Design my system for me

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o.k now i am confused and frustrated..LOL..i thought i had this all figured out then WHAMMO..i found this site and found out that almost everything i thought was backwards. So i think this might be a better way to go. I will tell you how much i have to spend and (if you would please) tell me what you would buy.
First things first i have $5000.00 bucks to spend. What i want is to have a high quality studio setup to record rap/hip-hop tracks at first and latter on R&B music. The setup must include:
1) Computer,proccesor,motherboard,RAM, ECT
2)Digital interface of some sort to connect to the PC
3)Mixer
4)Dat
5)software
6) 1 mic for the rap and 1 for singing

thanks in advance
 
personal preference...

a 1.3 gig athlon
256 meg of ddr ram
a7m mother board
a raid controller card
two 40 gig ibm drives
a matrox g450 32 meg vid card
17" monitor from a pawn shop or computer show..
(add a second monitor later)
delta 10/10 soundcard
logic or cubase or demo a bunch of stuff before you purchase
mackie 1604 vlz mixer
tascam da-20 dat recorder
at 4050 mic for rap and singing (this mic should cover all needs)
about 5100 is what that came to.
 
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Thank you Thank You Thank you... I will start reserching the products you mentioned to see if they will suit me needs. Anyone else wanna help me out?
 
I would invest in a Mac with a G4 processor at around 500mhz. I also would get Digi 001. It comes with ProTools LE software, a midi interface, 8 analog ins/outs, 2 digital ins/outs, 2 mic preamps, and a PCI card, for about $800. Everything else
Ham On Rye said get.

I would go with a Mac instead of a PC because I have heard that Mac's will not crash on you as much as a PC will.
 
now i feel like i am realy getting in over my head. What is a raid card and what does it do? I dont remember who it was but someone ion one of my early posts said this stuff aint for the faint of heart. and i think he/she was right. thanks to everyone for the help
 
If you want reliable quality

The Macs are definitly more reliable, They cost more, But everything is alot easier to use. If you have the Money GO MAC! Don't be misled by people who try to tell you any different.
Anybody who knows a " HIGH QUALITY" studio (as you mentioned) Will tell you what I just did. Anyone who tells you different doesn't know. Those are the people who are closed minded and DO NOT Know. PC's are cool if your strapped for dough. But the Pros use Mac. I'm just saying this because you said you wanted "High Quality". Also with Macs you don't have to sift through so many brands of things that might not be compatible with each other. Everythings alot more simple. They cost more but $5,000.00 will set you up pretty descent. I might have just started a war. Hope Not.

GoodLuck,
T.J.Hooker:cool:
 
not flaming.. but pros have pc's and macs in the same studio's a lot of times.. at least some of the gear lists ive read.. anyhoo, a raid controller is a pci card (good for mac or pc) allows you to take two ide hard drives and have them be seen as one, doubling your throughput.. giving you more track count and more stable track count..
 
o.k so i have started investigating macs and i have noticed the termanology used with macs is differant then with PC's. Im starting to think i am either increibly stupid or this is some very complicated stuff. On page 33 of the new sweetwater cattalog they have a dual processor g4 power mac and it says "it's capable of up to 500 mhz" so what does that mean? is it a 500 mhz proccesor or not and if so wouldent a 1.3 ghz proccesor be better then 2 500mhz proccesors. IM SO DAMN CONFUSED!! Thank you for the info on the raid card. I will start investigating one of those. Also i was told earlier that i shouldent connect whatever digital interface i choose thru a USB port but rather thru a PCI card but this sweetwater cattalog makes USB and Firewire connections seem like the next big thing. Especialy in the ad for the dual g4. So can i get any clairification on why not to use USB?
 
i would stick to pci, their job is to make it seem like a big deal. unless you are laptop bound use pci.. mac vs. pc.? i think you go with what ever makes you comfortable.. though if you go pc, custom is the way to go. if you go mac you'll want to change a lot of shit in my opinion.. there by making it custom.. ive done quite a few sessions with my p.c. with no problems.. to each their own.
 
Be sure the computer is black. Black computers look tough.
 
i am in a perfect situation right now were i make very good money and have very few bills right now. Dont get me wrong i dont want to just throw my money away. But what i am hoping to do is build a studio nice enough to be able to make my music on, run my record company on and rent out by the hour. I currently lay carpet durring the day and run my lil company by night but i definitly dont want to still be laying carpet in 2 years. So i am more then willing to spend the money on whatever the best unit may be i just want to get the most bang for the buck. I dont want my studio to be considerd a "Project studio" Thanks for all the help guys keep it comming
 
Hi,

I think PC is way cheaper.

The most important things are:

Monitors: event 2020 and ns10ms
Preamp: symetrix 528
microphone: rode ntk
soundcard: delta 1010
cables: canare or mogami or monster
sound treatment for your sound booth and control room: auralex
software: Logic audio platinum
effects: Lexicon mpx-1 or T.C m2000

Most of these things can be bought used, and you will have a great system.

