Anyone want to spec out a PC for me?

[AdamWathan]

I'm gonna build a dedicated recording computer soon but I'm not sure exactly what I need and what I don't. I have a solid understanding of what is required really, but when it comes down to stuff like different hard drive formats, motherboard brands, etc. I really have no clue. I'm looking to spend about $1000 on the computer itself, not including any monitors. If I can spec something awesome out for less then of course I'm cool with that, that's just a ball park figure... I always hear about people saying you can build a phenomenal PC for $400 so I think $1000 should be enough to work with right? I'm going to be using a dual LCD monitor setup eventually so take that into consideration when recommending a video card... Anyways, other than that, have at 'er anyone who's willing to help out!

I'll be running Reaper and using a Mackie Onyx 1200F as my main interface for what it's worth...

 

[ochants76]

Rather than telling you exactly what components to get I will just give you some tips.

Just go to somewhere like tigerdirect.com and select a motherboard/processor bundle that fits what you want in terms of performance and sockets. Make sure the hard drive(s) is SATA and 7200 rpm or more. Get whatever type of RAM the motherboard takes and get a good brand like crucial, corsair, ocz, mushkin, etc. If the motherboard supports dual channel RAM...get dual channel RAM its worth it. Get a graphics card with dual monitor capabilities...I would suggest a mid range one since you won't be gaming...but you don't want to get a crap one. Get whatever case you want...some come with power supplies some don't...in which case get the highest wattage you can comfortably afford(to allow for more hard drives or upgrades later).

That should get you pointed in the right direction.

Or just get a mac.

 

[Ben Johnson]

Or just get a mac.

Only took one reply to get to the ubiquitous "get a mac" advice.

 

[AdamWathan]

I thought about getting a Mac but I'm still waiting on the OS X version of Reaper and don't want to buy/learn something else in the mean time so I decided I would just stick with what I know.

Thanks for the advice ochants76, that's going to be really useful. Should I be looking for a motherboard that takes a specific type of RAM? What's best?

 

[AdamWathan]

Also, what socket type should I be looking at motherboard wise...? It seems 775 is the popular one? These are the nitpicky details that I'm a total n00b to

Also, what's the consensus on Intel vs. AMD these days? A comparable AMD processor looks MILES cheaper than the Intel stuff unless I'm missing out on some crucial specs?

 

[devouredremains]

This is a copy of my last bill from a computer I purchased from NCIX.com with shipping costs etc... included just to get a rough idea. These prices are Canadian.

1 x AMD Athlon 64 X2 5200+ Dual Core Processor AM2 2.7GHZ 2X512KB 65W 65NM Retail Box
1 x ASUS M2A-VM mATX AM2 AMD 690G DDR2 PCI-E16 PCI-E1 2PCI Video VGA DVI Sound Motherboard
1 x Corsair XMS2 TWIN2X2048-5400C4 2GB 2X1GB PC5400 DDR2-667 CL 4-4-4-12 240PIN Dual Channel Memory
1 x ASUS Radeon HD2400 Pro Passive Silent 525MHZ 256MB 800MHZ DDR2 VGA DVI-I HDTV Out PCI-E Video Card
1 x Gigabyte G-POWER Lite CPU Heatpipe Cooler LGA775 AM2 S939 S754 S478 110MM 2000/2450RPM 23.1/27.5DBA
1 x Compucase 6C28B ATX Case Black 4X5.25 2X3.5 4X.3.5INT W/ Front USB & Audio No PS
1 x Sparkle Power SPI ATX-400PN 400W ATX12V 20/24PIN Power Supply W/ 120MM Fan P4 AMD Ready OEM
1 x Western Digital Caviar SE16 250GB SATA2 7200RPM 16MB 8.9MS Hard Drive 3 Year MFR Warranty
1 x Samsung SH-S203B Black SATA DVD+RW 20X8X16 DVD-RW 20X6X16 DL 18X/12X INT DVD Writer OEM W/ Vista SW

Price: $537.97
Shipping & Handling: $34.73
Shipping Insurance: $8.31
Environmental Fee: $10.00
SUBTOTAL: $597.00
7% PST - BC residents $41.79
GST(5%) $29.85
TOTAL: $668.64

 

[devouredremains]

By the way, with this configuration the motherboard has an onboard 256mb graphics card as well as the other 256mb graphics card I added allowing dual display.

It also runs amazingly cool. This is what the temps maxed out at running BurnInTest for 24 hours at max capacity:

CPU: 34C
RAM: 35C
HD0: 29C
CASE: 16C

 

[Notuern]

AMD starts to slow down quite much when you run multiple software's(Like VST-synths/effects.), while Intel is more of a server cpu, its meant to beat anything that needs to do alot of things at once.
Intel is the way to go, unless you tend to not use vst-plugs or two programs at once.

 

[Sloan]

This is true, from all the info I've gathered, Intel is currently leading the Multi-core race.

 

[ochants76]

Any ddr2 ram would be great the differences are very subtle between pcwhatever00s. For the processor sockets, it depends what processor you want. Once you pick the processor find a motherboard that has that socket type...or just do the bundle thing.
I am an amd fan but I would have to say that intel has them beat again. For a while amd where better and cheaper but ever since the multi-core stuff started coming out they have been lagging. Intel would probably be the way to go.

 

[Notuern]

This is true, from all the info I've gathered, Intel is currently leading the Multi-core race.

Its not only multicore, basically, AMD's multicore is equal to Intels singlecore when it comes to multitasking because of Intels multithreading(Basically it "emulates" dualcore on each core.).
AMD is faster though, but even if its faster it doesnt mean that it works faster, sence it can only focus on one thing at a time.

 

[ochants76]

Its not only multicore, basically, AMD's multicore is equal to Intels singlecore when it comes to multitasking because of Intels multithreading(Basically it "emulates" dualcore on each core.).
AMD is faster though, but even if its faster it doesnt mean that it works faster, sence it can only focus on one thing at a time.

Exactly...so for recording intel would be the better choice