need help - getting new computer to dedicate to recording

R

RichyRich

New member
I'm a musician (drummer mostly) who jumped in to recording. I know little -less than one year in to it - but have really come a long way. Getting great results and having tons of fun.

his is what I currently have...
Presonus FireStudio Project - 10 x 10 Firewire interface – 8 XMAX PreAmps
Cubase Studio 4
ToonTrack - EZ Drummer - dfh Expansion (Drumkit from Hell)
Behringer B2031A external monitors

I've been using my home PC -its a good machine and has served me well. Long story short I need to get a machine dedicated to only this type of stuff. I'm not a computer wiz - troubleshooting, when the need arises, is very painful. So, I'd like to do this and keep it simple and painless.

I've done a little homework. This is what I've come up w/ for a wish list so far... mostly b/c it seems like its good quality for the buck, and consistent w/ what a lot of other people are using and are happy with. Let me know if anyone advise "for" or "not for" me getting this. Also, I'm trying not to spend over $1200. It will run on XP

Intel Core 2 Quad 1333 mhz Processor
Asus P5E x 38 motherboard

Few concerns... and few dumb question that I need to know...
1.) I currently use my FireStudio Project as my sound card. So, do I need to buy a sound card for my new computer, or can I just have all sound come from the FSP. If I need a sound card still - what is recommended?

2.)What about video card? I don't plan on doing any gaming whatsoever, only recording studio stuff. What can I get away with and not have to sacrifice whatever it is that I'm looking at (w/ regard to picture quality).

3.)I'd like to possibly get 8 GB RAM but definitely at least 4. Should I get DDR2 or DDR3? difference? recommendations?

What else do I need?
I have no idea what a chipset is or does, but it comes up everywhere. I don't really want to know... just tell me which to get.

Any advise on what to get (to build) for a home studio... and stay under $1400 is greatly appreciated.
:confused:
 
I can configure one for ya way under $1400 (that'll buy you a bitchin top of the line computer nowadays)....do you need a Monitor or Keyboard/Mouse? Or do you already have them?

Here I threw something together on Newegg for ya...take a look:

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=8332711

Add a case of your choosing (Get a biggun if you've got the space, gives everything room to breathe :) )

I have 3 Hard Drives on there and that's really up to you to configure. You definitely want 2 for a DAW though. One for proggies and Windows Installation and one for Sound Files (You can use the other for samples, more sound files, or as just a backup).

No you do not need a new soundcard...the Firepod will do that fine (make sure that MOBO has firewire on it though, it should but I forgot to check).

That's basically the rig I plan to build after I raise enough funds :) That thing will blow away any audio (or video) you throw at it. Enjoy
 
wow, thanks so much. thats a great start. I'm assuming that you've checked and that all of that stuff is compatible? Yes, i need monitor, keyboard, everything. I was gonna just check out large cheap monitors on eBay. More Q's for you...

Do I need XP64 in order to utilize the 4 GB ram? One person said, "Unless your using XP64 ( or Vista64) XP/32 will only see around 3.25GB Ram if you have 4 GB".

I only want one of the 500GB hard drives for now. I also have (2) 750 externals for now.

Can you find a cheaper video card. I never plan on gaming. I just want one that'll adequately do the job and support 2 monitors - nothing fancy.

Is there anything else where I can save on (downgrade) and not have to sacrifice too much. Any particular case that you recommend? Thanks for your help... much appreciated.
 
Yea all that is compatible.

I updated that list (as I find parts for myself too :) ) With the case that I would get (as it is very quiet) and a different Power Supply. I actually have two power supplies on there, but I need to check if we can get away with the 500W or if the 610W would be required.

As for the RAM, yes if you're using a 32-bit operating system you'll only use like 3.5 gb or something....but it's better to buy 4 gb for a few reasons:
- If you end up using 64-bit operating system you have 4! (duh)
- Buying a 2 gb chip and a 1 gb chip will cost like $10 less...
- When using dual-channel ram it's better to have 2 of the same chips runnign in parallel

One 500 gb should be fine...just remember to install windows and all programs on the 80gb and leave the 500 solely for samples and audio files. (The 2 externals will work for backup :) )

I'll look into the video card (I have that one on there because I plan on doing video editing too and it's a quiet card)

You could downgrade to a dual-core and save maybe $50...other than that I wouldn't recommend downgrading anything but the video card.

I have a ton
 
I did. This is what I came up with so far.

https://secure.newegg.com/WishList/...9531846&guid=04d0eb12c045499290a1aa6ec9592e75

I like to still budget especially that can do w/o comprising too much. I think that I like the first video card. It sounds like if I can get a case to accommodate it that I'd be what I'm looking for. Take a look at the case. Thoughts? I measured it up with the one I currently have. That one (on my wishlist) is a monster. But its relatively cheap and I have the room. I'm not decided yet though.

Also, what can I do about the power supply? I don't want to spend that kind of money if I don't have to. What is necessary? And what about the
ARCTIC COOLING ACCELS1 Rev 2 VGA Cooler? Is that necessary or highly recommended?

