Help building a PC?

  • Thread starter Thread starter burnisgood
  • Start date Start date
B

burnisgood

New member
Hi, Ok so after much research I have decided to go with the mixerless option and get a Presonus Firepod.

Also I will have to get a completely new computer as mine is crap. However all the things I have read it seems it is alot better to build your own PC than buy a manufactured one.

The specs for the firepod are:

Windows
• OS: Microsoft Windows XP
• Computer: Windows compatible computer with FireWire port.
• CPU/Clock: Pentium, Athlon with 900Mhz or higher (1.5GHz)
• Memory(RAM): 256 MB (512MB recommended)

So as I have no experience building computers (don't worry I will be researching and using my IT manager friend!!!!) could someone please help me by listing exactly what I'll need to build one. The specs are obviously a minimum and I would like it as good as possible. Maybe reccomend some specific components?

Thanks alot this will help out a great deal!!
 
If you are aiming for a high performance audio computer, just buy the most bad-ass processor you can afford. The most memory you can afford, and the best motherboard you can afford. Get a power supply that is more than you'd ever need. I won't tell you brands because I don't know as well as some people on here I'm sure. But don't skimp on the quality of your components to save a few bucks if you can afford not to. Definitely go with multiple hard drives to keep one dedicated to audio. You don't need to worry too much about a fancy graphics card, just something that will get the job done. Forget a soundcard because you won't need one, obviously. I would sugest a motherboard with dual channel RAM, and just put in as much as you can afford to. 1 gig would get you started.
You'll need a case, a motherboard, a processor, RAM, a graphics card, a power supply (may come with the case), hard drive(s), cd/dvd drive, and potentially a firewire card if you don't get a motherboard with it.
 
Nice one. That is a lot of help.

I have found a website buildeasypc.com that has a real idiots guide on how to build your own pc. This si good because I am a real idiot when it comes to this!!!!

But yeah thanks a lot.
 
Motherboard--

ecs kn1 extreme http://www.xpcgear.com/ecskn1extreme.html
soundcard-esi juli@ http://www.tracertek.com/juli@.htm
case-(anyone really, mid-tower)http://www.directron.com/vb6000bws.html

cpu-athlon 64 3000 http://www.dealtime.com/xPC-AMD_ATHLON64_3000_PIB_21642964

memory(1 gig, the motherboard can hold 4)http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145505

video card-(two monitors)http://www.monarchcomputer.com/Merc...ore_Code=M&Product_Code=190333&AFFIL=FRG&NR=1

hard drive-storage http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=101560

hard drive for os/grafix/program files
http://www.compatible-parts.com/product_info.php?products_id=154?ad_Comp_Froogle

operating system-wn xp 64 professional(http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/64bit/default.mspx)


with this pC, you wont need to upgrade for a while, and it will BLAZE.

you can assemble it piece by piece. I will be glad to help you with it if you would like.These are the product suggestions, but are not the cheapest prices..i just wanted to show you the products..for the best pricing,..use www.newegg.com, www.directron.com and www.zipzoomfly.com

I have a variation of this as my DAW...and man oh man does it FLY!!!
like I said, it is 64 bit, and you wont need to upgrade for a while...you can add 3 more gigs of memory, and a total of 8 hard drives(I have a terabyte of storage) it isnt the most expensive or flashy, but is rock solid, and will do whatever you need it to.
 
Here is a list of components you might look at:


Mainboard
-----------------------------------
Abit AV8 VIA K8T800 Pro (Socket 939) Motherboard (MB-052-AB)


CPU Cooler
----------
Zalman CNPS7000B-Cu Ultra-Quiet CPU Cooler - Retail (HS-010-ZA)


CPU
---
AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 3800+ (Socket 939) - Retail (ADA3800BVBOX) (CP-134-AM)


RAM
---
Corsair 1GB DDR XMS3200C2PT TwinX (2x512MB) CAS2 (MY-030-CS)


PSU
---
Antec Phantom 500

---

On top of this you will need a DVD/CD RW and some hard drives.
I would recommend getting two hard drives (put the swap file on the drive that does not house the system partition).
Seagate drives have served me well in the past.
If you can afford it, also get an external hard drive for back-ups and transporting large projects from place to place.

For the DVD/CD reader/burner I would go for a Plextor if you want something that will last. If you don't have the cash for Plextor, NEC make decent cheap optical drives.

A nice case is the Lian Li PC-60. Lian Li make nice cases IMO. You may want to make some adjustments to case fans in order to reduce noise. Devices like this can be useful for that:
http://www.overclock.co.uk/customer/product.php?productid=16198

You should only need one exhaust and one intake fan on the case, both running fairly slowly.
Get a passively-cooled (i.e. fanless) video card if you can, as the fans on these can cause noise problems.

Whatever you go for - I would certainly look at whether the software you plan to use is multithreaded or not. AMD and Intel both make good dual-core CPUs at an affordable price right now, and for multi-threaded software (and multi-tasking in general) they make a hell of a difference.

