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  #1  
Old 06-11-2020, 11:21 PM
DBK DBK is offline
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Default 'Building' First PC - Need Some Advice

I'm still awhile away from it but I figured it's time to start learning how to build a PC/Laptop for Pro Tools so I'm not stuck with a bunch of research time before I can buy when my current system dies. (When I say build I mean pick out the specs and have a pro build it haha)

I'm running a Late 2013 Macbook Pro with 16gb of Ram and a 2.3 Quad Core i7 Processor right now and it's showing some pretty clear signs it's coming to the end of it's life.

A new Macbook Pro with 32gb of ram and an i9 runs about 4500 bucks Canadian. I've been picky about staying with Mac because I'm WAY faster in Pro Tools on a mac keyboard, but after seeing the price I'm not sure having the cmmd key in a preferable spot is worth the tradeoff of being able to run as many plugins as I want on a way cheaper/stronger PC. So I guess I'll suck it up, relearn my shortcut 'shapes' and enjoy not having to worry about how many reverbs I have loaded haha.

Anyway some basic questions as I've never really thought about building my own system before -

1.) I use a TV monitor for my monitor, If I build a PC I could just build a tower and connect it to my monitor right?

2.) It's been close to 10 years since I've thought about anything internal related to computers, what is the pecking order for deciding on the parts to build for a PC? And please give me a list of what I need to decide on....In other words, I need a template of what parts I need to choose because I probably don't even know everything that goes into a CPU. And secondary, the importance of each of those items/specs in order would be great.

3.) I'm good at doing research and comparing options but first I need a foundation for what to research, what stuff should I be learning about in order to make educated decisions? I'm referring to different types of processors, graphic cards and their importance, etc.. Basically, assuming I know nothing, where would you tell me to start learning? All I really know is since I'm taking the PC route I might as well build it impeccable so it can handle as many plugins as I can throw at it. Otherwise I'd just spend the extra money on a Mac. I don't want to ruin creative flow by worrying about if my CPU can handle another reverb anymore.

4.) Is a top of the line suped up PC Laptop a far ways away from a Tower build? Or can I get what I'm looking for with a laptop?
I'm sure I'll have more questions but this is getting long and it's a good place to start.
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  #2  
Old 06-12-2020, 02:02 AM
Ru_C Ru_C is offline
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Default Re: 'Building' First PC - Need Some Advice

Hi there, I'm probably not the best person to advise you on the intricacies of PC builds, but I did build one earlier this year & also installed OSX Catalina on it making a so-called 'Hackintosh'. I remember trying to do this about 10 years ago & it was pretty tricky, but it was very straightforward this time.

It's just worth baring in mind, that if you pick the right components when you go for your PC build, you will probably get a tower Mac out of it too.

Regarding the Command/Control key issue, there is a tiny free utility for PC's called 'Sharp Keys' that you can download which will switch these over for you, which saves me swearing so much when switching over to Windows.
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Last edited by Ru_C; 06-12-2020 at 02:22 AM.
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  #3  
Old 06-19-2020, 12:21 AM
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adavies adavies is offline
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Default Re: 'Building' First PC - Need Some Advice

I'm looking into a PC build as well. I've no doubt that a tenth generation i9 X or K can beat the pants off of any Xeon for low latency computation. The build I'm circling around is either an i9 10940 (or 80) X (XE) or an i9 10900K. A loy depends on CPU availability ( as stock is super low). That leaves me with either one of the LGA 2066 Asus Prime (with thunderbolt 3) motherboards or one of their LGA 1200 motherboards (with thunderbolt 3). I'm using an HDX card, so I'll need space in the Chassis for that and the graphics card (thinking of the Radeon pro 5100 or 4100). I've been running PT Ultimate 2020 on an i7 6700 and it blows the socks off my old (and much loved) Mac Pro 12 core for smaller sessions. The good thing about running Pro Tools on a windows machine is that you have access to loads of optimizations you don't have on Mac OS, so you can really have I've heck of a system for a fraction of the cost.

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  #4  
Old 07-01-2020, 03:29 PM
DBK DBK is offline
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Default Fantasy - Build A Pro Tools PC for a midi composer

So I've been a long time mac user and I'm somewhat ignorant to the individual components that make up an actual computer.

My late 2013 Macbook isn't cutting it anymore for my sessions. Constant CPU overloads and stuck midi notes on relatively small sessions.

It's time for an upgrade to my system and I can't get excited about the Macs I can get in the $3000 price range. I use A LOT of midi and high CPU plugins in my sessions and I approach Pro Tools from an electronic music production perspective. Lots of Midi tracks, lots of VSTS, lots of automation, etc... I don't want my workflow to be interrupted by CPU overloads anymore SO if I am going to build a PC I want to be able to make sure it handles anything I can throw at it.

With that being said, this is the beginning of my research, I don't even know what individual components I need to pick out in order to get someone to build me a PC. I know I need a good CPU, lots of RAM, a decent Graphics card for pro tools, a motherboard, some sort of cooling system, etc... As you can tell, I don't know a lot haha, very fundamental basic understanding.

SO, I think step one of my research will be asking you guys to pick out each individual component you'd select for your PC when building custom from scratch. From there I'll have an idea what choices I need to make, and then I can do research on each individual part and compare/contrast options.

