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If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83654] Tue, 24 April 2007 12:43 Go to next message
Graham Duncan is currently offline  Graham Duncan   UNITED STATES
Messages: 147
Registered: December 2008
Senior Member
Paging Chris Ludwig & other PC gurus...

What's the sweetspot price/performance for Intel Core2 Duo?

Also, what's the recommended:

-Motherboard
-Fanless video card
-Memory
-*quiet* power supply?

Running Samplitude 9.11 on XP Pro with RME Digiface and 1 UAD-1 PCI.
This machine is primarily for mixing but sees some light VSTi usage. I
need it to handle 60+ track mixes at 96k, if possible.

Thanks for any input!

Graham
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83657 is a reply to message #83654] Tue, 24 April 2007 14:37 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Deej [4] is currently offline  Deej [4]   UNITED STATES
Messages: 1292
Registered: January 2007
Senior Member
Intel E6600 Core 2 Extreme - $659.99 for 9.6GHz - looks like they're out of
them today (or $970.00 for QX 6700-10.4GHz)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&am p;N=2+50001157+40000343+1389627502+1050722264&Subcategor y=343&description=&Ntk=&srchInDesc=

2 gig Corsair XMS2 PC6400 (I'm just going with 2 gigs for now) -$158.00

ASUS EN7950GT/HTDP/512M GeForce 7950GT 256-$254.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121 025

Corsair PSU - $169.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139 002

Barracuda 500G SATA-$139.00 x 2= $278.00

$2040.97 for QX 6700

With a QX6600, OEM mobo, RAM and PSU (use your own HD's) around $1300.00




"Graham Duncan" <graham@grahamduncan.com> wrote in message
news:462e5deb@linux...
> Paging Chris Ludwig & other PC gurus...
>
> What's the sweetspot price/performance for Intel Core2 Duo?
>
> Also, what's the recommended:
>
> -Motherboard
> -Fanless video card
> -Memory
> -*quiet* power supply?
>
> Running Samplitude 9.11 on XP Pro with RME Digiface and 1 UAD-1 PCI. This
> machine is primarily for mixing but sees some light VSTi usage. I need it
> to handle 60+ track mixes at 96k, if possible.
>
> Thanks for any input!
>
> Graham
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83658 is a reply to message #83657] Tue, 24 April 2007 15:40 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Graham Duncan is currently offline  Graham Duncan   UNITED STATES
Messages: 147
Registered: December 2008
Senior Member
DJ wrote:
> Intel E6600 Core 2 Extreme - $659.99 for 9.6GHz - looks like they're out of
> them today (or $970.00 for QX 6700-10.4GHz)
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&am p;N=2+50001157+40000343+1389627502+1050722264&Subcategor y=343&description=&Ntk=&srchInDesc=
>
> 2 gig Corsair XMS2 PC6400 (I'm just going with 2 gigs for now) -$158.00
>
> ASUS EN7950GT/HTDP/512M GeForce 7950GT 256-$254.99
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121 025
>
> Corsair PSU - $169.99
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139 002
>
> Barracuda 500G SATA-$139.00 x 2= $278.00
>
> $2040.97 for QX 6700
>
> With a QX6600, OEM mobo, RAM and PSU (use your own HD's) around $1300.00

Thanks, DJ! I've been trying to hold off as long as possible (4 years
on my P4 2.53).

Graham
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83659 is a reply to message #83657] Tue, 24 April 2007 15:52 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Graham Duncan is currently offline  Graham Duncan   UNITED STATES
Messages: 147
Registered: December 2008
Senior Member
Hmmm... so it looks like PCI slots are getting fewer and fewer with the
new Extreme motherboards... as in not even existing on an Intel board! Wow.

