Music Production PC Setup - Last pick

[barbaroja9]

I'm building a PC for music production.

I have narrowed my search to:

Abit AB9
Gigabyte 965P-DS3
Asus P5B

Conroe CPU E6300 or E6400

I don't know which memory to put in if I'm not an extreme overclocker (DDR2 667 or 800 or what)? Maybe I'll overclock somewhat, but it looks to me that spending huge loads of money for memory and HSF's and Top of the line boards is not as effective as to spend that money in processor... at least for what I do.

Im leaning towards the Abit board cause it has Firewire header (I will need it for a Presonus Firebox).

Any thoughts on board and memory?

Thanks!

 

[corkyg]

Asus P5B also has two Firewire ports/headers on the mainboard.

I would get the best 2 GB of memory that matches the CPU and mobo.

You won't need to OC with that rig. It should work faster than you can input data. 🙂

 

[barbaroja9]

Ok. That setup is becuse I need processing power, in fact, I won't be recording more than two channels at a time, so data input is not a concern is this case, but do are the VST plugins. Those are true CPU hungry programs, and that's the reason for maybe OC'ing a bit. (Just in case mu CPU can't manage all the plugs at a time).

The memory choosing is based from a fact that I saw, that a 667 mem would do like 1% to 2% slower than 800 in a conroe setup, so, I would prefer to spend those extra dollars in processor, dont you think?

 

[Rob9874]

I'm looking to upgrade my PC, and plan on doing some recording & MP3 editing too. Any reason why not to get a laptop? I'd love the portability of it (so I don't have to move my guitar into my office to record), and saw Sebastian Bach doing it on SuperGroup. I'm waiting for the Core 2 Duos, and can't see why it would have a disadvantage over a desktop. Anything specific I should look for? Firewire for sure?

 

[corkyg]

Originally posted by: barbaroja9
The memory choosing is based from a fact that I saw, that a 667 mem would do like 1% to 2% slower than 800 in a conroe setup, so, I would prefer to spend those extra dollars in processor, dont you think?

Yes - I agree with that. CPU and memory together are a solid basis. I have now sort of retired from the music creation business - I used to do a lot with Roland and Yamaha synths with Voyetra software. That was before things got so easy with PnP and XP.

I think you are on the right track. What will be your primary input sources?

 

[barbaroja9]

Well, right now, I´m in the dance music biz. Since it seem s like my first releases are coming out (I hope!!!) i just got to upgrade from my athlon 3000+ 939 and and onboard soundcard. Since I found that presonus firebox, I´ve been doing a lot of research, and it looks like it has great preamps and converters. Some picky people said that is great as a DI (direct injection) box, so my fender bass and strat guitars sure will sound good when I put them trough guitar rig. And will get a decent mic, like an akg preception or an audio technica 2020 mic. That´s for the input. A sony v6 headphone for some monitoring, krk rp6 monitors, and a future rp10 sub. Thats my dream studio, has all that I need and maybe could need! Just FL Studio rocking hard.

But for the memory, still got the doubt... 533, 667, 800?

I realized the processor (E6300), motherboard (Gigabyte DS3), graphics (X1600Pro), HD (Seagate Barracuda ST3320620AS), but the memory is my pain now! HELP!!!

if I put that corsair mem ($250)(800) dont know if I´m going to experience any significative improvement? is it true? is it a must for OC? is it worth the $100 more from the Value pack?

Best,

 

[oynaz]

I use lots of VST plugins as well, and even though they are rumoured to be CPU-hungry, I have not come even lose to bringing my P4C 2,4 Ghz to its knees. Your E6300 should make mincemeat of them, so I do not see any need for overclocking.

 

[DRamey]

I have moved most of my music production to a laptop and I love it. It is so much quieter than my PC. I can record vocals or acoustic guitars and still be in range of the computer. I had to run cords to another room with my PC. My laptop is a core duo 1.66g and I haven't run out of horsepower yet. Granted I haven't had a chance to push it all that hard. I should transfer over one of my more complicated songs and see if it can handle it. I picked up a MOTU Ultralite (firewire) and will probably end up selling my Delta 10/10 and mixer, I just don't need them anymore.

Computers have gotten to the point that even an average machine can handle music production.

 

[barbaroja9]

So, it looks like it is going to be the 677 ram...

 

[barbaroja9]

I hope that I have never to worry about CPU usage, as I am actually, bouncing channels can be a little boring and limiting when you're creating a song. For example I use a lot the waves plugs, those are known to EAT cpu (at least in a pc, in a mac they're more efficient)