I already assume I'll want a top of the line CPU so a 9900 or AMDs Ryzen equivalent. I know I'll want at least 64gb of RAM since it's relatively cheap anyway. I know I'll want an SSD, etc... I've never used TB3, only USB 3.0 so I may need to look more into that. But anyway, that's all I'll say for now.

What I ask from you guys is, simply design a PC and I'll use that information as a baseline starting point to organize my research.
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Old 07-01-2020, 05:16 PM
leftalive leftalive is offline
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Default Re: Fantasy - Build A Pro Tools PC for a midi composer

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Originally Posted by DBK View Post
I know I'll want at least 64gb of RAM since it's relatively cheap anyway.
haha, well I guess it has been a while since you did this kind of thing. (Ram ain't cheap)


Have a look at the i7 builds thread stickied at the top of this sub forum. Lots of good info there.

Research gaming builds too, as any stout gaming build will be more than enough for what you're after, and even overkill in certain areas (graphics, mainly, so you can safely downgrade your GPU a tick or two and be fine).

Asking us to do the leg work for you is sort of a weird flex, and any machine designed for audio isn't going to look much different from a gaming rig anyhow.

Happy hunting.
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  #6  
Old 07-01-2020, 08:17 PM
DBK DBK is offline
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Default Re: Fantasy - Build A Pro Tools PC for a midi composer

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Originally Posted by leftalive View Post
haha, well I guess it has been a while since you did this kind of thing. (Ram ain't cheap)


Have a look at the i7 builds thread stickied at the top of this sub forum. Lots of good info there.

Research gaming builds too, as any stout gaming build will be more than enough for what you're after, and even overkill in certain areas (graphics, mainly, so you can safely downgrade your GPU a tick or two and be fine).

Asking us to do the leg work for you is sort of a weird flex, and any machine designed for audio isn't going to look much different from a gaming rig anyhow.

Happy hunting.
Haha thanks.

I didn't think it was asking you to do the leg work. It's a fun thing to do for people that are into this sort of thing. No ones making ya do it, but if you wanted to, build your fantasy PC lol. If I knew about all this type of stuff then I'd love to do that kinda thing just for fun.
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Old 07-01-2020, 10:05 PM
leftalive leftalive is offline
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Default Re: Fantasy - Build A Pro Tools PC for a midi composer

Ha, very true.

Look into the gaming rig thing. You may even be able to find one locally that you can pick up for a song, and save yourself the trouble of having one made.
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  #8  
Old 07-01-2020, 11:13 PM
DBK DBK is offline
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Default Re: Fantasy - Build A Pro Tools PC for a midi composer

How does this look so far?

-CPU: Intel i9 9900k 8core
-Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM
-Motherboard: Gigabyte Z390 AORUS MASTER ATX LGA1151
-Ram: Corsair Vengeance LPX (2x16 GB) DDR4-3600 CL18 x2=64gb
-Boot Drive: Samsung 970 Evo Plus 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME SSD
-External: Sumsung t5 SSD 1tb (already own)
-GPU: Gigabyte Radeon RX 590 8 GB GAMING 8G Video Card
-PSU: Corsair RMx 1000 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX

Any compatibility issues? Anything not looking right? How would I go about choosing a case? Am I missing anything? Bottlenecks? Overkill? Fan noise?
---
PC builder gave me these notes

Note:The motherboard M.2 slot #1 shares bandwidth with SATA 6.0 Gb/s ports. When the M.2 slot is populated, two SATA 6.0 Gb/s ports are disabled.

Note:Some physical dimension restrictions cannot (yet) be automatically checked, such as cpu cooler / RAM clearance with modules using tall heat spreaders.
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  #9  
Old 07-02-2020, 10:21 AM
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The Weed The Weed is offline
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Default Re: Fantasy - Build A Pro Tools PC for a midi composer

If you have the budget, contact pro-tools-pc.com. They build PCs specifically for and only for Pro Tools and they support them.
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Old 07-02-2020, 11:07 AM
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albee1952 albee1952 is offline
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Default Re: Fantasy - Build A Pro Tools PC for a midi composer

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Originally Posted by The Weed View Post
If you have the budget, contact pro-tools-pc.com. They build PCs specifically for and only for Pro Tools and they support them.
That's a great option^^^. Your parts list looks good to me except that I would go with nVidia graphics. As for your TV, it should work fine(I run a 43" LED TV here as my main screen @1920x1080). 4k might work, but everything will be way too tiny. If you plan on using many VI plugins that have large sample libraries, I would add a 3rd internal drive for samples. If you don't have other backup hard drives, you should plan on adding some, ASAP. I use 1 large USB drive(6TB) for backup of all sessions and it has a partition where I copy every downloaded installer I need, including drivers for all my hardware, Pro Tools installers, Eucon, plugin installers, etc. Then I would add a second large USB drive for drive images. Once your new system is built, tweaked and has Pro Tools working, save a drive image. After installing the rest of your software and plugins, save a second drive image. Some drive imaging software options: Acronis True Image, Macrium Reflect(free), Backupper(also free) and Backupper Pro(more features than the free version).
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