Help me build my own workstation

hardware, software, tips and tricks
Forum rules
By using this "Production" sub-forum, you acknowledge that you have read, understood and agreed with our terms of use for this site. Click HERE to read them. If you do not agree to our terms of use, you must exit this site immediately. We do not accept any responsibility for the content, submissions, information or links contained herein. Users posting content here, do so completely at their own risk.

Quick Link to Feedback Forum
User avatar
llennnn16
Posts: 273
Joined: Fri Oct 08, 2010 2:41 pm
Location: NYC
Contact:

Help me build my own workstation

Post by llennnn16 » Sat Jan 28, 2012 6:01 pm

I've been trying to buy a Mac Pro so i could use it exclusively to make music. So far i have not been able to secure enough money to buy one. I've thought recently that maybe if i put together a computer to use as a workstation, from scratch, i would be saving lots of money.

Im comfortable in putting everything together, installing drivers and such, but i don't know what parts to buy that would suit my needs. Im not looking to go broke, but i don't want to get cheap parts either. I want something that will last me for years (with proper care of course).

:t:

User avatar
Eat Bass
Posts: 1843
Joined: Wed Oct 19, 2011 8:01 pm

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by Eat Bass » Sat Jan 28, 2012 6:23 pm

i built this PC on cyberpowerpc and its pretty dope. it might be a little more than your looking for, but thats what i would buy if i were buying a new pc. comes to like 1600 bucks.

Summarize
Case: CoolerMaster HAF 912 Mid-Tower Gaming Case w/ Adjustable HDD Cage (Black Color)
Extra Case Fan Upgrade: Maximum 120MM Case Cooling Fans for your selected case [+9]
CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-2600K 3.40 GHz 8M Intel Smart Cache LGA1155 (All Venom OC Certified)
Cooling Fan: CoolerMaster Hyper 212 Evo Gaming Cooling Fan [+4]
Coolant for Cyberpower Xtreme Hydro Water Cooling Kits: Standard Coolant
Motherboard: * [CrossFireX] Asus P8Z68-V LX Intel Z68 Chipset DDR3 ATX Mainboard LucidLogix Virtu and Intel Smart Response Technology & 7.1 HD Audio, GbLAN, USB3.0, 2x SATA-III RAID,2 3 PCIe Gen2, 2 PCIe X1 & 2 3CI (All Venom OC Certified)
Memory: 16GB (4GBx4) DDR3/1600MHz Dual Channel Memory [+86] (Corsair or Major Brand)
Video Card: AMD Radeon HD 6950 2GB GDDR5 16X PCIe Video Card [+166] (Major Brand Powered by AMD)
Power Supply Upgrade: 1,000 Watts - CoolerMaster Silent Pro Gaming 80 Plus Power Supply [+125]
Hard Drive: 1TB SATA-III 6.0Gb/s 32MB Cache 7200RPM HDD (Single Drive)
Data Hard Drive: 120GB Corsair Force GT Series SATA-III 6.0Gb/s SSD - 555MB/s Read & 515MB/s Write [+192] (Single Drive)
Optical Drive: 24X Double Layer Dual Format DVD+-R/+-RW + CD-R/RW Drive (BLACK COLOR)
Sound: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
Network: Onboard Gigabit LAN Network
Keyboard: Xtreme Gear (Black Color) Multimedia/Internet USB Keyboard
Mouse: XtremeGear Optical USB 3 Buttons Gaming Mouse
Flash Media Reader/Writer: INTERNAL 12in1 Flash Media Reader/Writer (BLACK COLOR)
Operating System: Microsoft® Windows 7 Home Premium [+104] (64-bit Edition)
Service: STANDARD WARRANTY: 3-YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY PLUS LIFE-TIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT
Rush Service: NO; READY TO SHIP IN 10~15 BUSINESS DAYS

User avatar
llennnn16
Posts: 273
Joined: Fri Oct 08, 2010 2:41 pm
Location: NYC
Contact:

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by llennnn16 » Sat Jan 28, 2012 6:39 pm

looks like a good set up.

got a question. Would it be better, to buy the best processor in the market out there, and build around it? isnt that what will compute all the data of the music being produce?

