USING A LAPTOP LIVE

ME:

I used to play with a bunch of stomp-boxes and a rhodes piano.  I was a purist.  But after hundreds of shows moving an instrument that weighed more than I did I herniated a disc in my neck.  A lighter solution had to be found, but keyboards of the 90's basically sucked.  Then I heard my first software sampler and knew computers had the power to get close to the sound I loved without the hernia.  Since then it evolved to running everything from my Laptop, whether I'm playing guitar or keyboards.

YOU:

If you aren't at all familiar with using a computer to record, I don't recommend this...the programs and hardware are not yet easy enough to depend on without having to tweak problems on the spot.  I do suggest playing around with a computer setup and finding out if it's something that can take your playing or creativity into new areas.

If you are familiar with using a computer for recording and using plugins then using one for live performance may be something that saves you a bunch of effort (especially from carrying equipment) and opens you up to new ideas.  Getting it set up for the first time is hard...knowing it will work every single time is harder.

EQUIPMENT:

First, you need the right equipment: A laptop, an audio interface, an ASIO driver, a host program, and plugins.

The computer needs enough memory and processor to run the programs you want.  You would be suprised how many cool plugins can run on a slower computer.  A laptop is a must, so you may not be able to afford the latest thing. 

You need a soundcard to get the sound in/out of the computer.  You don't necessarily need a high dollar unit (I usually use an M-Audio Firewire 410) but it will eliminate the hiss, hum, crosstalk, and latency you may have with cheaper stuff.  The cheapest way is to use the built-in soundcard of your computer along with the ASIO 4 All driver - I have used this often when having hardware issues with my 410.  Having the quality instrument jacks that will be on a pro interface is also very important.  Click here for more info.

You need an ASIO driver.  What is ASIO?  All you really need to know is that it's software that gets the sound in and out of your computer fast.  If you play a note on your instrument and there is a slight delay before you hear it, you need to setup ASIO differently.  Custom ASIO software will come with any audio interface over $100.  The above driver will work for cheaper stuff. Click here for more info.

You need a program to host your plugins.  For this I can only recommend Bidule by Plogue.  It is the only program of it's kind allowing plugins to be used free-form.  And right now it's FREE as in costs nothing! Almost any other program that loads plugins is meant for recording.  Examples are Nuendo, Pro-tools, Cubase, Samplitude, Fruity Loops, Sonar, etc...  They could be used in theory but are very limiting.

Finally, you need plug-ins.  This is where I and thousands of other programmers come in.  Thank's to Steinberg's open source plugin standard, VST, programmers/musicians can make them easier than ever...Virtual stompboxes, high end studio compressors,  Instruments, whatever you can think of can be done.  The open minded spirit of VST has developed into a community, and many of these plugins are free or cheap - people just wanting to contribute to the world.  The Llama series is my contribution.  Almost any plugin made will be listed at http://www.kvraudio.com/ and even if you only search for the free ones you will find plenty.

An instrument would help.  If you play guitar then you are just using the laptop for effects, so the guitar is your instrument.  If you play keyboards then VST Instruments may soon take the place of your hardware.  VST instruments are just a type of VST plugin that creates sound - usually based on a MIDI input to the plugin.  It's no different than using a rack sound module with a MIDI keyboard.  Speaking of which, you should probably have a MIDI or USB keyboard if you plan on playing notes.  MIDI transmissions have a latency of up to 3ms, just because it's an old standard.  USB transmissions are communicating at a much faster rate - the signal is converted to the MIDI language inside the computer.