Computer upgrade question?

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Kelley

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I am currently looking into buying a new tower for my computer recording. What would be the best system for my money. I'm looking particularly for a Dell tower because I can get them from a friend. What should I get and how much will it cost? I also have a Delta 44 I will install in my tower.
 
I would'nt buy squat from Dell.....but thats just me.
I prefer to build from scratch.
This is where I get my goodies.
www.vitalitycomputers.com
Great prices, great service. Its local for me, but you can order online.
As far as towers, full tower is the way to go with several fans with at least a 400 watt PS.
 
Kelley

You really do owe it to yourself to price out a DIY PC. You may be able to get a good price from you're friend the Dell dude but I was flabbergasted with the difference in price of what I can get now versus what I had spec'd out less than a year ago. It's crazy. And then you don't have to start out by wiping the HD and reloading just the stuff YOU want.
 
Hello, I'm kinda confused with you guys suggesstions. What is a DIY PC? and how do I know a computer has 400 watts and how many fans. I know I'm not able to build one from scratch so I'd just rather buy one. Anything would be better than the old piece of crap I have now!
 
DIY = do it yerself ;).

If you buy something thats already built with stock parts ie generic, you'll be saying it's an old piece of crap in no time, once you start trying to record with it. Recording software and hardware are generally kinda picky about what works with what.

Anybody can build their own machine, it is not hard, for that matter anything remotely resembling rocket science.

You will get much better value for the money if you research and build it yourself. Before you start you have to ask yourself, what do you want to use it for. Strictly recording, gaming, general internet use, or all of the above? How fast do you want it to be? If you are recording, what kindof soundcard do you want? OK you already have one of those, the next step is to find out which motherboard's are most compatible with your soundcard, because not all motherboards are.

The thing is, if you are just looking for a quick solution, a year from now when you know more about whats going on, you will probably wish you had spent more time learning about computers. Specifically DIY. Ask questions, and read around, it will only pay for itself in the end in the form of less headache.


bla bla bla...:D
 
Ok, so what do I need to start with and which direction should I go in from there? Please be specific because I am an amateur to this.
 
Find an article on building your own computer. EQ magazine had one they built for $400 last month. Pro Rec (www.prorec.com) has had a couple of articles on it as well. Step by step stuff. These articles may be a little dated as far as the components they used are concerned but the construction concepts are the same. Do a search for DIY PC on google. You're gonna have to read and learn about this. It isn't gonna drop in your lap. Don't worry in a few months you'll be throwin' terms like "I uplinked my hard drive through my CD player and had it autonomously generate SQL code that transmitted through my modem and made the RAM defrag itself."
 
I've built some AMD based computers for recording. Worked out nicly with a custom 80mm CPU heatsink fan I make. You can buy heatsinks cheap that way too. Didn't know till I already made some though. Just quieter for recording than those regular 6000 RPM CPU fans.
I'm gonna build something in a few weeks for my birthday and here's the parts list in case you're curious:

-Tower case with clear side panel and decent 400 watt power supply. Extra glow fans for music creativeness. :D

-Biostar Nforce2 mainboard with onboard video/USB2/1394/NIC/audio (There's nicer ones like Asus and ABit brands out there but Biostar works good and cheap)

-AMD Athlon XP Barton 2500+ Retail CPU. Comes with heatsink/fan but I'll use that for something else.

-60x80 CPU heatsink fan to be modded with an 80mm glow fan for low noise.

-Qty (2) 256 MB PC2700 cl2 DDR memory for 512MB

-60 GB Western digital SE (jb) 8MB drive

-Keyboard/optical mouse (both PS2, no USB)
-52xCDRW
-floppy
-extra IDE cable (motherboards usually only come with one)


You could typically build something like this for less than $650 without software. It's easy to build a computer, and the nice thing about a do it yourself is all the parts are standardized so it's easier to fix/replace/upgrade stuff.
 
Well, I don't think this guy knows how to build a computer...that's the impression I got. I have a Gateway Pentium 4, 2.4 ghz, 512 mb ram, 180 gig and it's been fine for me. I will upgrade my ram to 1024 soon to avoid ANY possible problems running programs.
 
If you build it yourself, you can upgrade it later with the knowledge you have of your own machine. A lot of retail companies use proprietary parts and cheap generic stuff. Seriously, you can do it fairly cheaply and build a machine better suited to your needs than one you could buy. If you've hooked up a stereo or a PA, you can build a computer. Also, if you already have a computer, you can save some money and reuse some of the parts from that one...like:

  • monitor
  • keyboard
  • mouse
  • CD ROM and CD-R drives
  • Floppy drive
  • DVD drive
  • video card (if it isn't built onto the mobo)
  • hard drive (if you have a large/fast one)

You can also reuse the modem or network card if it's separate, but most new motherboards have a 10/100 network adapter built on. Really, if you have a machine already, all you'd probably need is a motherboard, memory, and processor...as well as whatever sound stuff you want.