User avatar
antman
Posts: 367
Joined: Sat Jan 01, 2011 10:44 pm
Location: Staten Island, NY

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by antman » Sat Jan 28, 2012 7:11 pm

I just wanna say this, the mac pro is very overpriced for what you get.

It hasn't been updated in years, and its value for what you get is drastically decreasing.

The baseline mac pro compared to the iMac is a joke. Your much better off either building a PC or getting an iMac.

:Q:
cmgoodman1226 wrote:I don't know what you all are going on about. I listened to it on my beatz by dre headphones that my parents bought me for mixing, and the sub sounds huge! stop hay-in'.
Soundcloud

User avatar
ehbes
Posts: 19109
Joined: Fri Jul 15, 2011 2:34 pm
Location: Massachusetts

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by ehbes » Sat Jan 28, 2012 7:36 pm

antman wrote:I just wanna say this, the mac pro is very overpriced for what you get.

It hasn't been updated in years, and its value for what you get is drastically decreasing.

The baseline mac pro compared to the iMac is a joke. Your much better off either building a PC or getting an iMac.

:Q:
Not true the processor was upgraded in the summer
Paypal me $2 for a .wav of Midnight
https://soundcloud.com/artend
Dead Rats wrote:Mate, these chaps are lads.

daeMTHAFKNkim
Posts: 855
Joined: Thu Jul 21, 2011 12:42 am
Location: Colorado Springs, Colorado

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by daeMTHAFKNkim » Sat Jan 28, 2012 7:55 pm

llennnn16 wrote:looks like a good set up.

got a question. Would it be better, to buy the best processor in the market out there, and build around it? isnt that what will compute all the data of the music being produce?
Nah not really. The most important things would be the RAM, Processor. If you get a macbook the buy some more ram. It's like $45 for 2 4gb sticks of ram. If you build a computer then get 8-16 gb of ram/a quad core processor with a 3.0+Ghz. I recommend newegg.com since that's where I bought mine and it's popular. Sites like iBUYPOWER etc. tend to rip you off loads especially if you don't know prices of parts or anything about computers.

If you build a pre-made computer you usually get ripped off. If you make your own then it's hella cheap.
Soundcloud
Soundcloud
FREE DOWNLOADS ON MY SOUNDCLOUD.
http://www.facebook.com/daemthafknkim
http://www.soundcloud.com/daemthafknkim
Follow Twitter http://www.twitter.com/daemthafknkim Let me know who you are and I'll follow back!

User avatar
Eat Bass
Posts: 1843
Joined: Wed Oct 19, 2011 8:01 pm

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by Eat Bass » Sat Jan 28, 2012 9:38 pm

actually cyberpower pc isn't a rip off. i built the same computer on new egg and the cyber power costed like 100 more. id gladly pay 100 more to have the computer built for me, thats not a rip off IMO.

hxczach
Posts: 141
Joined: Fri May 06, 2011 2:44 am

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by hxczach » Sat Jan 28, 2012 10:59 pm

Buy all your components from newegg.com and build it yourself. You'll save yourself a bundle. And if you choose your components wisely, you can install Mac on it without any issues (google hackintosh). Its a nice alternative to limited Macs. Because you can run windows dual booted natively without that bootcamp garbage and fully utilize every bit of performance your PC has to offer.

User avatar
antman
Posts: 367
Joined: Sat Jan 01, 2011 10:44 pm
Location: Staten Island, NY

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by antman » Sat Jan 28, 2012 11:10 pm

hxczach wrote:Buy all your components from newegg.com and build it yourself. You'll save yourself a bundle. And if you choose your components wisely, you can install Mac on it without any issues (google hackintosh). Its a nice alternative to limited Macs. Because you can run windows dual booted natively without that bootcamp garbage and fully utilize every bit of performance your PC has to offer.
Bootcamp is the same exact thing as running it natively. I'm guessing you've never used it, or even know anythibg about what your talking about. It fully utilizes the computer, it pretty much turns a Mac into a PC with no problem. It's not a virtual machine. It's a dual boot for Mac.

