Best Desktops for Pro Tools LE

[Petander]

about 2.8GB but insted of how much you can put in the thing why dont you look at how much you actually need

Thank you very much.


And I sure need all RAM I can use,things like DFH Superior ase simply impossible otherwise.

Well, now I need to find out how to arrange 3 gigs in the A8N-E SLI DL. Four slots... hmm...?


Or does it matter if I just put in 4G? Easier to do it properly.


Sorry for going slightly OT here, good to be back.

[sbs]

ok, questions questions...

Allen, I know your regular advice is to buy the best CPU so quite why I'm asking this I dont know, I guess like most of us dorm dwellers i'm trying to pinch the pennies...

trying to spec a new machine based on the following:

AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4400+
Asus A8N-SLi Premium nForce4 SLi
Sapphire ATI Radeon X800 GTO Ultimate 256MB
Corsair 1GB DDR XMS3200XL Pro TwinX (2x512MB) CAS2
2 * Western Digital Caviar Special Edition 120GB 1200JS SATA-II 8MB Cache
Mitsumi FA 404M 7in1 USB 2.0 Floppy & Media Drive - Black
NEC ND4550 16x16 DVD±RW Dual Layer ReWriter (Black)
Sony DDU1613 DVD-ROM (Black)
Zalman CNPS7700-CU Ultra-Quiet CPU Cooler - Retail
Antec Sonata II Piano Black Quiet Case - 450W Smart Power PSU
AcoustiPack Pre-cut Kit For Antec Sonata II - Plus fan mounts

and i'm toying with the more expensive 4800 cpu...

can i expect (as on the last incarnations of the allenstein) that the better cache of the 4400 verus the 4600 will yield better performance?

the 4400 saves me £220 over the 4800 and I'm expecting this machine to KICK BUTT whichever proc i choose but ya know how it is... should i blow the budget?

or should i just buy the g5 dual core, i'd love to run logic too? which would rule out my using my 001...

step 2 of the upgrade is of course to go to the 002r, so while i'm saving the pennies for the 002r i intend to plug the 001 into one of the PCI slots on the mobo, (i'm pretty sure that the asus webby lists the a8n sli as having 2 pci-e slots and 3 pci slots) can anyone forsee problems with this?

last question, i use battery 2 which causes my current pc (an ageing p3 1 gig with 512 mb of ram) to keel over. i have to strip the kits down to keep from running out of ram, will 1 gig be enough or should i splash out and get 2 gig?

help and comments greatly appreciated

tim

[bb_aus]

And I sure need all RAM I can use,things like DFH Superior ase simply impossible otherwise.

i recomend you open up task manager and look at how much memory you are currently using. it is better to have to much RAM than to little but it seems stupid to spend that money on something if it isnt needed when you could put the money into a better processor or towards a new mic. i wouldnt think you would need more than 2GB but it is possible. you may want to start with 2GB and then upgrade if/when you need it, anyway its your decision and money.

Well, now I need to find out how to arrange 3 gigs in the A8N-E SLI DL. Four slots... hmm...?
Or does it matter if I just put in 4G? Easier to do it properly.

im not up with the latest boards but ill assume its running duel channel ram so you could go with 2x 1GB stick and 2x 512MB just make sure you put them in the correct slots. the boards now should support 8GB so you shouldnt have any problem putting 4GB in, its just windows wont utilize the last gig properly. which ever way you go its best to buy as pairs and install them in the paired slots.

[Allen Hallada]

ok, questions questions...

Allen, I know your regular advice is to buy the best CPU so quite why I'm asking this I dont know, I guess like most of us dorm dwellers i'm trying to pinch the pennies...

trying to spec a new machine based on the following:

AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4400+
Asus A8N-SLi Premium nForce4 SLi
Sapphire ATI Radeon X800 GTO Ultimate 256MB
Corsair 1GB DDR XMS3200XL Pro TwinX (2x512MB) CAS2
2 * Western Digital Caviar Special Edition 120GB 1200JS SATA-II 8MB Cache
Mitsumi FA 404M 7in1 USB 2.0 Floppy & Media Drive - Black
NEC ND4550 16x16 DVD±RW Dual Layer ReWriter (Black)
Sony DDU1613 DVD-ROM (Black)
Zalman CNPS7700-CU Ultra-Quiet CPU Cooler - Retail
Antec Sonata II Piano Black Quiet Case - 450W Smart Power PSU
AcoustiPack Pre-cut Kit For Antec Sonata II - Plus fan mounts

and i'm toying with the more expensive 4800 cpu...

can i expect (as on the last incarnations of the allenstein) that the better cache of the 4400 verus the 4600 will yield better performance?

the 4400 saves me £220 over the 4800 and I'm expecting this machine to KICK BUTT whichever proc i choose but ya know how it is... should i blow the budget?

or should i just buy the g5 dual core, i'd love to run logic too? which would rule out my using my 001...

step 2 of the upgrade is of course to go to the 002r, so while i'm saving the pennies for the 002r i intend to plug the 001 into one of the PCI slots on the mobo, (i'm pretty sure that the asus webby lists the a8n sli as having 2 pci-e slots and 3 pci slots) can anyone forsee problems with this?

