Best laptops For Music Production Under $300 to $700

Drum kits, bass guitars, mixers and whatnot, regardless of how many instruments you have, your music production doesn’t even begin without a decent laptop at your disposal. Your MIDI Keyboard, microphones, speakers may make up a lot of your creative arsenal, but you will reach nowhere without a Computer to record and mix your music. Today in this article we will cover all here in the best laptops for music production under $300 to $700

It is not recommended to go all out when buying your first machine for music production considering you may have to spend a whole lot on other equipments too. When you are starting, any laptop would do, but that is the exact problem. It won’t be long before the luxury of abundant choice becomes a burden.

For this purpose, we have rounded up a few laptops that we think may be the best choice for anyone who wants to get their hands on a decent laptop for music production but doesn’t want to break their banks in the process. So, read this article on the best laptops for music production under $300 to $700 and decide which laptop is the most ideal for you in terms of budget and of course its music-making prowess.

Acer Aspire E15 – Amazing High performance All Rounder

You may be thinking why I have chosen an allrounder laptop to include in this list, well the reason, let me tell you is just that. The “all rounded-ness,” the overall semi-professional specs that it carries with it, make it an ideal choice for any musician or DJ alike. While it may not be the most powerful laptop, there is, it sure stands out amidst the-value-for-money category.

Acer Aspire E15 has the perfect amount of ‘Juice’ for all your music-making and mixing requirements.  However, your need for higher or lower specifications of any laptop you choose will be partially dependent on what DAW you prefer to run on your machine. Needless to say, the E15 is fully capable of running almost any DAW.

The 7th Generation 2.7 GHz i7 processor with a cache memory of 4MB is an absolute beast. But you can even overclock it up to 3.5 GHz, however, you wouldn’t need it as the previous clock speed is snappy enough to handle anything and everything you throw at it.

An expansive selection of ports allows you to plug in all your music peripherals and then some. Although you wouldn’t need to expand the already sufficient one terabyte hard drive, we’d totally understand if you need to. After all, those music tracks and recording sessions take a lot of storage. The 15.6 inches of screen real estate is plenty to get some work done alongside another window opened for your entertainment.

In All, the Acer Aspire E15 does not disappoint in any aspect. Although I would have preferred for it to have a dedicated graphics card to make it our dream machine.

• Powerful processor and faster RAM
• Storage and Memory can be expanded
• Great build quality and a sturdy construction
• Excellent keyboard with just the right key travel for comfortable keystrokes

• Poor viewing Angles make the display a bit dull and dim
• No fingerprint reader or Windows Hello (a must have by today’s Standard and at this price)
• Hefty making it uncomfortable on the lap for long periods of time

Specifications

ASUS VivoBook Max X541UA- Max entertainment, Max performance

A sleek portable design is all you want when you are looking for a laptop to carry with you on the go to satiate your music production requirements anywhere, everywhere. Vivobook Max meets your portability needs while handling any task you throw at it. Whether it is tons of Music plugins or a DAW of your choice, the Vivobook tackles any challenge with grace.

The X541UA is equipped with a touch screen that is a definite welcome for any multimedia machine. The 15.6 inch of screen real estate is aplenty for displaying more of your favorite DAW and, of course, any other use case. The Intel HD Graphics 620 will run all graphics hungry plugins smoothly and without a hitch.

The ergonomic keyboard is a charm to type on, so you will have no trouble spending even hours at a time using the manual for your music projects.

With a terabyte of storage, you can store all your music collection and then some. What’s more, you can even upgrade your storage if you, under the unlikely circumstance, run short.

In all, Vivobook Max is a worthy option, owing to its touchscreen and a fast processor.

• Premium construction with aluminum body
• Expansive selection of ports
• Excellent keyboard with 2.3 mm key travel. Perfect for long sessions with keyboard usage
• Plenty of RAM for multitasking

• Dedicated graphics missing in an otherwise perfect laptop
• Washed out Screen Panel provides a Dimmed viewing experience
• The Hard Disk Vibration can be a bit distracting

Specifications

Lenovo Ideapad 320 – business class budget laptop

Lenovo’s Ideapad 320 can surely turn a few heads around and at under $400 price tag, more rightly so. Boasting off a sleek design and a premium-ish look, it is a laptop to get if you are under a tight budget. Carrying a basic spec sheet, the 320 can handle your basic music-making and mixing tasks. However, it may require serious updates if you want to run a top of the line DAW.

Ideapad 320’s keyboard is just like the keyboards on other Ideapad in a similar range, which means they are decent for hours of typing tasks. The screen is a standard 15.6 inch, abundant for multimedia consumption, as well as getting a few things done.

Ranking for best laptops under $400 machine, the Ideapad 320 is pretty beefed up with ports, including USB 3.0, 2.0, HDMI, and ethernet ports. The touchpad lies in the middle just under the keyboard and supports multitouch with the left and right keys embedded in the main body.

