# MIDI Recording/Graphic Design PC



## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

Hey all,
I'm looking into building my first computer. I want to build a great PC for recording with my firewire mixer and for graphic design and website coding.

First I'll answer these questions, then I'll add a little extra info.

Budget: Well obviousally if I can save money I would like to, but I don't want to waste money on a PC that won't last me or won't work for what I need. Although I was hoping not to go over $2000.?


Brands: Not really since this is my first build, I just wants quality parts?


Multitasking: Multitasking will occur everyday. I'm into graphic design and and web programming. Therefore I may have PS running along with 15 other programs?


Gaming: Na, I gave up video games and lost 10lbs  lol?


Calculations: Not so much?


Overclocking: I doubt it?


Storage: although storage is important I can always buy external drives if needed, and I use an external drive right now any ways because I like to have back-ups of everything. I will be storing all types of media, video, audi, midi pretty much everything?


Legacy Support: No?


Operating System: Windows XP unless others convince me other wise?


Case: Yes please, really as big as needed, maybe a little extra space for an upgrade or two?


Accessories: Do you want a keyboard, mouse, or other items included?
No I already have.

Recycled Components: No?


Monitor: If you want a monitor, what size do you want and should it be widescreen?
17-19" Id like to run atleast two monitors, possible 3


Stores: Do you have any online stores that you prefer to purchase from?
Not really, I use new egg to browse because I'm familuar with it

Location: What country do you live in? 
United States.


Additional Info:

This computer is going to be used to record for my band, as well as a computer to support my graphics/web programming career. I want a fast PC that will work well for Recording/Designing and of the course browsing the internet etc. I'm new to all this so please go easy on me  lol

Let me know what else you need to know ,
Thanks,
Kevin DiGennaro


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

Hello


lets start off with ....... YOU are a canadiate for Quad core cpu

I would say this cpu http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115041&Tpk=Intel+Q9550 $549.00 OUCH!!

motherboard: Asus P5K-E wifi >>>>$150.00

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131196

ram = Corsair Dominator 2 x 2 gig DDR2-1066 >>>> $139.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145214

Power supply = $119.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

Video Card: $184.00

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131111

sound card ??????? youll have to wait for a sound buff to thrown in on this one ...... dont know if onboard will be enough for you ????? this motherboard has very good onboard sound ?????

Case: $119.99 with $40.00 mail in rebate

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129021

Hard drive: $80.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148288

DVD drive: $27.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827118015 


this will be a guess on the sound card ????? >>>>>>dig here 

http://www.digit-life.com/articles/maudioaudiophile/index.html

CPU Cooler $80.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118019


Windows Operating System (win xp Pro) $139.00

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116515




summary: you may want to go with 64 bit windows XP which would handle more memory and faster .... but you must have compatible software ????? otherwise stay with the 32bit Win XP Pro link I gave you


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

thanks for the reply linderman, in regards to the 64bit windows xp, you said i must have compatible software, the only software that will be going on this pc in auto cad, PS, and protools, i beleive ther all compatible with 64bit, is it worth it to go with 64bit? also would i have to get a differnt hard drive as well if i used the 64 bit?

Thanks again,
Kevin


edit: also would 8gigs of ram be over kill? if i got 4 of the 2 gig chips?


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

not sure really I run autocad at work on my dual core E8400 and it has no trouble at all, during intense rendering though of projects which require alot of shading and shadows I dont multitask while rendering ....... with the Quad you could though

I would say start out with win xp 32 bit .......... if you find you are unable to do this to your liking ....... then switch to 64bit

I have never actually witness anyone every doing anything that required more than two gigs of ram ????? but who knows 

in 32bit OS you will have access to 3.5gigs ???? a 32bit OS will not allow you to use or access more than 3.5 of your 4 gigs of ram .......


I havent found anyone yet that this "really" bothered in real world performance


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

no you would not need another hard drive


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

I did some research on sounds cards. I came across this one, I think it looks pretty dam good for recording. For recording I want 24bit audio 2 or 4 channels and low sampleing rate (reduces latency issues). http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829121011 Any opinions? I know this is a good company I have speakers etc from them, dono about ther sound cards though.

And I guess the step down from that card is this, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829121120&Tpk=M-Audio+Audiophile+2496 so opinions on that would be great too.


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

I have heard of people using that brand of card ....... they are about the best choice going for an audiophile user


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

I was told by a bunch of my graphic designer friends that I shouldn't get 2 19 inch monitors, instead I should use the money and buy the biggest monitor i can get, then later on i could buy another, that makes sense to me, wat to you think about that? also for 300 bucks what kinda monitor could i get?

