i7 Builds - Specs and Results

[TheTrashman]

Hello everyone! I've been following this thread for literally years. Back in 2009/10 I had an i7 workstation built, and with only minor upgrades over it's lifespan, it been very solid and served me well! However, my needs are expanding and I've been planning a new system for awhile. I think I've finally come close to nailing down a part list. I am hoping some of you could weigh in on this build and provide your opinions.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($477.98 @ DirectCanada)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 SE2011 CPU Cooler ($89.75 @ Vuugo)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-X99-UD4 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($258.00 @ NCIX)
Memory: Crucial 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($255.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Memory: Crucial 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($255.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Storage: Samsung 850 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($169.99 @ Canada Computers)
Storage: Samsung 850 Pro Series 512GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($314.98 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($81.00 @ Newegg Canada)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB Video Card ($159.99 @ NCIX)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($119.99 @ NCIX)
Power Supply: Corsair Professional 750W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($184.50 @ Vuugo)
Optical Drive: LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($66.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 OEM (64-bit) ($169.96 @ DirectCanada)
Case Fan: Noctua NF-S12B FLX 59.2 CFM 120mm Fan ($19.99 @ Memory Express)
Case Fan: Noctua NF-S12B FLX 59.2 CFM 120mm Fan ($19.99 @ Memory Express)
Other: GIGABYTE Thunderbolt™ add-in card ($49.00)
Total: $2694.06
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-31 14:55 EDT-0400

That all being said, I am very open to changing the build. To give you all a better idea of my goals: I am trying to build something for post-production and film composing, specifically utilizing East West libraries and Native Instruments Komplete. Right now I have PT10/11 + CPTK and will soon buy the $599.99 upgrade path to 12HD. Obviously the smaller SSD will be for the system, the larger SSD will be for sample libraries (planning on subscribing to the East West Composer Cloud... probably still need a bigger drive if I'm going to use Hollywood Strings!), and the WD black is for sessions. I've added a thunderbolt card because I'd like to buy a new interface. Leaning towards the Focusrite Liquid Saffire 56. It seems like good bang for the buck, and as far as I know there are no problems with connecting it via a firewire to thunderbolt adapter.

I do have some questions right out of the gate:

• Anywhere I can downgrade to cut cost without dramatically effecting performance... or possibly even improving it!?
• Is there any real benefit for me installing 64GB of RAM, or am I swiftly approaching the law of diminishing returns? Should I choose a smaller amount of better RAM?
• Can I get away with a smaller power supply? The build is showing an estimated 366W.
• Clueless regarding cooling... would that be enough? Should I investigate water cooling to reduce noise?
• Since I'll be doing post-production and scoring on video projects, should I upgrade the graphics card? I chose this one based on price point and noise, while sacrificing power. I plan on using two monitors at 1080p, nothing crazy!
• Opinions on the choice of SSD? From what I understand the most important spec for a sample library is the 4KB Random Read, and the Samsung 850 Pro can go up to 100,000 IOPS. I can't seem find an SSD that's better on this spec.
• Is this really a good time to be going through with this build, or should I wait for the next generation i7 and the resulting price drop in the 5820k?
• By the way, if anyone has experience with it, I'd appreciate some feedback on East West compatibility with PT12. The compatibility chart on their site doesn't even mention 12, but I'm hoping that if it works in 11 it should be fine? Is it naive to assume?
• Few notes: I am very comfortable using Windows 7 with PT and see no need to move to 8.1 or higher. I only chose a Gigabyte motherboard because I've had good success with one, still using a GA-X58A-UD3R and have had no problems. I don't care about the case, just saw a number of builds with a Fractal Design Define case and figured it was a good choice. I have briefly read about using a master/slave configuration for composition, it sounds cool but I don't think I'm there yet.

I hope some of you can shed some light on this, cheers!

[zedhed]

Looks like a great build to me. IMHO one can never have too much RAM so if you can afford 64GB go for it, though if you wanted to skimp anywhere going to 32GB would still be fine. You could always add the rest at a later date if needed.

I would not go to a lower watt power supply.

If East West (or the appropriate plugin for using their libraries) is AAX64Bit, it should be compatible with 12. Having said that, I have no experience using EW.

Good luck!

[Dantesjuice]

Sup guys...

Not sure if you saw my other thread regarding the "future" of HDX, but it also touches base on future PC/Mac systems.

