Hi, I am an aspiring engineer about to buy my first home studio rig. I have been spoiled by the Digi 192's, Sony MCI console, and quad-core Mac that we have in the studio at work. I definitely do not have that kind of budget for a 'HD' system, but I would like to get some measure of quality from the rig I am going to buy.
My budget for a recording computer, software, and interface/converter is around $2500. I'm not 100% sure what specs are "good enough" or most important in regards to multi-track recording, but I'm basically looking for i3, i5, i7, with 4gb+ ram, and a 7200 rpm drive. Currently, the laptop I have is a core i3 (2nd generation), 5400 rpm drive, and 6gb of ram. Do you think this is enough to handle most recording tasks, or should I invest in something better? Are there any other essential specs I should be considering? My recording needs are 10-16 tracks at once, with as little latency as I can afford, haha. To give you an idea of what I'm looking for, I know I can't achieve necessarily the same quality as a HD system, but I'd like to get something better than a basic rig. Some options that I have been considering are:
- Recording Computer - (budget around $1000-1200)
1. Mac Mini, either i5, or i7, with an upgraded 7200 rpm drive, and upgraded Ram (I think it's 8 gb).
2. A custom built Windows PC tower, with as many cores as I can get for under $1000 (not sure where to find one, any suggestions would be appreciated). I figure getting a PC would give me more value, even though I prefer working on a Mac.
- Software - ($600)
1. Pro Tools 9. The only software that I am really considering is Pro Tools 9, especially if it's a PC.
- Interface/Converter/Pre's - ($500-1000) (Realistically, I can only afford something with 8 analog inputs for now, but I would need something that would allow me to expand to 16 inputs eventually, via SPDIF etc. My output needs would be at least 4.)
1. MOTU 896 Mk3
2. MOTU 828 Mk3
3. MOTU 8Pre
4. Focusrite Liquid Saffire 56
5. Focusrite Saffire Pro 40
6. Focusrite ISA828 Mk2
7. Octopre Mk2 Dynamic
8. Octopre Mk2
9. Anything else you can suggest for around $500-$1000
Mostly looking for reliability, sound quality, and low-ish latency (for a consumer level rig). I do not have any experience using any of the above interfaces, so any advice or direction would be greatly appreciated. Is my i3 laptop good enough to run 16 inputs (maybe 25-30 tracks playback)? Would you recommend just using the core i3 laptop that I have already, and spend the extra cash on converters? I'm just trying to get a feel of how to allocate my cash towards the most necessary things in my signal chain (I know I know, everything is necessary).
My budget for a recording computer, software, and interface/converter is around $2500. I'm not 100% sure what specs are "good enough" or most important in regards to multi-track recording, but I'm basically looking for i3, i5, i7, with 4gb+ ram, and a 7200 rpm drive. Currently, the laptop I have is a core i3 (2nd generation), 5400 rpm drive, and 6gb of ram. Do you think this is enough to handle most recording tasks, or should I invest in something better? Are there any other essential specs I should be considering? My recording needs are 10-16 tracks at once, with as little latency as I can afford, haha. To give you an idea of what I'm looking for, I know I can't achieve necessarily the same quality as a HD system, but I'd like to get something better than a basic rig. Some options that I have been considering are:
- Recording Computer - (budget around $1000-1200)
1. Mac Mini, either i5, or i7, with an upgraded 7200 rpm drive, and upgraded Ram (I think it's 8 gb).
2. A custom built Windows PC tower, with as many cores as I can get for under $1000 (not sure where to find one, any suggestions would be appreciated). I figure getting a PC would give me more value, even though I prefer working on a Mac.
- Software - ($600)
1. Pro Tools 9. The only software that I am really considering is Pro Tools 9, especially if it's a PC.
- Interface/Converter/Pre's - ($500-1000) (Realistically, I can only afford something with 8 analog inputs for now, but I would need something that would allow me to expand to 16 inputs eventually, via SPDIF etc. My output needs would be at least 4.)
1. MOTU 896 Mk3
2. MOTU 828 Mk3
3. MOTU 8Pre
4. Focusrite Liquid Saffire 56
5. Focusrite Saffire Pro 40
6. Focusrite ISA828 Mk2
7. Octopre Mk2 Dynamic
8. Octopre Mk2
9. Anything else you can suggest for around $500-$1000
Mostly looking for reliability, sound quality, and low-ish latency (for a consumer level rig). I do not have any experience using any of the above interfaces, so any advice or direction would be greatly appreciated. Is my i3 laptop good enough to run 16 inputs (maybe 25-30 tracks playback)? Would you recommend just using the core i3 laptop that I have already, and spend the extra cash on converters? I'm just trying to get a feel of how to allocate my cash towards the most necessary things in my signal chain (I know I know, everything is necessary).
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