Microsoft Surface Go 3 as portable workstation?

[morelia]

just because you have a click that doesn't mean you have to slavishly follow it. The click is just guidance and the groove has to come from you*. And - again sorry to say - any decent player knows this by heart.


*or to put it in more technical terms: the click is crucial for macro-timing, but not neccessarily for micro-timing.

The only real reason to not use a click is if you purposely want to change the tempo of the song. (But even then it's possible to just ignore the click if you really know what you're doing... )

This is pretty much how it is.

And if you don't like a click track it can always be turned off. I use a click for about 1% of the recordings I do. It really shouldn't be this much of a raging issue.

[maanga]

Record with wind chimes. Sing along. No need midi clock, timing, thump thump etc.
Regards

[Trensharo]

Win is not really optimised touch use
You need iPad

Windows works fine for touch. It's the applications that may or may not be optimized for Touch. If you use something like SONAR (Cakewalk), then touch is good.

However, the DAW isn't going to automatically make your plug-ins touch-optimized.

iPads are going to limit you from a workflow standpoint. The software is limited and how you use external devices is different.

You're also going to be forced to upgrade at least the storage up from the base configuration. At that point, you're in Surface Pro territory.

I wouldn't buy anything below an M1 iPad Air, if going that route.

iPad accessories are also expensive. Apple Pencil is at least $100. Magic Mouse or Trackpad is $100-150. Their magic keyboards are quite expensive.

A WiFi iPad Air with 256GB Storage the cheaper Apple Pencil and Smart Keyboard Folio is $1K.

That's the price of an M2 MBA and more than an M1 MBA.

A Surface Go would probably be similar, with accessories, but the weak sauce CPU makes it a bad value proposition (my opinion). IMO, it's better to go with a MBA or a Ryzen 5 Surface Laptop.

Basically, Surface Pro or M1 MacBook Air at a minimum, or go for one of the 13-14" Laptop Models. The MacBook Air has an advantage because of the massive battery life advantage over pretty much any PC Laptop. You can also save money by going Logic Pro and not having to worry about software upgrades on that end (You can also use iWork for documents, as most people don't require anything approaching Microsoft Office or even LibreOffice levels of functionality).

[Starbright]

Honestly, I kind of LOVE the drama in this post (I haven't laughed as much in years).
@funktoons - I think what you are looking for would be a looper station. But to be clear: no program forces you to use a click, you can always disable it.
Plus metronomes/clicktracks have some benefits: like counting in or helping you practice to stay in time and not get all wonky till you are a third slower or faster all of a sudden.
Also, there are tempo following options in Logic Pro or with addons in Reaper (MK Splicer) or the option to start without a click like in Ableton.
Btw. it doesn't become soulless or even grooveless if you keep a time. Groove needs repetition and dynamic in rhythm and time, also syncopation can be used with a straight time (use your subdivisions).
Of course, can a change in tempo enhance a song but to say hip-hop after 1989 is trash is just dumb, I mean look at J Dilla and the way he used syncopation and productions that change the tempo over time like "Rap God" or "Welcome to the Black Parade".

[BertKoor]

Audacity can do most of what OP wants me thinks...

[mirDR]

I was issued a Surface Go 3 for work, even with simple office tasks and browser based applications it was garbage, slow and constantly overheated. My employer replaced them all with Thinkpads, just standard Ryzen chip versions, much better now. Avoid the SG3 like the plague.

[funktoons]

I was just popping in to say THIS, "slightly random" beat was hugely influential for me. I even tried playing pots and pans in a water filled sink and beer cans filled with water (TERRIBLE SOUND) to try and get a stomp style groove happening



cubase always used to be THE sequencer I waned to use for decades until Bitwig came out with its C/V modulation etc.

I used a 3rd generation of a formerly popular freeware DAW that turned into a fuller featured entry level DAW that I really liked working with, even more than Audacity. THAT's what I know, but it has never worked for audio in with any PC I've had it on. That's my kind of DAW, one layer of pop-down menus, everything laid out simply and intuitively, no bloat etc. I can drag and drop audio with that, draw fades, apply EFX, add channels (really made old PC crash after a dozen samples), make edits, and what I used it most for was drawing ticks and pops out of vinyl.

