Build for HD Native + Omni system

[ButterFace]

Last week I spotted a Pro Tools + HD Natve + Omni bundle on sale so I took the plunge. The plan was to to initially use my current Windows7 computer but I quickly realized that a new computer was required. After lurking around the DUC for a week or so, this is the hardware I've spec'd out. I'd like to order it soon but I'd be more comfortable if I had the DUC's approval first.

CPU: Intel Core i7 2600K Quad Core 3.4GHZ Sandy Bridge 8MB
CPU Heatsink: Coolermaster Hyper 212 Plus Direct Touch
MB: ASRock P67 EXTREME4 B3
RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws X F3-12800CL7D-8GBXH 8GB 2X4GB DDR3-1600
Video Card: ATI FirePro V4800 1Gb DDR3
Case: Fractal Design Define XL Black E-ATX Mid Tower Silent Computer Case
PSU: Corsair Professional HX750W 750W ATX 12V 62A 24PIN ATX
System Drive:Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB SATA3
Data Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB SATA3
OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional Edition 64BIT DVD SP1 OEM

[albee1952]

Looks good from here, but I can't be sure about the graphics card(cheap fix if it doesn't work). One option to consider, keep a single 1TB drive for recording and then go with 2 500GB WD Blacks so you have a 3rd drive for sample libraries(which can wait for now if you don't jump into a bunch of sample-based VI packages). Don't overclock at first and make sure the whole thing is solid and stable. Then back it up by imaging or cloning the system drive before messing with a good working system. You may well find it has plenty of horsepower at stock speeds anyway. It may also be worth setting RAM timings manually instead of using the Auto setting(in BIOS) as sometimes the Auto setting chooses the slowest settings(to be "safe") instead of the proper settings for your RAM. BTW, $50 to assemble and test is a great deal, so if it all works well, there will be some folks here wondering who did your build.

[ButterFace]

The graphics card was just a shot in the dark. I consulted Avid's list of approved cards and managed to source an NVDIA Quadro NVS 290. I noticed that the card was discontinued so I got the impression it was a bit dated. I didn't want to get bogged down so I picked the ATI FirePro V4800 because it was almost exactly the same price which is not a very good reason. Since I won't be doing any video related production I don't really see the need for a lot of graphics horsepower. Perhaps I'll just pull a card out of another computer and use it. The ATI FirePro V4800 is about $160 and I suspect I could get away with a lot less. I'm open to suggestions.

I'll take your advice and start with 2 500GB WD Blacks and add the 1TB when I'm ready to actually record something. Getting the system working and stable will take some time. I intend to proceed slowly and methodically and post regular updates to the DUC.