001 PCI card- desktop to laptop

[hitwriter]

Hi,
I was wondering, are we able to exchange the pci card from my desktop computer to a laptop. I am thinkg about purchasing a laptop computer. I am currently using 001 on a desktop, please advise.

[Slim Shady]

Using the hardware exchange program you can upgrade to a digi002 or 002r. If you have the ability though, you'll get more money for your 001 on ebay or selling it yourself locally. Either way, it's still a big chunk o' change. The cheapest route is to sell your 001 yourself and then buy an Mbox - you'll come close to breaking even, but remember the Mbox only has 2 in/2 out. There is no digidesign sponsored exchange route from 001 to Mbox.

Your other option is to buy a Magma expansion chassis, which will connect to the PCMCIA slot of a powerbook (and only some powerbooks have this slot) and then house your 001 PCI card in the chassis. This is also pretty expensive though (~$1000, about the same as an 002rack), and pretty much kills the whole 'portability' factor of a laptop as it's even more hardware to carry around.

[froyo]

Hello. Yet another option is to sell the 001 and drop Digidesign and Pro Tools entirely. You don't mention why you want and/or need the laptop. If it's going to replace your desktop completely but will be stationery in your studio, or Pro Tools portability is not an issue, then I suppose you can go to a 002 or 002 Rack.

However if you need portability in a system, Pro Tools will require at the very least an Mbox. That is very portable but more portable yet is to have no hardware attached. Pretty much any other software will run on a Powerbook or PC laptop natively, so that may be a consideration.