Gone are the days when people were using different instruments for music production. The most important thing you need in this world of advanced technology is a laptop to make a song.
You can’t use any laptop, but you need the best laptop for music production with the right software to create the right music for your listeners. Music production requires a lot of applications and software to edit and design the music.
You need a laptop with a fast processor, HD graphics, high RAM, high memory, and HD display to fulfill these requirements. Searching for the best laptops for music production is not an easy task as you have to perform immense research while considering all options.
To reduce your time and efforts, here we have compiled a brief list of the top 10 laptops for music production.
Review contents
Things to consider before buying a good laptop for music production
When you are looking for a computer for music production and recording price tag is not enough. There are many things you should consider.
Many budget-friendly laptops are available on the market, but they give a limited performance with minimum specifications.
Before jumping out and spending your money on a system, we recommend looking for a laptop covering the essential “must-have” specifications. Here are some things you should consider before buying a music production laptop:
Processor
As the CPU is the heart of a computer. The performance of your system’s CPU matters. For audio and music production, get the fastest processor you can afford.
For most recording software, you’ll need a laptop with multi-dual or quad-core processors.
Operating System
You can use both Windows and macOS for music production, but going with MacOS is probably be the best option.
Many people in this industry prefer a Mac over a PC because they are more stable. However, if you’re confused between both, we recommend you read this guide by MacWorld, which describes the comparison of macOS High Sierra and Windows 10.
RAM
For music production and recording purpose, you need more RAM. This is important for handling your software. So, we recommend you go for a minimum of 8GB or more.
If you are going to buy a laptop for audio recording, make sure that you can add more RAM in the future if required.
Hard Drive
For music recording, make sure that you get the correct hard drive.
Always choose your hard drive wisely. For example, give preference to SSD storage instead of the hard disk drive to handle the demands of transferring audio data.
So, without any further ado, here we go…
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Top 10 Best Laptops for Music Production
Apple 16″ MacBook Pro, 512GB SSD – Best Mac for Music Production
Apple has been known for its high-quality products. Regarding content creation, Apple MacBook Pro is the first preference for all professionals, including music production. It offers high-end technology and features that make it one of the best laptops for music production.
It is a 15-inch thin and lightweight laptop that truly redefines the word portable. A retina display gives you more vibrant colors and brightness that doesn’t strain your eyes compared to other laptops. The laptop is sported with a 2.6GHz 6-core Intel Core i7 processor paired with the 16GB of RAM and 4GB dedicated AMD Radeon Pro 5300M graphics card, making it good enough for music production and recording.
For storage, the MacBook Pro comes with 512GB of SSD storage suitable for storing large media files or audio software. In addition, it offers 10 hours of battery life for extended usage without needing to be plugged in. If you have a large budget and like the usability of OSX, then MacBook Pro is the best ultrabook for music production you can get.
| Hardware Specifications of Apple 15″ MacBook Pro, 256GB SSD | |
| Processor | 9th-Generation Intel Core i7 6-core Processor 2.6GHz |
| RAM | 16GB 2133MHz LPDDR3 |
| Storage | 512GB SSD |
| Display | 16″ FHD Retina (3072×1920) Display |
| Graphics | AMD Radeon Pro 5300M with 4GB of GDDR6 memory and automatic graphics switching, Intel UHD Graphics 630 |
| Operating System | macOS BigSur |
| Battery Life | Up to 10-hours |
| Weight | 4.3 pounds |
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ASUS TUF FX505DU Gaming Laptop
The ASUS TUF FX505DU comes in various screen sizes and hardware specifications. This ASUS model is a high-end and powerful laptop that can be pretty handy for music-making. This is a 15.6-inch laptop with a full HD display having a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. It is not only suitable for music production. You can even use it for streaming, video editing, etc. It is also one of the best laptops for video production.
The laptop is powered by the AMD Ryzen 7 3750H processor clocked at 2.2GHz. It also has an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 8GB GDDR6 dedicated graphic card. It is also sported 16GB DDR4 RAM making it very snappy for demanding music projects. In addition, it comes with the combination of a 1TB hard disk drive and 256GB of SSD that make it one of the most powerful laptops.