The Ideapad 320 may not be a performance beast, but it is perfect for anyone who is starting with music production and want to take things one step at a time.

• Faster Ethernet and WiFi connectivity
• Value for Money, Perfect for those on a budget
• Reasonable screen and viewing angle at this price point
• Fast and Responsive Touchpad

• Heavy and Bulky
• Processor speed is too low for today’s standards
• Old chipset: graphics intense programs may lag

Specifications

Dell Inspiron 15 i5578 – a brilliant 2 in 1 on a budget

Dell i5578 is a perfect choice for both, seasoned as well as beginners and amateur music producers. The intel’s i3 7^th gen may not be an all-powerful processor but it sure knocks our previous entry (Lenovo Ideapad 320) on this list right out of the park. Capable of supporting any DAW, Dell i5378 will not get pulled down by any accompanying plugins for all your music production needs.

The Inspiron 15 has Waves Maxx Audio Pro Technology which paired with Intel HD Graphics 620, will run any DAW without any performance issues. Additionally, the software allows you to experience sound in a more immersive manner and with greater quality on headphones as well as the built-in speakers.

The best feature of Dell Inspiron 15 i5578 is definitely its 2 in 1 form factor. Combined with its touchscreen capabilities, it is perfect to use it for a variety of different tasks. Your media consumption, office work and music production are all sorted, thanks to i5578 ‘s versatile functionality. You can use the laptop in normal mode, tent mode and tablet mode and quickly shift between these modes as per your need.

• Memory and Storage are Expandable
• Full HD LED Screen with wide viewing angles
• Can run all bulky programs without any trouble Small and Compact
• Hybrid Form factor for multiple usage scenarios

• 07 pounds weight makes it the heaviest on our list
• Less Storage at this price point
• Battery Drains fast

Specifications

HP Jaguar 15 Touchscreen Laptop – A great quality-built laptop

The HP Jaguar comes forward as a budget class laptop yet quite equipped when it comes to specifications. Amongst the most notable features are a brilliant touch screen and a dual-core 7th generation i5-7200U, which is considered as one of the fastest CPUs on Laptops due to its ability to handle daily computing tasks without any performance lag.

The 1 Terabyte HDD provides abundant storage to keep all your raw music files while the 8GB memory aids in multitasking without any issues.

Although the screen is touch-enabled, it lacks a few features. A resolution of 1366×768 offers a mediocre experience, and the lack of IPS technology makes it a tad difficult to get wide viewing angles.

The Jaguar comes with a 31Whr battery, which may not be significant for some users, while for others, it might just be enough. The touch functionality consumes more power allowing for only 4-5 hours a day of battery life.

Additionally, Jaguar is equipped with a lot of I/O for additional connectivity, perfect for attaching audio gears, headphones, mics, and even multimedia cards.

Jaguar 15-bs070wm is your best bet if you are looking for something powerful under a budget- a few dollars shy of $700.

• 1 Tera byte provides a lot of storage Cheap Price, Value for Money
• Full backlit Keyboard with 10 finger Multi-touch supported touchpad modes
• Sturdy construction
• Battery Charges fast

• Very bulky with 4.5 pounds of weight
• Slow 5400 rpm Hard drive as opposed to 7200 rpm
• Screen resolution can be better at this price point

Specifications

Lenovo Flex 14 – A flexible Machine for a fixed budget

Lenovo Flex 14 is one of the best laptops of 2018 with a pretty decent spec sheet. It packs an AMD Ryzen 5 processor with 12 GB of RAM. That’s right 12 GB! Which is way more than you would need, especially for running DAWs and plugins. For this reason, the Lenovo Flex 14 stands out among the rest in this list. Well, this and the SSD. Flex 14 comes with a 256GB SSD instead of an HDD. If Music is all you make and mix, the 128GB will hold more files than you think and last longer than you desire.

However, if you are a true multimedia person carrying thousands of songs, photos, and movies at any given minute, then you might need to consider a few upgrades.

The keyboard is an absolute pleasure to type on with its slight concave keys that subtly hug your fingers halfway through the button-press. With its 14-inch size, we didn’t expect a full-fledge num-pad, and Lenovo did precisely just that, so there was no surprise at all in that area. However, the fingerprint scanner at the bottom right corner came as a surprise as I had not seen one in a 14inch 2in 1 before.

The Ryzen 5 processor uses the Zen+ microarchitecture combined with four Zen + cores that unleashes three times more performance boost than its predecessors. You must be thinking, what good is it to you as a music producer? Well, you don’t need a new powerful machine anymore. All your mixing and editing can be done on the go. What’s more, you can even do demanding tasks like editing your music videos too.

