custom PC for audio ~$500

[mili9152]

I've always wanted to build my own desktop. I work at a software company, but don't actually know much about computers! I'm looking to keep this around $500 with the OS. Any suggestions?

• IN WIN Dragon Slayer: 80

• Gigabyte GA-880GM-D2H AMD 880G Motherboard - Micro ATX, Socket AM3, AM 880G Chipset, 1600MHz (O.C.), SATA 3.0 Gb/s, RAID, 8-CH Audio: 73 - 15 rebate

• AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb 3.4GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor: 110 - 20

• Western Digital Caviar Blue WD5000AAKX 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive: 70

• SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 6450 1GB 64-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card: 42 - 10 rebate

• COOLER MASTER eXtreme Power Plus RS500-PCARD3-US 500W ATX12V v2.3 Power Supply: 45 - 10 rebate

• G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBRL: 45

 

[Sloan]

That should work. I'm using the same processor with 4g of ram and it's working just fine.

You'll prob want to get more hard drive space as soon as you can though - you will run out QUICK.

 

[heshian46]

I'd recommend also getting another hard drive to run your OS and software from, and then using the other drive for samples and sessions. SSD are coming down in price every week, consider one of those for speed.

 

[mili9152]

Okay, thanks for the suggestions.

 

[MatrixClaw]

For ~$100 more you could build it to Hackintosh specs and dual boot OSX and Win7 with a quad Core i5, 1TB HDD and 16GB of RAM.

I'm running a Phenom II X4 right now on my system and it's worked quite well for the past few years, but I find myself maxing it out more and more frequently now

 

[Mutant]

Don't forget about some audio interface, internal or external.
With the onboard audio chip you will not have a good enough signal to noise ratio and your ASIO latency will be quite high.

 

[arv_foh]

spend an extra $200 and get an i5 2500k and you'll have something that will last you at least 5 years instead of something you're gonna want to sell in 2

 

[silveryhat]

I've always wanted to build my own desktop. I work at a software company, but don't actually know much about computers! I'm looking to keep this around $500 with the OS. Any suggestions?

• IN WIN Dragon Slayer: 80

• Gigabyte GA-880GM-D2H AMD 880G Motherboard - Micro ATX, Socket AM3, AM 880G Chipset, 1600MHz (O.C.), SATA 3.0 Gb/s, RAID, 8-CH Audio: 73 - 15 rebate

• AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb 3.4GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor: 110 - 20

• Western Digital Caviar Blue WD5000AAKX 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive: 70

• SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 6450 1GB 64-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card: 42 - 10 rebate

• COOLER MASTER eXtreme Power Plus RS500-PCARD3-US 500W ATX12V v2.3 Power Supply: 45 - 10 rebate

• G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-8GBRL: 45

Most of the components you have picked are right on for a good budget system. However, just as arv_foh mentions about the upgrade to Intel i5 processor for future-proof purpose, i do also advise you sticking with the new Ivy Bridge i5 3570k. That yields too significant benefits from the Phenom 965 :

• You get much better performance per core and faster processing power overall.
• You can get rid of the dedicated video card 6450 for now until you look into serious gaming. The integrated HD 4000 from the new i5 is pretty good, even for most modern 3D games.

If you can grab this http://www.custompcguide.net/600-entertainment-productivity-custom-computer/ configuration and happen to live close by a Microcenter store you are in great luck.

The store has the best motherboard and cpu deals, they have this 3570k lower than NewEgg and bundles it with any Z77 motherboard for an extra $50 off. That means if you go with the build in the link above, it should be around $500 something, without windows os.

Eventually it may give you an extra budget to get an awesome Asus Xonar sound card