It weighs only 4.8 pounds so, you can easily fit it into your backpack if you are a traveling gig musician. Overall, it is tough to beat this laptop in terms of hardware specifications and performance as it is one of the best 15-inch laptops for music production you can buy right now.
ASUS TUF Gaming F17 Gaming Laptop, 17.3” 144Hz FHD IPS-Type Display, Intel Core i5-10300H, GeForce GTX 1650 Ti, 8GB DDR4, 512GB PCIe SSD, RGB Keyboard, Windows 10, Bonfire Black, FX706LI-ES53
$749.99 in stock
2 used from $699.00
ASUS TUF Gaming F17 Gaming Laptop, 17.3” FHD IPS-Type Display, Intel Core i5-10300H, GeForce GTX 1650 Ti, 8GB DDR4, 512GB PCIe SSD, RGB Keyboard, Windows 10, Bonfire Black, FX706LI-RS53
1 used from $779.00
| Hardware Specifications of ASUS TUF FX505DU Gaming Laptop | |
| Processor | AMD Ryzen 7 3750H Quad-core Processor (up to 3.9GHz) |
| RAM | 16GB DDR4 |
| Storage | 256GB PCIe SSD + 1TB HDD |
| Display | 15.6″ FHD LED-backlit (1920 x 1080) Display |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 8GB GDDR6 |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home x64 |
| Battery Life | Up to 10-hours |
| Weight | 4.85 lbs |
HP Spectre x360 15t – 2-in-1 Laptop
No list of laptops would be complete without mentioning at least one HP model. This HP Spectre x360 is a popular pick if you’re not buying Mac. This 15-inch 2-in-1 laptop with a beautiful and sleek design allows you to use it as a normal laptop or tablet.
The graphics on this laptop are equipped with NVidia GeForce GTX MX250 2GB graphics suitable for music recording, video editing, or light photoshopping. It sports the latest 10th Generation Intel Core i7 processor, making it ideal for recording & producing music. The Spectre also comes with 16GB of DDR4 RAM, powerful enough to handle multitasking. For storage, the laptop comes with 1TB of fast SSD to store all your applications and software locally on the computer.
The only downside of this laptop is that it has limited USB ports, and you might need to get a USB hub. But, it might not be deal-breaking for everyone as there are all other ports and slots available. In addition, the Spectre truly shines in terms of battery life. Offering 12-hours of battery life, it is the perfect laptop for users looking for a music production laptop.
HP - Spectre x360 2-in-1 15.6" 4K Ultra HD Touch-Screen Laptop - Intel Core i7 - 16GB Memory - 512GB SSD - HP Finish In Dark Ash Silver, Sandblasted Finish
Newest HP Spectre x360 15t Touch 10th Gen Intel i7-10510U, Pen, 3 Years McAfee Internet Security, Windows 10 Professional Key, 4K IPS, HP Warranty, 2-in-1 Laptop PC (16GB, 1TB SSD, Dark Ash)
| Hardware Specifications of HP Spectre x360 15t 2-in-1 Laptop | |
| Processor | 10th Generation Intel Quad-Core i7-10510U Processor (Up to 4.9GHz) |
| RAM | 16GB DDR4 |
| Storage | 1TB PCI NVMe M.2 SSD |
| Display | 15.6″ FHD 4K UHD WLED-backlit (3840 x 2160) Touchscreen Display |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce MX330 Graphics |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home 64 |
| Battery Life | Up to 12-hours |
| Weight | 4.83 lbs |
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Asus ZenBook 14 Ultra-Slim Laptop
This is another high-performing ASUS ultrabook on our list of best laptops for music production. Based on performance, this laptop gives an excellent performance as of previously mentioned ASUS laptop. We’ve already discussed that the Asus ZenBook comes in various models based on their hardware specifications. Although, all the models are capable and perfect for audio creation.
