Upgrading help: Audio Production PC

Irishdiablo

(post by a friend)

Hey all,
Built my own PC a few years ago, (probably 6 at this stage) which was pretty up to date at the time. It's a Intel Q6600 system.

I reckon its time to update my chip-set which obviously means I'll need a new motherboard for the socket.

I use the PC mostly for audio production, with an external sound card that connects by Fire-wire.

I've been recommended to get an i7 chip "ivy-bridge" and to stay clear of the newer haswell ones. Is this a safe bet for the uses i require?

also,
I'll require a motherboard with a fire-wire port that uses the "Texas instruments" chipset, to reduce latency from my sound card. with the correct socket. - I'm having trouble finding one.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Dave.

BloodBath

You can get a pci firewire card.

I'm thinking a xeon would be your best bet. It would probably be easier if you just filled this in.

1. What is your budget? [€xxx]

2. What will be the main purpose of the computer? [Gaming/Video editing/3D Modelling/HTPC/Internet] (If gaming include which games)

3. Do you need a copy of Windows? [Yes/No]

4. Can you use any parts from an old computer? [Hard drive/DVD Drive/Case/PSU/etc.] (If possible state brand and model of the parts to ensure compatibility)

5. Do you need a monitor? [Yes/No]

5a. If yes, what size do you need. [19'/20'/22'/24'/etc.]

5b. If no, what resolution is your current monitor and do you plan to upgrade in the near future? [1920x1080/1440x900/etc.] [Yes/No]

6. Do you need any of these peripherals? [Keyboard/Mouse/Wireless Card/Card Reader/Speakers/etc.]

7. Are you willing to try overclocking? [Yes/No]

8. How can you pay? [Bank Transfer/Credit Card/Laser]

9. When are you purchasing? [In x days]

10. If you need help building it, where are you based? [South Dublin City/Cork City/Kerry/etc.]

0101101

That was my OP above.

BloodBath wrote: »

You can get a pci firewire card.

I'm thinking a xeon would be your best bet. It would probably be easier if you just filled this in.

Cheers, But I know the soundcard can be very finaky on what pci firewire card you're using. (I'm currently doing it this way with a pci card, but i think i'm getting more latency on input than i should be). I know the gigabyte p67's had the right firewire port with the correct chipset, but they're discontinued.
SO i'd prefer a motherboard with an inbuilt firewire port using the 'Texas instruments' chip.

And as a cpu, do you think the ivybridge i7 is the best bet?
The software i use doesn't support hyperthreading but does use multi cores. can get very cpu heavy with lots of plugins open in a full song project.

1. What is your budget? [hoping around €500]

2. What will be the main purpose of the computer? [Audio Production]

3. Do you need a copy of Windows? [No]

4. Can you use any parts from an old computer? [all apart from mobo and chip.]

5. Do you need a monitor? [No]

5a. If yes, what size do you need. [N/A]

5b. If no, what resolution is your current monitor and do you plan to upgrade in the near future? [1920x1080][No]

6. Do you need any of these peripherals? [No]

7. Are you willing to try overclocking? [No]

8. How can you pay? [Paypal]

9. When are you purchasing? [Within 2 weeks]

10. If you need help building it, where are you based? [No thanks]


Cheers bloodbath.
Dave

BloodBath

Strange that it doesn't support hyper threading. Is it limited to the amount of cores it can use or is it just an issue with HT.

Does it support the extra threads on AMD processors like the 8320 and 8350?

0101101

BloodBath wrote: »

Strange that it doesn't support hyper threading. Is it limited to the amount of cores it can use or is it just an issue with HT.

Does it support the extra threads on AMD processors like the 8320 and 8350?

Arghh, nevermind... don't know where I read that before. Just looked it up again and it does support HT.

Thanks,
Dave.

BloodBath

So you only need a processor and mainboard? A xeon would definitely be your best bet then. Looking through the boards though there are none that have a firewire port with that controller so you're going to have to do it through a card I think.

You can get it well under budget anyway. Maybe considering grabbing some other parts while you're at it? Have you got an ssd yet?

These would do the job nicely. Make sure the cpu cooler will fit your current case. Does the pci card you are using at the moment have the Texas instruments chip? There's this one on Amazon that has it but maybe do some research on what the best one to go for would be. There's this more expensive one but I have no clue what the differences are. I think it's just higher bandwidth ports.

Item|Price
Intel Xeon E3-1230v3 Bx, LGA1150, ohne Kühler|€212.42
ASRock H87 Pro4, Sockel 1150, ATX|€72.99
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO - Intel/AMD|€26.46
Shipping|€18.99
Total|€330.86

0101101

No I haven't, I was going to consider that if I was under budget actually!
Is it best to run the OS and Software off the ssd, and have all my sample library on my standard drives(reading and writting a lot)? or just keep everything on the ssd?

Ok cool, so an xeon chip. I'm sure i'll find a pci FW with the right chipset.

Dave

BloodBath

I've edited my post since, look up

For the ssd yes run your os and programs from it. Go for a 120gb Samsung 840 evo.

0101101

Sweet man! I'm sorted.

Just out of curiosity, why did you suggest the xeon over say an i7 for this application. I know you know your stuff.

Thanks,
D.

BloodBath

It's pretty much identical to the i7 except it doesn't have an igp. It's significantly cheaper too.

I forgot to ask if you have a graphics card. If not you can grab this xeon which has the igp or go for the 4770.

Grab a sata cable for the ssd as well if you don't have one spare.

0101101

Yeh Had to buy one recently so its a new enough graphics card. So i'm fine there.
Thats savage, glad I posted here!!
Thanks a lot.
Dave

BloodBath

No bother.

If you're using vista or older you should probably consider upgrading to windows 7 or 8 while you're at it.