Need advice for a Pro Audio PC/DAW Hardware questions

[Guest]

Hello,

I'm keen to finally retire my P4 PC. I want to get a whole new system that I can use for recording, multi-tracking, mixing and mastering. As well as decent support for stacking various effects and VST instruments. Music production is my main concern but I would also like to use it for various art software (photoshop, illustrator, corel painter, etc) as well as an average video card that can support duel monitors and some WOW playtime (after the graphics update I stopped playing, nothing fancy, something good enough to play it comfortably)

My goal is to keep my new rig at around the 800 dollar mark.

So far the recording has worked ok for me on my P4, but due to being over 5 years old, latency issues, and extreme choppyness playing a song in Fruity Loops with several instruments, its done my head in enough to finally update my system.

Now I have an idea of what I need, but I do not know certain details about some hardware. (what they are compatible with, are they upgradeable etc.)

Which is why I have come here.

The PC needs to be able to run Pro Tools with few plugins/effects/VSTs. Of course 64bit is a given. I don't need anything extravagant.
Being a singer songwriter I would like to be able to throw in some synth pianos, strings, bass, drums and a few effects, with some CPU headroom for extras if I decide to do so later down the track. At the moment I am running Sonar and Adobe Audition.

So far I have:
Monitor
Keyboard
Mouse
DVD Burner
Soundcard(will have in a few days) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829121011&Tpk=delta%201010lt

I really want to get myself an i7, because that is the advice I have been given already for what I want to do but I believe it is way out of my price range.(well I suppose nothing is on a long enough time frame, but I want this setup within two months) Does AMD have anything comparable?

So yeah, basically all I need is:
Motherboard
CPU
GPU
Case
PSU
RAM(8gb in the future but can live with 4 for now)
And a massive hard drive.

If anyone can make sense of this and help me out it would be very appreciated.

 

[r_manic]

You can try a lower-specced CPU like an i5 or the i3. In any case though, shouldn't you devote a bit to your CPU, since you'll be processing audio data real-time?

 

[Guest]

I want to devote as much as I can to the cpu. Is there a cheaper AMD alternative to the quadcore hyperthreaded cpus Intel have?

 

[Guest]

something like this perhaps? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16819103674

 

[jura11]

Hi there im using Maudio Delta 1010LT,this card its amazing,i recommend you buy i7 920,its great cpu for multisampling and multitasking(its great when you are using more than 1 program,im mainly using REASON 4 and Ableton Live 8 in Rewire,sometimes + CUBASE 5 with 30 Vsti,cpu never go up to 30% in rewire and more memory buy up to 8 gb or more,plus i recomend you buy fast HDD for samples or for recording live).Any question about the ProAudio equipment ask me,im professional musicians and PC builder

 

[Guest]

Best answer selected by casuist.

 

[Guest]

Thanks heaps for the reply.

For the hardrive I was thinking 7500rpm or more at 1TB
What what motherboard would you suggest?
And furthermore what ram would I need to throw in there?

I plan to get the sound card as being my first purchase, then slowly work my way through a priority list I am still yet to make. I can use the sound card in my current computer which should keep me going for a little bit.

I find it hard to save large sums of money so making a purchase every pay seems to be the way to go for me.

I think it would go something like this:

Soundcard
case/psu
motherboard
cpu
ram, maybe after market cooling
way down the track.....gpu

Trying to build a price list and hopefully some hardware will have a price drop when I get to them in the near future.

I used to be really up to date with computer gear but that was like 2 years ago. Which may as well be 100 years these days.

 

[jura11]

For HDD i recommend you WD VelociRaptor in Raid,for i7 cpu i recommend you buy motherboard from ASUS or Gigabyte,for memory go for at least 9GB Corsair XMS 3 9 GB Kit(in these days are chaep)or go for G.Skill(price its is same),MB Asus P6T SE(i think its cheapest),GPU Ati or Nvidia buy with passive cooling(if you don't wont play games),Case im using CoolerMaster HAF 932(for me its best,cable managment,cooling managment and very quiet,which its very important),for PSU go for Corsair modular or OCZ(im currently using ModXstream 700w),for RAM you don't need after market cooler(every Ram kit from below have heatsink),for CPU cooling go for Arctic Cooling Freezer Extreme V2 or go for any Noctua,i recommend you buy i7 920 or 860(this cpu its unbeatable in every application or music software),for soundcard go for Maudio Delta 1010LT(this card its great and never disappoint you,you are be very satisfied with this card) and for more memory you are need 64 bit OS(Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit)or cheapest option go for Windows XP Professional 64bit(for full potential of 9 gb ram).sorry for my english.

My recommendations:
MB:Asus P6T SE or Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5
CPU:i7 920 or 860+aftermarket cpu cooler NOCTUA or Thermalright,ACooling
Case:CoolerMaster HAF 932
Ram:minimum 9 GB
HDD:WD VelociRaptor in Raid+ 1 TB HDD
GPU:Any GPU with passive colling(9400 GT),because this PC its not for gaming
PSU:up to 700W(Corsair)
Sound Card:MAudio Delta 1010LT

This is my recommendations for ProAudio/DAW Workstation.