Asus, M's Glamour +Connectivity

[Howdy Doody Time]

I bought an Asus laptop which brought me back to Windows after a long spell with Mac. I need to get used to Windows again but it does feel a bit clumsy compared with OSX, it isn't of course, it's just that I'm not used to it. The other thing I'm not used to now that I have the Asus, is the connectivity, which is monumentally better on the Windows machine. Mac has sacrificed connectivity for sleek slim lines and aesthetic beauty, which given the number of gadgets needed in a hobby studio (UAD thingy, midi control surface and keyboard, a/d converter, and of course local network for the digital mixing desk and accessories, is inconvenient to say the least, and restrictive. I was using an Intel MacBook Pro which had four USB C type holes in it, two holes each side, and I could just about connect th things I needed after buying the connecting hardware, however it wasn't that straightforward. There needed to be a careful balance of power otherwise the Mac would shut off the usb port on the grounds it was drawing too much power, this was sometimes curable by switching things around, and sometimes not. I bought a MacBook Air M1 which has only two holes, both on the same side, to do other tasks and it was mostly OK. Then I made the mistake of buying a MacBook Pro M2 to replace the Intel MBP without researching it or even looking at it. I walked into the Mac Store in Bangkok and bought it sight unseen. It has 8Gb, 500Gb SSD, and two holes both on the same side. So instead of an upgrade or even a crossgrade, I bought a downgrade. It remains gathering dust while the Intel Mac slogs on, and I explore the Asus with all the lovely connectivity. I sometimes look at the MBPM2 across on it's shelf, and admire its sleek glamorous but useless lines.

[ajay_m]

Powered hubs are your friend. Every port can be hubbed and with power supplied to the hub power drain issues are moot. I have a 10 port "pluggable" brand powered hub on my windows laptop which has given many years sterling service and I have yet to hit a device that didn't work via the hub but required direct port connectivity to the pc.

[Howdy Doody Time]

Yes you are right, I do have a few powered hubs but the clutter drives me nuts. I believe now after buying many laptops, that they are not the way forward for a hobby studio with a lot of stuff. If I can get back on form with windows I will get some steaming great lump of a floor standing computer with cables laid in neatly and discretely, and doors that swing open giving access to all the gubbins which will be attended so they can be pulled out for easy access and replacement.

[James Perrett]

Do laptops still have docking stations these days? I bought my son a refurbished laptop for his birthday recently which is similar enough to mine to use the same docking station. When he wants to do a music or video editing project I can just eject my computer and he can put his into the docking station which gives him instant access to the big screen, audio interface, controller and all the peripherals that I normally use.

However, even with the docking station, I still have an extra USB hub for things like wired mouse and keyboard.

[Howdy Doody Time]

Yes, I bought one for the M2MBP. It has ten ports (it's called a Baseus) and though it uses up one of the two USB C ports it gives you it back as one of the ten. But there are two ports labelled 4KHD but look like HDMI ports, three regular USB ports and a VGA port! a micro SD an MMC SD and an ethernet port make up the ten.

I'm still confused about the operating system though. Some things like Mixbus 32C version 9 run in native M, but how about the waves and UAD effects and the Arturia and Trillian and Omnisphere Instruments, and on and on. My Waves collection for example would need to be bought again, because my version is 12 I think and needs to be upgraded - but they would be the same effects after buying them again. So my mind wandered in the direction of Windows. All I'd have to do would be log on to the vendors and download the Windows version of my software. Learning curve though, I struggle to find the things I use regularly use - like where is my C drive, and why don't I have sound? I remember when Control Panel was at your fingertips, now I find it's 3 menus away. Anyway I rant, and I apologise, but I will need to make important decisions soon

[ajay_m]

Cables and studios kind of go hand in hand. To tame the jungle, use spiral nylon cable harness which you just twist around a bunch of cables and presto, everything looks so much neater. For a jungle of hubs, take a small piece of wood and stick them down with blutack so they don't wander around and then route the cables and pop some velcro cable ties around them. Instant Marie Kondo!. Also now you can plug and unplug cables and the hub stays put.