Garageband For Mac Pc
Follow these actions to join your PC to a Mac using GarageBand. Make sure Google Chrome is placed on the device. Go to the computer search bar and install the Chrome Remote Desktop extension on both Chrome apps. Now go to Mac, open Chrome, and match the plus sign for a distinct tab. Apple GarageBand (for Mac) GarageBand offers easy music recording for novices and pros alike, and it comes free with every Mac. The app is still the best way to learn piano or guitar on a computer.
Garageband is easily one of my favorite aspects of using macOS and iOS.
For free software, it’s one of the best, for sure. In conjunction with Logic Pro X, Final Cut Pro, and iMovie, I think that Apple is one of the best in terms of solid programs to use.
Before we explore this topic in detail, I’m just going to say that I’m not a computer expert. However, I can offer my experiences and my thoughts on what I’ve been using thus far.
The 15″ MacBook Pro with 512 GB of storage, 16GB of RAM, Solid State Harddrive, and the Intel UHD Graphics 630 Card, is probably the best laptop for Garageband users.
This is the one that I use (unfortunately, the cheaper 13″ version without as much power and memory), and thus far, there haven’t been any issues with the way that Garageband runs on it, however, we will explore some of the problems with the computer that aren’t Garageband-related.
With that said, if you choose the option that I mentioned, the one with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of Storage with the 8-Core Intel Core i9 Processor, the Intel UHD Graphics 630 Card, and the SSD, you should be able to avoid the problems that I’ve had.
For years, I used a 13″ MacBook Pro from 2010, which worked for a long time.
In fact, the laptop still functions perfectly, however, it started to slow down and become a little more clunky, including one instance where it crashed and I lost everything on the computer temporarily while I was on vacation.
Thankfully, I was able to pull the information off the computer and then wipe it clean, so I didn’t lose anything, and now I have a backup laptop sitting in my drawer.
Regardless, I have a MacBook Pro from 2017 right now that’s also a 13″ laptop, and thus far, it works with Garageband without much issue.
However, there are certainly some drawbacks.
Admittedly, a laptop is not actually the best computer to get when it comes to music production. Truthfully, you’re better off to have someone actually build a computer for you from scratch with the following specifications:
- 16 GB of RAM
- 3 GHz Processor Speed
- 4 Cores
- Solid State Harddrive.
- Graphics Card 2GB
The specifications that I listed above are what musician/producer/YouTuber Rick Beato has recommended for building your own computer, but if you’re anything like me, you don’t want to take the time to actually figure it out or find someone that can do this for you.
Regardless, if you’re truly looking for the absolute best computer for music production, you should probably have someone build one for you with the specs that I mentioned above.
But, assuming that you’re not going to do that, I would simply opt for a 15″ MacBook Pro with the highest amount of memory, processing speed, and RAM.
While I don’t personally own the best version of the Macbook Pro, I can tell what I’ve loved about mine thus far.
Pros of Using the MacBook Pro
1) The Sleek, Lightweight, Compact Design
Frankly, I really like the small and sleek design of my new computer. It’s very lightweight and is literally a fraction of what my old computer used to weigh. I think it’s literally half the size of my old one.
You can check out the image below to compare the size.
This makes carrying my computer around with me incredibly easy. It’s not a big deal at all anymore.
I work on my computer around 10 hours a day due to my job writing entertainment news for a living and also for this website part-time.
Which brings me to why I like the keyboard on this computer so much.
2) The Keyboard is Great
When I was watching the Joe Rogan podcast the other day, he was saying how much he disliked Apple’s new keyboards, but frankly, I love mine.
I like how the keys are actually much closer to the rest of the laptop so I don’t have to push down them quite as hard as I used too. Moreover, they’re not overly loud either. It’s quieter and more inconspicuous.
Additionally, I find the structure of them to be more suited to writing thousands of words a day which I often do. To give you an idea of how much I write, I typically write 5,500 words 3 days a week and 3,500 words per day 3 days per week.
This amounts to 27,000 words, which is like writing a small book once per week. I find the keyboard on this thing is great for just that.
3) Compatibility with the iPhone
I imagine that PCs have the same compatibility with Android phones, but I really like the way Apple has made it so simple for all of the devices to be interconnected and easy to sync, although, they have made some irritating changes to iTunes in the last few years.
I can AirDrop pretty much any file that I want to directly from my computer, which makes editing photos and transferring videos back and forth extremely easy.
This especially comes in handy for the articles that I write on this blog. For instance, if I want to take a picture of my guitar, I can just do it with my phone and quickly transfer it over without having to connect anything.
Assuming that you’ve synced your computer with your iPhone, all of your iTunes will be in your Garageband library, so that means that if you want to quickly use a sample from your iTunes, you can just drag and drop it easily from your iTunes into Garageband.
