MainStage 3

A new or used (2012 or later) MacBook Pro 15" is what I would recommend. Performance depends on how you use MainStage. The newer models don't allow for RAM expansion, so 16 GB is best. For MIDI, use USB or a USB to MIDI cable.

That depends on what you want to do with Mainstage. ;-)

Since this is a software that has to calculate everything you want to play in real-time, it needs more performance than a DAW like Logic Pro or Abelton. However it still makes a difference, if you want to play a single wave-form based mono synth or several complex and sample based sounds with a lot of effects on top.

The more complex it gets, the more calculation time is needed by the CPU. This means, that the point in time you press a key on a e.g. MIDI-keyboard and when you can hear the sound will increases. This is called latency. To keep this fix, you select a sample buffer in Mainstage. Depending on the calculation power of the CPU, a certain sample buffer leads to a certain latency. If the sample buffer is too small, you will get dropouts. What I want to point out is that the CPU power has a direct influence on the latency.

There are a lot of threads here in the forum about the specs of MacBooks and if this is suitable. The most people recommend to get a MacBook Pro with a real Quad-Core processor. This means a MacBook Pro with 15" display size. But there are also some people - I guess with a less CPU-intensive setup - that also can deal with the 13" version. I would not recommend to use a MacBook or MacBook Air.

For getting the MIDI in you can use an USB port, if you Midi device has one. If not you will need at least a Midi interface. But if would be better to use a external Audio/Midi interface, since the internal sound card of a MacBook Pro is not as fast as an external audio interface. Most of the audio interfaces also provide a midi interface, so you can connect you midi device.

If do have the following configuration:

- MacBook Pro 15" Mid 2015, 16GB RAM, 512 GB HDD, 2.8 Ghz Quad-Core (up to 4.0 Ghz turbo boost)

- Focusrite Scarlett 18i6 USB audio interface

- iConnectivity iConnectMIDI4+ (since I have several Midi devices)

This is maybe not a simple answer but I guess there isn't any. So I hope, this helps you to go further. Maybe you check the web, what configuration other users have and what their experiences are.

Hi Charlie

I recommend getting the most powerful machine you can afford, and definitely a 15" model; the 15" machines have a discrete GPU which takes the graphical load from the CPU, meaning that there's more CPU available for audio processing. MainStage is a graphics-heavy application, especially if you're using a bunch of meters etc.

In terms of audio and MIDI recommendations, you'll have to tell us what your plans are for MainStage so that we can advise accordingly.