choppy/skipping recordings from laptop

im really vexed right now

when i try recording from my laptop, 256 MBram, 933MHZ processer, it just keeps skipping, i get choppy useless recordings. i use Cooldedit, now known as Adobe Audition. i never had a problem with the program on my desktop. i just moved all my music stuff to a laptop, to eliminate the mess and space problem i experience with the desktop, so in reality, i need this laptop to stop skipping because it's the only thing i got right now.

a friend of mine tried to record with his laptop a while ago, and ot came out all messed up, in a choppy/skipping result.

any help is appreaciated, if you need to know anything else about the hardward details, just ask.

Hard drive is too slow in many laptops to be a useful recording tool.

what exactly do you mean?

The platter in the hard drive that the data is recorded on does not spin fast enough to keep up with streaming audio recording.

Drive speeds are measured in RPM's. Most laptop HD's spin at only like 4500 RPM's or less. Desktop HD's spin at 5400, 7200 and some even 10000 or higher. Much better for recording.

Also if he's tryin to use many different real-time effects and many tracks all at once the same thing can happen. You and your friend need to make sure that your laptop is up to the challenge and/or recognize your limitations within your laptop and work within those boundaries until you can upgrade or something one day.

Troma is right.

For the basics it boils down to CPU, Hard Drive, RAM and Front Side Bus.

http://www.crucial.com/library/glossary.asp

how can i tell how fast it spins at? you say work within the boundries, well how exactly can i tell what they are?

What type of laptop do you have?
Find out the specs of the hardware in it.
IE, find out the specs of the hard drive
and you will get your answer.

Ask yourself these questions and search
the net for your laptop specs.

Chances are you have a 4200rpm hd. If I had to guess, I'd say the problem is your audio interface or system settings not the hd. Try disableing all power saving functions on your laptop. Also if your just using the audio jacks on the laptop that could be the problem right there, the audio jacks on laptops are garbage. Post back with some more details of your setup(audio interface, laptop barnd and model, etc.) and maybe we can be of more help.

it's just he regular jacks on it...
what am i supposed to use?

what you mean by audio interface? im new at this kinds stuf, i need to learn...

it's an IBM thinkpad, model # A22m, P3 processer, win XP

i recorded on it yesterday,

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/8/oneupmusic.htm

it's the one at the top. i notices in Audition, its starts skipping when it forces the screen to scroll to the rightr when recording. so i added 1000 seconds of silence, then recorded from the start, manipulating it, so it takes 1000 seconds befor it has to start scrolling. i hope you undestand what im saying, if you got coold edit, or adobe audition you shoud know what i mean. anyways i manipulated it long wnough to record a 45 second piece. so listen to it. but ignore the quality, thats soundclick

the way i have it i like, i want to keep it this way, except it's studdering when i try to record.

i also noticed on the laptop, when i record in through a mic, to my mixer to pre-amp it, then from my mixer into the laptop mic in, it POPS the speakers, whenever i touch a button for the mic/line out setting. but if i disconnect the link from the mixer to laptop it's fine, so i know where the problem rests. it's like it's not grounded or soemthing. i can't really explain it, i should try and record it so you can hear what i mean.

You can turn auto scroll off if you want/need to. Go to Options> Settings> General> uncheck Auto-scroll during Play and Record.

As I said before, laptop audio jacks are garbage and it sounds like that is probably the biggest problem. You might want to invest in a USB audio interface or a pcmcia audio interface. Also, I noticed that you're recording the signal too hot, when the level meters are going into the red bring the level down until the highest peak hits just under it, digital distortion, as opposed to warm analog distortion, is ugly.

it's not hot, it's not peaking, or clipping

what makes you think that??

next time i'll turn it down even more though
its just i record it live, with live equipment, it gives it that kind of effect

also is there some way i can record inthrough line, instead of mic in? when i put a signal into line i i can hear it, but cooledit/adobe audtition can't pick it up, the signal. is there some way to get past this?

I had some bad clicking sounds in Audition... just play with the Play/Record Buffer in SETTINGS(F4)>SYSTEM. Read the help file to see what Audition recommends as the right amount of buffers to use.

Also, I'm getting a laptop soon with 512 RAM... is there big difference between RAM being 512x1 or 256x2, besides a couple hundred dollars in price variance?

The mp3 I downloaded is clipping.

You should be using the line in jack. Go into the the control panel and click on the sounds icon. In the record properties menu make sure line is checked and the fader is about 75-80% of the way up and that mic is muted. bboy is right about the buffer settings, try a higher setting and see if it helps.

bboy, I'm not sure about the technical differences between the two but most laptops only have two slots for ram so if you get one 512 stick it leaves one slot open for future upgrade without losing one 256 stick, so if you decide to get another 512 megs you'll have 1 gig where as with 2x256 you'll only have 768.

i tired that before, i had it all the way up and it's still not picking up signal from the line in

and it sould be clipping becasue soundclick plays with the quality of it. the version i have works without clipping