Question Home studio PC for $1.4k

[ganymede]

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.
Mainly: music recording and editing on Linux. This means:

• Must be as quiet as possible.
• Must have stable, noise-free USB power (for external recording hardware).
• (because of Linux) No dedicated GPU. Haven't had good experiences with either nVidia or ATi.

Occasionally: hobbyist photo editing, maybe eventually RAW development.

Other considerations:

• Feel free to suggest mini-ITX builds, but only if the case has no built-it/hard-to-replace fans (see 5.)
• I'm planning a dual-head setup, two identical display outputs would be nice (i.e. 2 HDMI, 2 DP etc.)

2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread
$1400.

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.
US (NYC area)

4. IF you're buying parts OUTSIDE the US, please post a link to the vendor you'll be buying from.
We can't be expected to scour the internet on your behalf, chasing down deals in your specific country... Again, help us, help YOU.

5. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc.
Haven't been disappointed by Noctua yet, planning to use them exclusively for cooling. No other preference.

6. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
I have an HDD for storage, just need an SSD to run OS.

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
Default speeds.

8. What resolution, not monitor size, will you be using?
4K on Linux still seems wonky, so let's go with 1080p (dual-head). 4K dual-head

9. WHEN do you plan to build it?
I can start ordering parts basically right away.

10. Do you need to purchase any software to go with the system, such as Windows or Blu Ray playback software?

 

[Arkaign]

Fwiw, someone has a nice AMD RX570 Strix 4GB for $50 shipped in FS/FT. It's almost identical in performance to the 1650S tier, though it uses a little more power (not that a 650 or 850 would have trouble with it).

If it is a match for your Linux distro, that's an easy $100 to tuck into your rainy day fund or beef up your SSD, etc.

 

[LOUISSSSS]

didn't read through the entire thread, but OP didn't make any mention of gaming, etc. isn't there a more quiet video card that won't ramp up the fan speed in a small tight case without much airflow?

 

[dlerious]

When your computer running flat out takes less than 50% of the psu's rated output.

The efficiency doesn't drop off that fast. You lose 2%-3% going from 50% load to 20% load. A Titanium rated supply is supposed to be 90% efficient at 10% load (same as gold at 50% load). You're going to pay a premium though.

 

[Kenmitch]

I'd suggest viewing Microcenter if your withing driving distance of one of the stores. They have bundle deals which tend to stack.