Thanks,
Kevin


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

unfortunately I am not very versed with monitors ....... maybe someone else will chime in ?

I have had great luck with Viewsonic and NEC monitors

Dell has some great prices on high end spec monitors ...... I remember when I was pricing monitors for challenging high gaming resolutions ...... Dell had the best deal for just the monitor ....... a 22 inch version @ around $450.00 ish

I know that beyond your $300.00 budget ....... but I think your $300.00 budget puts you above the class of the economy flat screens but well below the high end flat screens ?


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

Thanks linder, I dont mind spending a little more if its worth it, how much money should i spend on a monitor? How big of a screen should i get?

Thanks,
Kevin


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

personally I am not a big splash kinda guy ........ I like a healthy mix of performance and value

I would say 22 inch and spend the $300.00 but I would not go deeper unless you need super sharp video for ultra gaming or extreme professional uses......... like commercial photoshop maybeeee


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824116392


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

nice find linderman, in the next couple of years depending on how my schooling my own personal sites run i might upgrade to professional monitors.


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

also for a cd/dvd burning drive, I want to get a good one that will burn at 24-bits. I dont really know anything about cd/dvd burners but i basically want one that will produce a good sounding cd.


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

hmmmmm that I cant help you with ...... I am not "into" such specialized requirements on burning ........ I can tell you that the vast majority of poor burning and poor sound are the result of video encoding with a system that has struggling resources.

I have backed up my dvd video collection and you cant tell the originals from the clones


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

interesting... I guess my real question is if I bought this video card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829121011

And that DVD burner you listed, do you think i would loose quality when I burnt it to the CD?


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

I would be willing to bet you would get great results


besides even if you want a better dvd burner ..... what are you going to lose $26.00 on a standard DVD burner ?????

I would try that before I plunged deeper


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

true, thanks for the advice,

Kevin


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

I built my brother a system two years ago .... he is in the D.J. biz he records his own music from live artists and rips too for his shows ..... his system spec was nothing special..... but the mobo, cpu, ram were very good ....... havent heard him complain at all ??????? and he aint no silent sufferer :laugh:


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

sounds good, is this a similar build to what you built him? Most of it is wat you recomended except I was gona step it up to vista 64-bit for the OS and the sound card I listed above


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

no his spec is now two years old (intel E6600/ creative x-gamer sound card / sony nothing special dvd burner / 3 gigs ddr2-800 memory)

your recent spec would leave his "drooling"


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

haha nice, it totaled to like 2.3 grand. I probably wont need to buy a computer for a couple years so i think its worth the investment.


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

thats alot of green think it over I am sure we can prudently "save" $$$$


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

Computer Setup Model Price
Monitor X Series VX2262wm 339.99
Mother Board P5K-E/Wifi-AP LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX intel motherboard 149.99
RAM DOMINATOR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) 139.00
CPU Core 2 Quad Q9550 Yorkfield 549.00
Video Card AX4850 512MD3-H Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit 184.99
Sound Card Delta 1010LT 24-bit96KHzPCIInterface10-In-10-OutPCIVirtualStudio 199.99
Power Supply CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V 119.99
Case  Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX 119.99
Hard Drive Barracuda 7200.11 ST3500320AS 500GB 7200 RPM 32MB 79.99
CPU cooler CNPS9700 LED 110mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler 79.99
Operating System Windows Vista Ultimate SP1 64-bit English 179.99
CD Drive NEC Optiarc Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 26.99

Total before tax: 2169.90
I figure after tax plus the additional little things I may need, new mouse cables etc, I'll be around 2.4 grand.

*Note that every product listed above has a link in this thread except maybe the Vista 64 bit.

I'm open to any suggestions/recomendations etc.

Thanks again,
Kevin DiGennaro


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

hmmmm sorry in retrospect I dont see anything we can cut that wont degrade performance in a notable way ????

will you be using this machine professionally or enthusiast level ????


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

well currently as an ethusiast


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

you could probably drop down to a dual core E8400 which sells for $170.00 ??? 

and you could drop down a notch on the sound card to a $100.00 card liek the creative X- sereis


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

how much of a performance drop would that be?


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

no sure on the music end of things ...... but in as much as you arent performing professional quality studio or live musis or anything ..... I dont think you would see a difference 

as for the dual core ........ you wont be able to encode video at the same time you are mixing audio ..... thats a pure heavy duty multi tasker


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

well i guess i should have specified a little better when i said was an ethusiast i was thought you were talking about graphics iono why lol probally cus i was drawing at the time.

