SONAR 3's relationship with my PC.

[Bert0529]

I've been drooling over Sonar 3 Producer for a couple weeks now and am ready to purchase a new computer to acommodate it. In the past people have reccommended using your DAW PC for that purpose alone. I don't have the luxury of doing that. I have to buy one big Frankenstein of a desktop that can do it all. I'm planning on a 73G SCSI drive and the latest, speediest P4 with a full gig of RAM. (I'm still debating the sound card. If you have a suggestion please let me know.) Will this scenario work for me? I'd rather have my dreams dashed now than after I open a bunch of boxes. Also how many 24-bit tracks will I be able to record and playback simultaneously in Sonar? Is there anything else I should consider in terms of computer specs?

Thank you!

[dachay2tnr]

Originally posted by Bert0529
Also how many 24-bit tracks will I be able to record and playback simultaneously in Sonar?

Sonar allows for an unlimted number of tracks. The limitation is the amount of horsepower your computer system has. The number of realtime effects you run, your sound card and its drivers, and your latency settings will also impact overall performance.

Using your computer for other purposes shouldn't be a problem, but you might want to consider a dual boot system. This will allow you to only load the bare necessities when you plan on working on your DAW.

Lastly, you probably want to consider a second hard drive just to keep your audio on. It is one of the better performance enhancements available to you.

[Qwerty]

I just upgraded a P4 1.8 w/- 1G of RAM up to a P4 3.0 w/- 1G of PC3200 RAM, (800MHz FSB).

I set up a dual boot system, one with everything games etc., and one for audio. One installed as a ACPI MultiProcessor PC the other as a Standard PC

I cannot pick a difference in operation between both configurations. There is no speed difference or configuration dramas - it just works equally well in either boot mode.

So said, I would still recommend the dual boot system for ease of configuration.

I haven't found the upper track limit yet.

My old configuration used to crap out loading two instances of iZotope's Trash at 5msec latency.

I can now run eight instances of Trash and hit about 73% CPU utilisation.

Enjoy it!

Q.

[Bert0529]

What is the best type of hard drive for a DAW? What is the attribute that makes one drive better than another for this application?

Thanks!

[dachay2tnr]

Originally posted by Bert0529
What is the best type of hard drive for a DAW? What is the attribute that makes one drive better than another for this application?

Thanks!

The two attributes I would concentrate on are speed (rpm) and quietness. You want one that is at least 7200 RPM.

[Bert0529]

Thank you.

Is there a particular spec I can check to determine the quietness of the drive? I've been looking at 15K RPM SCSI's. Is there anything better? or is that going overboard? I'd love to reduce cost, but not in a way that will be a detriment to the recordings.

[Qwerty]

I think a 15k SCSI drive is overkill.

A 7,200 ATA-100 in a modern PC will easily do the job for you.

Q.

[acidrock]

I can now run eight instances of Trash and hit about 73% CPU utilisation.

That's a lot of trash!

[Darryl79]

Originally posted by Bert0529
Thank you.

Is there a particular spec I can check to determine the quietness of the drive? I've been looking at 15K RPM SCSI's. Is there anything better? or is that going overboard? I'd love to reduce cost, but not in a way that will be a detriment to the recordings.

You can also go for a newer 36.7 gig Western Digital drive. It's called the "Raptor" and spins at 10k. Right now it is $117.00. That will save you quite a few bucks from the SCSI configuration.

(36.7) Newegg Link - http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProduc...144-200&depa=0

There is also a 73 Gig version for $217.00. Also spinning at 10k

(73 Gig) Newegg Link - http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProduc...144-160&depa=0

Both those drives also come with a 5 yr MGFR warranty. That is very important.

[Bert0529]

Thanks very much, everybody!