Dell Inspiron 660s desktop...would this be a good choice for home recording?

F

foxwaves

Member
Hey Folks,

I need a new computer for the little studio I'm putting together. I really need some advice from those of you who really know this stuff, please. As a newbie I can't post the link, but I'm considering a Dell Inspiron 660s

What do you think about the specs? 6g ram; 1tb 7200rpm hard drive; more at the link destination...

If this is not a good model and value, could you suggest an alternative? Thanks!
 
Link doesnt go to the 660s but from what I remember it's the 2nd gen intel core i3. Should run fine. Depending on what you're doing you might want to consider putting in SSD or something for faster hard drive.
 
foxwaves said:
Hey Folks,

I need a new computer for the little studio I'm putting together. I really need some advice from those of you who really know this stuff, please. As a newbie I can't post the link, but I'm considering a Dell Inspiron 660s

What do you think about the specs? 6g ram; 1tb 7200rpm hard drive; more at the link destination...

If this is not a good model and value, could you suggest an alternative? Thanks!
Click to expand...

The 660s with a Pentium 2.9GHz processor for $400 isn't the most screaming deal in the world but it should be adequate for recording.
 
Thanks, Polarity. Sorry about the "missing link"...I had one to paste, but a message came up that I couldn't post a link until I had 10 messages here...I'm new here. So...7200rpm is a bit slow...is there a pc you like better? I'm just shopping and really don't know exactly what I need.
 
wheelema said:
The 660s with a Pentium 2.9GHz processor for $400 isn't the most screaming deal in the world but it should be adequate for recording.
Click to expand...

Thanks, Wheelama. I'm all for the best deal around; any suggestions? I think the one I mentioned was closer to $500, so an even worse deal, I suppose.
 
foxwaves said:
Thanks, Polarity. Sorry about the "missing link"...I had one to paste, but a message came up that I couldn't post a link until I had 10 messages here...I'm new here. So...7200rpm is a bit slow...is there a pc you like better? I'm just shopping and really don't know exactly what I need.
Click to expand...

7,200 rpm is as good as it gets in HDDs now that the 10,000 rpm have been discontinued. I've never noticed a problem with using one.

foxwaves said:
Thanks, Wheelama. I'm all for the best deal around; any suggestions? I think the one I mentioned was closer to $500, so an even worse deal, I suppose.
Click to expand...

Don't let my rabid bargain-hunting philosophy color your perceptions.
 
Wheel is dead on. 7200 is the standard these days. Personally if I'm getting a machine I'm upgrading it to SSD for my OS/Software/Important data and putting my basic storage and files on a second 7200 drive.

Also if I'm trying to spec out a lower machine to save money I try and find speed at a value. At that point it becomes spend the additional $400 for a better processor or the $184 for a SSD. Either way I think that machine will work for what you need the SSD is something you can always do later if you decide it isn't up to par.

Repping wheel for always giving sound IT info, keep seeing you in these threads and haven't seen you say anything wrong =)
 
polarity said:
Wheel is dead on. 7200 is the standard these days. Personally if I'm getting a machine I'm upgrading it to SSD for my OS/Software/Important data and putting my basic storage and files on a second 7200 drive.

Also if I'm trying to spec out a lower machine to save money I try and find speed at a value. At that point it becomes spend the additional $400 for a better processor or the $184 for a SSD. Either way I think that machine will work for what you need the SSD is something you can always do later if you decide it isn't up to par.

Repping wheel for always giving sound IT info, keep seeing you in these threads and haven't seen you say anything wrong =)
Click to expand...

Thank you, Polarity. Everyone here seems to be very helpful, and I appreciate it. I had not even thought of SSD. I suppose there are no drawbacks in SSD for recording, correct? I'll keep learning and soon buy something so I can get started with some hands-on recording experience! Thanks again!
 
foxwaves said:
Thank you, Polarity. Everyone here seems to be very helpful, and I appreciate it. I had not even thought of SSD. I suppose there are no drawbacks in SSD for recording, correct? I'll keep learning and soon buy something so I can get started with some hands-on recording experience! Thanks again!
Click to expand...

There are most certainly drawbacks to SSDs. Reading the reviews and sticking to well-regarded brands is highly recommended.
 
You can use this website to enter the CPU type and see hows its benchmarked against others


Unless you plan to use heavily sampled instruments RAM is nowhere near as important as CPU


Nothing will be future proof, but memory, hard drives etc can generally be upgraded, CPU is not as simple


PassMark Software - CPU Benchmark Charts
 
Yes read up if you are looking at SSD. Some brands/models are total crap. Personally I like the crucial m4 series but it all depends on price point.
 
polarity said:
Yes read up if you are looking at SSD. Some brands/models are total crap. Personally I like the crucial m4 series but it all depends on price point.
Click to expand...

I hadn't even thought about SSD until it was mentioned here; I'm barely aware of it and have never owned a pc with SSD. Most likely, I'll not get SSD because of the additional expense. I do like the quiet, no heat operation, though. But I'll probably have the hum of a fan, haha. Thanks!
 
kcearl said:
You can use this website to enter the CPU type and see hows its benchmarked against others


Unless you plan to use heavily sampled instruments RAM is nowhere near as important as CPU


Nothing will be future proof, but memory, hard drives etc can generally be upgraded, CPU is not as simple


PassMark Software - CPU Benchmark Charts
Click to expand...

Thanks, kcearl! So, what would you suggest for ram and cpu specs? Well, on a carpenter's budget? haha Almost 100% of the time, I'll be recording only one track at a time but I may end up with a lot of tracks and effects, so the mix will tend to get heavy. I really appreciate the education!
 
kcearl said:
I think that would be completely fine, and a good price...my laptops only spec'd a little higher than it at manages some very large projects


Plus its the right price that when/if it does become outdated in five years it wont hurt relegating it to online p0rn ;)
Click to expand...

Thanks, kcearl. Sounds like I've found my 'puter. Thanks to you and everyone who offered advice!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top