help building a new music PC

[sh4un]

i need some advice as to how i should go about building a new desktop PC.

I really dont have the knowledge 2 put it all together myself but i still want to pick out the components.

wat mobo is best 2 get?
with what cpu?
what ram?

what kind of cooling system shood i go about getting?
what else will i need?

i want 2 know everything rite down to the case that wood make the ultimate music machine.

if people can help me here it would be greatly appreciated :D

[cheeseburger]

mac mac mac mac mac mac mac

[saveth]

first ask yourself what your building the computer for and i can begin to help u from their. This is one of the areas i know what im talking about.

For example:
Basic word processing (Cheapest)
video encoding/decoding and design
moderate/extreme gaming
all of the above (most expensive)

A price range would be great also. You can build a basic comp for less then 400 to something extreme as 5000 excluding a monitor and misc inputs.

[saveth]

i just read your initial post and missed something.

Ok if all u want to do is strictly make music and absolutly nothing else on that computer. Maybe some graphics design then the obvious choice is a MAC but if you plan on doing anything like play the latest game...good luck using a mac.

Give me some more info and we can go from their.

[ja_raul]

^^ youre an idiot

whatever you do, dont cheap out on your processor and ram. you should get at least 1 gig of ram. and i suggest getting an amd 64 3500+. how much are you prepared to blow on this pc?

[tmh]

Originally Posted by ja_raul

^^ youre an idiot

whatever you do, dont cheap out on your processor and ram. you should get at least 1 gig of ram. and i suggest getting an amd 64 3500+. how much are you prepared to blow on this pc?

i agree with this... ram + processor are key

although id add soundcard/board/speakers in their as well since music seems to be your primary use..

i personally use Hercules Gametheatre XP which is quite nice, however not very compatible with certain games (specifically GTA, UGH). Soundblaster audigy (any variant) is nice as well, although you'd best stay clear of their internal soundboard which occupies one of the front slots (gets dirty, and has far less inputs)

for speakers, unh, fully dependent on money. you can range from regular 2.1 speakers to 7.1 or 7.2, the quality ranging from your classic radioshack brand, to altec lansing, to klipsch promedia(5.1 runnin you about 400$ US, maybe less now)

regarding the processor, i wouldnt so much agree w/ ja_raul on the specific type, although i do much prefer AMD (more efficient processing, instead of fancy high gHz #'s [excluding XP hyperthreading]), but in the end its a personal choice probably driven by your financial situation... do make sure to get a good heatsink fan however, its very important.

additional cooling for your motherboard is also a smart option, once again if you have the funds to do so... my mobo's 2nd and 3rd fans are now dead (comp gettin old) and i find my computer will lock up occasionally because it overheats...

a good videocard is mostly required for gaming or heavy video rendering (diff cards best suit each)

oh, and get a newer harddrive, ive recently learned the hard way that it can SEVERELY impair your computers performance... my pcs harddrive crashed bout a month or two ago, so i temporarily installed an OS on an old 5GB HD i had (slow as fuuuuuk)... simply put, it took 4 hours instead of the usual 30 minutes to install windows SETUP....and the comp ran so fkn slow cause it took so long to write cache, or just anything, to disk...

my advice on a monitor is not to get anything less than 15", i already find 17" too small (once you get used to big TVs/monitors there is no going back)..
and CRT>LCD for gaming/visual arts... LCD is simply more comfortable if you mainly wordprocess/listen to music/browse/etc

some nice additional features would include casing (USB/firewire ports aplenty)

and the usual cdrom, cdrw, dvdrom, NIC card, mouse/keyboard blah blah etc etc

and if ur like me, a nice big fan to stand beside the open side of the computer! hehehe


sry for the lengthy post, hope it helps....

[sh4un]

Originally Posted by ja_raul

^^ youre an idiot

whatever you do, dont cheap out on your processor and ram. you should get at least 1 gig of ram. and i suggest getting an amd 64 3500+. how much are you prepared to blow on this pc?

yah I figure ill be goin with an amd.
theres no way in hell i want to use a mac :P
I will be using it for a few other things.

im more curious to know what kind of ram would be best to get?
what mobo?
what sorta cooling systems i should get. . .
like how to keep it nice and quiet

i wanna spend around 3-4g for now
i already have soundcard for it
and i know what harddrives i want :D

[ja_raul]

HOLY CRAP 3-4gs. im assuming that you want this system to include a 7.1 sound system and flat screen/panel monitor?

edit: found this..
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.p...anufacture=AMD

[Akeel]

if your going to me making music dont buy some shitty 5.1/7.1 garbage surround sound bullshit.

get a pair of decent studio reference monitors.

[CharlieTuna]

^^No doubt. What kind of soundcard do you have already for it?