Graham

DJ wrote:
> Intel E6600 Core 2 Extreme - $659.99 for 9.6GHz - looks like they're out of
> them today (or $970.00 for QX 6700-10.4GHz)
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&am p;N=2+50001157+40000343+1389627502+1050722264&Subcategor y=343&description=&Ntk=&srchInDesc=
>
> 2 gig Corsair XMS2 PC6400 (I'm just going with 2 gigs for now) -$158.00
>
> ASUS EN7950GT/HTDP/512M GeForce 7950GT 256-$254.99
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121 025
>
> Corsair PSU - $169.99
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139 002
>
> Barracuda 500G SATA-$139.00 x 2= $278.00
>
> $2040.97 for QX 6700
>
> With a QX6600, OEM mobo, RAM and PSU (use your own HD's) around $1300.00
>
>
>
>
> "Graham Duncan" <graham@grahamduncan.com> wrote in message
> news:462e5deb@linux...
>> Paging Chris Ludwig & other PC gurus...
>>
>> What's the sweetspot price/performance for Intel Core2 Duo?
>>
>> Also, what's the recommended:
>>
>> -Motherboard
>> -Fanless video card
>> -Memory
>> -*quiet* power supply?
>>
>> Running Samplitude 9.11 on XP Pro with RME Digiface and 1 UAD-1 PCI. This
>> machine is primarily for mixing but sees some light VSTi usage. I need it
>> to handle 60+ track mixes at 96k, if possible.
>>
>> Thanks for any input!
>>
>> Graham
>
>
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83660 is a reply to message #83659] Tue, 24 April 2007 16:09 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Graham Duncan is currently offline  Graham Duncan   UNITED STATES
Messages: 147
Registered: December 2008
Senior Member
Okay, so Newegg is inconsistent on PCI slots on their pages...

I found these:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813121 060
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813121 059

Looks like I'll be replacing a bunch of perfectly good ATA drives too,
since they only include one ATA connector.

Ah, progress!

Graham
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83661 is a reply to message #83658] Tue, 24 April 2007 15:13 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Deej [4] is currently offline  Deej [4]   UNITED STATES
Messages: 1292
Registered: January 2007
Senior Member
I was gonna make the plunge on a quad myself. Wasn't sure if I was going to
go with a dual socket Xeon or AMD or a single socket Intel Quad. The AMD
Socket F Opteron CPU's will be upgradable to the Barcelona Quads and the
XEONs may be upgradable to Octo cores (not sure though) , but from what I'm
hearing, the single Opteron Quads won't be upgradable on the same mobo to
the upcoming Octos. Still, an Opteron Quad should last you a while and
getting into the server level stuff is a bit pricier. I just about had
myself convinced to go with a Tyan S2915mobo, two Santa Rosas and 4G RAM,
but I'm in a circling pattern right now trying to weigh the necessities. I'm
thinking I could do pretty much everything I want to do on this if I had a
64 bit OS with lots of RAM, but it will require a new 64 bit expansion
chassis (or a lot of new hardware) to do this and that's another $2k.

I think a quad Intel would be a great system and even the less expensive
QX6600 should rock, most riteously!!!

;o)