I wrote about that more here in my article on how to sample using iOS.
Furthermore, when it came time to get a new iPhone, transferring the data and SIM card was literally a ten-minute process that required me only to set my old phone near my new one which essentially air-dropped everything, including the apps and all my data.
4) Doesn’t Crash When Running Garageband
From what I’ve noticed thus far, Garageband almost never crashes while I’m running it unless I’m using another energy-intensive software at the same time, for instance, Screenflow and Google Chrome all at once.
However, if you get a MacBook Pro with upgraded specifications, like the one I linked to above, you will likely be able to avoid this issue.
From what I understand, Apple actually can build computers for you with custom specifications, so if you really wanted too, you could have a far superior computer.
I haven’t had any problems with a lot of plug-ins either. If you know anything about music production, plug-ins can actually use quite a bit of memory and processing power. However, I haven’t had any issues.
Drawbacks of the 13″ MacBook Pro 2017
From what I know, some of these drawbacks are seen across the board in the modern industry of computers.
1) Not Enough Disk Space
For instance, my MacBook Pro, because I didn’t understand their recent changes at the time of purchase, doesn’t have as much space or RAM as my laptop from 2010.
Truthfully, I just assumed that the computer would be even better than the old one because I was buying a fresh Apple computer. My experience with my first one was so good that I figured it would be a good choice regardless.
However, the one that I have right now only has 120 GB of space on it, which means I often run into problems, such as not having enough space to store my music on it, the videos that I make for YouTube video tutorials, as well as my Garageband files.
For that reason, I’ve purchased an external hard drive which I store all of my files on.
I use the Seagate 1TB external hard drive, which you can check out on Amazon here. Frankly, I have no complaints about this thing. It works great and it does what it’s supposed to do.
Moreover, I also begrudgingly have an iCloud subscription that holds around 500GB of additional space, which took me a long time to finally give into because I was so mad when I found out that my new computer didn’t have as much space on it as my old computer.
Yeah, it was dumb of me to purchase a computer without actually looking at the specs of it, but as I said above, my experience with my 2010 MacBook Pro was so positive that I just thought, “It’s Apple, so it’s obviously going to be good.”
I think it’s worth mentioning that the reason why Apple has removed so much space from their computers is that they’re trying to make them as sleek and as sexy as possible, in conjunction with pushing everybody over to an iCloud account so they can charge you a monthly subscription in perpetuity.
It kind of gives you a bad taste in your mouth.
2) Eliminating All The Ports
From what I understand about the computer industry, pretty much all laptops are moving toward fewer ports, due to the sleekness of the design, (but also so they can charge $50-$100 for a new adaptor).
My MacBook Pro 2017 has only two USB-C ports on it, so I bought a multi-port adaptor that has pretty much everything you would ever need on it.
It was $100, but it’s extensive in terms of what it allows you to do.
With that said, I would be lying if I was thrilled about the elimination of the ports, because to me, it just seems like they’re taking away what they used to give for free, so now we’re paying additional money for things that simply used to be an expected part of using a computer.
Anyway, moving on from that. I would definitely recommend getting a multiport adaptor for when you purchase a new MacBook Pro.
3) Not Able To Run More Than 2 Programs At Once
As I mentioned, this thing doesn’t have as much RAM and processing speed as my old one, so it’s not able to do a number of complicated tasks at once.
For instance, if I have Garageband running in the background as well as ScreenFlow, there’s a good chance that the computer won’t be able to handle it well.
For that reason, it’s a good idea to do what I mentioned above and get the best MacBook Pro you can get your hands-on with the most space, processing speed, and RAM.
The one I linked to at the beginning of the article should suffice.
4) The Price
Yeah, the price of Apple products these days have really been crazy. The newest phones are a great example of this, with many of them going beyond $1000.
I paid around $1400 for my MacBook Pro, so it was quite a lot.
YouTube Review
Conclusion
Garageband For Mac
Ultimately, I would say that if you have the time to invest in getting the perfect computer, you’re much better off to have someone build one for you with the specs listed above.
However, assuming that you don’t want to go through that process, just grab a new MacBook Pro with the most storage, processing speed, and RAM on it as you can muster.
Don’t cheap out on it. Save up for your money and drop the additional $500 for upgraded specs, because ultimately, if you don’t, you’ll end up with a computer that won’t be able to handle all of the plug-ins and additional software.
Incredible music.
In the key of easy.
GarageBand is a fully equipped music creation studio right inside your Mac — with a complete sound library that includes instruments, presets for guitar and voice, and an incredible selection of session drummers and percussionists. With Touch Bar features for MacBook Pro and an intuitive, modern design, it’s easy to learn, play, record, create, and share your hits worldwide. Now you’re ready to make music like a pro.