You can add external converters for better sound.
 
o.k so i have started searching the net for a site that will help me coustom build a mac g4 so i can see what kinda money im looking at but i have yet to find anything. Is there any sites that help you do such a thing or do i need to buy a regular factory unit and then gut the thing out and add what i want? and i see you mentioned the event 20/20 monitors. are those near feild monitors?
 
it will be cheaper if you buy a bare bones g4 and add good shit to it..
 
Sound Card: Depends on what software you get

Microphone: Audio Technica 4033.

Software: Digi 001 w/ ProTools LE

Effects: Digi 001


A PC is much, much cheaper. A Mac is almost twice as expensive. If you compare a $1200 Dell, you most likely will have to spend $2350 on a Mac for the equivalent.
 
Things to look forward to

Well, The Mac dual processor is designed to run most efficiently with MacOS X (10). I don't think you need the Dual Processor Right Now, not a good Buy. Keep in mind The New Mac G4 500 Mhz is easily twice as fast as the fastest Pentium Running windows. It's like, Two runners. Both have 30 yards to run, But one runner has 15 hurdles the other 20. The runner with only 15 hurdles is gonna get there faster. Anyway, PC or Mac, Your gonna want a 68Pin Ultrawide Fast SCSI accelerator(RAID)(adaptec), PC or Mac, SCSI is the way to go. Also, atleast a 7200 Rpm biggest you can find Harddrive (4-9Gb) or bigger. A soundcard, and that depends on how many tracks you want to record simultaniously. 2,4,8 what ever you need. Then you need a mixer with enough busses. And finally Plenty of RAM. Your Smallest G4 Mac will cost you atleast $2000.00. But they are lightening fast, and much more user friendly. I'm glad to know ham on rye is'nt "Flaming" because he or she is right, Pro's do use both, But, 9.5 X's out of 10, if you see something computer generated in a movie, or hear it on the radio, It was done on a Mac. PC's are more convieniant if you shop WalMart, or Ames. But Mac is where the quality is. Stick to your guns and be strong, It's your Money, Ask around other places. By now your saying "What the hell did I get myself into". Get used to it. It's your life from now on. Your Hooked.
GoodLuck Dude,
T.J.Hooker
 
you are so right t.j. What the hell did i get myself into? LOL.. Anyway i think i will go with a mac G4. but why or should i say how can a 500mhz proccesor be faster then a 1.7 ghz proccesor.
i did ask around at a couple studios in Denver and all i talked to used a Mac computer and sited better quality for the reason why. Plus i never noticed but macs look cooler. So one last question. So my mind can understand in lamens terms you are saying a mac g4 500mhz is faster then a pentium 4 1.7 ghz processor? and how hard are macs to upgrade compared to pc's? Thank all of you guys you have all been very helpfull. Especialy givin the fact that every new person who joins this board asks this same question!
 
I'm not sure if I know how to answer. I know I said it was but, I don't know if the G4 500 is faster than the 1.7, Probably real close. Either way it will run more reliably. But you might need the G4 733($3500.00) to beat the 1.7's CPU speed. Maybe not these things ARE FAST! It's the hurdle analogy again. I don't know exactly how they do it. They just do. I just know what I read, and hear from my buds at the Mac place. And if the pro's are using them, I'm using them. Ya know what I Mean (LOL). The Mac was always designed for professional use. That's why they cost so much, And also why don't see them all over the place Like PC's. They were never designed for home use or gaming. That all changed with the Imac though. Check this forum out

http://acapella.harmony-central.com...forum=MacOS&number=19&DaysPrune=30&LastLogin=

GoodLuck My friend,
T.
 
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My 2 cents

Some time, not too long ago, I also had some money to spend on a recording set up. I researched my heart out, and although I initially thought PC's were the way to go, some digging around showed me I was wrong and MACs were theway to go. This is what I bought.

Mac G4 Dual Processor 500 Mhz. (You will need two hard drives, one for audio files and one for everything else). Buy the fastest there is.

For I/O, I settled for the MOTU 2408. Very felxible, great sound, and easy to use. I also upgraded the Audio Desk software that cam with the 2408 and went with Digital Performer to get a full midi implementation. Digi doesn't touch the midi in Digital Performer. Also, I am chomping at the bit for the next DP upgrade. Check it out on the MOTU site. http://www.motu.com/

As far as upgrading your mac, there are many companies that specialize in upgrades.

Hope this helps.

Albert
 
Yah I forgot about that

Yah I knew I forgot something! The Macs are "verrry" upgradable. The Motu 2408, Very Cool. That's what I've been savin' for.
COOL:cool:
T.J.Hooker
 
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