The Asus ZenBook 14 UX434F is a 15.6” gaming laptop packed with a 10th generation i7 processor, which is excellent for the price. Though featuring 16GB of RAM and 512GB SSD, this model offers two times less storage than the previously mentioned ASUS laptop. But we can’t ignore its robust features that give us a reason to include it on our list of top laptops for music production.
Apart from NVIDIA’s latest GeForce MX250 2GB graphics card, it comes with a bunch of other unique features like a backlit keyboard with ambient light control that also makes this laptop a gaming monster along with a pro-choice for music production and recording.
ASUS ZenBook 14 Ultra-Slim Laptop 14” FHD NanoEdge Bezel Display, Intel Core i7-1165G7, NVIDIA MX450, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, ScreenPad 2.0, Thunderbolt 4, Windows 10 Pro, Pine Grey, UX435EG-XH74
6 used from $542.80
ASUS ZenBook 14 Ultra-Slim FHD Laptop 400nits NanoEdge Bezel Display AMD Ryzen 7 5700U, Radeon Graphics, NumberPad，Backlit Keyboard，Win 10 Pro, Tikbot (16GB RAM | 1TB PCIe SSD | Tikbot Accessory)
| Hardware Specifications of Asus ZenBook 14 UX434F | |
| Processor | 10th-generation Intel Core i7-10510U Processor, Up to 4.9GHz |
| RAM | 16GB DDR4 |
| Storage | 512GB SSD |
| Display | 14″ FHD LED-backlit (1920 x 1080) 4-way NanoEdge bezel Display |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce MX250 2GB graphics |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Pro |
| Battery Life | Up to 9-hours |
| Weight | 2.78 lbs |
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Razer Blade 15
If you are looking for a portable and powerful machine, no problem. Because Razer Blade 15 is the best lightweight and budget laptop for music production, it seems more suited for a gamer. This Razer Blade laptop comes with a 15.6-inch full HD display with a 10th generation Intel Core i7 processor, making it a serious gaming machine. In addition, it has a 1080p IPS display to get the audio recording works done.
The laptop has 16GB of RAM, a speedy type of RAM. It sports NVidia GeForce RTX 2070 with a Max-Q design and 8GB of memory. The laptop is backed by 512GB of SSD for storage to provide speed and capacity. The laptop comes with a single-zone backlit keyboard giving it a solid gaming look. The laptop also offers fast USB Type-C and USB 3.0 ports for quickly transferring applications and other data between your external drive and laptop.
With a battery that offers you up to 8 hours of usage, the Razer Blade 15 is an ideal budget laptop for music production and gaming purposes.
Razer Blade 15 Base Gaming Laptop 2020: Intel Core i7-10750H 6-Core, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti, 15.6" FHD 1080p 120Hz, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, CNC Aluminum, Chroma RGB Lighting, Black
3 used from $999.99
Razer Blade 15 Advanced Gaming Laptop 2021: Intel Core i9-11900H 8-Core, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080, 15.6” 4K OLED, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD - CNC Aluminum - Chroma RGB - THX Spatial Audio - Thunderbolt 4
| Hardware Specifications of Razer Blade 15 Laptop | |
| Processor | 10th Gen Intel Core i7-10875H 8-Core Processor (Up to 5.1GHz) |
| RAM | 16GB DDR4 |
| Storage | 512GB SSD |
| Display | 15.6″ FHD LED-backlit (1920 x 1080) IPS Display |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 Max-Q Design VR Ready 8GB GDDR6 |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home |
| Battery Life | Up to 8-hours |
| Weight | 4.48 lbs |
Lenovo Legion Y540
Lenovo Legion Y540 is a rugged laptop for music production under $1500. It sports a 15.6-inch full HD display with an anti-glare coating for a better viewing experience. It comes with solid construction with a black body and white-backlit keyboard giving it a perfect look for a music production laptop.