One more thing. I checked out the OS - Windows XP 64. Which one of these do I need. There is a big cost difference b/t the two. What's the difference and which do I need?
http://www.google.com/products/cata..._catalog_result&resnum=1&ct=result#ps-sellers
http://www.google.com/products/cata..._catalog_result&resnum=2&ct=result#ps-sellers

I appreciate all of your help in this stuff. This is really not my field. I only got involved b/c of my history of recording in studios and not being happy enough for what I paid. I decided to take matters into my own hands. I'm really enjoying it and have come a long way, and better results. Another Q? What programs do you recommend? not only for music/ studio but also stuff like, should I have windows office just to have it or is it a bad idea to even have stuff like that on it? I intend on not having this computer online unless
I need to get something - does stuff like that even matter. Thanks again for your help. I know that some of the Q's are silly. thanks again. rick
 
Well, you should be alright on power to tell you the truth...You don't really need anything special if you're not running like SLI or an intense gfx card. Just read the reviews and make sure it supports quad core and what not.

Get whatever windows version you can find thats cheapest (as long as its not Media Center). Pro is a good way to do. And I would personally go with 32-bit.

As for other programs I would use Open Office because its free and does the same thing as M$ office. I use Reaper for recording software as it is cheap. Audacity is a good wav editor and its free. I would take the computer you plan to record online as infrequently as you can, because running like virus protection and stuff will slow ya down when recording.

Sorry it took me so long to get back to ya...school's been rough this week
 
RichyRich said:
Any advise on what to get (to build) for a home studio... and stay under $1400 is greatly appreciated.
:confused:
Click to expand...
$1,400!!!! Holy trust fund Batman!!!

You could buy a Mac!

Okay, I reviewed the config that the other poster submitted and here's my $0.02 worth. A brief beating of the drum... 52 years old, in computers since 1975, into PCs since the 16K IBM PC was introduced with a choice of either PC-DOS or CP/M (betcha' don't know what THAT acronym means!). I've built over a hundred of these things and repaired hundreds more.

This is not to say that I'm a PC God, just that I'm not talking out of the side of my mouth.

Broadly speaking chipsets determine what processor you will be using, what functionality your mobo will have without expansion cards (integrated VGA, FireWire, etc.), and to a somewhat lesser degree what compatibility your PC will have with external devices.

Secondly, because this is going to be strictly an audio box there are things that you REALLY don't need such as SLI and kick ass video processing. This is not to say that those things aren't nice if they come cheap enough, but in audio you're far better off dropping your extra nickels on preamps and mics than on video. The only place where I would personally go overboard regarding video is having two monitors. I think having two monitors is wonderful.

I use NewEgg for price comparisons but not configs. For configs I use MWave. And I must confess, I love doing configs. It's the gearhead in me I guess.

So anyway, here is something that I threw up. UserID is config@yahoo.com, password is config. This hits your budget mark... barely.

Intel E8400 3.0 (1333mhz) Core Duo processor... only about 500% more processsor than you need... with 4GB 800mhz memory on a Asus MicroATX mobo. Processor uses a Zalman CPU cooler. The mobo provides three video outputs... HDMI, DVI-D, and RGB. The PC is bundled into a sweet Lian Li case with great cooling. The mobo is the latest and greatest from Asus. Love MicroATX form factor... wrestling large cases around bites.

Two WD 500GB HDD, a Lite-On SATA DVD, (2) KDS 22" widescreen monitors, a luminescent keyboard (for working in dim light), a cordless mouse, and copy of WinXP pro (32 bit).

Also bundled in is $80 for MWave to build it for you. No effort on your part required.

A little rationale behind the choices.

I splurged on the mobo but not the processor. Both because audio apps are not processor hogs, and because in a year the kick-ass processor that costs $500 bucks will be down around $100 so you can upgrade your PC for less.

Two huge monitors because I love huge dual monitors.

A luminescent keyboard because it's cool and because studio environments are not the brightest places in the world.

A cordless mouse to mitigate the carpal tunnel.

A 500 watt power supply because it's overkill, and anything larger is MASSIVE overkill.

WinXP pro because it's more stable than Vista, and 32bit WinXP because 64bit is first and foremost for 64bit applications and even today, 64bit apps are few and far between. 32bit can address 4GB.
 
Wow, thanks so much. I'm looking forward to looking in to that stuff. Couple things though...

I was told that xp32 cannot handle 4 GB ram? ? does that even matter?

Would that cover everything that I'd need? anything missing or anything else?

Two 500 GB hard drives? Should I not get one 80 GB and one 500GB, since I already have a couple 750 externals?

Should I not upgrade the processor to the Core2 Quad Q6600 for only $30 more?

Have you looked at my Newegg wishlist? Any thoughts?

Your input is greatly appreciated. I'm almost oblivious to this stuff w/ regard to what is in my best interest.
 
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