Music Production Computer

**UnkNowNGenius** · 05-17-2012

Instead of going MAC (Which I THINK I won't do) I'll be build a PC.

But a got some problem, I have absolutely NO idea what Motherboard and Power supply I need.

For processor I'll be getting an Intel i7
Memory:8gb
Hard drive:SeaGate or Western Digital haven't decided yet, prolly going 1TB there.
Case:I'll decide later
Graphic Card:I'll decide later

Need help with Motherboard and Power supply.

And if there's any advices and tips, share them!

Thanks.

Dont worry about budget... I think motherboards and Power supplies aren't that expensive?

**dvcphung** · 05-17-2012

get 16GB of RAM then, more RAM, the better.

**CPhoenix** · 05-18-2012

With that much RAM, you want to make sure you're taking advantage of it, since you have to be using 64bit applications to actually access it.

What DAW are you using? Does it has a 64bit version? If it doesn't... you'll also need to grab JBridge. It will allow you to access the additional RAM in your DAW, if your DAW doesn't have it's own solution to the problem.

**UnkNowNGenius** · 05-18-2012

^
FL and Reason.

**JBlongz** · 05-18-2012

Why exactly won't you get a mac? Consider this article first: Mac vs PC - General - ProducerBay

**UnkNowNGenius** · 05-18-2012

^
I would save some money for other stuff If I get a PC

I said dont worry about the budget, I meant for motherboard and power supply ONLY, because i think those 2 things doesn't cost much.

I would go Logic if i had mac and not fl ^^

**hollandturbine** · 05-18-2012

Originally Posted by JBlongz

Why exactly won't you get a mac? Consider this article first: Mac vs PC - General - ProducerBay

The form factor of Apple's consumer products are less than ideal for serious production work compared to an expandable tower system that allows users to add powerful CPUs, lots of RAM, connect hard drives and cards straight to the motherboard without going through an intermediary such as USB and this is exactly why creative professionals are biting their nails over the fate of the Mac Pro. Despite being quite old the Mac Pro is still prohibitively expensive, especially if you live in Australia where despite parity with the US dollar the same model Mac Pro is $1000 more expensive for no other reason than Apple can risk being even more greedy in a smaller market.

**JBlongz** · 05-19-2012

This is why Apple and Intel introduced Thunderbolt, it can faithfully replace the Mac Pro when used with an iMac. Its faster than ANY other standard, even Sata III. Lacie makes "Little Big Disk" Which allows you to take that storage with you when you need it. Can't do that on the Mac Pro without opening it. I have two of these and each fits 2x 2.5" disks. I have one with two 512 SSDs (for plugin/sound library) and the other with 2 HDD (Audio/Video Recording). The fact that I can just take one plug and switch from the iMac to my macbook is priceless! The iMac can already take 32gb of RAM sold by MacSales.com and a few others. So the Mac Pro isn't really necessary anymore unless you need 8+ cores....which overdoing it for music. I use plugins to the extreme through Vienna Ensemble Pro, and I haven't reached CPU limit yet.

**hollandturbine** · 05-19-2012

Originally Posted by JBlongz

This is why Apple and Intel introduced Thunderbolt, it can faithfully replace the Mac Pro when used with an iMac. Its faster than ANY other standard, even Sata III. Lacie makes "Little Big Disk" Which allows you to take that storage with you when you need it. Can't do that on the Mac Pro without opening it. I have two of these and each fits 2x 2.5" disks. I have one with two 512 SSDs (for plugin/sound library) and the other with 2 HDD (Audio/Video Recording). The fact that I can just take one plug and switch from the iMac to my macbook is priceless! The iMac can already take 32gb of RAM sold by MacSales.com and a few others. So the Mac Pro isn't really necessary anymore unless you need 8+ cores....which overdoing it for music. I use plugins to the extreme through Vienna Ensemble Pro, and I haven't reached CPU limit yet.

Thunderbolt is something that is absolutely necessary in order to make laptops and all-in-one computers more comparable to a tower system and even though it forces you to have an inside out system scattered over the desktop like it's the 80's at least it finally bridges the gap between the needs of the average consumer Vs the needs of the producer. Unfortunately external peripherals tend to be slightly more expensive compared to internal ones and at the moment Thunderbolt is not cheap unless you make an iMac Vs Mac Pro price comparison but compared to a PC tower its game over for the iMac/Thunderbolt combo until the price drops.