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Trouble even getting started for an i5 build
Hi I have been researching a PC build for a while now. Initially it was to be a HTPC build to play HD movies but decided to allow it to use Pro Tools. I have read a bit of information around the net and tried finding information which is recent and relevent to today. I will list my information I have come across soon and questions in between.
Firstly I will talk about the PC as requested buy your sticky. Unfortunatley I can't do a Sandra test yet as I haven't even started the PC build. I was initially going for a budget of arouns $1000 AUD for the PC before Pro Tools addition was considered. I was going to use AMD 240 x2 but have discovered that PT has issues with AMD. That I should use Intel or MAC. I have decided to go Intel. The setup is going to be a Mbox Mini 2 and 1 condensor mic. I believe this is very basic. I do not intend to overclock the PC and so I believe i have been viewing threads for i7 build which beef up PCs. I am trying to keep the budget down and build something that runs at an ok speed. I was going to go with an i5 CPU then unless there is a cheaper Intel chip please let me know. PT is going to be used as a hobby to make beats and freestyles so its not so hardcore or professional. Thats why things like overclocking or all out on components is not required. In regards to navigating PT I will have assistance from a friend who studied it during a media course. So the build will be something like this: CPU: Intel i5 - probably the cheapest/lowest speed one OS: Windows 7 Digidesignor M-Audio hardware: I believe the answer here is M box Mini 2 PT version: I believe M Box Mini 2 comes with Pt LE RAM: 2GB of DDR3 1333MHz with the possibility of 4GB Other devices: 500GB or 1TB hard drives WD Black or Samsung F3 for Windows drive and WD Green for storage Troubleshooting: 3 weeks of research, posting on other forums, chatting on mirc and now I have registered here as I got no where fast with the other options. I will probablly have to change my case form a HTPC amp style to a normal PC tower now to allow for cooling etc. Now I will list some possible issues and things I have come across. Some maybe outdated or incorrect so feel free to correct me on those points: - you should use 2 x 500GB drives. One of these acts as a backup to prevent heartache of lost music if HDD fails. - Go for 32MB cache on HDD. They have 64Mb cache so wouldn't I go for this now? Perhaps that statement about 32Mb was out dated. They didn't mention 7200RPM instead a lower RPM. - So can I just get 2 x 1TB 64Mb cache hard drives and go for 7200RPM? - PT has compatibility issues with Intel. I looked around on the PT site and couldn't find the specific link for approved motherboards and coponents. So I would really need help in this area. - There is mention of firewire. Why is this needed. Is it to transfer data because if so I thought eSATA was faster. - It appears I require a dedicated graphics card and not an onboard one. Also recommended to get Nvidia as there is compatibilities with ATi. So I would require assistance here to get a basic dedicated NVidia graphics card too. Also why do you need graphics card for audio based stuff? - Doing hip hop I was recommended to get a drum machine as PT wouldn't be helpfull in this regard. I though I could just get drum machine samples/loops etc for PT. - Can I make do with 2GB DDR3 1333MHz RAM or do I really need 4GB or 6Gb even. I know 6GB may not be detected but again I am not really looking for a superfast setup for pros. I think that's all for now so any help would be much appreciated. Thanks |
#2
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Re: Trouble even getting started for an i5 build
my2c:
get two 32MB cache drives, 1 for system, 1 for Audio, (and do NOT get a Green one for those!), a Green drive for backup is ok. get 4 MB Ram esternal HDs can be hooked uo via eSata or Firewire read the stickies for recommendations There are people who got AMD to work, but from what I understood, this depends greatly on the chipset. There may be some threads about that. An Ati graphics card is possibly the better bet, I got some trouble with my Nvidia when I got my current setup.
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002R BLA mod and Mbox mini 2, PT 11.3.2, HD Native, HD IO 16x8x8, PT 2018.7, Win 10 Pro 64, Asrock X99 Extreme6/3.1, i7-6850K, 32 GB Ram, SSD system drive, ssd audio drive |
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Re: Trouble even getting started for an i5 build
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From the stickies I see i7 builds or the older Intel Core 2/Dual Core r whatever they are called. Also components listed are expensive, that's in USD. Quote:
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So on another revision we have the following: CPU: Intel i5 HDD: 2 x 1TB Seagate Barracudas 32MB cache MOBO: Any cheap compatible motherboards? GPU: Any cheap compatible ATi RAM: 4GB Corsair DDR3 1333MHz <<<- is that fine for a budget build? Hardware: M Box Mini 2 Pro Tools version: PTLE I assume this comes with M Box Mini 2 Any further suggestions or reference to other stickies/threads would be appreciated. I tried navigating around the AVID site for Windows compatibility parts and grids. I couldn't find what I was after or couldn't understand what they had available. I thought it would say "you can use this motherboard and this CPu and this RAM" etc. |
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Re: Trouble even getting started for an i5 build
1. the Avid site has been always lagging behind with their "approved systems".
