Stable/Powerful M-Board for Audio Processing

[breakbeat]

Hi, I make music using the PC (rather than Mac which is preferred in the industry) because it is cheaper and more upgradeable.

I run lot's of programs such as Emagic's Logic 5.2 for writing tracks and beats most of which are recorded as audio files, not midi. Lot's of the synths I use run off software as well. This requires lots of processing power, file space, and quick access to the files. I also use a powerful sound card, USB, and a scuzzy card as well.

I am upgrading my computer to a P4 2.4 gigs or higher with 512Ram to start. I will probably have 120gigs on the HD. I was wondering if anyone had insight into which motherboard is more stable in regards to this sort of processing. I know much of it has to do with the ram I use but I don't want a motherboard that is prone to crashing. I am looking for quality and power, and something that can support many cards and slots as mentioned above. Any other advice is welcome as well.

thanks

 

[pfifer]

Good question. I'd like to know as well. I do the same sort of stuff and find that my comp crashes a lot.

 

[jclw]

What kind of budget?
Do you need AGP video?
Do you need 64/66 PCI slots? or PCI-X?
Are you happy with DDR or do you want RDRAM?

How about:
- P4 2.4 for $200
- <A HREF="http://www.supermicro.com/PRODUCT/MotherBoards/845/P4SBR.htm" target="_new">Supermicro P4SBR</A> (no AGP) for $200
Total: $400

How about dual processors? (drop in another Xeon 2.4 when it starts to get sluggish):
- Xeon 2.4 for $260
- <A HREF="http://www.supermicro.com/product/motherboards/860/P4DC6.htm" target="_new">Supermicro P4DC6</A> for $400
Total: $660

 

[breakbeat]

Thanks for your reply.

I would need AGP video, and Firewire capability if possible. As for the PCI slots, I don't really know the difference. My soundcard Midiman Delta 66 (http://www.midiman.com/products/m-audio/delta66.php)and a scuzzy card (19160 Ultra160 PCI SCSI) are what I currently use for the PCI slots. They are both a couple of years old.

In terms of the RAM, I think DDR should be fine.

I was hoping to pay around $200 for the Mother Board. I would pay a little more if it were justified. I never really thought about the Xeon. The motherboard is a bit too expensive though.

I was hoping to find a viable solution with the P4. The Supermicro you suggested won't work because of the lack of AGP. Do you or anyone else have any other ideas? I read a review on this website saying that the Intel 845G chipset was good. The two boards recommended were the Gigabyte GA-8IGXP (which isn't being sold) and the Asus P4B533-V. But I didn't understand if they were stable or not.

Thanks again.

 

[jclw]

I was pricing boards with onboard SCSI which is why they were $$$

<A HREF="http://www.tyan.com/products/html/trinityi845e.html" target="_new">Tyan Trinity i845E</A>

Tyan part# S2099GNN (UPC:635872-006937) has AGP and two (intel) ethernet jacks $175.

Get the non-ethernet version (S2099A) for $120.

- JW

[edited to add Tyan board]<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by JCLW on 10/05/02 07:39 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[breakbeat]

thanks for your help. I am looking into that board.

what about the Asus P4B533V. I read it is a good chipset and stable with decent features. Do you or anyone else have objections or an opinion?

 

[jclw]

Asus makes good stuff - I have three Asus boards myself.

The board you listed includes onboard video.

How about the <A HREF="http://www.asus.com/mb/socket478/p4b533-e/overview.htm" target="_new">P4B533-E</A>?

For most day to day users Abit/Asus/etc boards are fine. Tyan and Supermicro make the kind of boards that people building $10,000 servers that will be running in remote locations use, where stability is paramount.

- JW

 

[Guest]

Asus P4T533C will be fast and stable. RDRAM based systems still win.

Better clean that scuzzy card first.

A 19160 is the crap, well I like my 29160 too. Don't know of your soundboard though as I only look at ones that work well with games.

For video you might want to check the windows hardware compatibility list. I've been having good luck by choosing parts from there. I guess this last part assumes you are using some kind of MS OS though.

 

[breakbeat]

I will be using windows XP