$1000-$2000 i7 DAW Build

[VSTJuNkiE]

Approximate Purchase Date:Soon


Budget Range: $1000-$2000 (preferably closer to $1000)


System Usage from Most to Least Important: Offline DAW only. No gaming. Ability to run a decent to excessive vst(i)s. Effects, Synths, Samplers, etc...


Parts Not Required: N/A


Preferred Website(s) for Parts: newegg.com, tigerdirect.com, other sites along those lines


Country of Origin: U.S.


Parts Preferences: Intel, ASUS,Gigabyte, quality RAM (DDR3), 1 TB drive, also debating on SSD for OS


Overclocking: Maybe. If not too complicated and beneficial.


SLI or Crossfire: No. Non gaming Rig at this time.


Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080, 1920x1200


Additional Comments: Looking for power here. Something kind of quiet. Want my rig to run at cooler temps though too. No water cooling. Wanna make Music!

What I've picked so far (recommendations more than welcome!):

Intel Core i7-950 Bloomfield 3.06GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115211
or

ASUS Sabertooth X58 LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131665&cm_re=ASUS_Sabertooth_X58_LGA_1366-_-13-131-665-_-Product

or

ASUS P6X58D Premium LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131614&cm_re=ASUS_P6X58D_Premium_LGA_1366_Intel_X58_SATA-_-13-131-614-_-Product

or

GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD5 LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128422&Tpk=GIGABYTE%20GA-X58A-UD5%20LGA%201366%20Intel%20X58%20SATA%206Gb%2fs

or

GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128423&cm_re=GIGABYTE_GA-X58A-UD3R_LGA_1366_Intel_X58_SATA_6Gb%2f-_-13-128-423-_-Product

Kingston HyperX 12GB (6 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model KHX1600C9D3K6/12GX

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104168&Tpk=Kingston%20HyperX%2012GB%20%286%20x%202GB%29%20240-Pin%20DDR3%20SDRAM

or

CORSAIR XMS3 12GB (6 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model HX3X12G1600C9 G

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145235&cm_re=CORSAIR_XMS3_12GB_%286_x_2GB%29_240-Pin_DDR3_SDRAM_DDR-_-20-145-235-_-Product

--^These are brands that are reputable, but feel free to recommend comparable ones.ie Gskill.^--

SeaSonic X750 Gold 750W ATX12V V2.3/EPS 12V V2.91 SLI Ready 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151087&Tpk=SeaSonic%20X750%20Gold%20750W%20ATX12V%20V2.3%2fEPS%2012V%20V2.91

--^Overkill? Lemme know what you think.^--

Kingston SSDNow V+ Series SNVP325-S2B/128GB 2.5" 128GB SATA II MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&Description=Kingston+SSDNow+V%2B+Series+SNVP325-S2B%2F128GB+2.5%22+1&x=9&y=37

--^If I go SSD^--

Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136533

--^Mainly for streaming sample content. Probably a separate one for the OS if I don't go SSD^--

COOLER MASTER HAF 912 RC-912-KKN1 Black SECC/ ABS Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119233&Tpk=COOLER%20MASTER%20HAF%20912%20RC-912-KKN1%20Black%20SECC%2f%20ABS

--^ Too noisy? Just wann make sure everything stays cool. My current rig stays around 32 Celsius. Mainly because I have the side panel off with a house fan shooting into it. Not very quiet and very Ghetto(lol)^--

Not sure onna graphics card or whether to use the on board graphics? Also wanna mention that this will be my first build eva! So keep your "noob hats" on for me please.

Like in the description this will be an offline DAW(Digital Audio Workstation) build. I'd like to be able to stay as close to $1000 as possible, but I know power isn't cheap. The MOBOs I mentioned all seem to have kind of a 50/50 review thing going for them which kind of makes me nervous. Anyways, looking forward to some suggestions/guidance/experiences with these components.

Thank you for checking out my thread.

 

[VSTJuNkiE]

Forgot to mention the OS will be Windows 7 X64.

Thanks.

