'm using Ubuntu and not Arch, I wanted to chip in with my experiences.
First, I am happy to tell you that I've found a fix for the ata errors/freezes (which for me were so bad I could hardly install) -- at least I think it's the same or related. I got udevd spitting errors about blkid timing out, and it couldn't find the disks. I found this in a Ubuntu forum -- sadly, I can't find the url now. Anyway, Pass
libata.force=1:noncq
to the linux kernel parameters (in Ubuntu you can add this to /etc/default/grub). This disables NCQ, which according to that post wasn't needed.
YMMV and I am not certain that it doesn't have bad side effects, but for me it made the laptop usable.
Other findings:
My Fn key, and thus delete, page up/down, media keys etc didn't work. That's because the keyboard has a new device id which isn't in usbhid. I added entries like the existing apple keyboards with the new device id (05ac:0291) and after recompiling, it works. I'm pretty sure this is fixable by passing the correct "quirks" flags to the usbhid module, e.g. "quirks=0x05ac:0x0291:0x00001248", but I'm not sure which flags should be set (I have an ISO keyboard layout which is yet another flag).
My sound card doesn't work. Or; i hear no sound at least ;-). After checking in alsamixer, it had two cards, one HDMI with S/PDIF only and one with analog in/out and digital in. I tried passing "index=1" to snd_hda_intel, which makes alsamixer pick up the right card by default. I'm not sure if the problem is that pulseaudio still has the wrong card, or something else.
My wifi works after installing bcmwl from Saucy (i.e. the upcoming Ubuntu 13.10 release), which was a relief because I feared this not being supported.
Sometimes after resuming from suspend, the screen is totally dark -- barely discernible in bright daylight. First I figured this was an issue with lightum (a daemon which monitors the lighting and adjusts keyboard and screen brightness), but after checking /sys/devices/pci0000\:00/0000\:00\:02.0/backlight/acpi_video0/brightness it turns out that when this happens, only the brightness levels 13, 14, and 15 (which is the brightest) have any brighness at all. 12 and under means no backlight. The only "fix" I've found so far is rebooting, which sucks. I hope this will get fixed (I will report a bug on Launchpad next time it happens).
Somewhere I picked up that passing
i915.i915_enable_rc6=1
to the linux parameters enables some great power saving features in the GPU. From modinfo:
i915_enable_rc6:Enable power-saving render C-state 6. Different stages can be selected via bitmask values (0 = disable; 1 = enable rc6; 2 = enable deep rc6; 4 = enable deepest rc6). For example, 3 would enable rc6 and deep rc6, and 7 would enable everything. default: -1 (use per-chip default) (int)
Oh, and if anybody knows how I get my GNU/Linux partition to show up in the Mac boot screen I would be grateful! Right now I have refit installed, which works but I would rather just use the built-in boot manager, which works on the predecessor (MBA 3,2).

My Macbook Air 2013 battery life is sub 4 hours. How do I diagnose and resolve the issue?

Hi,
I have a 6 month old Macbook AIr 2013 and I am getting sub 4 hours of battery life against the 12 hrs advertised. I looked into the application monitor and found that Spotlight has been causing my battery to drain
Here is a brief snapshot of System information
Hardware Overview:
Model Name:          MacBook Air
Model Identifier:          MacBookAir6,2
Processor Name:          Intel Core i5
Processor Speed:          1.3 GHz
Number of Processors:          1
Total Number of Cores:          2
L2 Cache (per Core):          256 KB
L3 Cache:          3 MB
Memory:          4 GB
Boot ROM Version:          MBA61.0099.B07
SMC Version (system):          2.13f7
Battery Information:
Model Information:
Serial Number:          D86349701E7F90KAV
Manufacturer:          SMP
Device Name:          bq20z451
Pack Lot Code:          0
PCB Lot Code:          0
Firmware Version:          511
Hardware Revision:          000a
Cell Revision:          1200
Charge Information:
Charge Remaining (mAh):          6362
Fully Charged:          No
Charging:          No
Full Charge Capacity (mAh):          7023
Health Information:
Cycle Count:          16
Condition:          Normal
Battery Installed:          Yes
Amperage (mA):          -1727
Voltage (mV):          8266
System Power Settings:
AC Power:
System Sleep Timer (Minutes):          1
Disk Sleep Timer (Minutes):          10
Display Sleep Timer (Minutes):          10
Wake on AC Change:          No
Wake on Clamshell Open:          Yes
Wake on LAN:          Yes
AutoPowerOff Delay:          14400
AutoPowerOff Enabled:          1
DarkWakeBackgroundTasks:          1
Display Sleep Uses Dim:          Yes
PrioritizeNetworkReachabilityOverSleep:          0
Standby Delay:          10800
Standby Enabled:          1
Battery Power:
System Sleep Timer (Minutes):          1
Disk Sleep Timer (Minutes):          10
Display Sleep Timer (Minutes):          2
Wake on AC Change:          No
Wake on Clamshell Open:          Yes
AutoPowerOff Delay:          14400
AutoPowerOff Enabled:          1
Current Power Source:          Yes
DarkWakeBackgroundTasks:          0
Display Sleep Uses Dim:          Yes
Reduce Brightness:          Yes
Standby Delay:          10800
Standby Enabled:          1
Hardware Configuration:
UPS Installed:          No
AC Charger Information:
Connected:          No
Charging:          No
Can somebody please advise me on what exactly is wrong and what I need to do to resolve the issue. Much appreciate the help.
Thanks
Nitin