Cubase SX3 is said to gain huge performance benefits when using dual core for instance.

I would go for an AMD X2 myself (and did), as they generally outperform the Intel Pentium-D, for the same money.
 
Last edited:
I wish I could buy you people a drink!!!!

Thank you VERY much for your time and effort.
 
Oh yeah..forgot to add the cd/dvd drives...I have em both...LG cd drive and NEC dvd(dual layer)

teddy


Codmate said:
Here is a list of components you might look at:


Mainboard
-----------------------------------
Abit AV8 VIA K8T800 Pro (Socket 939) Motherboard (MB-052-AB)


CPU Cooler
----------
Zalman CNPS7000B-Cu Ultra-Quiet CPU Cooler - Retail (HS-010-ZA)


CPU
---
AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 3800+ (Socket 939) - Retail (ADA3800BVBOX) (CP-134-AM)


RAM
---
Corsair 1GB DDR XMS3200C2PT TwinX (2x512MB) CAS2 (MY-030-CS)


PSU
---
Antec Phantom 500

---

On top of this you will need a DVD/CD RW and some hard drives.
I would recommend getting two hard drives (put the swap file on the drive that does not house the system partition).
Seagate drives have served me well in the past.
If you can afford it, also get an external hard drive for back-ups and transporting large projects from place to place.

For the DVD/CD reader/burner I would go for a Plextor if you want something that will last. If you don't have the cash for Plextor, NEC make decent cheap optical drives.

A nice case is the Lian Li PC-60. Lian Li make nice cases IMO. You may want to make some adjustments to case fans in order to reduce noise. Devices like this can be useful for that:
http://www.overclock.co.uk/customer/product.php?productid=16198

You should only need one exhaust and one intake fan on the case, both running fairly slowly.
Get a passively (i.e. fanless) video card if you can, as the fans on these can cause noise problems.

Whatever you go for - I would certainly look at whether the software you plan to use is multithreaded or not. AMD and Intel both make good dual-core CPUs at an affordable price right now, and for multi-threaded software (and multi-tasking in general) they make a hell of a difference.

Cubase SX3 is said to gain huge performance benefits when using dual core for instance.

I would go for an AMD X2 myself (and did), as they generally outperform the Intel Pentium-D, for the same money.
Click to expand...
 
i would suggest a little more than the AMD 3000+ cpu mentined, i'm running a 3200+ right now and it does rock but i have maxed it out before. If you can affored it, i would go with something more powerful.
 
One thing with your firepod that will drive you nuts is that xp service pack 2 makes some changes to the firewire port and thus renders your firepod useless. No it dosnt break it. A quick hot fix from the microsoft site will fix it.

You dont need dual core right now unless your recording software is designed to utilize dual processors. It will not benefit you any. Also AMD works well. I use it.

Motherboard-- Motherboards for AMD are about 20 to 30 dollars cheaper than Intel. If you go with AMD get a motherboard with at least a socket 939. The socket 754 motherboard price looks tempting but is limited on upgradeability and bandwith. ASUS is a good brand is use the K8V

On hard drive get SATA150. Seagate brand offers 3 year warrenty. the longest I think.

Graphics card- i think the fx5500 has a good price on it. this component is not all that important in recording. but dual monitor comes in handy if you have a card with two outs.

memory- at least one gig of 3200 dual channel. but your motherboard memory slots have to support dual channel. when you buy memory say you buy 512 make sure its not two sticks of 256. that way you will not fill all your slots (thats if you have four on your motherboard) so if you want to add more memory.
power supply- dont go skimppy on your PSU. Some look cool but are cheap and can fail after a month or burn up some of your components. Antec is a top brand. you can get a good one for $70. A good powersupply will ensure your PC runs for a long time

Case- a good case will ensure minimal hard drive, fan noise. I've tried hard drives in different cases and notice some make more noise than others. some cases look cool but are very cheaply made. dont buy the ones that come with a power supply as they are often cheap PSU's
 
metalhead28 said:
If you are aiming for a high performance audio computer, just buy the most bad-ass processor you can afford...
Click to expand...

I respectfully disagree.

If you compare the baddest PC of a year ago to the baddest PC of today, there will be some performance hit, maybe 10%, but you'll save maybe $500. If you buy a nice mic with that $500, ten years from now you'll still have a nice mic, but either PC will be gone and you will have been able to make the same recordings with either machine.

Every dollar plowed into a PC will lose value very quickly. But, yeah, lots of RAM, a couple of fast hard drives, are a good idea.
 
apl said:
I respectfully disagree.

If you compare the baddest PC of a year ago to the baddest PC of today, there will be some performance hit, maybe 10%, but you'll save maybe $500. If you buy a nice mic with that $500, ten years from now you'll still have a nice mic, but either PC will be gone and you will have been able to make the same recordings with either machine.

Every dollar plowed into a PC will lose value very quickly. But, yeah, lots of RAM, a couple of fast hard drives, are a good idea.
Click to expand...

