Mid-2010 Macbook Pro: To Upgrade or Update?

Hey Folks,

I know that this is a topic that has been covered in some detail, but I was hoping to get some feedback from people in the know regarding my specific circumstances and the most reasonable course of action. So, to begin, I have a mid-2010, 15 inch MacBook Pro with a 2.66 Ghz Intel Core i7, 4 GB RAM (1067 MHz DDR3) and an NVIDA GeForce GT 330M 512 MB Graphics Card. This was an amazing computer when I bought it and it continues to work quite well for must of my needs. However, recently, I have been using Pro Tools 11 Music Production software, as well as the Music Composing application MuseScore and I have found that I am not able to get the level of real-time processing speed that I see in some other small home recording setups I have encountered. As a result, I have begun to explore the idea of updating my hardware to a new Mac – perhaps a desktop model but I'm not necessarily married to that idea, as my sense of the benefits is somewhat vague, having to do with a "dedicated workspace" and that kind of thing.

While considering my options, I spoke with a phone rep at Apple who, after reviewing my needs and options, recommended that, rather than buying a whole new computer, I upgrade from my current 4 GB of RAM to either 8 or 16 GB (I know 16 is really a lot, but running music editing software is really an incredible RAM suck, believe me). I want to avoid the whirring and crashes that are somewhat unavoidable with my current setup. Moreover, the rep also introduced the idea of upgrading my processor to a Quadcore and looking into graphics cards if I felt that I wanted to move up to something newer.

After talking to the rep, I generally feel that just upgrading my different hardware elements is probably the way to go for me as I would save a lot of money, but I still feel somewhat reticent seeing as this computer is already close to five years old and it seems that spending a lot of money on something that will soon be obsolete seems foolish. On the other hand, having played with lots of new Macbook Pros and Mac desktops, I really haven't seen any aesthetic changes or new features that really scream out to me to buy the newest model as mine does not seem substantially dated in any real way - in fact, I generally find it a little better than most of the floor models I have played with in the Apple store. The only thing that I even remotely notice is dated is that my MacBook is one generation older than when "Airplay" was implemented in apple TV, so I cannot pair remotely, but that doesn't make a huge difference to me.

I should also mention for context that I did have a Hard Drive crash about 8 months ago at which time I upgraded from a 500 GB to a 1 TB drive, so I have already put some money into the computer. I don't play any video games, so that sort of thing isn't really a consideration, nor is social media a big thing for me, outside of Spotify which I use more or less constantly. Also, though it maybe irrelevant, I will be moving from California to Durham, UK in the summer to begin graduate school, so if there is anything to consider in terms of international functionality, please let me know.

Basically, I just want to know whether anyone sees a clear choice between the two scenarios I have presented: Should I "Supe-Up" my current MacBook with more RAM, and/or a QuadCore processor, or if I should buy a new computer altogether. If anyone has suggestions for other ideas to consider, I would be appreciative of any advice you can offer.

Best!

Mitch