1. Follow these instructions, or these for OS X 10.9 or later.
2. In the Energy Saver preference pane, uncheck the box marked
Enable Power Nap while on battery power
3. You can also try resetting the SMC.
4. Make sure your system is up to date in Software Update.
5. Make a "Genius" appointment at an Apple Store, or go to another authorized service center.

Why can't I update bootcamp software on my Macbook Air 2013?

I'm running windows 8 on my 13" macbook air 2013. Apple sent me a notification of updated bootcamp support software and directions for installation. This web page included a list of the models that are supported by this software and mine is one of them. When I began installing this support software an error message said my computer model isn't supported. I called apple care and they told me it isn't their responsibility to supply windows drivers for people running bootcamp. This sounds fishy and completely wrong. Can someone help, please?

Can you go back and post the web page and actual details (drivers, versions, etc)?
Are you trying to update in Windows and from the Apple Software Update application? manually downloading in Windows? you can use either.
Yes, very fishy. Use to be even worse I think with just how well they are ready to answer and help with Windows on Mac topic.
Use to be the old support pages were to me easy to see and find updates and tech support articles but you can still try there for both your Mac, firmware and model specific, and for Boot Camp.
Also when Mac OS X gets updated, often you download new drivers from within Boot Camp Assistant, too, a 3rd method.
Wasn't clear which method was used.
http://www.apple.com/support/macbookair
http://www.apple.com/support/bootcamp
http://support.apple.com/downloads/

Help bootcamp windows 8.1 Macbook Air 2013

I have a Macbook Air 2013 running Mavericks and I want to install windows 8.1 on it but first im getting a message saying that the iso is not 64-bit and im so confused because it partitoned my harddrive aswell so how do i get that back.

Not true. In Mac OS's Disk Utility, you can delete the Bootcamp partition then resize the Mac partition larger to use the free space.
Gn12, if your mac keeps trying to boot to your Boot Camp partition, hold down the Option key as you boot so that you can select the Mac partition then use the Startup Disk preferences to select the Mac partition for future boots.

How do I install Adobe Shockwave Player on the new Macbook Air 2013

I have just purchased the new Macbook Air 2013 I was trying to install the Adobe Shockwave Flashplayer. Now it dowloads but the problem is that when I go try to play the game it still says I am missing a plug-in. I have been trying to switch it to open Safari using Rosetta I read that if i changed it to that it would work but the option isnt even there for my computer. Please help is it even possible to download

Plug-ins need to be enabled in a new Mac.
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    Safari > Preferences > Security
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A new Mac comes with 90 days of free tech support from AppleCare.
AppleCare: 1-800-275-2273
Best.

HT1379 A flashing question mark appears when I re/start my MacBook Air 2013. At first, I pressed Power & Option button and it recovered from Internet. Then, four options appeared but none of them are helpful. Could u please help me to solve it asap?

Hello,
A flashing question mark appears when I re/start my MacBook Air 2013. Then, I pressed POWER & OPTOIN buttons and internet options appeared for internet recovery. After internet recovery, the OS X utilities appears with four options (Restore from Time machine, Reinstall OS X, Get help online and Disk utility). But none of them seemed helpful. On the last option Disk utility, the icon created only with 33KB and other disk 1 Mac Os X Base system. On First Aid, the icon Repair disk is disabled. So I could not click on repair disk. Could you please suggest me how to solve this problem asap? Thank you so much for your help in advance!

You can try the following:
Install or Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion from Scratch
Be sure you backup your files to an external drive or second internal drive because the following procedure will remove everything from the hard drive.
Boot to the Recovery HD:
Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND and R keys until the menu screen appears. Alternatively, restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager screen appears. Select the Recovery HD and click on the downward pointing arrow button.
Erase the hard drive:
1. Select Disk Utility from the main menu and click on the Continue button.
2. After DU loads select your startup volume (usually Macintosh HD) from the
      left side list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.
3. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Optionally, click on
        the Security button and set the Zero Data option to one-pass. Click on
      the Erase button and wait until the process has completed.
4. Quit DU and return to the main menu.
Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion: Select Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion and click on the Install button.
Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible
            because it is three times faster than wireless.

Is Macbook Air (2013) appropriate for music production?

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