TriBeard

I wouldn't expect this config to have any issues with 4k/60 content. The GPU built into the CPU should be able to handle it as it was the first gen that had quicksync built in if I recall correctly. Barring that, the GPU there is Fermi based, which could also decode 4k video natively. You should be just fine.

There's really not much to go on here in terms of what you need. "music software and art programs" could be anything from audacity to high end music production and/or animation software. If you want something that is thicker and going to give you the most power, you can get an Asus G14 for around 1000 for the base model config, which will be the most performance you can probably get in your budget and for your tasks. Battery life is decent, but not exceptional. If you want something thinner and lighter, I'd look for something like below. This is a dell, but I believe Lenovo makes some laptops in this same general size also with the new AMD 4000 series mobile chips, which is what I would be looking for. The intel ones are *fine* but you're going to miss out on some performance with them vs the AMD ones. https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/dell-laptops/inspiron-15-5000-laptop/spd/inspiron-15-5505-laptop/nn5505efpps

With the... quality.. of razer support, you'll probably be best off trying to source a replacement battery off ebay or similar. If you can pop the bottom off the laptop and get a good picture of the battery we can probably help find a replacement.

As annoying as it is, I'd probably start off with a BIOS update and then a clean windows install. Don't install any drivers from Dell unless you have to (some fingerprint readers for example need a "trusted" driver only dell provides) and see if any of your issues go away. If not, time to contact dell for warranty support.

I have two other monitors plugged in via display port. One ultrawide and one older 1200p monitor. I've thought about getting an active adapter and hoping that fixes it, but that just seems hacky, and I'm not sure if I could pass audio to the receiver that way.

My frustration for the last couple weeks has been trying to get my computer hooked up to my new 4k tv. I have a Vizio 558-g1. I started testing with the cables I ran in the wall a couple years ago, and had no luck there. It worked fine when I hooked my laptop up to the TV directly with a short HDMI cord, so I just assumed fine, the cables in the walls are not good enough for 4k. I ordered a new cable on amazon that supposedly was good enough for 4k and it arrived today. It's a 25' cable. It arrived today, and still doesn't work with my desktop. HOWEVER, if I connect the same cable to my laptop, it works fine. Also, if I connect the cable to my receiver that's connected to the same desktop, also via HDMI, it works fine. I'd just use it that way other than the increased lag and not being able to get audio out to the living room. Why does my desktop GPU's (Zotac amp extreme 1080ti) HDMI port hate me? Any suggestions?

I had the 15 inch version of that thing, and it ran super hot under load, especially a combined GPU/CPU load. The 17 is supposed to have bigger fans/better cooling but we'll see if it makes a difference or not. You could see if HIDevolution is running any good deals on the 17r5. If you get them to do a repaste on it, it does pretty well cooling wise. I know the bezels are thicker, but it's been great so far for me after a repaste. Stock it also runs hot, but that's just the garbage that dell passes off as thermal paste. If you do go dell, make sure you get prosupport on it. Their standard support tier is utter garbage.

I have this same problem with phantek fan lighting and my enermax cooler and my gigabyte x399 board.

FWIW, I have a 4k screen in my laptop, and had one in my previous one as well. 1440p at 17" is ideal really (I use 150% scaling) but 1080p on a 15 or 17" screen is hard for me to go back to. I just feel cramped and like I don't have enough screen space to work with.

That MSI linked earlier is a pretty banging deal, but if you want something with true "professional"/business grade warranty, I'm really happy with my 7710. I know you don't want a 17 inch laptop, so maybe check out the 7510/7520. The GPUs aren't quite as powerful in the 15" ones, but they're still quite good.

I have an Asrock board and a Zotac 1080Ti and I'm very pleased with both. I have the AMP Extreme edition and it clocks up to 2030 or so right out of the box, and can hit 2050 stable with a little added power, and stays cool doing it.

Given your budget and your requirement of a mac for work, get a mac as your dev machine/to use on the road (seems like you want a 13 since you think the 15 is too heavy and large, though the 15 would likely be able to handle some light gaming tasks while you're on the go if you got one with a dGPU and accepted 1080p gaming instead of trying for 1440p) and then build a nice desktop as your gaming machine.

That PSU gets miserable ratings online. I would highly suspect that it's crapping out as soon as you're putting any real load on it.

I've got a bunch of rigs around right now: Main Desktop - i7 5930k @ 4.4Ghz Main Laptop - 6920HQ Proxmox/Virtual Server Box: Some old Nehalem Xeon Freenas/Plex Box: i7 920 Fiance's PC: FX 8350 @ stock clocks

I've never had much luck/experience getting dual boots on one drive to work. Dual booting with 2 different physical drives though is pretty much flawless at this point. If this is an option for you it might be a lot easier.