"Graham Duncan" <graham@grahamduncan.com> wrote in message
news:462e7b13@linux...
> DJ wrote:
>> Intel E6600 Core 2 Extreme - $659.99 for 9.6GHz - looks like they're out
>> of
>> them today (or $970.00 for QX 6700-10.4GHz)
>> http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&am p;N=2+50001157+40000343+1389627502+1050722264&Subcategor y=343&description=&Ntk=&srchInDesc=
>>
>> 2 gig Corsair XMS2 PC6400 (I'm just going with 2 gigs for now) -$158.00
>>
>> ASUS EN7950GT/HTDP/512M GeForce 7950GT 256-$254.99
>> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121 025
>>
>> Corsair PSU - $169.99
>> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139 002
>>
>> Barracuda 500G SATA-$139.00 x 2= $278.00
>>
>> $2040.97 for QX 6700
>>
>> With a QX6600, OEM mobo, RAM and PSU (use your own HD's) around $1300.00
>
> Thanks, DJ! I've been trying to hold off as long as possible (4 years on
> my P4 2.53).
>
> Graham
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83663 is a reply to message #83654] Tue, 24 April 2007 15:33 Go to previous messageGo to next message
John [1] is currently offline  John [1]
Messages: 2229
Registered: September 2005
Senior Member
I got this and think it's the right bang for the buck with room to grow:
Qty. Product Description Total Price
1 DISCOUNT FOR COMBO #26619
Item #: COM $-10.00
Item(s) shipped from CA Tracking Number: #1ZW098R41204494103
Track 1 Intel BOXD975XBX2KR LGA 775 Intel 975X ATX Intel Motherboard -
Retail
Item #: N82E16813121059
Return Policy: Limited 30-Day Return Policy
Intel (800)-628-8686 Please Verify Processor matches order Prior to installation.
IMPORTANT: Always pack you CPU well for return. We will refuse your RMA if
we received it as DAMAGED! $219.99
Track 1 Antec True Power Trio TP3-650 ATX12V 650W Power Supply with Three
12V Rails - Retail
Item #: N82E16817371001
Return Policy: Limited 30-Day Return Policy $109.99
Track 2 Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3400620AS 400GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s
Hard Drive - OEM
Item #: N82E16822148138
Return Policy: Limited 30-Day Return Policy
This item is serviced by the SeaGate. Please call 800 -732-4283 for service.
$239.98
Track 1 Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 Conroe 2.66GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6700
- Retail
Item #: N82E16819115002
Return Policy: Processors (CPUs) Return Policy
Intel (800)-628-8686 Please Verify Processor matches order Prior to installation.
IMPORTANT: Always pack you CPU well for return. We will refuse your RMA if
we received it as DAMAGED! $522.00
Track 1 EVGA 256-P2-N443-LX GeForce 7300GT 256MB GDDR2 PCI Express x16
Video Card - Retail
Item #: N82E16814130052
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
For Tech Support 888/881-EVGA (3842) $69.99
Track 2 mushkin 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual
Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model 996527 - Retail
Item #: N82E16820146118
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy $419.98
Item(s) shipped from NJ Tracking Number: #1Z00377R0300855992
Track 1 Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
Item #: N82E16811129021
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy $119.99
Subtotal: $1,691.92
What's this?Tax: $0.00
Shipping: $32.03
Amount Paid: $1,723.95
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83664 is a reply to message #83660] Tue, 24 April 2007 15:56 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Chris Ludwig is currently offline  Chris Ludwig   UNITED STATES
Messages: 868
Registered: May 2006
Senior Member
Hi Graham,
The Intel board rocks.
I would go for the Retail not the OEM. You'll get all the extra real
nice SATA cables and USB connectors and such.

You can try these to possibly save a few IDE drives.

http://www.granitedigital.com/catalog/pg52_satabridgeboards. htm

But in general I would recommend getting the newer SATA2 drives
especially the Seagates.

If you ever plan on getting a PT HD3 system then the ASUS P5W64 WS Pro
rocks. It's got 4 PCI-e slots ina row that work perfect for an HD3 setup.

Chris




Chris



Graham Duncan wrote:
> Okay, so Newegg is inconsistent on PCI slots on their pages...
>
> I found these:
>
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813121 060
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813121 059
>
> Looks like I'll be replacing a bunch of perfectly good ATA drives too,
> since they only include one ATA connector.
>
> Ah, progress!
>
> Graham

--
Chris Ludwig

ADK Pro Audio
(859) 635-5762
www.adkproaudio.com
chrisl@adkproaudio.com
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83666 is a reply to message #83657] Tue, 24 April 2007 16:04 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Chris Ludwig is currently offline  Chris Ludwig   UNITED STATES
Messages: 868
Registered: May 2006
Senior Member
Hi DJ,


DJ wrote:
> Intel E6600 Core 2 Extreme -
You mean a quad core? QX6600
The dual core e6600 only sells for 343.00


$659.99 for 9.6GHz - looks like they're out of
> them today (or $970.00 for QX 6700-10.4GHz)
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&am p;N=2+50001157+40000343+1389627502+1050722264&Subcategor y=343&description=&Ntk=&srchInDesc=
>
Wait longer on the Quad cores. prices will be dropping
> 2 gig Corsair XMS2 PC6400 (I'm just going with 2 gigs for now) -$158.00
>
> ASUS EN7950GT/HTDP/512M GeForce 7950GT 256-$254.99
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121 025

Are you gaming or using a video editing program? Total overkill XFX
Geforce 7300GT PCI-e Fanless - $106.00