last question, i use battery 2 which causes my current pc (an ageing p3 1 gig with 512 mb of ram) to keel over. i have to strip the kits down to keep from running out of ram, will 1 gig be enough or should i splash out and get 2 gig?

help and comments greatly appreciated

tim

Tim,
Get what you can afford at the time as technology is changing so fast these days that by next year these dual core processors will be outdated. I'd probably go with the 4400s, and use the rest of the money to take a hot babe to the movie "Walk the Line" for a little walk down memory lane of Rock n Roll. I just bought a picture of Johnny Cash at his first photo shoot with Sun Studios and Sam Phillips in Memphis, TN.
Allen

[laszlos]

. I have achieved IMO a reasonably quiet system with that mobo, Intel D820 CPU and fan cooled Radeon X550 display card packed in a Nexus Breeze case. I have yet to measure noise levels, but will propably do that soon.

Mind if i ask what cpu fan do you use with that? I built a really similar system (p5wd2 premium mb, intel d 830, nexus breeze case), and it has severe overheating problems. Might be the asus temperature probe that's not showing me correct results, but i get 55-60 degrees cpu temperatures, and ~40-42 mb temperatures in IDLE mode. When i use both cores 100%, the cpu temperature goes up to the >80 degrees region, where i stop the test, afraid of damaging the processor which is (as intel says) not supposed to go above 69.5 celsius.

I was thinking that the soundproofing of the case is the reason of my troubles, as the asus mb outputs most of it's heat to it's back, exactly where the soundproofing gives it a "perfect insulation".

Anyhow, so are you using the stock intel cpu fan, or purchased something other?



thanks,
laszlo

[critical_damage]

Hello,
I'm used to work with my MBOX (PTLE 6.4) on my laptop Latitude D600, and now I need to have also a desktop for my works, ... with a limited budget.
Currently I have 2 proposal with good price :

P4 630-3000 2Mb sk775
Motherboard: ASROCK 775V88, Chipset viaPT880, Fsb800, SATA

or

AMD ATH64 3200+ sk939
Motherboard: ASUS A8V-MX SE, Chipset viaK8M800, SATA RAID

I cannot find any note in compatibility section and in this thread about the above chipsets.
Did any of you have the opportunity to test them ?

Thx
Cheers
Andrea - [email protected]

[sbs]

Tim,
Get what you can afford at the time as technology is changing so fast these days that by next year these dual core processors will be outdated. I'd probably go with the 4400s, and use the rest of the money to take a hot babe to the movie "Walk the Line" for a little walk down memory lane of Rock n Roll. I just bought a picture of Johnny Cash at his first photo shoot with Sun Studios and Sam Phillips in Memphis, TN.
Allen

Allen

sage like advice as ever, thanks.

i'll save the money and go with the 4400 and spend the cash on the ram (unless there are any hot babes reading the forum at a loose end this evening?). reading bb_aus's comments i think i'll just stick 3 gig in the machine and get on with it. haven't researched the 2.8 gig limit to xp's ability to see ram but sounds reasonable.

being a son of the early 80's (when i came of musical age rather than actually being born) i'm yet to discover the beauty of mr cash. problem might come when said hot babe prefers the wild rock n roll thing on screen but hey, deal with that if/when it comes along

last thing, can you think of a sound reason to throw caution to the wind and buy the dual core mac? i'm thinking of the m9590b/a model

muchos gracias amigo

tim

[bb_aus]

Hello,
I'm used to work with my MBOX (PTLE 6.4) on my laptop Latitude D600, and now I need to have also a desktop for my works, ... with a limited budget.
Currently I have 2 proposal with good price :

P4 630-3000 2Mb sk775
Motherboard: ASROCK 775V88, Chipset viaPT880, Fsb800, SATA

or

AMD ATH64 3200+ sk939
Motherboard: ASUS A8V-MX SE, Chipset viaK8M800, SATA RAID

I cannot find any note in compatibility section and in this thread about the above chipsets.
Did any of you have the opportunity to test them ?

Thx
Cheers
Andrea - [email protected]

if they arnt listed then they arnt suppoered, which isnt to say it wont work but save your self the trouble and do it properly

[critical_damage]

Tx,
that's correct but I wonder if the compatibility matrix is continuosly extended by testing MBOX on last generation chipsets (i.e. chipsets from VIA). I'm afraid that in a short time I'll not be able to find any new supported hardware ..
It would be good to know what's the obsolescence program for MBOX (now that MBOX2 is available)

Tx
Cheers
Andrea

[DRJ]

bb aus, Thanks for the reply on the Antec Sonatta II PS. As I need the wireless card (and like the option of the other devices), I opted to return the Sonatta. So now I am looking for a higher quality and quiet PS.

I am considering the Enermax 485 W Noisetaker (just a little more juice). Also, I am looking at Antec TruePower 2.0 500 or 550 W PS. Do you (or anyone) know if this Antec line is relatively quiet?

Also in consideration is the Antec NeoHe 500 W (which is quiet). The only thing on this PS is that I saw feedback that the NeoHe 430 PS (found in the new Antec P150 case) had some compatablity issues with the ASUS A8N-SLI Premium mobo that I am planning on getting. And I don't know if this incompatability extends to the whole NeoHe line.

Any info. is appreciated.

Thanks, DRJ