Please learn what your talking about before you say it, or make ignorant posts.

A hackintosh does not, and will never work right. Everything is a hassle to update / keep the system running.

OP:If you want a PC get a PC. If you want a Mac with option to run windows as well than do it. Either way whether your on windows or Mac its up to your production skills. This Mac vs PC argument is old and tired.
cmgoodman1226 wrote:I don't know what you all are going on about. I listened to it on my beatz by dre headphones that my parents bought me for mixing, and the sub sounds huge! stop hay-in'.
Soundcloud

User avatar
jrisreal
Posts: 4312
Joined: Thu Mar 03, 2011 6:48 am
Location: the TARDIS

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by jrisreal » Sat Jan 28, 2012 11:45 pm

antman wrote:A hackintosh does not, and will never work right. Everything is a hassle to update / keep the system running.
actually no. if you get the right hardware in your PC, OS X won't argue. The only issue is getting the bootloader to recognize the existance of the OS X partition...but some nice dev's already fixed that issue by creating a bootloader that does recognize it.
...in my opinion
Image
ImageImageImage

User avatar
Sharmaji
Posts: 5179
Joined: Sun Jan 22, 2006 5:03 pm
Location: Brooklyn NYC
Contact:

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by Sharmaji » Sat Jan 28, 2012 11:48 pm

macofalltrades.com
twitter.com/sharmabeats
twitter.com/SubSwara
subswara.com
myspace.com/davesharma
Low Motion Records, Soul Motive, TKG, Daly City, Mercury UK

hxczach
Posts: 141
Joined: Fri May 06, 2011 2:44 am

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by hxczach » Sat Jan 28, 2012 11:55 pm

antman wrote:
hxczach wrote:Buy all your components from newegg.com and build it yourself. You'll save yourself a bundle. And if you choose your components wisely, you can install Mac on it without any issues (google hackintosh). Its a nice alternative to limited Macs. Because you can run windows dual booted natively without that bootcamp garbage and fully utilize every bit of performance your PC has to offer.
Bootcamp is the same exact thing as running it natively. I'm guessing you've never used it, or even know anythibg about what your talking about. It fully utilizes the computer, it pretty much turns a Mac into a PC with no problem. It's not a virtual machine. It's a dual boot for Mac.

Please learn what your talking about before you say it, or make ignorant posts.

A hackintosh does not, and will never work right. Everything is a hassle to update / keep the system running.

OP:If you want a PC get a PC. If you want a Mac with option to run windows as well than do it. Either way whether your on windows or Mac its up to your production skills. This Mac vs PC argument is old and tired.
Where do I begin...

I have a perfectly running hackintosh, and it took little more than a brain and a few Google searches to get it perfect.

And what I meant by utilizing the performance completely was more geared towards gaming. tri-SLI graphics cards in your lousy retard apple boot camp computer and get back to me. Maybe youll consider doing some research before trying to disprove someone else.

User avatar
ogunslinger
Posts: 727
Joined: Sun Jul 19, 2009 11:05 pm
Location: G Square
Contact:

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by ogunslinger » Sun Jan 29, 2012 1:07 am

bootcamp does not run just as good as a windows pc.. trust lol

I had near same specs on my pc rig as my macbook pro. PC took bootcamp to the cleaners big time.

User avatar
Ghost of Muttley
Posts: 180
Joined: Tue Jan 10, 2012 1:32 am

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by Ghost of Muttley » Sun Jan 29, 2012 1:34 am

Build it seven cubits, by eight cubits, by nine cubits.