That's a nice simple work flow. Over a decade ago I tried half a dozen freeware DAWs and a bunch of trackers too and couldn't wrap my head around ANY of them other than to import audio and apply VST effects to it in one program.

For now, I'm just looking to lay tracks down and bounce them non-destructively as well as start collecting samples with a dynamic mic. Something like a simple 8 track with VST hosting and copy/paste/slide audio editing and mixing. Demo track kind of stuff.

[chk071]

I was issued a Surface Go 3 for work, even with simple office tasks and browser based applications it was garbage, slow and constantly overheated. My employer replaced them all with Thinkpads, just standard Ryzen chip versions, much better now. Avoid the SG3 like the plague.

TBH, I'm not really "thrilled" about Windows tablets or the Microsoft Surface line of devices either. The Surface devices are way overpriced for what they offer, and there also have been numerous build quality issues with them as well, as I read from the Windows forums I frequent.

It's really a shame that they have missed that market. Would be great to have a full blown Windows tablet. Expensive 2 in 1 devices is as good as it gets, I guess (Lenovo and Acer offer some, for example).

[funktoons]

Trying to get anything SERIOUS done on a Galaxy Tab is a waste of time... just trying to find a freakin' video editor that "allows" you to work in LANDSCAPE (for life!!!) mode is a waste of time I learned.

So Microsoft is doing a BIT of the Apple thing pricewise, but a $500 tablet with HIGH QUALITY pen tracking and the ability to use anything up to pro level software kind of makes it essential, unless there's some giant killing Chinese supertablet out there trying to get a piece of the action the way some companies did making pretty good graphics monitors years ago when wacoms were in the thousands of dollars.

I also DESPISE wordpad text hating android and it's ever changing maze of counterintuitive, randomly scattered apps that are never properly grouped, or even ACCESSED with online instructions because YOUR TAB doesn't have the settings option in the tutorial, at least where it is there.

I've used windows for 2 decades and like OPENING TABS! and so on.

I really hate "you have to have taught to use it before you can read and write to get it" android. the apps are TOYS too!!!

back to the "perfect timing" (PHOOEY! I HATE IT!) "THING"...

static rhythms annoy me very much. I'm NOT at all a fan of LFOs either and got really angry at the warbling cyclic noise my expensive, even used back then, TC electronics chorus flanger. OHHHHH MAKE IT STOP!!!! It's easier to just slide a dupe track the right amount of milliseconds to fatten any sound to taste without artificial wah-uh-wah-uh-wah artefacts. I like very organic sounds. bells, in particular rub me the wrong way with their steady sine waves.

I guess not many people share my alien and artificial sounding "tick-tock" aversion.

I THOUGHT
"It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing"
MEANT something

[chk071]

I surely wouldn't consider Android for serious work either.

[funktoons]

stop calling me Shirly

[funktoons]

So you want something (software?) that takes your audio, and like the trigger software I suggested, replaces your beats with your own samples?

not now. In a dream rig, yeah, but just beatbox multitracking, looping, effecting and grid free editing like I could do with audacity. I'd love to use THAT really if only it actually worked with audio in. Maybe the 1.6+ versions do it better, but I'm a 1.2 forever user because of button that got moved to a "hidden place" I hate in never versions. I've always considered it as an audio editor and nothing more. something a bit more advanced like beat detection for streamlining editing and looping would be nice.

audacity's multiple generations of saves to build megamixes to keep from crashing was a bit tiresome. it can be done, but not "the easy way". lack of VST integration is a serious drawback. audacity will always be my go to audio editor, given I have a windows system. a feature light 8 track DAW edit and bounce 8 tracks, drop audio in as samples, loop, VST. I know I want a vocoder, a couple styles of compressor, a decent reverb, pitch transposer, and EQ.

if it was possible to integrate THAT with a "beatbox replacement" program that lets you use your own samples, that would be THE DREAM. not a $1299 dream though

I'm looking for a DAW-lite to just get actually DOING SOMETHING musically with tools that aren't "busted" like lousy poor dbx tracking 4 track cassette deck, a tascam 8 track RTR I didn't know required an EXTERNAL MIXER for, a literal busted emax, and that evil "you will bow to my clock" drum machine.