I see your point, but I was drawing my conclusions based on my recent trip to the computer store. Checking out the processors seemed to show there was not much spread in the prices. $200 for a decent P4, or $275-350 for a dual core or very high speed P4. AMD may be even cheaper. I just think the 75 bucks or so would be worth it. I would totally agree if we were talking about a $500 difference.
 
Oh, and stay the hell away from winxp 64. There are hardly any hardware drivers for it
 
As for a case, check out the Antec Sonata. It's designed to be quieter than the average case.

I agree with the call on Seagate drives. I've only had one fail and that was after about 5 years.
 
*Seagate hard drives - Good, reliable, have a 5-year warranty. Enough said.

Note: If you have a steady source of income, remember the following: RAM can be upgraded by adding a chip--nothing is lost. Processor, however, must be removed to be replaced--upgrading costs money. For this reason, I recommend putting more money into processor and buying more RAM a little later, IF you: A) need the computer now B) will get money for RAM in the next while, and C) can afford to put more money into processor. Although, really, as someone else pointed out, by going just below the belt of "top of the line," you save a lot of money which could go towards a good mic or soundcard.

Decent case fans will always be nice--they'll neeed to move a lot of air to cool CPU/2 hard drives at 7200RPM, and decent soundcard. More importantly, though, is that they have to do so fairly quietly. This is often overlooked--even by myself. My computer sounds like a freaking air conditioner--until I buy my new case.
 
altitude909 said:
Oh, and stay the hell away from winxp 64. There are hardly any hardware drivers for it
Click to expand...

They are coming though...I wouldnt rule it out. 64 bit is supposed to work better for music applications...and 64 bit will definitely be the standard..It’s clear that Windows XP Professional x64 Edition WILL, in time.. provide the necessary support for the 64 bit applications, but it will take a few monthsr for their appearance. Until then, those who’ll chose to install this version of Windows will be fine runing 32-bit applications/hardware..so yeah..you can use the hardware and software,..and in a year from now, the full capability will be utilized..why not get something that isnt going to be obselete soon??

xp64 is a great choice..youll be able to use the hardware/software with it..the FULL CAPABILITY of the 64 bit architecture wont be realized till a few months,..but still.... Embrace the future. :)
 
If you just go to tigerdirect.com its a big help. It gives you a tower, motherboard, all the stuff you need from scratch to burners, and memory and etc. I hope this helps you man, I bought my computer from there emachine T2615
 
another thing is to keep away from generic and unknown brands.
here are some of the top brands to look for

Hard drive-(moderate price) Seagate, (expensive)Western Digital,(best value) Maxtor
CPU- AMD athlon, Intel pentium4,
ram-(Best value)corsiar, (ok)kingston,(expensive) viking
Power supply- Antec(expensive)
Mother board-AUSU(expensive), gigabit(moderate)
Video card-leadtech, asus, ATI raidon
expensive does not mean it's expensive its just price compared to the other brands.
anyone feel free to add to the list. I know theres other good value high performace componants
 
Jay_west said:
If you just go to tigerdirect.com its a big help. It gives you a tower, motherboard, all the stuff you need from scratch to burners, and memory and etc. I hope this helps you man, I bought my computer from there emachine T2615
Click to expand...


Tiger Direct used to be my go to store.....but I had two horrible experiences with them a few months back involving 2,000 dollars that I am still waiting to get back in the mail...(and am now taking legal action)...www.newegg.com, www.directron.com, www.zipzoomfly.com and www.xoxide.com (for cases) are the best retailers, in my opinion..and by best I mean prices coupled with reliable customer service..Tiger Direct is lacking in the Customer Service dept.
 
ram/...also mushkin, and OCZ.
power supplies/..thermaltake..Aerocool, Antec, Aspire, CoolMax' Enermax
Motherboards/..ASUS(you had AUSU ;) ), ABit, gigabyte, chaintech, msi, aopen, epox..
video card/--Matrox(VERY good for audio pcs), XFX,BFG
sound card/--well..AVOID creative labs...but good ones for our purposes are/Lynx(top of the line) , Esi(the Juli@ is fantastic, i have one), maudio(proven reliable AND bit perfect)
cd drive/lg, nec, sony
dvd drive..lg, nec, sony
hard drives..plextor, maxtor..wd, seagate, hitachi, fujitsu
cases..go to www.xoxide.com and you will see all the cases you could dream of. :eek:






altiris said:
another thing is to keep away from generic and unknown brands.
here are some of the top brands to look for

Hard drive-(moderate price) Seagate, (expensive)Western Digital,(best value) Maxtor
CPU- AMD athlon, Intel pentium4,
ram-(Best value)corsiar, (ok)kingston,(expensive) viking
Power supply- Antec(expensive)
Mother board-AUSU(expensive), gigabit(moderate)
Video card-leadtech, asus, ATI raidon
expensive does not mean it's expensive its just price compared to the other brands.
anyone feel free to add to the list. I know theres other good value high performacecomponants
Click to expand...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top