I currently use my Dell XPS 15 with this CPU Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-9750H CPU @ 2.60GHz 2.59 GHz. Obviously I boosted the RAM set-up significantly. I deliberately chose a Dell due to its Thunderbolt connection.

I am just a hobby enthusiast. So this is not a matter of urgency. But I am experiencing increased CPU issues with many vsts. Even though I feel like I have optimised my system already reasonably well.

So the question: Looking at the above CPU situation would an up-date to a more contemporary system make a difference that I could feel and experience in my day to day approach?

thanks

 

You seem satisfied and are happy with your Dell. If you have too much money in your pocket right now, you would rather buy a gold coin. No, seriously, if you are satisfied and everything is running and nothing is lagging or crashing, you do not need a new CPU.

i7-9750H CPU --> - Max Turbo Frequency 4.50 GHz | - Processor Base Frequency 2.60 GHz

Just wait for the comments to come, people will convince you to buy a faster CPU.

 

You laptop is fast enough for the usual "laptop things". Do you really need to do your audio work on a laptop? Do you already use your laptop with an external keyboard, mouse, and monitor?

Spoiler

how much faster is a mac m3 mini than a Dell XPS 15 with this CPU Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-9750H CPU @ 2.60GHz 2.59 GH
ChatGPT said:


The Apple M3 processor in the Mac Mini offers significantly better performance compared to the Intel Core i7-9750H found in laptops like the Dell XPS 15. In benchmarks:

1. Single-Core Performance: The M3 is approximately 100% faster, as seen in Geekbench and Cinebench scores. For instance, the Geekbench 6 single-core score for the M3 is 3125 compared to the i7-9750H's 1354【6】【7】.
   
   
2. Multi-Core Performance: The M3 also outpaces the i7-9750H by about 2x in multi-core tasks, with Geekbench 6 multi-core scores of 11,863 for the M3 versus 5679 for the i7-9750H【6】【7】.
   
   
3. Power Efficiency: The M3 is manufactured using a 3nm process, making it far more power-efficient than the i7-9750H, which uses 14nm technology. This efficiency is crucial for thermal management and battery life in portable devices【7】.

The M3's architecture, optimized for Apple's ecosystem, gives it an edge in both raw performance and efficiency, making it a substantial upgrade over the older Intel processor.

 

You can find out with googling cinebenches (and benchmark yourself with cinebench).
In my experience cinebench scales very well to vst plugins. Like "double the benchmark, double the vst performance".
So I would say it's a decent CPU but you can do better today without breaking the bank, thats your system:
https://www.cpu-monkey.com/en/cpu-intel_core_i7_9750h
approximately 7000 points with cinebench r23 multicore.
My lenovo Ideapad with a ryzen r7 5800h (not the newest model, more than a year old, you get way better machines now) does 11000 points. And it was below 1000 bucks, 800 something if I'm not mistaken.
So yes, if you experience performance issues its the cpu and yes a new notebook would help.

 

These values can't tell you anything about the performance of any given cpu nowadays.

 

The laptop currently in use is from 2019. Five years is a good time to start looking.

 

So @Plendix, now you answered the question and didn't refer to it as you can do it yourself.Please explain the difference to all of us.

 

M4 Max MacBook Pro would make a noticeable difference in every way you can imagine (while retaining Thunderbolt support) but I'm not sure if that's the answer you were looking for

 

You can get the latest cinebench here (its free): https://www.maxon.net/de/downloads/cinebench-2024-downloads
Version r24 is quite new, thats why I prefer r23 for now, because it's easier to find benchmarks online for comparison.
r23 would be available here: https://www.guru3d.com/download/download-maxon-cinebench-r23/
cinebench renders a raytracing 3D scene on the CPU. I know, thats not audio, but somehow that kind of rendering seems to be similar to what we need. It does that for about 10 minutes and gives you a value.
It is important to know that you can't compare different versions of cinebench. So you can only compare values of r23 to r23 or r24 to r24.
There are new versions of that benchmark ever so often because it always uses the latest features cpu manufacturers implement.
The good thing about cinbenchs (for us) is: It just benches the CPU (in combination with ram access speed) and nothing else.
Other benchmarks consider ssd speeds and gpus too and give some combined value how powerful a system might be for general work.
But thats not really what we need for VST performance.
So now you have a value how powerful your cpu is and when you go shopping you can google benchmarks of the system you want to buy.
I would say 20% to 50% more power would not really be worth upgrading, but doubling the performance is something that does make a difference.

 

Seriously, the new M4 Macbooks are worth a consideration.

 

If you want to keep running plugins from sister site, don't go MAC. Seriously, there are so many plugins that only run on WIN.

 

Since the invention of both operating systems, one thing has never changed:

Mac users recommend Mac - Windows users recommend Windows

 

Quicker,quicker,quicker, faster faster faster! if you are not satisfied with i7-9750H CPU @ 2.60GHz i suggest you talk to elon for a faster spaceship.

 

Would be nice if you would write something constructive. The fun page is here: https://audiosex.pro/threads/fun-zone.75838/

 

Most Windows users do not recommend Macs, because they only know Windows. Most Mac users recommend Macs for Music, because they know Windows.

 

You sound like an old sad School Teacher

 

Last edited: Dec 9, 2024

my latest laptop is at least 5 years old. I have a couple that are 10 years old. they work fine.
you need to look into why you are having problems. look at your admin logs to see if a driver is failing or other problems.
you also need to see what processes are running concurrently.

Don't use your music laptop for surfing the web. dont even have it connected to your wifi/lan it will save a lot of headaches and you don't have to worry about shit updating in the background.

run process explorer and autoruns to see what is going on with your system.