Personally i would old off on a new PC build, or atleast get a new mobo that supports TB3/USB C since Intel just released their "skylake" processors that support the new Z170 chipset which has onboard support for USB3/3.1/TB3/USB C and also DDR4, which will most likely be the new standard. Asus and Gigabyte, among others, already have mobos out with these connectors.

I have a build right now sitting in my wishlist at newegg as we speak, i just updated it as soon as they offered the new i7 6700k. Asus Z170 Delux, Intel i7 6700k, and some DDR4 3200 RipJaw ram =)

Anyway, read this, it might help you decide on what to build next. =)

http://duc.avid.com/showthread.php?t=370638

edit...fyi...I have a mint condition saffire 56 that im selling since my upgrade to the apollo 16 if your interested. but honestly if your looking for pre's + an awesome interface, i would go uad apollo 8, or apollo 16 if you already have great pre's. The ability to print your plugins while tracking, is about as close as you can get to the idea of being in a "real" studio. The API vision strip and Manely Vari Mu and Massive Passive (i own them), are some of the best plugins iv ever heard in my life. Also, the uad stuff seems to have better driver support via TB and not firewire, my experience anyway.

[guitardom]

Originally Posted by Dantesjuice

Sup guys...

Not sure if you saw my other thread regarding the "future" of HDX, but it also touches base on future PC/Mac systems.

Personally i would old off on a new PC build, or atleast get a new mobo that supports TB3/USB C since Intel just released their "skylake" processors that support the new Z170 chipset which has onboard support for USB3/3.1/TB3/USB C and also DDR4, which will most likely be the new standard. Asus and Gigabyte, among others, already have mobos out with these connectors.

I have a build right now sitting in my wishlist at newegg as we speak, i just updated it as soon as they offered the new i7 6700k. Asus Z170 Delux, Intel i7 6700k, and some DDR4 3200 RipJaw ram =)

Anyway, read this, it might help you decide on what to build next. =)

http://duc.avid.com/showthread.php?t=370638

edit...fyi...I have a mint condition saffire 56 that im selling since my upgrade to the apollo 16 if your interested. but honestly if your looking for pre's + an awesome interface, i would go uad apollo 8, or apollo 16 if you already have great pre's. The ability to print your plugins while tracking, is about as close as you can get to the idea of being in a "real" studio. The API vision strip and Manely Vari Mu and Massive Passive (i own them), are some of the best plugins iv ever heard in my life. Also, the uad stuff seems to have better driver support via TB and not firewire, my experience anyway.

Modern x99 already require DDR4 and x99/z97 already support USB3/3.1 The USB C will be nice after more device manufactures implement it and it has much larger power handling capabilities but otherwise its just 3.1 specs and will be usable in a non "C" ports with an adapter.

[Dantesjuice]

Funny you mention that, my original build was an intel i7 5960x 8 core with an asus x99 deluxe mobo.

But with most audio interfaces being FW or TB, and now with most manufactures of computer components boosting that USB C will be the next standard, I wanted to wait before i built my next PC in hopes that it would be more clear on what would really be the next "standard" in a few more months. My current PC and Macpro work fine, so im not really in any rush to build anything, but im always researching.
I do agree and think that future windows supported interfaces will be usb 3, but with apple already having usb c on their new mac book, i would bet that most audio interfaces to come will cater to this type of connection, just like they did when apple made their new trashcans all TB.

But yeah, im torn between socket 2011 v3 with 16 processors supporting usb 3 or skylake 1151, only 8 cores but supporting tb/usb c

decisions...decisions...

[guitardom]

Originally Posted by Dantesjuice

Funny you mention that, my original build was an intel i7 5960x 8 core with an asus x99 deluxe mobo.

But with most audio interfaces being FW or TB, and now with most manufactures of computer components boosting that USB C will be the next standard, I wanted to wait before i built my next PC in hopes that it would be more clear on what would really be the next "standard" in a few more months. My current PC and Macpro work fine, so im not really in any rush to build anything, but im always researching.
I do agree and think that future windows supported interfaces will be usb 3, but with apple already having usb c on their new mac book, i would bet that most audio interfaces to come will cater to this type of connection, just like they did when apple made their new trashcans all TB.

But yeah, im torn between socket 2011 v3 with 16 processors supporting usb 3 or skylake 1151, only 8 cores but supporting tb/usb c

decisions...decisions...

