Start from scratch

[Walter Mitty]

Ok.....I want to look at buying a new computer with the intent to do some recording. I am buying from scratch because my piece of sh*t Compaq is completely useless. First, should I go name brand (Dell) or DIY. If DIY can someone recommend a shop (preferably in Los Angeles).
Next, what exactly do I need to get. I'm thinking a 45gb 7200 rpm hardrive, at least 128 mb RAM, and a PIII 733 mhz processor. Is this a good start?
I also need to focus on a good soundcard. I will not be doing any huge live recordings in the near future, so what basic soundcard will let me record my vocals and piano simultaneously without breaking my bank. Keep in mind though, that I love quality but don't want to spend more than a couple hundred on this.
I currently use N-Tracks and am liking it quite a lot. This should suffice for the time being right? How many tracks would I expect to record effortlessly with the above gear?
Also, could someone recommend some monitors (bang for the buck).
Thanks very much

 

[foo]

What you are going to buy is very good for what you are trying to do.

If the computer is going to be used for anything else apart from recording, you need 2 hard drives - one for the programs and one dedicated to recording.

10 Gig for programs and 20 - 30 Gig for the recording should be fine.

Check out this site for soundcard comparisons:

http://www.bway.net/~rongon/home_rec/soundcard.html

Custom shop is the best way to go. They're right there if you have a problem, and it'll probably be cheaper that Dell/Gateway, etc.

Don't know about L.A., but check the yellow pages, call 'em up and tell 'em what you're doing.

You'll know immediately if they have a clue.

Don't know about N-tracks, don't know about number of tracks.

Monitors - I use Yamaha NS-10's and like them a lot, but you also need power.

There are self-powered ones available - I've heard recommendations for Event 20/20's but I've never heard them. USe the search function on this site.


... and good luck

foo

 

[malgovert]

foo i'm interested in what you say above - why do the program and recording hard drives have to be separate - is it just tidier to separate them? cheers - malgo

 

[Mdk]

Sorry but this ones for malgovert. I use windows and unix, so in my experience its best to have two hard drives because if you keep them seperate your info is more likely to be kept. Lets say you run windows 95/98, if it crashes you may loose hours of recording. (if windows and recordings are on the same disk) But if its all on a seperate drive chances our it'll be saved. Also lets say it's a family computer you can keep all your stuff protected (from little jimmy) with a password or some other counter measure.

and Walter, if you go two hard drives you may want to see if you can get a removable unit for recording. ( i have know idea if it'll affect anything though) This way your recordings are portable from computer to computer. Although a zip drive would accomplish this just as well.

 

[jamiecer]

My only advice is to make sure you have some sort of back up device. I do lots of work in ProTools and am constant ly burning CD's of my entire sessions. It costs me 50 cents for a CD'r and I have a back up. It is the cheapest insurance policy you will ever own. If my drive crashes. It sucks but I can replace the drive and be up and running in no time flat.

best of luck with your new system