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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 260
Apprentice
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OP
Apprentice
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 260 |
Hi, I’m thinking of getting a mini pc for my music rather than upgrading to a better laptop. Anyone use them. Basically just want to use it for Band in a Box, and my piano vst’s which I use in stand alone mode. Any thoughts? ( not sure if I’ve posted in the correct part of forum 😁)
best wishes
rikki
BIAB 2025
Korg PA5X
Yamaha sx900
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,418
Veteran
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Veteran
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 22,418 |
Short answer yes, some have a mini-PC as their main system
It's all about the specs & usually mini-PCs have SSD or NVMe drives
I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome
Make your sound your own!
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 155
Apprentice
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Apprentice
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 155 |
I've been using a mini PC instead of a laptop for three years and it works great.
BIAB 2025,RB 2025,PTA 2024,Windows 11,Studio One PRO 5.5.2,Melodyne Studio 5.4.2.006,Sibelius 8.4.1,Acoustica 7.4.14,Notion 6,Progression 3,Harmony Assistant 9.9.5c,RX9,Ripx DeepAudio 7.5.1,Kontakt 7.10.7,DeCoda 1.3.2,Synthesizer V Studio Pro 1.12.2
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 155
Apprentice
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Apprentice
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 155 |
Unfortunately, I can't change the current SW status on the profile:
BIAB 2025,RB 2025,PTA 2024,Windows 11,Studio One PRO 5.52,Melodyne Studio 5.3.1,Sibelius 8.4.1,Acoustica 7.7.5,Notion 6,Progression 3,Harmony Assistant 9.9.5c,RX9,Ripx DeepAudio 7.5.1,Kontakt 7.10.7,DeCoda 1.3.2,Synthesizer V Studio Pro 1.11.2 and others.
BIAB 2025,RB 2025,PTA 2024,Windows 11,Studio One PRO 5.5.2,Melodyne Studio 5.4.2.006,Sibelius 8.4.1,Acoustica 7.4.14,Notion 6,Progression 3,Harmony Assistant 9.9.5c,RX9,Ripx DeepAudio 7.5.1,Kontakt 7.10.7,DeCoda 1.3.2,Synthesizer V Studio Pro 1.12.2
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 20,914
Veteran
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Veteran
Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 20,914 |
Unfortunately, I can't change the current SW status on the profile: Click on your name at the top-right of the form (next to the envelope icon) and select the 'Edit Profile' item. Then scroll down to the Forum Profile section, and edit your Signature details.
BIAB & RB2026 Win.(Audiophile), Windows 10 Pro & Windows 11, Cakewalk Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Session Keys Grand S & Electric R, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M, Pioneer Active Monitors.
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 155
Apprentice
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Apprentice
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 155 |
This is not possible like this and I will have to contact PGMUSIC support. The problem is that I logged into the Forum under a different account with a different email than I do today with the new email. I had two accounts because I wanted to transfer the records of my purchases that I had on the original account to the new account and only then cancel the original account. The transfer of purchases was successful with the help of PGMUSIC support, but on the new profile I had and still have the original email as verified. I wanted to change it before, but the verification email that I was supposed to confirm apparently came to me as spam and I did not confirm it and after a month the email was deleted as spam. I do not have this the verification email in my email account. I started solving this problem recently, when after more than two years I wanted to change the list of my software and the profile changes were not accepted with a refusal that the change is not possible, that there is an account with another user under this name (my original account). I am not even allowed to verify the email address again. This problem is here on my forum account, but the account for purchases at PGMUSIC is fully functional. And I log in to the forum through the new account and can communicate here. I will have to contact - support PGMUSIC via email, because the AI communication here will not solve it.
BIAB 2025,RB 2025,PTA 2024,Windows 11,Studio One PRO 5.5.2,Melodyne Studio 5.4.2.006,Sibelius 8.4.1,Acoustica 7.4.14,Notion 6,Progression 3,Harmony Assistant 9.9.5c,RX9,Ripx DeepAudio 7.5.1,Kontakt 7.10.7,DeCoda 1.3.2,Synthesizer V Studio Pro 1.12.2
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 20,914
Veteran
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Veteran
Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 20,914 |
Hi Gause,
Sorry for your issues.
