Software for Music Production

So what kind of specs do you need to run most music production software?
Obviously, it depends on the software you are using:

a) GarageBand: A very lightweight music production program that runs on Mac only. GarageBand runs from Mac 10.13.6 and only needs 2 GB of hard drive space and 2 GB of RAM. It will work on virtually any remotely modern Mac.

b) Logic Pro: Logic is a Mac that Apple acquired a few years ago. Logic requires 4 GB of RAM, an
OpenCL or Intel HD Graphics 3000 graphics card, and 6 GB of space. It will run on all Mac processors that
support Intel HD Graphics 3000.

c) Ableton: Ableton Live 10 runs on both Mac and Windows. You’ll need OS 10.11.6 or Windows 7 or
later, an Intel Core i5 processor, and 4GB of RAM, but 8GB is recommended. It occupies approximately 6
GB of hard disk space.

d) Pro Tools; A slightly heavier program that runs on Windows and Mac in many ways, Pro Tools requires
an Intel i5 processor or AMD equivalent. You will need Mac OS 10.11.6 or later, or Windows 7 or later, and
4 GB of RAM, but 8 GB and 15 GB of space are recommended for installation.

Of course, these are minimum specs and, to some extent, should be taken with a pinch of salt. Once you load
up a few tracks and plugins, you’ll need some extra juice to run your session smoothly. That said, you can
run basic production tasks on the lower spec, so if you’re looking to make simple beats or loops for DJ sets,
etc., you can get away with a lower-spec machine.

Below is a summary of the minimum components that will ensure good performance and compatibility with
the most popular programs used to create and produce music:

1. Windows Laptop for Music Production:
• Processor: Intel Core i5 or i7
• Memory: 8 GB RAM
• Hard drive: 500GB hard drive (preferably an SSD drive)
• Optional: Integrated graphics card or a dedicated video card with 512 MB

2. Apple/Mac Laptop:
• Processor: Intel multicore
• Memory: 4GB RAM
• Hard drive: 500GB (preferably an SSD drive)
• Mac OS X 10.10 or later

These components will be more than enough to produce music with software like Ableton Live, Pro Tools,
GarageBand, REAPER, FL Studio, Steinberg Cubase, Reason, and others.

For an overview of things to look out for when deciding what laptop to purchase, head on over to our blog post which will guide you through it all.