 

[DeviousX]

Intel Core i7 950 Nehalem 3.06Ghz 8MB LGA1366
ASUS Sabertooth Intel X58 DDR3 USB3 SATA 3
2 x Corsair CMP6GX3M3A1600C8 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3-1600
Prolimatech Megahalems CPU Cooler
LG GH-22LS50 22X LightScribe Black SATA DVD Writer
Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB 7200RPM SATA II (possibly go solid state instead)
Gigabyte nVidia Geforce GT240 1GB GDDR3 PCi-E
Corsair HX650 650W Modular Power Supply
Lian-Li Lancool PC-K56B Mid Tower Case
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64Bit OEM
M-Audio ProFire 610 high Definition Audio
2 x ASUS VE246H 2ms Full HD Wide LCD Monitor

 

[VSTJuNkiE]

Intel Core i7 950 Nehalem 3.06Ghz 8MB LGA1366
ASUS Sabertooth Intel X58 DDR3 USB3 SATA 3
2 x Corsair CMP6GX3M3A1600C8 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3-1600
Prolimatech Megahalems CPU Cooler
LG GH-22LS50 22X LightScribe Black SATA DVD Writer
Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB 7200RPM SATA II (possibly go solid state instead)
Gigabyte nVidia Geforce GT240 1GB GDDR3 PCi-E
Corsair HX650 650W Modular Power Supply
Lian-Li Lancool PC-K56B Mid Tower Case
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64Bit OEM
M-Audio ProFire 610 high Definition Audio
2 x ASUS VE246H 2ms Full HD Wide LCD Monitor

Hey. Thanks for the response DeviousX.

Will look into those suggestions. About the M-Audio ProFire 610 high Definition Audio. I was told to stay away from the M Audio stuff as far as W7 goes because the drivers are crappy?

Probably stick with just one monitor for now. Maybe in the future though...

 

[VSTJuNkiE]

70 + Views and only one kind soul to reply? Come on guys I know there's more top notch 'puter freaks out there....

Thanks

 

[VSTJuNkiE]

Intel Core i7 950 Nehalem 3.06Ghz 8MB LGA1366. What are the advantages of the Nehalem over the Bloomfield?

Thanks

 

[vindictive]

Asus Xonar Essence 7.1

Don't get that massively huge cooler in his recommendation, very unnecessary if not Ocing, get the hyper 212+ for $30.
Or the zalman quiet if you want very minimal noise.

i'd get the bloomfield. and do get the Spinpoint f3 over the WD drive.

 

[reaper2794]

+1 on vindictive

 

[VSTJuNkiE]

Asus Xonar Essence 7.1

Don't get that massively huge cooler in his recommendation, very unnecessary if not Ocing, get the hyper 212+ for $30.
Or the zalman quiet if you want very minimal noise.

i'd get the bloomfield. and do get the Spinpoint f3 over the WD drive.

Thanks for taking the time to help!

I was pretty set on the Bloomfield anyway, but new to DIY builds so I'll take any proper options into consideration. Equally concerned about my MOBO choices. I just want everything to go as smooth as possible (within' reason)..

Is this the 212+ your talking about?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065&nm_mc=OTC-Froogle&cm_mmc=OTC-Froogle-_-CPU+Cooling-_-Cooler+Master-_-35103065

 

[vindictive]

yessir.

 

[vindictive]

the mobo in his Rec. is good, its what I'd recommend as well: "ASUS Sabertooth Intel X58"

 

[VSTJuNkiE]

Cool cool. Thanks.

 

[VSTJuNkiE]

Will the on board graphics be okay or should I just get a cheap Nvidia card? I wanna stick with Nvidia 'cause of Cuda. Thanks..

 

[VSTJuNkiE]

Darn you vindictive! Because of your sig I've been reading up on Sandy Bridge and not sure if should build my rig now or wait!(lol) Although, it will have that "new processor" price..*sigh*

Hmmmm...

 

[vindictive]

uhmm. the new 2400 that beat the i7 980x extreme will cost less than an i5 760 does today.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/3871/the-sandy-bridge-preview-three-wins-in-a-row

"the 2500K will replace the i5 760/655K ($205 - $216)."

 

[VSTJuNkiE]

@ vindictive

Interesting! Thanks...

 

[VSTJuNkiE]

What about the Intel Core i7 2600K? Any info on pricing/benchmarks etc...

 

[vindictive]

Not that I have found.

 

[VSTJuNkiE]

Is there a Gigabyte board comparable to the Sabertooth?

 

[vindictive]

for i7 950?
i believe so, I'm out of the loop with x58 boards, Gigabyte udp-ud7 or something?

 

[cangle]

get a dx11 card. it will be much better for the future

 

[cangle]

hi

 

[cangle]

bye

 

[VSTJuNkiE]

for i7 950?
i believe so, I'm out of the loop with x58 boards, Gigabyte udp-ud7 or something?

the 2 I was looking at were:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128423

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128422

A poster from another forum I frequent was saying that there is an issue with the ASUS boards not recognizing RAM correctly and that ASUS still hasn't fixed it.

 

[VSTJuNkiE]

get a dx11 card. it will be much better for the future

I think a Direct X11 card might be overkill for a non gaming rig....