Hey you computer dudes....would this be a good DAW PC?

  • Thread starter Thread starter thajeremy
  • Start date Start date
Depends what you want to do

Personally I'd pass. the PSU looks horrible, the case is a gamer case and is not noise dampened so far as I can see.

ASUS Mobos have been of incosistent quality recently (I was ready to sign a deal with a suplier and then had 3 back to back failures on their MOBOs) and they're also not consistently using Texas Instrumenrs FW chipsets which offer best audio compatibility

AMD chips are way behind intel right now at every price point and this is not a particularly good chip to begin with. Right now I go intel performance they are better and compatibility wise there seem to be less issues with intel chipsets.

Seagate drives are decent although a 32MB cache would be preferable on a single drive system

RAM is OK

You get what you pay fo I guess
 
Bristol Posse said:
Depends what you want to do
Click to expand...

+1 to everything Bristol said but his first line is the most important. Like how many tracks you will be recording at a time, how many effects you think you will use, if the PC will be in the same room you are tracking or mixing in, etc. As you think about these questions you really should think about "a couple years from now" too.

For my own needs, if I bought that setup today I would probably be tossing it within a year for something more powerful, though you just might want to record your voice and an acoustic for all we know. If you already have a computer, an upgrade might be the better way to go. Even if you don't have a good knowledge of the guts of a PC...you might know someone who does...or get help from us here. Check out this post I made in a different thread for some rock solid parts in that very same price range:

https://homerecording.com/bbs/showpost.php?p=3101411&postcount=5
 
ilantis-studio said:
+1 to everything Bristol said but his first line is the most important. Like how many tracks you will be recording at a time, how many effects you think you will use, if the PC will be in the same room you are tracking or mixing in, etc. As you think about these questions you really should think about "a couple years from now" too.

For my own needs, if I bought that setup today I would probably be tossing it within a year for something more powerful, though you just might want to record your voice and an acoustic for all we know. If you already have a computer, an upgrade might be the better way to go. Even if you don't have a good knowledge of the guts of a PC...you might know someone who does...or get help from us here. Check out this post I made in a different thread for some rock solid parts in that very same price range:

https://homerecording.com/bbs/showpost.php?p=3101411&postcount=5
Click to expand...

I have a small project studio that keeps me fairly busy...my current PC has an AMD 4000+ with 3 gig of ram, 2 - 160 gig HDs.

If I go with the parts you recommend, which are well within my price range, all I would need would be a case and power supply to actually build the thing correct? Sorry...I have never actually built a PC....

thanks for the info...
 
I'm with the other guys. The gigabyte board is one of the best. And it keeps getting cheaper with the rebate.
 
based on what i keep reading here and in other posts n such, should i go gigabyte over asus then? because i was going to pick up a bare bones computer with an asus p5q mobo and a core 2 duo 2.8GHz 1066 fsb (don't remember the number). for like 400 Canadian.
 
travisisgood said:
based on what i keep reading here and in other posts n such, should i go gigabyte over asus then? because i was going to pick up a bare bones computer with an asus p5q mobo and a core 2 duo 2.8GHz 1066 fsb (don't remember the number). for like 400 Canadian.
Click to expand...

Seems like Buck and I are on the same page here. I used to be an ASUS/AMD fanboy for years, but a little research shows that their products have been slipping in recent years. I am sure they will rebound, but for right now...I would shy away from them. I have been very happy with the Intel, Gigabyte and MSI boards that I have purchased in recent history.

thajeremy said:
If I go with the parts you recommend, which are well within my price range, all I would need would be a case and power supply to actually build the thing correct? Sorry...I have never actually built a PC....
Click to expand...

You could possibly avoid a case and PSU purchase if you put the new parts in the old case...but then again, you are so close to a whole new PC that it might be worth it to go the extra mile. You are correct in only needing a case and PSU to make a whole new PC though.

A word of advice though...don't scrimp on either of these last two components. A good case will last you literally forever. I have been using my Antec Sonata for about 9 years now...$100 well spent. And the last thing you need is a chintsy PSU that kills the rest of your PC components if it dies.
 
Definitely Gigabyte over Asus. And again I'm right there with Ilantis, don't skimp on a case or PSU. :)
 
I can pick out a case easy enough....and I might go with a rack mount case...but what size PSU would you guys recommend?
 
Be careful with 1066 DDR2 RAM. it's basically overclocked DDR2 800 RAM and often requires non startd voltage to run properly. In this case the RAM quoted needs 2.2 volts (standard is 1.8v)

There's nothing wrong with the RAM suggested, just be aware that tiy will need to check the RAM settings in the Bios to ensure votages and speeds are correct or you may end up with undervolted, glitchy RAM

If your not comfortable doing this you should buy DDR2 800 RAM as this will be running at standard voltage and the speed/bandwidth decrease will not be particularly noticable
 
Bristol Posse said:
Be careful with 1066 DDR2 RAM. it's basically overclocked DDR2 800 RAM and often requires non startd voltage to run properly. In this case the RAM quoted needs 2.2 volts (standard is 1.8v)

There's nothing wrong with the RAM suggested, just be aware that tiy will need to check the RAM settings in the Bios to ensure votages and speeds are correct or you may end up with undervolted, glitchy RAM

If your not comfortable doing this you should buy DDR2 800 RAM as this will be running at standard voltage and the speed/bandwidth decrease will not be particularly noticable
Click to expand...

Sorry for the confusion. Bristol's right, look at 800 instead of 1066.
 
Oh yea....I cant seem to find out how much RAM that Mobo will support...I plan to install WinXP....I think that only supports up to 3GB, is that correct??
 
thajeremy said:
Oh yea....I cant seem to find out how much RAM that Mobo will support...I plan to install WinXP....I think that only supports up to 3GB, is that correct??
Click to expand...

Don't know exactly which MOBO you went for but most socket 775 now support at least 4 gigs.
With a decent MOBO and Bios you should be able to address somewhere between 3.5 - 3.75 gigs of RAM on a 32 bit system like XP
To my mind the only way to sensibly do RAM in dual channel (DDR 2) is matched pairs without mixing and matching memory size or speed so basically either 2 gig or 4 gig. 4 gig gives you headroom and with DDR2 prices coming down why not

Case not bad, I prefer a more silent cases like antec but this one is OK.

PSU corsair make nice units (or at least seasonics do on their behalf) I generally go for power headroom and put at least 500W in my builds so you don't have to worry about running out of juice if you start adding a lot of bells and whistles and bus powered gear.
 
Im not overly concerned with the PC noise...not that I want it sounding like a jet plane...but my desk has a cabinet space for the tower....

I think Im about ready to start ordering.....Hopefully Ill get it done by this weekend....

Ill keep you guys updated...

thanks for all your help...
 
I also would suggest 4GB and only started you with 2GB as I thought you were on a budget when you posted that case. If you can throw some extra money out there I'd look for a better case. That PSU you posted will be good, and should be fairly quite with the 120mm fan.

Here's a good set of RAM to go in the Gigabyte MOBO.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231122
 
just placed my order....I upgraded my case just a little from the one I posted....

here is what I got....


case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147033

Processor: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115207

mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128359

PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182031

HD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148395

RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231122

for a total of $553.83 with shipping....

not bad considering I called a local computer shop who quoted me $100 more for less computer....
 
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