Looking into a new PC with BIAB in mind. It obviously will have BIAB loaded but possibly a third party DAW, and any other music related software but that is all I intend using this PC for. No Word, Excel, CAD, etc etc

Looking at either a out the box laptop or build another PC from the ground up?

Not so fussed on the price side of things more on what will give better interoperability.

Is there any advantage in having multi screen displays with BIAB or is it only a single screen engine?

I plan on having a USB interface for mic and guitar so I am not seeing any major benifit in analog I/O on the computer, am I missing anything here? I would assume you run you monitor speakers and or headphones from your USB interface.

What screen size are people using and is there a sweet spot as far as that goes? Given most laptop screens are 15.5" to the higher end 17.3" would they be a comfortable size or do you need a larger size to operate BIAB comfortably?

I have an open mind as to which way to go, would really value your input and experiences to help guide me in the direction for the best BIAB user experience.

Regards,

Ian

Hi. I don't even have BIAB on my laptop, though many here do and are happy with it. Likewise I have not felt the need for multiple monitors for BIAB though again, many here are happy with them. There are occasional comments how BIAB windows could be managed better on multiple monitors, but I don't know specifics.

A desktop is cheaper for the same power, and upgradable so much more easily. I build all my own desktops, too.

If you are really optimizing for BIAB, then put your money into the CPU and the sound interface, and don't worry as much about the video, or even the RAM unless you use soft synths extensively.

My monitor is a standard 24". I recall a few comments by those with monitors much larger that there are occasional dialog boxes where the text is smaller than they would like, and yet changing the default Windows size larger than 100% causes its own problems.

You'll get tons of differing opinions here, no doubt. Hope this helps a little.

I have BIAB on both my laptop and desktop. It runs fine on both.

Having it on my laptop, however, lets me take it with me when I go on travel, so portability is a big plus. In those cases, I just use the onboard sound card (which on my laptop works fine with ASIO4ALL)

At my desk, however, I use my USB interface and I have a second monitor. I don't need a second monitor for BIAB, per se, but you can open up VST/VSTi effects/instruments on the second monitor, so you can still see the BIAB screen while working with the effect/instrument.

On the desktop side, as Matt pointed out, upgradeability is much easier on a desktop and there is more space for things like additional hard drives. The desktop will be cheaper while giving you more power.

Both can have essentially the same processor and RAM, for me, it really comes down to portability.

I used to run BIAB on a laptop, with increasing age looking at a small screen for hours became tiring. Switching to a desktop with a 24" monitor was a welcome change, albeit losing portability which I find I can live without.

The biggest change for me was switching from a 24" monitor to a 27" monitor. Using Windows "split screen" where I can have two windows with separate apps running side by side has been a real plus to my productivity.

Jeff

Just wondering how you're using the split screens? I can get both my big TV screen and my monitor to switch between 3 virtual screens but not two together using the button on the bottom left next to the Windows 10 search box, but I can't get it to show two screens simultaneously. How did you do that? Is it in settings?

I've got Windows 10 Creator version and I have 2 monitors so I can run different programs on each screen. Sometimes they open on the wrong screen or messages appear on the wrong screen , but once you figure out how to throw programs to the left or right and mouse cursor to the right or left all is well.

Thanks John and Jeff.

The aging eyes resonates, 61 with bifocals here.

Have to say my need for portability has long gone since I have retired. My iPad is all I need when I travel. I've always have had, well it seems like for always that I have had a laptop.

Food for thought.

Cheers,

Ian

Of course, depending on your budget, the two aren't mutually exclusive. You could have both. And most music production applications allow you to run on both a laptop and a desktop.

I would choose to go with a desktop because it is easier to perform upgrades in the future. Even if it's nothing more than adding RAM it's easier to upgrade a desktop than it is a laptop.

I have both and see no real advantage to the laptop. I shave dual monitor sysetem and use only the one monitor for bIAB. I don't hik you;ll go wrosng with either or both.

Lambada....using Windows 10, just grab the current window at the very top while holding down the left mouse button. Then drag the entire window either left or right to the very edge of your screen. Let go of the left mouse button and the screen will "pop" to the right or left side and fill half of the screen. Open a new window or app and do the same thing, pulling that window to the opposite side of your screen. Then you will have two screens, each taking up half of your screen. You can do this with up to 4 screens or apps at the same time by dragging the open screens to the corners of your monitor but the size of each screen will then only fill 1/4 of your monitor...that's getting pretty small...at least for my eyes on a 27" monitor.

Jeff

Thanks. Too easy. I just did this with a tab in Mozilla and it put the individual tab in a Mozilla screen. Now I'm typing and watching a video on Elon Musk simultaneously. Very Cool.

Build a custom machine.

You get exactly what you want, the OS you want and you end up with more machine for less green.

I built a custom DAW about 10 years ago now. i5 quad core processor and it was designed to do music and nothing else. I borrowed the specs from a well known custom DAW builder on line.

It screams and now, 10 years later it is still rally fast. I keep it off line except to authorize any new software I buy. But I rarely do that now. It works well and there's no need to buy more stuff. No updates and no problems.

Planning to go to dual monitors shortly. Whether BB can do dual screens, I don't see why not.... but if not, run BB in one and your DAW in the other.

BIAB is fine in dual screens. I just tried it. It works best if you put the mixer in its own window. Then you can throw it on to the other screen. I added the guitar window as well as an example and my screen recording software (NCH - DEBUT) to take the photo, so ignore that. (They look as if they're side by side, but in reality it's two separate screens. It's just an easy way to show it using DEBUT.) Three screens would be cool.



Edit: Just noticed that in BIAB 2017 you can throw screens onto your second monitor (outside BIAB screen), but in RealBand you can't. It looks like it uses the same screens, so it should be easy to make RealBand do the same as BIAB. Might be a good wishlist option? I'm only starting on Realband, so not in a position to make that kind of call.

lambada,

That is one nice screen shot. I'm green with envy, or is it jealousy?