We dont know if it will be the next "standard" as that is only an assumption. Thunderbolt was supposed to be the "standard" a year ago but Windows has not got a fair shake of it yet. Even if it is, it will be a 2-3 years before it starts moving in with a moderate amount of devices to choose from to make a decision. Regardless, any of the recently updated x99 platform with USB3.1 will be usable with a "C" device with just a conversion adapter or crossover cable. It will have the same power and transfer rates, just with an adapter on 1 end. I had some annoyances this weekend on a system with the 3.1 ports that would not respond during the system build until the drivers were installed which is not necessary for the 2-3 ports.

[jmac146]

Sup everyone,

it's been forever since I've been on here as well as I built one in 2009 and starting to run into issues when recording...

I use PT11 now, and at the time i decked it out pretty well (16 gb ram, i7 920 quad core processor). One of the main issues I run into now is, my music will just start cutting in and out, going super slow, distorting... ect....

It seems to happen most when I have a browser window open like google chrome. I never get an error message when this happens though... Changing the latency doesn't do anything to help this either.

Any thoughts on what this might be? Could my hard drive be going bad? I am noticing longer than normal boot times for windows. I do notice an error message from time to time (can't remember which one), but when i check the processors they are all running just fine between like 10-50% usage.

Here's a few more specs if needed...

Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD5 LGA 1366
Hard Drives (2 separate ones as recommended): Western Digital Black WD5001AALS 500GB
Processor: Intel Core i7-920 Bloomfield Quad-Core 2.66GHz

I'd like to keep it going for a year or 2 longer as I can't afford a new setup yet... but could I just get a new SSD and maybe I'll be all good? I'm not sure how to troubleshoot this. Thanks for any and all help!

ADD: Oh, and I've also received the blue screen of death a bunch of times when bouncing songs offline... really frustrating. I make sure not to do any other operations while it's happening either.

[guitardom]

Originally Posted by jmac146

Sup everyone,

it's been forever since I've been on here as well as I built one in 2009 and starting to run into issues when recording...

I use PT11 now, and at the time i decked it out pretty well (16 gb ram, i7 920 quad core processor). One of the main issues I run into now is, my music will just start cutting in and out, going super slow, distorting... ect....

It seems to happen most when I have a browser window open like google chrome. I never get an error message when this happens though... Changing the latency doesn't do anything to help this either.

Any thoughts on what this might be? Could my hard drive be going bad? I am noticing longer than normal boot times for windows. I do notice an error message from time to time (can't remember which one), but when i check the processors they are all running just fine between like 10-50% usage.

Here's a few more specs if needed...

Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD5 LGA 1366
Hard Drives (2 separate ones as recommended): Western Digital Black WD5001AALS 500GB
Processor: Intel Core i7-920 Bloomfield Quad-Core 2.66GHz

I'd like to keep it going for a year or 2 longer as I can't afford a new setup yet... but could I just get a new SSD and maybe I'll be all good? I'm not sure how to troubleshoot this. Thanks for any and all help!

ADD: Oh, and I've also received the blue screen of death a bunch of times when bouncing songs offline... really frustrating. I make sure not to do any other operations while it's happening either.

Blue screens are typically hardware OR driver related. They give a code on the screen that can be used to HELP troubleshoot the problem. You can use an app called Blue screen view that might give a bit of information as well. Have you installed any new hardware or changed anything?? maybe run the memory diagnostic to test your ram.

[jmac146]

Thanks Guitardom, I can give that a try.

However, I'm more annoyed/worried by the skipping playback than the BSOD since that is more rare to occur. The skipping/distortion playback happens all the time (including while I'm recording) and usually the best solution is to close/reopen PT. Anyone ever have this start to happen, then find a fix?

Or, is it just time to replace my PC? It still runs most operations pretty quickly (it is 64 bit as well, forgot to mention that).

[guitardom]

Originally Posted by jmac146

Thanks Guitardom, I can give that a try.

However, I'm more annoyed/worried by the skipping playback than the BSOD since that is more rare to occur. The skipping/distortion playback happens all the time (including while I'm recording) and usually the best solution is to close/reopen PT. Anyone ever have this start to happen, then find a fix?

Or, is it just time to replace my PC? It still runs most operations pretty quickly (it is 64 bit as well, forgot to mention that).

If its hardware failing, the problems very can be related. Your audio problems lead me to think its a hardware failure/problem.

Did your interface work fine previously??
Any new hardware or drivers installed??
What are your audio/buffer settings (example. 1024 buffer 48k-24 bit)