Looking for the best laptops for music production? You’ve come to the right place! Music is more than just art. It’s the way artists choose to connect with people irrespective of their background, age, ethnicity etc. In 2024, owning a good laptop for music production is critical for every artist or producer who wants to seamlessly blend creativity, technology and innovation at once.
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Music production requires laptops with high end CPU’s and fortunately most laptops in the market have the same at relatively affordable prices, which simply means that customers are spoiled with choices. This, however, tends to cause confusion as to which product to narrow down and go for which is why we have done the curation for you. In our blog, you can find a list of best laptops for music production that are perfect and budget friendly as well.
If you’re interested in attending a college for musical theatre, check out our comprehensive guide to the best musical theatre colleges.
Top 7 Best Laptops for Music Production
Bear in mind that the finest best laptops for music production are silent enough to not interfere with your work and fast enough to handle all the edits and adjustments you want to make to your audio. This implies that it requires cooling as well as powerful performance, which aren’t necessarily compatible. However, some laptops that comply to the above are:
1. ASUS Zenbook Pro 14
Specifications:
- Core i9-13900H coupled with 32GB of RAM and a Nvidia RTX 4070.
- Storage: 1TB SSD
- Resolution: 2,880 x 1,800
ASUS Zenbook Pro 14 is one of the finest laptops in the market for music production. It is installed with a powerful hardware and a pair of OLED displays which means that the laptop is touchscreen. It is fitted with tons of cores to perform intense multi threaded tasks.
Additionally, it also comes with a RTX 4060 graphics chip that allows the user to perform gaming with an excellent display on the 14.5-inch OLED screen with 2.8K resolution. The 120Hz refresh rate and the infamous Nvidia graphics chip make the laptop’s functions buttery smooth and efficient.
It weighs about 3.6 pounds which is technically quite light for a heavy-duty performing laptop. With a massive 10-hour battery life, the user doesn’t have to worry about that aspect when using this laptop.
Pros:
- Powerful performance in most tasks including gaming and music production
- Long battery life
- OLED screen display
Cons:
- Cannot perform many high performing tasks at once.
2. Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 Alan Walker Special Edition
Specifications:
- 16GB DDRA RAM with Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 Ti 4GB
- Storage: 1TB Samsung M.2 SSD
- Resolution: 2,560 x 1,440
Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 Alan Walker Special Edition is one of the most simple yet high-performing laptops that could smitten any music producer out there. It is installed with a CPU of AMD Ryzen 9 5900HS making it extremely quick, reliable and efficient.
However, the best feature of this laptop is that it comes with a box that can be connected via USB-C to use with a specific app or used as a synth pad and controller for mixing. Additionally, the laptop has two USB-C and two USB-A connections to connect your own specialized controllers, if you already have any. It also has enough power to manage the majority of music production sessions.
However, it is worth noting that upon performing intense tasks, the battery only lasts a few hours hence it is advised you don’t stray too far from a power source.
Pros:
- Efficient CPU performance
- Excellent display features
- Different ports to connect various external devices like DJ system etc.
Cons:
- Battery drains quickly
3. Apple MacBook Pro 16 M3
Specifications:
- 48GB unified memory with Apple M3 Max 40-core GPU
- Storage: 1TB SSD
- Resolution: 3,456 x 2,234
Flaunting the latest apple software, Apple MacBook Pro 16 M3 boasts strong, powerful and unprecedented performance. We are aware that not everyone prefers working on MacOs, however, if that’s your thing, this laptop is best suited for you.
Leaning towards a pricier side, this laptop is equipped with the best apple hardware that’s available with an extensively built quality and battery life. This laptop is fitted with a 16-core CPU that enables it to carry out high duty performance with ease similar to most high-end intel and AMD systems.
It is 50% faster than the laptops from the previous generations, which is quite a huge elevation in terms of technical performance.
On a single charge, this laptop can be used for 22 hours which is one the longest lasting batteries of laptops in the market. With 4k resolution and 120Hz refresh rate, the displays on this laptop are quite crisp. Additional feature of this laptop is that it enables users to work during harsh sunlight since it is equipped with 500-nits brightness.
Pros:
- Long-lasting battery life
- Equipped with high performing CPU and GPU
- Bright display
Cons:
- Expensive
- Heavy in terms of weight
4. Microsoft surface laptop 4
Specifications:
- Up to AMD Ryzen 7 4980U with Up to 32GB LPDDR4x RAM
- Storage: Up to 1TB SSD
- Resolution: 2496 x 1664
The Microsoft surface laptop 4 comes with two display options which are 13-inch and 15-inch respectively. With touchscreen features available with a resolution of 2496 x 1664, this laptop works effectively when it comes to music production. It is equipped with a CPU of Up to 11th-gen Intel Core i7 which ideally means that the CPU performance of this laptop is beyond phenomenal.
The battery life of this laptop is decent and not as much as other laptops on this good, it’s sufficient to get you through the day’s work. The surface of the laptop is just 0.57 inches in thickness and weighs 2.97 pounds, so, if you are a music producer that travels a lot, this could be the right choice for you. This sleek laptop promises excellent working performance and so much more.
