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I believe that there are pro's and con's as the previous post said. I used a tower type computer for a while but it was also my home computer and there was the issue of how to bring it to the show without it or the monitor ect. being damaged. I could not let anyone help setup or teardown because I was worried they would drop the computer or monitor. I used an LCD type High Definition monitor that was very expensive and was terrified if someone got close to it. Also, every time I loaded software or got a new update I had to test the hoster software thoroughly to make sure everything worked the same as it did before so I could do a restore if it did not. I do not like using a laptop as you pretty much have to use an external drive to store your karaoke/music files. I do not believe external drives are that good. I have lost data on both of my external drives at some time or another. They may be safe enough if you use them for backup only and do not leave the drives on all the time. I am sure you will find other people who have had no problems, but I have.
I built a rackmount pc for my shows. I have 3 200gb maxtor drives. I use one for a system drive, 1 for my karaoke files and 1 for my music files. My Karaoke and music files are backed up on the external 200 gb Maxtor hard drive that is only turned on when I need to update my backup. I also use my tower type machine for a backup and all my files are stored there on seperate drives as well. I use the same number of hard drives etc. I use an internal sound card and an external sound card and run the output of each to to my Behringer stereo mixer. I have the mixer case stacked on top of my amp rack case with all the wires connected internally except for the mouse, the keyboard, the monitor, 2 mike cables, video out(singers monitor) and the speaker cables. I run a seperate amp for the singers monitors(speakers) so there are two more speaker cables coming out of the box as well. This amounts to about ten cables. Because my rack cases are stacked, I can move them easily (I use a ratcheting strap to hold them together during transportation) using a 2 wheel dolly. My bottom rack case has wheels so after I get the rack cases about where I want them with the dolly, I just let them down and roll them. I don't think the space for extra pieces with a regular computer monitor/keyboard etc. vs laptop is really valid. You have to have a place to set your laptop unless you have a some sort of tray that comes out of your rack. However I do believe that what ever takes the least amount of time to set up and tear down is paramount. I don't think I could get much better than what I have for my circumstances. I hope this gives you some food for thought. This is an example of someone who uses a different pc case style. I hope this helps.
gpayne
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