Start making professional‑sounding music right away. Plug in your guitar or mic and choose from a jaw‑dropping array of realistic amps and effects. You can even create astonishingly human‑sounding drum tracks and become inspired by thousands of loops from popular genres like EDM, Hip Hop, Indie, and more.
More sounds, more inspiration.
Plug in your USB keyboard and dive into the completely inspiring and expanded Sound Library, featuring electronic‑based music styles like EDM and Hip Hop. The built‑in set of instruments and loops gives you plenty of creative freedom.
Garageband For Mac Pc
The Touch Bar takes center stage.
The Touch Bar on MacBook Pro puts a range of instruments at your fingertips. Use Performance view to turn the Touch Bar into drum pads or a one-octave keyboard for playing and recording.
Plug it in. Tear it up.
Plug in your guitar and choose from a van-load of amps, cabinets, and stompboxes.
Design your dream bass rig.
Customize your bass tone just the way you want it. Mix and match vintage or modern amps and speaker cabinets. You can even choose and position different microphones to create your signature sound.
Drumroll please.
GarageBand features Drummer, a virtual session drummer that takes your direction and plays along with your song. Choose from 28 drummers and three percussionists in six genres.
Shape your sound. Quickly and easily.
Whenever you’re using a software instrument, amp, or effect, Smart Controls appear with the perfect set of knobs, buttons, and sliders. So you can shape your sound quickly with onscreen controls or by using the Touch Bar on MacBook Pro.
Look, Mom — no wires.
You can wirelessly control GarageBand right from your iPad with the Logic Remote app. Play any software instrument, shape your sound with Smart Controls, and even hit Stop, Start, and Record from across the room.
Jam with drummers of every style.
Drummer, the virtual session player created using the industry’s top session drummers and recording engineers, features 28 beat‑making drummers and three percussionists. From EDM, Dubstep, and Hip Hop to Latin, Metal, and Blues, whatever beat your song needs, there’s an incredible selection of musicians to play it.
Each drummer has a signature kit that lets you produce a variety of groove and fill combinations. Use the intuitive controls to enable and disable individual sounds while you create a beat with kick, snare, cymbals, and all the cowbell you want. If you need a little inspiration, Drummer Loops gives you a diverse collection of prerecorded acoustic and electronic loops that can be easily customized and added to your song.
Free Download Garageband For Mac
Powerful synths with shape‑shifting controls.
Get creative with 100 EDM- and Hip Hop–inspired synth sounds. Every synth features the Transform Pad Smart Control, so you can morph and tweak sounds to your liking.
Learn to play
Welcome to the school of rock. And blues. And classical.
Get started with a great collection of built‑in lessons for piano and guitar. Or learn some Multi‑Platinum hits from the actual artists who recorded them. You can even get instant feedback on your playing to help hone your skills.
Take your skills to the next level. From any level.
Choose from 40 different genre‑based lessons, including classical, blues, rock, and pop. Video demos and animated instruments keep things fun and easy to follow.
Teachers with advanced degrees in hit‑making.
Learn your favorite songs on guitar or piano with a little help from the original recording artists themselves. Who better to show you how it’s done?
Instant feedback.
Play along with any lesson, and GarageBand will listen in real time and tell you how you’re doing, note for note. Track your progress, beat your best scores, and improve your skills.
Tons of helpful recording and editing features make GarageBand as powerful as it is easy to use. Edit your performances right down to the note and decibel. Fix rhythm issues with a click. Finesse your sound with audio effect plug‑ins. And finish your track like a pro, with effects such as compression and visual EQ.
Go from start to finish. And then some.
Create and mix up to 255 audio tracks. Easily name and reorder your song sections to find the best structure. Then polish it off with all the essentials, including reverb, visual EQ, volume levels, and stereo panning.
Take your best take.
Record as many takes as you like. You can even loop a section and play several passes in a row. GarageBand saves them all in a multi‑take region, so it’s easy to pick the winners.
Your timing is perfect. Even when it isn’t.
Played a few notes out of time? Simply use Flex Time to drag them into place. You can also select one track as your Groove Track and make the others fall in line for a super‑tight rhythm.
Polish your performance.
Capture your changes in real time by adjusting any of your software instruments’ Smart Controls while recording a performance. You can also fine‑tune your music later in the Piano Roll Editor.
Touch Bar. A whole track at your fingertips.
The Touch Bar on MacBook Pro lets you quickly move around a project by dragging your finger across a visual overview of the track.
Wherever you are, iCloud makes it easy to work on a GarageBand song. You can add tracks to your GarageBand for Mac song using your iPhone or iPad when you’re on the road. Or when inspiration strikes, you can start sketching a new song idea on your iOS device, then import it to your Mac to take it even further.
GarageBand for iOS
Play, record, arrange, and mix — wherever you go.
GarageBand for Mac
Your personal music creation studio.
Logic Remote
A companion app for Logic Pro.