>
> Corsair PSU - $169.99
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139 002
>
> Barracuda 500G SATA-$139.00 x 2= $278.00
>
> $2040.97 for QX 6700
>
> With a QX6600, OEM mobo, RAM and PSU (use your own HD's) around $1300.00
>
>
>
>
> "Graham Duncan" <graham@grahamduncan.com> wrote in message
> news:462e5deb@linux...
>> Paging Chris Ludwig & other PC gurus...
>>
>> What's the sweetspot price/performance for Intel Core2 Duo?
>>
>> Also, what's the recommended:
>>
>> -Motherboard
>> -Fanless video card
>> -Memory
>> -*quiet* power supply?
>>
>> Running Samplitude 9.11 on XP Pro with RME Digiface and 1 UAD-1 PCI. This
>> machine is primarily for mixing but sees some light VSTi usage. I need it
>> to handle 60+ track mixes at 96k, if possible.
>>
>> Thanks for any input!
>>
>> Graham
>
>


Chris

--
Chris Ludwig

ADK Pro Audio
(859) 635-5762
www.adkproaudio.com
chrisl@adkproaudio.com
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83667 is a reply to message #83661] Tue, 24 April 2007 16:05 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Chris Ludwig is currently offline  Chris Ludwig   UNITED STATES
Messages: 868
Registered: May 2006
Senior Member
DJ wrote:
> I was gonna make the plunge on a quad myself. Wasn't sure if I was going to
> go with a dual socket Xeon or AMD or a single socket Intel Quad. The AMD
> Socket F Opteron CPU's will be upgradable to the Barcelona Quads and the
> XEONs may be upgradable to Octo cores (not sure though) , but from what I'm
> hearing, the single Opteron Quads won't be upgradable on the same mobo to
> the upcoming Octos. Still, an Opteron Quad should last you a while and
> getting into the server level stuff is a bit pricier. I just about had
> myself convinced to go with a Tyan S2915mobo, two Santa Rosas and 4G RAM,
> but I'm in a circling pattern right now trying to weigh the necessities. I'm
> thinking I could do pretty much everything I want to do on this if I had a
> 64 bit OS with lots of RAM, but it will require a new 64 bit expansion
> chassis (or a lot of new hardware) to do this and that's another $2k.
>
> I think a quad Intel would be a great system and even the less expensive
> QX6600 should rock, most riteously!!!
>
and overclockable!!!
> ;o)
>
>
>
> "Graham Duncan" <graham@grahamduncan.com> wrote in message
> news:462e7b13@linux...
>> DJ wrote:
>>> Intel E6600 Core 2 Extreme - $659.99 for 9.6GHz - looks like they're out
>>> of
>>> them today (or $970.00 for QX 6700-10.4GHz)
>>> http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&am p;N=2+50001157+40000343+1389627502+1050722264&Subcategor y=343&description=&Ntk=&srchInDesc=
>>>
>>> 2 gig Corsair XMS2 PC6400 (I'm just going with 2 gigs for now) -$158.00
>>>
>>> ASUS EN7950GT/HTDP/512M GeForce 7950GT 256-$254.99
>>> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121 025
>>>
>>> Corsair PSU - $169.99
>>> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139 002
>>>
>>> Barracuda 500G SATA-$139.00 x 2= $278.00
>>>
>>> $2040.97 for QX 6700
>>>
>>> With a QX6600, OEM mobo, RAM and PSU (use your own HD's) around $1300.00
>> Thanks, DJ! I've been trying to hold off as long as possible (4 years on
>> my P4 2.53).
>>
>> Graham
>
>

--
Chris Ludwig

ADK Pro Audio
(859) 635-5762
www.adkproaudio.com
chrisl@adkproaudio.com
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83668 is a reply to message #83659] Tue, 24 April 2007 16:07 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Chris Ludwig is currently offline  Chris Ludwig   UNITED STATES
Messages: 868
Registered: May 2006
Senior Member
The Intel boards have 2 PCi slots and 2 usable PCI-e slots.
Some ASUS models have 3 PCI slots but have other draw backs.