Pros:
- Beautiful display and physical features
- Easy to carry around
- High performance
Cons:
- Insufficient port
5. Dell XPS 17
Specifications:
- 16GB DDR5 with Intel Core i9-13900H
- Storage: 512GB
- Resolution: 1,920 x 1,200
Among the XPS family, Dell XPS 17 is the biggest and the most powerful. It is equipped with incredibly strong hardware, stunning display, long battery life and quality touchpad and keypad. This laptop is ideal for gaming and music production. With a configuration of 1080p, this laptop can be upgraded to a 4k panel if required.
Infused with a latest-generation Intel Core i9 CPU and Nvidia RTX graphics chip, this laptop performs extremely quickly. With 16GB RAM available, you can always upgrade it to 32GB if required.
The battery life is around 10 hours at single charge upon mixed use. However, the laptop is slightly on the heavier side when compared to most laptops on this list.
Pros:
- Large screen which makes editing and production easy
- Beautiful display features
- Strong hardware
Cons:
- Quite heavy in weight
- Slightly expensive
6. Microsoft surface laptop studio 2
Specifications:
- Intel Core i9-13700H with 16GB DDR5 RAM
- Storage: 512GB
- Resolution: 2,400 x 1,600
This Microsoft surface laptop studio 2 is a great 2-in-1 laptop, meaning it can be used as a tablet as well. This laptop features a unique hinge design which opens up tent mode and easel mode which makes the process of music production a lot easier.
Compared to a single-handed tablet, it is definitely heavy, however, it does come with a great battery life. Additionally, if you want to use this device for gaming, it is always recommended to equip it with an additional graphic card.
With a varied selection of ports available along with two USB-C thunderbolt 4 ports, a USB-A 3.2 Gen-1 port, a headphone jack and a surface connect port.
Pros:
- Can be used as a tablet
- Varied selection of ports
- Sleek and portable
Cons:
- Small display
- Expensive
7. Dell XPS 13 plus
Specifications:
- Intel Core i9-1360p with 16GB DDR5 Ram
- Storage: 512 GB
- Resolution: 1,920 x 1,200
Earlier in the days, Dell had a bad reputation for having deferred procedure calls which caused severe lag in audio production. However, the development of the latest models witnessed the removal of DFC making it fit for music production.
The XPS 13 is compact and pretty light weight with sturdy hardware and excellent performance features. With a touch screen display, you can easily work with the controls and use the touchpad as well.
The resolution is 1080p but is extremely great for the small screen. The battery life of this device is 13 hours which is pretty good when it comes to music production.
Pros:
- Impressive efficiency and high performance
- Great display at 1080p or 4k
- Good battery life
Cons:
- Cannot be used as a tablet
- Small display screen
How to choose the best laptops for music production?
One of the most important components of a laptop is a processor, if a laptop lacks this, the process of producing music would be a struggle. The more the cores or threads would be, the greater would be the audio processing quality. Certain things to check for before investing in a laptop for music production are:
1. RAM
Although RAM doesn’t play as huge a role as a CPU does, it will surely make the process a lot easier in the long run. RAM is technically used as a temporary storage until for storing audio files so that when DAW needs them, they can be grabbed quickly rather than relying of SDD or HDD speed which will definitely slow things down.
Avoid going for 8GB, however for a smooth experience go for a 32GB RAM.
2. Storage
A DAW’s operating speed is somewhat influenced by storage, but if you have a lot of memory, you shouldn’t be too concerned about it. Nevertheless, an SSD will always be superior to an HDD; however, as most laptops now ship with SSDs, this shouldn’t be a problem. You only really need to worry about this if you’re using an external hard drive, and even then, we strongly advise moving any files you want to utilize to the internal SSD because it will operate a little bit quicker.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What size of laptop screen is the best for music production?
Simple recording and mixing can be done efficiently on a laptop with a small display. Generally speaking, mid sized laptops (14–16”) strike a balance between portability and performance.
2. Can you use any laptop for music?
Make sure the system is capable of handling the workload first. This calls for a reasonably capable CPU with four cores or more and at least sixteen gigabytes of RAM. If you work with hundreds of tracks, plugins, or samples, memory becomes even more crucial.
3. What kind of laptop do I need for music production?
You will need a laptop capable of running professional audio and video applications if you plan to produce songs. You may choose a laptop with a strong processor and sufficient RAM.
4. Can I use a gaming laptop for producing music?
Yes. Gaming laptops and music production laptops are the same. The only difference is the presence of graphic cards in gaming laptops.
5. Can I make music on my laptop without instruments?
Yes. It is possible to create beautiful music using just your laptop. However, bear in mind that you use a good laptop that can actually bear the load of the procedure.
6. Can I make music on a cheap laptop?
Yes. What matters is the components of the laptop like RAM, CPU, storage etc. Investing in a good laptop for music production makes the process easier.
Conclusion
Choosing a best laptop for music production requires careful consideration of various factors such as RAM, CPU, storage, resolution etc. With technology evolving constantly, there are tons of options available in the market that cater to the diverse needs of music producers.
High-end laptops with multi-core processors and large RAM provide smooth music production experiences for individuals who value power and performance over everything else.
In the end, the best laptop for music production would depend on the user’s needs and requirements. After carrying out a thorough research on these, artists can easily pick what aligns with them the most.
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