2. I also have an Mbox mini that I use on travel 3. If you get 64MB of cache on HDs thats fine, 32 is IMHO fine as well 4. of course DDR3 is better 5. for an i5 you need a socket mobo 1156; I am sorry, I don't have any personal experience so far, just got an i3 notebook recently and will test it with PT as soon as I have time 6. To make it clear, you NEED 2 separate HDs for PT to run smoothly
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002R BLA mod and Mbox mini 2, PT 11.3.2, HD Native, HD IO 16x8x8, PT 2018.7, Win 10 Pro 64, Asrock X99 Extreme6/3.1, i7-6850K, 32 GB Ram, SSD system drive, ssd audio drive |
#5
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Re: Trouble even getting started for an i5 build
Right now you really need a dedicated machine with good specs and be willing to customize it for PT to run PT without problems.
There are some other DAW choices out there that run better on less expensive machines. |
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Re: Trouble even getting started for an i5 build
The blend of tight budget with Pro Tools can be a recipe for disater. Don't take shortcuts on a Pro Tools system.
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~ tom thomas Formerly hobotom Pro Tools Ultimate 2024 HDX Hybrid HD Omni and 192 I/Os Windows 10 Intel Hexcore i7 All Samsung Pro SSDs Ampex MM1200 2" 24 trk tape Outboard: UREI, Eventide, Lexicon, Yamaha, TC Electronics, Orban, ART, EchoAudio, Dolby, Hughes, API, Neve, Audio Arts, BBE, Aphex, Berringer, MOTU, dbx, Allison, etc. Plug-ins: Too many to talk about. www.metrostudios.com |
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Re: Trouble even getting started for an i5 build
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The main thing I myself would advise is that when using PT be prepared for problems no matter what your system is. Mine always has a few annoying "quirks" here and there... there is no perfect machine...but if it seems impossible to get PT to work...you will have built a machine that is more than capable of getting what you need with another DAW.
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...sing in the melody of "Row Row Row your Boat": Damn Damn Damn it all, Damn it all to Hell..." |
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Re: Trouble even getting started for an i5 build
The only 64MB drives I have seen so far are the WD EARS drives. They use a new cluster size and may have issues with XP. I would avoid them and stick with a conventional 32MB drive which is also a great deal cheaper.
If your really budget constrained a Core 2 Quad system may be the most effective way of spending your money since compatibility is pretty much assured. The only i5 issue I'm aware of is that some people have had problems with USB devices and DAE 1115 errors. A cheap PCI based USB card seems to solve this. AMD...Results seem to very but more people are getting AMD systems going lately. With Hexacore processors priced at 199.00 and 299.00 respectively and benchmarks approaching the i7 920's with overclocked HT1090's these bear some closer inspection. I just ordered a 2.8GHz HT1055 6 core for 199.00. I think it wil be interesting to compare the 2.8GHz E7400 @ 99.00 to the 99.00 Athlon x4 620 @ 2.8Ghz and then see how adding 2 more cores and some cache for another 100.00 scales up and compares to the i7 920. i7 930 are 199.00 here in Cleveland, Oh so I think its a valid comparison. What I'm saying is you might want to wait a week or two
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Scott Formerly Hobo Wan Kenobi Core 2 Specs Page ASUS P6T6 Revolution | i7 930 | 12GB OCZ DDR3 1600 7-7-7-20 | PTLE 10 | CPTK | 003 | Presonus D8 | 11Rack | Alesis AI3 | Presonus HP60 | Mercury + Studio Classics | Sound Toys | MasseyPack | Axiom61 | MAudio Keystation Pro 88 |
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Re: Trouble even getting started for an i5 build
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Re: Trouble even getting started for an i5 build
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Good find. The 64MB drives I orginally saw were the 2TB EARS series. That tech trickled down much faster than I would have expected. Kinda wish I would have seen that before I completed my newegg order.
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Scott Formerly Hobo Wan Kenobi Core 2 Specs Page ASUS P6T6 Revolution | i7 930 | 12GB OCZ DDR3 1600 7-7-7-20 | PTLE 10 | CPTK | 003 | Presonus D8 | 11Rack | Alesis AI3 | Presonus HP60 | Mercury + Studio Classics | Sound Toys | MasseyPack | Axiom61 | MAudio Keystation Pro 88 |
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