It would be worthwhile contacting PG Music support directly. Your issue is not directly related to using a Mini PC with BIAB, so others might become confused.
BIAB & RB2026 Win.(Audiophile), Windows 10 Pro & Windows 11, Cakewalk Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Session Keys Grand S & Electric R, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M, Pioneer Active Monitors.
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 155
Apprentice
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Apprentice
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 155 |
I already solved it by logging into the original account and making changes and verification, and it was also displayed in the new account.
BIAB 2025,RB 2025,PTA 2024,Windows 11,Studio One PRO 5.5.2,Melodyne Studio 5.4.2.006,Sibelius 8.4.1,Acoustica 7.4.14,Notion 6,Progression 3,Harmony Assistant 9.9.5c,RX9,Ripx DeepAudio 7.5.1,Kontakt 7.10.7,DeCoda 1.3.2,Synthesizer V Studio Pro 1.12.2
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 155
Apprentice
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Apprentice
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 155 |
I apologize, especially for the fact that after announcing that I am successfully using a miniPC, and then I noticed that I had outdated software in my profile. I am 74 years old and so I did not realize that I could mislead other users.
BIAB 2025,RB 2025,PTA 2024,Windows 11,Studio One PRO 5.5.2,Melodyne Studio 5.4.2.006,Sibelius 8.4.1,Acoustica 7.4.14,Notion 6,Progression 3,Harmony Assistant 9.9.5c,RX9,Ripx DeepAudio 7.5.1,Kontakt 7.10.7,DeCoda 1.3.2,Synthesizer V Studio Pro 1.12.2
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 20,914
Veteran
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Veteran
Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 20,914 |
All good, Gause!. There is definitely no need to apologize, but thank you for letting us know that you have resolved your issue. Keep having fun with music, that's the most important part 
BIAB & RB2026 Win.(Audiophile), Windows 10 Pro & Windows 11, Cakewalk Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Session Keys Grand S & Electric R, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M, Pioneer Active Monitors.
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Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
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Joined: May 2020
Posts: 2,766
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Veteran
Joined: May 2020
Posts: 2,766 |
I use an HP mini PC - an Elitedesk 800 G5 DM with i5-9500 (6 core with 32gb ram), which is slightly smaller than a Mac Mini (well, the older Mac Minis). I also have a small stack of Mac Mini's ranging from Core2Duo to quad-core i7 to 8-core M1. I use all of them for music production. Some mini PC's use "laptop hardware" meaning they use a lower power CPU and other parts, while some use the faster desktop parts. In my experience there are advantages and disadvantages to both - the more powerful stuff needs better cooling, meaning you'll more often hear the fans kicking in while the less powerful stuff would be near silent, but I also haven't really run into performance issues with the less powerful stuff, so that would be what I'd aim for. Look up the model of CPU both for benchmarks and to see how many watts it uses - the less watts used while offering good performance, the better. For example, take a look at the chart here: https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare/3444vs6112vs5852vs5719/Intel-i5-9500-vs-Intel-i7-14700T-vs-Intel-i7-14700-vs-Intel-i7-14700KThe leftmost one is my current CPU, which works great for music production. Even the lowest power of the current i7 chips is more than triple the speed. But look closely at the TDP row, that's how many watts of heat they can produce - and it's MUCH easier to cool a 35w CPU than a 125w monster. My previous machine used an i9-9900K which is only 95w, but it was difficult to keep quiet.
I work here
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Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.
ChatPG's knowledge base includes the full Band-in-a-Box User Manual and sales information from the website.
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Season's Greetings!
Wishing everyone a happy, healthy holiday season—thanks for being part of our community!
The office will be closed for Christmas Day, but we will be back on Boxing Day (Dec 26th) at 6:00am PST.
Team PG
Band-in-a-Box 2026 Video: The Newly Designed Piano Roll Window
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You can see all the 2026 videos on our forum!
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