The laptop is powered by the 9th Generation Intel Core i7 processor paired with a massive 24GB of RAM to handle your software easily. For storage, this laptop comes with 512GB of PCIe solid-state drive and a huge 1TB of a hard disk drive which is more than enough memory and storage space for the most crucial software packages.
It comes with 4GB of powerful NVidia GeForce GTX 1650 graphics card makes it perfect for handling multiple applications for music production and gaming.
Lenovo Legion Y540 15.6" Gaming Laptop 144Hz i7-9750H 16GB RAM 256GB SSD GTX 1660Ti 6GB - 9th Gen i7-9750H Hexa-Core - 144Hz Refresh Rate - NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660Ti 6GB GDDR6 - Legion Ultimate S
3 used from $989.00
Lenovo Legion Y540 Gaming Laptop: Core i7-9750H, NVIDIA RTX 2060, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD + 1TB HDD, 15.6" Full HD 144Hz Display
| Hardware Specifications of Lenovo Legion Y540 Laptop | |
| Processor | 9th Generation Intel Hexa-Core i7-9750H Processor (Up to 4.50GHz) |
| RAM | 24GB DDR4 |
| Storage | 1TB HDD + 512GB PCIe SSD |
| Display | 15.6″ FHD LED-backlit (1920 x 1080) IPS Display |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 4GB GDDR5 |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home |
| Battery Life | Up to 5-hours |
| Weight | 5.1 lbs |
Dell XPS 7390 13-Inch
Dell XPS series is a famous laptop series for music production and video editing laptops. This newest Dell XPS 13-Inch model is a thin and lightweight ultrabook packed with a high-performance processor and graphics, making it one of the best music production laptops you can buy.
This is an ideal music production ultrabook for those people who have to travel more often. It comes with a 10th Generation Intel Core i7 processor and the latest Intel UHD graphics, making it a perfect gaming and music production machine. In addition, this Dell laptop comes with 16GB of RAM and a massive 512GB of SSD storage which would be suitable for music production.
Based on its overall specifications, including good battery life and lightweight, the Dell XPS 7390 is one of the best laptops for music production of 2022.
Dell XPS 13 7390 Laptop: Core i7-10710U, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, 13.3" Full HD IPS Touch Display, WiFi AX, Backlit Keyboard, Windows 10
Dell XPS 13 7390 13.3" Intel Core I7-10710U (6-CORE, UP to 4.70Ghz) 512GB PCIe SSD 16GB RAM FHD 1080P IPS WiFi 6 AX Windows 10 Professional
| Hardware Specifications of Dell XPS7390 13-Inch Laptop | |
| Processor | 10th Generation Intel Core i7-10710u Processor (Up to 4.6GHz) |
| RAM | 16GB 2133MHz LPDDR3 |
| Storage | 512GB PCIe SSD |
| Display | 13.3″ 4K UHD (3840 x 2160) InfinityEdge anti-glare touch display |
| Graphics | Intel UHD Graphics |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home |
| Battery Life | Up to 8-hours |
| Weight | 2.8 lbs |
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3, Newest Version
The Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 is specially designed with high-end features so you can effectively use it for music or audio creation. If you’re a professional music composer and prefer a Windows-based laptop over MacBook, then this ultraportable notebook is best for you. Here is a variance of Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 available with 512GB of SSD.
It is powered by the latest 10th generation Intel Core i7 processor clocked at 1.8GHz. In addition, it sports 16GB of RAM and 512GB of SSD storage which is more than enough for seamless multitasking with reliable storage.
For the graphics, the laptop comes with Intel Iris Plus 640 graphics, which boosts the graphics handling performance of this laptop. If you have a large budget, then this would be the best ultrabook for music production you can buy.
| Hardware Specifications of Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 | |
| Processor | 10th Generation Intel Core i7 Processor, 1.8GHz |
| RAM | 16GB 2133MHz LPDDR3 |
| Storage | 512GB SSD |
| Display | 13.5″ PixelSense (2256×1504) Display |
| Graphics | Intel Iris Plus Graphics 640 |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home |
| Battery Life | Up to 11.5-hours |
| Weight | 2.79 pounds |
Lenovo IdeaPad L340
The Lenovo IdeaPad L340 is a powerful and pocket-friendly music production laptop with many high-end specifications. The latest 9th Generation powers the laptop Intel Core i7 clocked at 2.6GHz. With 8GB of RAM, the IdeaPad L340 delivers all the processing power needed for effortless multitasking. It comes with a 15-Inch full HD display having a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels and a 45% Color gamut.