The active pen (included in the price) is very useful rather than being just a gimmick. If you one of those who take a lot of notes or do digital artwork, the active pen may prove to be of more use to you than anyone else. However, as a music producer, I do not see any use for the accessory.

In all, Lenovo 14 justifies for best laptops under $600 by giving you many features of a high-end laptop machine.

• Value for Money (unmatched performance at this price range)
• A decent Port selection
• 12GB RAM hard to find at this price point
• Ryzen Processor is better than Core i5 8^th Gen

• Comes with a lot of bloatware
• Screen not suitable for outdoor use
• No USB Type C Charging support

Specifications

Microsoft Surface Pro 4 – Ultimate portability, ultimate Performance

It is almost impossible not to have heard about the surface pro line up if you are in the market for a portable laptop machine as they both go hand in hand. Microsoft’s Surface Pro is an epitome of sheer portability and performance Offcourse, depending on the model you purchase.

Surface Pro defines portability in its own way and does it the best. With the “lapability” factor (a term coined by Microsoft to describe the ability of their product to be used on the lap of the user), the Surface Pro line up set huge standards in portable PC markets. These products filled a considerable market gap of hybrid computer device, a portable computer that is a combination of a laptop and a tablet.

The Model I am going to talk about and the model that perfectly falls between $300-$700 range is the Surface Pro 4. Even though the surface line up is in its 7th generation, these latest-gen Surface products, however, are far above the price range we have defined here.

The faster 3 GHz processor and an 8GB RAM place it right up against the Macbook Pro while being at almost half the price. The 1.7 lbs of weight allow it to be the lightest amongst many laptops perfect for any musician or even DJ to carry it around. 12.3-inch screen size and a smaller footprint mean it can fit in any laptop bag while still saving you space for more of your things.

Microsoft calls its display Pixel sense, which is like Apple’s Retina Display technology. Pixelsense provides a top-tier sharp and vivid LCD screen Panel that is a significant upgrade from its predecessor with a higher resolution, 2736 x 1824, from 2160 x1440. Along with this 24% increase in the pixels per inch ( 267 from 216 ppi) and a 60 percent total increase in the number of pixels, every aspect of the screen has been enhanced, including brightness, Color Accuracy, Contrast, viewing angles and minimal screen reflection.

256GB leaves you plenty of storage to keep all your multimedia and especially those tracks you have made that you oh so adore. The storage is also a faster SSD as opposed to the HDDs, which provides decent read and write speeds. We concerned this as one of the best laptops for 2020.

• Upto 9 Hours of battery life
• Hybrid 2 in 1 form factor with multiple modes
• A lightweight and all-powerful PC
• Battery Charges very fast

• Keyboard and pen sold separately which add to the cost
• No USB type C support
• Card Reader supports only MicroSD

Specifications

Dell Inspiron 3000- All purpose Budget laptop for starters

If you are looking for a perfect combination of work and entertainment for best laptops under $300 price point, you have stopped at the right place on this list. Sturdy construction and heat-resistant material make Inspiron 3000 a durable machine that will last all those long and late-night music sessions while keeping the laptop relatively cooler.

11.6 inch of the display comes with a 1366 x 768 HD resolution that has a built-in camera for video recording or conferencing, perfect for taking in your mates on the music sessions. Additionally, the LED screen panel offers a bright display for a price this cheap.

Being a music producer, you would often need to connect a multitude of peripheral devices to your main machine. Inspiron 3000 doesn’t disappoint in that area too, with numerous ports and slots, you can connect any device anytime, anywhere.

7th gen AMD 6 processor and a 4GB RAM provides adequate speed to open multiple tasks at once and switch seamlessly between work and play without affecting the performance.

The 2 in 1 form factor allows for multiple modes designed to play, work, and consume. Work on laptop mode, play on tablet mode and watch your favorite stuff on tent mode. Inspiron 3000 is genuinely made for multitaskers.

Perhaps the most less- welcoming part of this laptop is the 32GB SSD storage, which is not enough for today’s standards. However, for a laptop machine that is close to this price tag, I would say its bargain and perfect for anyone who does not have high storage requirements. There is a card reader that can help you add a little more storage to your machine.

In all, the Dell Inspiron 3000 has its ups and downs but hey, what more could you ask for at a $269 price tag.

• Cheap Price, Value for Money
• 2 in 1 form factor with multiple modes
• Small and Compact
• Battery Charges very fast

• Heavy despite being small and compact
• Storage might be too low for many
• No USB Type C support

Specifications

Conclusion

With the items mentioned above you must have taken one thing away, “There is a laptop for everyone” Considering your budget and requirements you can choose any of the options given in the list however there is one that we would highly recommend for any music producer out there which is the surface pro 4. Being a flagship device, it is a tough contender. It might not offer as much storage as other options in this list but overall performance and portability, as well as an undeniable swagger that this machine offers, is a charm in its own that is hard to beat.