- Dec 8, 2013
- 4
- 0
- 10,510
Hello,
Before i start i know there are tons of i7 vs Xeon CPU threads on this board and I have read them all. Xeon are for servers/workstations, can have ECC RAM (which is a bit slower) you can have multi CPU with Xeon, they can have more Cores, i7 are for Graphics and Gamers etc.
Most of them however do not answer about the area I am interested in, namely music & sound production with occasional Graphic design.
Is my computer a "workstation" if i work on it and dont play that many games?
Im thinking of getting a "workstation" Motherboard too, as the current one i have still holds up after +5 years.
---- this is my working info, you can skip this part ----
A simple music project takes up about 3gb of RAM with around 200 sounds that can be triggered from disk at any time (usually uncompressed wav), these get processed by 2~10 effects each (can be heavy in CPU load) that run from other software.
Together with Virtual Instruments and effects that are layered and processed in realtime.
Usually I work 5~7 hours non stop on these projects with a CPU going about 30-40% while in playback but have reached up to 80%. I have had several BSOD with "out of memory" before but I am running an older machine so that is no surprise.
During renders of songs or playback, i tend to Alt-Tab into Chrome or watch a YouTube video in 1080p and listen to some music.
I do have a professional PCI & Converter soundcard so that takes a bit off the load.
---- ok so here is the deal ----
My current CPU is;
Intel Core 2 Extreme X9650 @3Ghz Quad Core (Yes, it's kinda old).
I am looking for something that can live for atleast 5 years (bought my current CPU +5 years ago and it works fine) and that the new CPU can manage things 4-5 years in the future, like for example CPU heavy software.
What if my work suddenly demands Much more CPU power? I dont want to upgrade my CPU any time soon.
So Yes, I am looking for the Hi-End, but the most expensive CPU in the i7 family i can get seems to be;
Intel Core i7-4960X Extreme Edition while the Xeons reach above and beyong that.
Not entirely sure what the "Extreme" is for but the Core i7-4960X looks a lot like the cheaper Intel Core i7-3930K Processor so why would i pick the Extreme? Is it just clocked?
I am not interested in Overclocking my CPU.
---- My conclusion ----
Im leaning towards simply getting a i7 and not bother with Xeon and ECC and all that.
I just want a powerful CPU that can perform in 5 years time.
And yes, i do intend on some gaming Sometimes, I love Movies and sometimes i do Render out stuff (mandelbrot set zooms and 3d) but i am not a gamer and I do have a GTX 770 GPU.
But will 6 Cores be enough?
Is the i7 just enough for me (Core i7-4960X Extreme) or should i Invest in a Xeon at that pricerange and if so, which one would be a good candidate?
I know my computer will be a "Workstation" so what do you guys think?
Thank you for any input and help you can give me and sorry for the lenghty post!
~peace
Before i start i know there are tons of i7 vs Xeon CPU threads on this board and I have read them all. Xeon are for servers/workstations, can have ECC RAM (which is a bit slower) you can have multi CPU with Xeon, they can have more Cores, i7 are for Graphics and Gamers etc.
Most of them however do not answer about the area I am interested in, namely music & sound production with occasional Graphic design.
Is my computer a "workstation" if i work on it and dont play that many games?
Im thinking of getting a "workstation" Motherboard too, as the current one i have still holds up after +5 years.
---- this is my working info, you can skip this part ----
A simple music project takes up about 3gb of RAM with around 200 sounds that can be triggered from disk at any time (usually uncompressed wav), these get processed by 2~10 effects each (can be heavy in CPU load) that run from other software.
Together with Virtual Instruments and effects that are layered and processed in realtime.
Usually I work 5~7 hours non stop on these projects with a CPU going about 30-40% while in playback but have reached up to 80%. I have had several BSOD with "out of memory" before but I am running an older machine so that is no surprise.
During renders of songs or playback, i tend to Alt-Tab into Chrome or watch a YouTube video in 1080p and listen to some music.
I do have a professional PCI & Converter soundcard so that takes a bit off the load.
---- ok so here is the deal ----
My current CPU is;
Intel Core 2 Extreme X9650 @3Ghz Quad Core (Yes, it's kinda old).
I am looking for something that can live for atleast 5 years (bought my current CPU +5 years ago and it works fine) and that the new CPU can manage things 4-5 years in the future, like for example CPU heavy software.
What if my work suddenly demands Much more CPU power? I dont want to upgrade my CPU any time soon.
So Yes, I am looking for the Hi-End, but the most expensive CPU in the i7 family i can get seems to be;
Intel Core i7-4960X Extreme Edition while the Xeons reach above and beyong that.
Not entirely sure what the "Extreme" is for but the Core i7-4960X looks a lot like the cheaper Intel Core i7-3930K Processor so why would i pick the Extreme? Is it just clocked?
I am not interested in Overclocking my CPU.
---- My conclusion ----
Im leaning towards simply getting a i7 and not bother with Xeon and ECC and all that.
I just want a powerful CPU that can perform in 5 years time.
And yes, i do intend on some gaming Sometimes, I love Movies and sometimes i do Render out stuff (mandelbrot set zooms and 3d) but i am not a gamer and I do have a GTX 770 GPU.
But will 6 Cores be enough?
Is the i7 just enough for me (Core i7-4960X Extreme) or should i Invest in a Xeon at that pricerange and if so, which one would be a good candidate?
I know my computer will be a "Workstation" so what do you guys think?
Thank you for any input and help you can give me and sorry for the lenghty post!
~peace
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