It has Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 dedicated graphics, excellent for gaming and other high-end applications. In addition, it comes with powerful Dolby ATMOS speakers that deliver the loudest, most transparent audio possible from a thin and lightweight device, making it a complete package for music production.
Overall, the Lenovo IdeaPad L340 is a perfect budget all-rounder laptop to get anyone started with music production.
Lenovo Ideapad L340 Gaming Laptop, 15.6 Inch FHD (1920 X 1080) IPS Display, Intel Core i5-9300H Processor, 8GB DDR4 RAM, 512GB Nvme SSD, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650, Windows 10, 81LK00HDUS, Black
$789.00 in stock
2 used from $979.99
Lenovo - IdeaPad L340 15 Gaming Laptop - Intel Core i5 - 8GB Memory - NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 - 256GB Solid State Drive - Black
4 used from $620.00
| Hardware Specifications of Lenovo IdeaPad L340 | |
| Processor | 9th Generation IntelCore i7-9750h Processor (Up to 4.5GHz) |
| RAM | 8GB DDR4 |
| Storage | 1TB HDD + 256GB NVMe SSD12GB SSD |
| Display | 15.6-inch (1920 x 1080) full HD IPS Display |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 4GB GDDR5 |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home |
| Battery Life | Up to 9-hours |
| Weight | 4.85 lbs |
Microsoft Surface Pro 7 – Ultra-Slim Laptop for Music Production
If you are looking for a powerful and portable machine for audio creation and recording, then this Microsoft Surface Pro 7 would be a perfect choice for you. It is one of the best-in-class laptops to use in various modes so that you can type, draw, and work more naturally.
Powered by a 10th generation Intel Core i7 processor, clocked up to 1.8GHz, this laptop on the list can rightly be titled as a “Best Budget Music Production Laptop.” The Surface Pro 7 comes with a 12.3-inch PixelSense display with a resolution of 2736×1824. In addition, the laptop comes with Intel Iris Plus 640 graphics that make it suitable for editing 4K videos.
For connectivity, it is equipped with USB-C and USB-A ports that give you more reliability for connecting to displays, docking stations, and charging.
Although it is a budget-friendly laptop, it offers a long-lasting battery of 10.5 hours, making it one of the best laptops for music production you can buy for under $1500.
Microsoft Surface Pro 7 – 12.3" Touch-Screen - 10th Gen Intel Core i5 - 8GB Memory - 256GB SSD (Latest Model) – Matte Black with Black Type Cover, Model: QWV-00007
$664.18 in stock
3 used from $779.69
Microsoft 12.3" Surface Pro 7 2-in-1 Touchscreen Tablet, Intel Core i7-1065G7 1.3GHz, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, Windows 10 Pro, Platinum
| Hardware Specifications of Microsoft Surface Pro 7 | |
| Processor | 10th Generation Intel Core i7 Processor, 1.8GHz |
| RAM | 16GB 2133MHz LPDDR3 |
| Storage | 256GB SSD |
| Display | 12.3″ PixelSense (2736 x 1824) Touchscreen Display |
| Graphics | Intel Iris Plus Graphics 640 |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home |
| Battery Life | Up to 11.5-hours |
| Weight | 2.79 pounds |
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Final Thoughts
Picking one of the best laptops for music production would be unviable. It all depends upon your own experience and usage whether a machine is the best fit for you or not.
A premium display, HD graphics, and fast processor perfectly sum up what the best laptops for music productions should offer.
We think our short review of music production laptops will help you find the best machine.
If you still need any suggestions or guidance related to the laptops, feel free to ask and leave a comment below.
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