Chris


Graham Duncan wrote:
> Hmmm... so it looks like PCI slots are getting fewer and fewer with the
> new Extreme motherboards... as in not even existing on an Intel board!
> Wow.
>
> Graham
>
> DJ wrote:
>> Intel E6600 Core 2 Extreme - $659.99 for 9.6GHz - looks like they're
>> out of
>> them today (or $970.00 for QX 6700-10.4GHz)
>> http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&am p;N=2+50001157+40000343+1389627502+1050722264&Subcategor y=343&description=&Ntk=&srchInDesc=
>>
>>
>> 2 gig Corsair XMS2 PC6400 (I'm just going with 2 gigs for now) -$158.00
>>
>> ASUS EN7950GT/HTDP/512M GeForce 7950GT 256-$254.99
>> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121 025
>>
>> Corsair PSU - $169.99
>> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139 002
>>
>> Barracuda 500G SATA-$139.00 x 2= $278.00
>>
>> $2040.97 for QX 6700
>>
>> With a QX6600, OEM mobo, RAM and PSU (use your own HD's) around $1300.00
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> "Graham Duncan" <graham@grahamduncan.com> wrote in message
>> news:462e5deb@linux...
>>> Paging Chris Ludwig & other PC gurus...
>>>
>>> What's the sweetspot price/performance for Intel Core2 Duo?
>>>
>>> Also, what's the recommended:
>>>
>>> -Motherboard
>>> -Fanless video card
>>> -Memory
>>> -*quiet* power supply?
>>>
>>> Running Samplitude 9.11 on XP Pro with RME Digiface and 1 UAD-1 PCI.
>>> This machine is primarily for mixing but sees some light VSTi usage.
>>> I need it to handle 60+ track mixes at 96k, if possible.
>>>
>>> Thanks for any input!
>>>
>>> Graham
>>
>>

--
Chris Ludwig

ADK Pro Audio
(859) 635-5762
www.adkproaudio.com
chrisl@adkproaudio.com
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83676 is a reply to message #83664] Tue, 24 April 2007 21:21 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Graham Duncan is currently offline  Graham Duncan   UNITED STATES
Messages: 147
Registered: December 2008
Senior Member
Chris Ludwig wrote:
> Hi Graham,
> The Intel board rocks.
> I would go for the Retail not the OEM. You'll get all the extra real
> nice SATA cables and USB connectors and such.
>
> You can try these to possibly save a few IDE drives.
>
> http://www.granitedigital.com/catalog/pg52_satabridgeboards. htm
>
> But in general I would recommend getting the newer SATA2 drives
> especially the Seagates.
>
> If you ever plan on getting a PT HD3 system then the ASUS P5W64 WS Pro
> rocks. It's got 4 PCI-e slots ina row that work perfect for an HD3 setup.

Chris,

Would there be any issues using an audio drive plus a backup drive on
this IDE bus? I figure I could go SATA for the system drive and burner.
Though maybe it's time to switch to SATA in general...

Also, do you think it's possible to stream & process 60 tracks at 96k
with just an E6600? It seems the Intel board could be upgraded with a
Quad when they drop in price - though the Q6600 is very tempting now
since I like to keep systems going for at least 3 years.

Are the bundled Intel cooling fans quiet, or should I go with something
else like the Zalman?

Thanks for your input!

Graham
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83679 is a reply to message #83676] Tue, 24 April 2007 21:35 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Chris Ludwig is currently offline  Chris Ludwig   UNITED STATES
Messages: 868
Registered: May 2006
Senior Member
Hi Graham,


Graham Duncan wrote:
>
> Chris,
>
> Would there be any issues using an audio drive plus a backup drive on
> this IDE bus? I figure I could go SATA for the system drive and
> burner. Though maybe it's time to switch to SATA in general...
You should use a SATA for the OS drive on this board. Using an IDE OS
drive will give you some headaches with backup programs.
Use th eIDE for DVD drive. There are not many good sata dvd drives. I
ususlaly use the IDE for a DVD drive and a drive tray for backups.
Sata drives will be best for audio especially if doing higher sample rates.

>
> Also, do you think it's possible to stream & process 60 tracks at 96k
> with just an E6600?
Yes but you will need to use 2 drives if you are going to be reading and
writing that many tracks at 96k. Effects and VSTi are the main thing
that will get hit at 96k. They will use basically double than 44.1/48k.
The Quad core would be a better idea if you really want to do 96k. Also
you will probably want to do the 2 audio drives in raid 0.