I'm also tired of listening to other people's bad gangsta rap and techno everywhere I go. I'm looking to stand my ground musically as a beatboxer and put my stuff up on youtube for haters to hate

[morelia]

So you want something (software?) that takes your audio, and like the trigger software I suggested, replaces your beats with your own samples?

not now. In a dream rig, yeah, but just beatbox multitracking, looping, effecting and grid free editing like I could do with audacity. I'd love to use THAT really if only it actually worked with audio in. Maybe the 1.6+ versions do it better, but I'm a 1.2 forever user because of button that got moved to a "hidden place" I hate in never versions. I've always considered it as an audio editor and nothing more. something a bit more advanced like beat detection for streamlining editing and looping would be nice.

audacity's multiple generations of saves to build megamixes to keep from crashing was a bit tiresome. it can be done, but not "the easy way". lack of VST integration is a serious drawback. audacity will always be my go to audio editor, given I have a windows system. a feature light 8 track DAW edit and bounce 8 tracks, drop audio in as samples, loop, VST. I know I want a vocoder, a couple styles of compressor, a decent reverb, pitch transposer, and EQ.

if it was possible to integrate THAT with a "beatbox replacement" program that lets you use your own samples, that would be THE DREAM. not a $1299 dream though

I'm looking for a DAW-lite to just get actually DOING SOMETHING musically with tools that aren't "busted" like lousy poor dbx tracking 4 track cassette deck, a tascam 8 track RTR I didn't know required an EXTERNAL MIXER for, a literal busted emax, and that evil "you will bow to my clock" drum machine.

I'm also tired of listening to other people's bad gangsta rap and techno everywhere I go. I'm looking to stand my ground musically as a beatboxer and put my stuff up on youtube for haters to hate

Well it seems like you know what you want, and that's a great position to be in. I'm just thinking out loud though. Sometimes when what you have is not perfect, and you can't get what is perfect, you have to look for ways to use other tools that suit your needs. Hopefully you can find what you want.

I know I have searched for decades for the perfect way to capture quick ideas, without success. Similar to writing lyrics on the go. For both, pen and paper are as good as it gets, even in the world of speech to text, tab apps, note apps etc. Pen and paper it is.

[Nathanananan]

Nothing beats Logics AUTOMATIC tempo mapping. I have tried every daw and they are all a little wonky at tempo mapping.

If I was in the market for a tablet like computer and did not want to follow the tempo I would buy an Ipad and use Logic.

[Trensharo]

I was issued a Surface Go 3 for work, even with simple office tasks and browser based applications it was garbage, slow and constantly overheated. My employer replaced them all with Thinkpads, just standard Ryzen chip versions, much better now. Avoid the SG3 like the plague.

TBH, I'm not really "thrilled" about Windows tablets or the Microsoft Surface line of devices either. The Surface devices are way overpriced for what they offer, and there also have been numerous build quality issues with them as well, as I read from the Windows forums I frequent.

It's really a shame that they have missed that market. Would be great to have a full blown Windows tablet. Expensive 2 in 1 devices is as good as it gets, I guess (Lenovo and Acer offer some, for example).

Surface Go makes sense for a college student who wants to use OneNote and a Microsoft Pen (I think that's compatible with it), but still maintain some compatibility with other Windows software (like other Office Apps, etc.).

Surface Go has a slow, low-end CPU and eMMC storage in the lower SKUs and slow RAM at low capacity. It is not going to be fast. It is not intended to be fast. Once you start multi-tasking, the thing begins swapping to eMMC storage. That really slows the machine down.

This is like getting a cheap iPad with an old A Series SoC and 2GB RAM and expecting it to perform like an M-series iPad with 8GB+ RAM.

What performance should one expect out of something that cheap? It's cheap for a reason.