Any ways this computer will be used to record studio music and live sound, im gona put it in my studio (basement lol.

Here's my thought right now, downgrading those 2 parts saves me about 350 bucks. Im not rich or anything but it seems like if i just wait another week or so and save up the 350 bucks id get a better faster pc. 

If i was saving like 1 grand off those two parts id probably do it.

I guess thats my logic, is that a dumb way to think? or does it make sense?

Thanks,
Kevin


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

I would say your decision makes perfect sense ! 

in your shoes given your desires, I would do the same !

keep us posted with your progress


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

thanks linderman for all your help, hopefully ill start buying parts next week but the build wont be complete for atleast a month ( need to save another grand lol)


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

your plan is a sound one......... enjoy I think you will find your system will be more than worth the wait and extra money!


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

thanks linder, Ill defenitely be back to these forums, probally especically when i actually start building, me and my dad decided to make it a father son project lol


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

alright the time has come!!! next week im going to order the cpu and case, i just saw in someone elses thread that they used this site, NCIX.com, now ther US prices where more than newegg, but if you order them in CAD it was cheaper, my cpu's gona cost 549 american from newegg, but technically only 367 from this site, is it possible to purchase an item in say CAD then have it shipped here? would i save money? or am i better just buying from new egg?

Thanks,
Kevin


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

you should save money ?


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

how would i go about doing that though? would i have to have the parts delivered somewhere in canida then shipped here?


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

if they ship internationally ....... no, they would come right to your door 

try it ........ if they dont ship internationally then they will stop your order ......... given that tigerdirect had to set-up a canadian outlet to serve canada; I am thinking you will hit the road block ?>??


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## Toucan Sam (Jul 5, 2008)

just a note: the cpu linderman listed from the link is $329 not $549...


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

thanks toucan, it defenitely was 549 like 2 weeks ago when i made this post lol, linder checked it aswell as me haha thats a plesent surprise lol


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## Toucan Sam (Jul 5, 2008)

i just saved you more money than linderman could :grin:


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

hey guys, i just got the case, the cd drive, and the hard drive today! (bought these first because they happened to fall right around 200 bucks). I noticed that the sound card linderman suggested was just recently discontinued on new egg. I havent looked for it on other sites yet.

I guess that seems a bit odd to me. Does any one know the reason for this? Where there a lot of problems with the card? Did the company go out of business? Did the company release a newer model?

Should I look for the same card some where else? or should i look into a new card?

Any suggestions on the card if I should get a new one?

Thanks,
Kevin DiGennaro


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Looks like a model change you can sub this one> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131112


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

thanks wrench thats wat i figured happened, just wasnt sure

Thank,
Kevin


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

do i need to buy a wireless card for this set up? I see the mother board has wifi, can i use that to connect to my router? if so is it still worth it to get a card?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

P5K E Wifi right ? You won't need a Wifi card it will work fine unless your looking for the new wireless N rather then G standard .


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

hmmmm, i guess ill just start off with the standard, this build is already costing me enough  I can always upgrade if i need to . I cant wait to get the rest of the parts...lol. I need another grand . I read an article some where that said to install the cpu cooler first cus its hard to install the cooler when the cpu is in, or maybe it was the other way around.

Any good suggestions for articles on how to build computers? I have a pretty good understanding of how they work etc, I just havent ever built one completely from scratch.

Thanks,
Kevin DiGennaro


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Sure this one should help you out, I think they were telling you to install the CPU then put the heat sink cooler on the CPU before putting the motherboard in the case.
http://techreport.com/articles.x/13671


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

ah okay that makes sense. Thanks for the help wrench, I'll probably be back from time to time as I get more parts for the pc


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Also note that to use wireless N you need a wireless N router I don't see a huge advantage unless you have a LAN(local Area Network) and transfer large amounts af data because G is faster then normal broadband internet connections.


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

i also noticed the mother board is "deactivated" not exactly sure what that means, but any one know an alternative? ive almost got all the parts lol


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## k.digennaro (Feb 19, 2008)

sorry not sure how to edit the above post,

I also just want to confirm that all these parts will run on the vista 64-bit, not sure if parts are affected by OS

Thanks,
Kevin


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Yes to Vista 64

Look here for the MB> http://www.mwave.com/mwave/DeepSearch_v2.asp?scriteria=p5k+e+wifi&ALL=y&TP=


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Or for the P45 chipset version, but you'll have to add a WIFI card> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131296


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