> It seems the Intel board could be upgraded with a Quad when they drop
> in price - though the Q6600 is very tempting now since I like to keep
> systems going for at least 3 years.
Yes the Intel board fully supports the current quad cores.

>
> Are the bundled Intel cooling fans quiet, or should I go with
> something else like the Zalman?
Quieter than they used to be but don't work very well when running them
at slower fan speeds. I would use the Zalman CNPS9700 NT CPU Cooler or
the Thermal Take Big Typhoon.

>
> Thanks for your input!
>
> Graham

Chris

--
Chris Ludwig
ADK
chrisl@adkproaudio.com <mailto:chrisl@adkproaudio.com>
www.adkproaudio.com <http://www.adkproaudio.com/>
(859) 635-5762
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83686 is a reply to message #83679] Wed, 25 April 2007 09:14 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Graham Duncan is currently offline  Graham Duncan   UNITED STATES
Messages: 147
Registered: December 2008
Senior Member
Chris,

Thank you so much. I'll look into Raid 0. I like the idea of being
able to use my IDE drives as backup for the Raid!

In general, I'm only playing back this many tracks for mixes, and it's
an extreme example. When mix clients use 96k, I want a system that
doesn't sputter when trying to handle it (which my P4 2.53 does now with
lots of track freezing).

I'll see if I can swing the Quad -- frankly most of the plugins I want
to run are CPU hungry... so I guess I don't really have a choice there!
lol...

Thanks,

Graham
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83691 is a reply to message #83686] Wed, 25 April 2007 11:02 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Deej [4] is currently offline  Deej [4]   UNITED STATES
Messages: 1292
Registered: January 2007
Senior Member
Graham,

Be sure to back up your work religiously if using (any drive, of course, but
especially) RAID 0. If one either of the drives dies, you're hosed.

I've been thinking some more about the pros and cons of moving to a larger
system some more. Yesterday I thought I might just stay with what I've got,
until I started jacking around with a second DAW running systemlink to get
some tracks streaming in a mix to my main DAW. though a bit more elegant, it
involves a lesser, but still annoying amount of complication, similar to
what I had going on when I was interfacing Paris with Cubase. I used to
enjoy this and felt good about having all of the *options* that it afforded.
Streaming VSTi just puts such a load on the system I know it's possible to
freeze and that is a viable option also, but limiting in flexibility. It is
possible for RAM above 2G to be recognized in Win XP by some apps right now
by doing a bit of registry tweaking. What will be great with Vista (and what
Macs have had for a while) is the ability to use lots of RAM in a program
that can utilize it for VSTi. Gene's earlier post about the DP system on the
8 core DAW sounds like a dream come true. It would be possible to daisy
chain a bunch of farm systems using Steiny systemlink, midi over LAN, etc.,
but, for me, that's just reinventing a wheel that I wanted to lose when I
decided to go native. If my info is correct (and I think it is), the Intel
Quad single socket system would allow up to 8GB of RAM and provide you lots
of CPU for virtual instruments/plugins. A server level Opteron/Xeon board
will have bigger/faster/more data pipelines, both CPU sockets *may* be
expandable beyond quad CPU's when they arrive and these will accommodate
much larger amounts of RAM given an OS and audio application that can
utilize it. They are also a bit more expensive-think $500.00-$2000.00 beyond
the Quad single socket Intel depending on how you trick it out.

Something about the Tyan S2915 mobo has captured my imagination. It just
seems to have every option I could possibly want and has proven to be
comnpatible with UAD-1 cards. If I were going to design a mobo within the
limits of current technology, it would be the Tyan S2915.

Deej


"Graham Duncan" <graham@grahamduncan.com> wrote in message
news:462f7204@linux...
> Chris,
>
> Thank you so much. I'll look into Raid 0. I like the idea of being able
> to use my IDE drives as backup for the Raid!
>
> In general, I'm only playing back this many tracks for mixes, and it's an
> extreme example. When mix clients use 96k, I want a system that doesn't
> sputter when trying to handle it (which my P4 2.53 does now with lots of
> track freezing).
>
> I'll see if I can swing the Quad -- frankly most of the plugins I want to
> run are CPU hungry... so I guess I don't really have a choice there!
> lol...
>
> Thanks,
>
> Graham
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83693 is a reply to message #83691] Wed, 25 April 2007 11:24 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Graham Duncan is currently offline  Graham Duncan   UNITED STATES
Messages: 147
Registered: December 2008
Senior Member
Thanks DJ. I guess the problem is, no matter how powerful your system
is, one will always need more power down the line. I think a single
Quad will probably be best for me right now in terms or price/performance.