[sh4un]

m-audio delta 66

[dabbler]

for the tower and everything in it, go to generic computers on broadway. we called and had an audio computer built, 512 ram / 2.4 / 200 GB for $700 (just the tower)

[sh4un]

Originally Posted by dabbler

for the tower and everything in it, go to generic computers on broadway. we called and had an audio computer built, 512 ram / 2.4 / 200 GB for $700 (just the tower)

w0rd, ill either be goin 2 ncix or atic
$700 is an awesome price but im lookin 2 go bigger then that
512 ram just isnt enough
im thinkin more along the lines of @least 2gigs
but wat brand/kind shood i get. . .

what im more concerened about learnin about is what kind of fans and cooling systems shood i get?
obviously i want the computer 2 be nice and quiet

[Element]

check out vibe computers i bought my stuff from them and built my comp myself... good prices.

[tmh]

aite shaun, heres a list of some highend components you could purchase:

CPU: athlon 64 (3200+ to 4000+) [run you from about 250-650can] or (FX-55 which will run you about 800+ american *ouch* [not suggested])

CPUFAN: if you wanna get fancy here is a nice model: thermalright XP120 w/ vantec stealth 120mm fan (large fan) (costs just under 100$can)

RAM: with an amd setup ull be lookin at sdram ddrs, models you might want include pc3700 - pc4200 [run you from about 150-200american] [ 512MB chips ]

-another option are DDR2's, cost about the same, but i hear its probably not the best idea to use w/ AMD

SOUND: if ur really into sound and you have money to use, talk to one of the dj's about what they feel would work w/ a PC.

MB: any asus board is nice, but make sure the ports fit all you components...
- id check for onboard cooling as well

HD: Maxtor is realiable enough, good solid HD, make sure its 7200RPM

CD-related: id go with pioneer

VideoCard: up to you really, since i dont know if ull be needing it (this can save you alot of money you can spend elsewhere, if you dont require a top of the line card... keep that in mind)

Monitor: its wut u can afford :P i like at least 19" for CRT and 17" for LCD
- safe bet to go with Samsung or Viewsonic ... Mitsubishi actually makes some nice monitors..


i believe thats enough info to get you looking in the right direction.. fine tuning your decision could either save you alot of money, or allow you to spend your money in prioritized areas... so take ur time n look around :P

ordering OEM parts also saves money, but if u like ur stuff nicely retail packaged thats up to you :P

well gl2u


EDIT: just remembered another important thing: Power Supply: 480W is a safe bet if you are running lots of internal hardware (fans, hd, videocard, etc)

[sh4un]

thanks for putting in the time!!!
your input is greatly appreciated :D

Originally Posted by tmh

aite shaun, heres a list of some highend components you could purchase:

CPU: athlon 64 (3200+ to 4000+) [run you from about 250-650can] or (FX-55 which will run you about 800+ american *ouch* [not suggested])

CPUFAN: if you wanna get fancy here is a nice model: thermalright XP120 w/ vantec stealth 120mm fan (large fan) (costs just under 100$can)

RAM: with an amd setup ull be lookin at sdram ddrs, models you might want include pc3700 - pc4200 [run you from about 150-200american] [ 512MB chips ]

-another option are DDR2's, cost about the same, but i hear its probably not the best idea to use w/ AMD

SOUND: if ur really into sound and you have money to use, talk to one of the dj's about what they feel would work w/ a PC.

MB: any asus board is nice, but make sure the ports fit all you components...
- id check for onboard cooling as well

HD: Maxtor is realiable enough, good solid HD, make sure its 7200RPM

CD-related: id go with pioneer

VideoCard: up to you really, since i dont know if ull be needing it (this can save you alot of money you can spend elsewhere, if you dont require a top of the line card... keep that in mind)

Monitor: its wut u can afford :P i like at least 19" for CRT and 17" for LCD
- safe bet to go with Samsung or Viewsonic ... Mitsubishi actually makes some nice monitors..


i believe thats enough info to get you looking in the right direction.. fine tuning your decision could either save you alot of money, or allow you to spend your money in prioritized areas... so take ur time n look around :P

ordering OEM parts also saves money, but if u like ur stuff nicely retail packaged thats up to you :P

well gl2u


EDIT: just remembered another important thing: Power Supply: 480W is a safe bet if you are running lots of internal hardware (fans, hd, videocard, etc)

[acidic_liquid]

I don't think I've seen any person working in music use anything but a Mac. So I'm assuming that would be the best choice.

[sh4un]

Originally Posted by acidic_liquid

I don't think I've seen any person working in music use anything but a Mac. So I'm assuming that would be the best choice.

no way in hell ill ever own a mac :P
i still want to run windows apps