Even if you don't have computer to sacrifice for parts, you'd be better off DIY.

my 2¢
 
Kelly,

Building your own computer has some major advantages. You can choose each and every component so you can get exactly what you need to and save money vrs one thats built. With a Dell, you are not nessesarly getting generic parts as they stock their computer with pretty good components. You will just pay a premium price for the computer. What do you get for that higher price??
Service/Warranty
If you build your own pc, you will have to get it serviced by a tech if and when something should go wrong. With a Dell pc you call them on the phone and they will walk you through step by step on how to fix it <for free> or send out a tech/new machine.

If your looking for a no hassle, don't care if it costs more type of machine, then Dell makes nice computers.

If you want to customize very specifically and save some money, then built your own.

I have built my last 4 computers and wouldn't do it any other way. I have recommened Dell to people who I know would just call me if their DIY pc got the hiccups.

SpaceBoy
 
oem junk, dell, compact, etc etc... trouble, not high end equipment...

if you have pro audio in mind, avoid them, if at all possible...

pay a little more and save the headaches and time loss/lost...
 
You people need to get off your high horses and stop saying a custom built system is the way to go for DAWs.

There are pleanty of off the shelf systems that are more than suited for DAW work, namely vendors who build high end gaming systems (Alienware, Falcon Systems).

I had been building systems for the last 10 years, but decided to go with a pre built system from vprMatrix (Best Buy's OEM brand). These systems cut no corners like Dell and Compaq do and make use of quality components. My system came with 6 USB 2.0 ports, 2 Firewire and an onboard RAID controller. It makes use of an Intel motherboard and fufills all my DAW needs. The price was very reasonable as well.

www.vprmatrix.com
 
VSpaceBoy said:
If you build your own pc, you will have to get it serviced by a tech if and when something should go wrong.
Click to expand...
I'd never let a "tech" touch my machine. If something goes wrong, it's almost always apparent which component went bad. Just replace that component. If it's not immediately apparent, just do a little diagnostics...just like you do when you're chasing the source of feedback...try different stuff until it works. Unless you force/splice together connections that don't fit, or have mallets for hands, you should be OK.

However, if something goes wrong on a store-bought PC, you have to have a tech fix it or bye-bye warranty.



Now I'm up to four cents.
 
brzilian said:
You people need to get off your high horses and stop saying a custom built system is the way to go for DAWs.

There are pleanty of off the shelf systems that are more than suited for DAW work, namely vendors who build high end gaming systems (Alienware, Falcon Systems).

I had been building systems for the last 10 years, but decided to go with a pre built system from vprMatrix (Best Buy's OEM brand). These systems cut no corners like Dell and Compaq do and make use of quality components. My system came with 6 USB 2.0 ports, 2 Firewire and an onboard RAID controller. It makes use of an Intel motherboard and fufills all my DAW needs. The price was very reasonable as well.

www.vprmatrix.com
Click to expand...

you have a point because most people starting into recording have a generic or standard web use system, good, great, but, the demands of a true DAW far exceed a spec, generic 256mb, 20g, 700mhtz system running todays large recording appl...

looking down the road a bit many will surely need to expand there systems in the furture, OEM does not offer much in that respect...

that's why i say go high end or home built when someone post about buying or building a DAW... it is way cheaper to build it yourself, i agree...

not that it can't be done on a spec system but it takes half the time with better results, and your less apt to have system issues attempting to mix 500mb of tracks together, and or, upgrading down the road...

(imho)
 
DAW stands for what? Sorry, Im new to some of these terms as well
 
brzilian said:
You people need to get off your high horses and stop saying a custom built system is the way to go for DAWs.

There are pleanty of off the shelf systems that are more than suited for DAW work, namely vendors who build high end gaming systems (Alienware, Falcon Systems).

I had been building systems for the last 10 years, but decided to go with a pre built system from vprMatrix (Best Buy's OEM brand). These systems cut no corners like Dell and Compaq do and make use of quality components. My system came with 6 USB 2.0 ports, 2 Firewire and an onboard RAID controller. It makes use of an Intel motherboard and fufills all my DAW needs. The price was very reasonable as well.

www.vprmatrix.com
Click to expand...

I would happily build someone on here a computer for their prices. I looked at their FT7100-PE model for comparison.

I think there's a reason people say DIY, and it's not because we're on high horses.

Maybe it's the fact that I can build a VPR Matrix clone, (albeit with the 800Mhz FSB, not the slower 533FSB they seem to be still selling) for $400 less.

Don't even get me started on Alienware and Falcon Northwest's mark up.

I guess it's all in the name of a warranty, right? (and marketing).

If a $400 mark up, when you know you can do it yourself, seems reasonable, then go for it.
 
I've had very good luck with Dell gear. They are low cost, and you can tailor what you want when you order. They have a warrennty and are quality gear.

If you have not built PCs before, this might not be the time to start.

Then there is the question of what level of computer recording you want to do and what $ budget you have. Are you recording a single artist, one track at a time, or entire live bands?

Ed
 
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