I'll have a look at the Tyan board, though. ;)

Graham
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83694 is a reply to message #83693] Wed, 25 April 2007 11:29 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Deej [4] is currently offline  Deej [4]   UNITED STATES
Messages: 1292
Registered: January 2007
Senior Member
"Graham Duncan" <graham@grahamduncan.com> wrote in message
news:462f9dba$1@linux...
> Thanks DJ. I guess the problem is, no matter how powerful your system is,
> one will always need more power down the line. I think a single Quad will
> probably be best for me right now in terms or price/performance.
>
> I'll have a look at the Tyan board, though. ;)
>
> Graham

You know you need one of these............

http://www.atacom.com:80/program/print_html_new.cgi?cart_id= 894775_205_201_214_238&Pagecode=SEARCH_ALL&Item_code =MBKF_TYAN_NF_08&USER_ID=www

;o)
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #83696 is a reply to message #83694] Wed, 25 April 2007 12:09 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Deej [4] is currently offline  Deej [4]   UNITED STATES
Messages: 1292
Registered: January 2007
Senior Member
Just for grins, I went out and priced the following:

Tyan S2914 mobo
2 x 2.6GHz Dual core Santa Rosa Opteron CPU's
4 GB Samsung DDR2 667 CL5
4 x Seagate 300GB 7200RPM SATA 2 HD's
(I've got a WD 10k Raptor here for the OS and another one as a backup)

I don't need a computer case so the whole package comes to $2202.87. That
ain't bad and it's definitely dual quad upgradable with the capability of
running monstrous amounts of RAM and enough bussing pipeline to move massive
amounts of data. If figure it might be a two-three year fix.

I've also been considering the Macs. This system I've priced is probably
not quite as quick as the dual socket MacIntel, but both are upgradable to
quads. The Tyan has "lots" more configuration options than the Mac and I'm
not as much worried about relative speed between the two at this level. I'm
thinking in terms of value (my perception of value, of course),
compatibility with the hardware tools I am using now and the considerable
investment I have in them, and whether it will suit my needs for the
forseeable future. Speed is a relative thing when you get to this level
especially considering that my needs will likely never be those of the guys
that are using these to stream huge amounts of audio and video, and to trick
out the Mac with the extra RAM, HD's and considering that since the Mac has
only 3 x PCIe slots, I would have to spring for over 2.5K worth of
additional/new hardware to get the storage, memory and I/O options that I
would have with the Tyan so the relative difference in price is substantial
for my situation.

Performance and compatibility reviews that I've found that would relate to
DAWs running the Tyan S2915 hardware are very favorable.

;o)





"DJ" <www.aarrrrggghhh!!!.com> wrote in message news:462f9f0d$1@linux...
>
> "Graham Duncan" <graham@grahamduncan.com> wrote in message
> news:462f9dba$1@linux...
>> Thanks DJ. I guess the problem is, no matter how powerful your system
>> is, one will always need more power down the line. I think a single Quad
>> will probably be best for me right now in terms or price/performance.
>>
>> I'll have a look at the Tyan board, though. ;)
>>
>> Graham
>
> You know you need one of these............
>
> http://www.atacom.com:80/program/print_html_new.cgi?cart_id= 894775_205_201_214_238&Pagecode=SEARCH_ALL&Item_code =MBKF_TYAN_NF_08&USER_ID=www
>
> ;o)
>
Re: If you were to buy a new native DAW PC today... [message #84035 is a reply to message #83654] Sat, 05 May 2007 08:23 Go to previous message
Graham Duncan is currently offline  Graham Duncan   UNITED STATES
Messages: 147
Registered: December 2008
Senior Member
To follow up, I got the Q6600 quad processor. Everything works so far
and I'll be able to test it on some mixes later this weekend. Thanks
again to everyone!

Graham
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