User avatar
llennnn16
Posts: 273
Joined: Fri Oct 08, 2010 2:41 pm
Location: NYC
Contact:

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by llennnn16 » Mon Jan 30, 2012 6:56 am

Sharmaji wrote:macofalltrades.com
used is out of the question. don't trust old hardware. thanks though, BK represent!
hxczach wrote:
antman wrote:
ogunslinger wrote:Buy all your components from newegg.com and build it yourself. You'll save yourself a bundle... Bootcamp...hackintosh
Well ive been a PC user my whole life, but i would want the option to have both Mac and PC in the computer, just in case if i want to use other software that only works with Mac OS. I seen it done in my college, most of the computers in the Technology department have that feature. So im looking into that at the moment. And yes i've heard many times newegg is THE place to shop for parts. i looking already while i save to buy the processor. The Intel Core i7 Sandy Bridge-E with the 6 cores, keep reading it's the best in the market right now. i wont even be able to use all 6 cores, but it will be good to have for the future.
Ghost of Muttley wrote:Build it seven cubits, by eight cubits, by nine cubits.
what do you mean by that?
daeMTHAFKNkim wrote:The most important things would be the RAM, Processor.
I was thinking of that. I've been reading that in cases where playback starts to skip or lag, maybe freeze (all of these are my current situation) it can be a problem fixed by adding more RAM. ill add that to the shopping cart then, lots of fast RAM.

Another question. the sound card. Ive seen some have all these connections in the back and ports and such. Is this all necessary? i think m-audio makes one. I am making music, i take it that the sound card is crucial. am i wrong in thinking this?

VirtualMark
Posts: 1821
Joined: Tue Aug 03, 2010 12:15 am
Location: UK

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by VirtualMark » Mon Jan 30, 2012 8:06 am

llennnn16 wrote: got a question. Would it be better, to buy the best processor in the market out there, and build around it? isnt that what will compute all the data of the music being produce?
Generally, yeah. While a computer is only as fast as its slowest component, with regards to music production the cpu is usually doing most of the work. There can be other limiting factors, such as a slow hard drive won't be able to play as many audio tracks as a faster one, and more ram means you can have larger projects running. But usually its the cpu that is the limiting factor, so its wise to get a nice fast one, with decent components to support it.

I built an i7 2600k system a few weeks ago, its fast as anything. SSD drive for my system drive, 2tb hdd for storage, 8gb ram, dual monitors and a passive cooled graphics card. Large slow case fans make it run totally silent, plus an enormous cpu fan and heatsink means it runs at 5ghz with no problems at all.

The fastest processor out at the moment is the Intel Core i7 3960X Extreme 6 core. But they currenty retail at about £800. Whereas you can pick up the i7 2600k for about £250. There's not many scenarios where you'd need 6 cores, four is plenty. Unless you have a ton of money you want to part with.

User avatar
Eat Bass
Posts: 1843
Joined: Wed Oct 19, 2011 8:01 pm

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by Eat Bass » Mon Jan 30, 2012 7:51 pm

VirtualMark wrote:
llennnn16 wrote: got a question. Would it be better, to buy the best processor in the market out there, and build around it? isnt that what will compute all the data of the music being produce?
Generally, yeah. While a computer is only as fast as its slowest component, with regards to music production the cpu is usually doing most of the work. There can be other limiting factors, such as a slow hard drive won't be able to play as many audio tracks as a faster one, and more ram means you can have larger projects running. But usually its the cpu that is the limiting factor, so its wise to get a nice fast one, with decent components to support it.

I built an i7 2600k system a few weeks ago, its fast as anything. SSD drive for my system drive, 2tb hdd for storage, 8gb ram, dual monitors and a passive cooled graphics card. Large slow case fans make it run totally silent, plus an enormous cpu fan and heatsink means it runs at 5ghz with no problems at all.

The fastest processor out at the moment is the Intel Core i7 3960X Extreme 6 core. But they currenty retail at about £800. Whereas you can pick up the i7 2600k for about £250. There's not many scenarios where you'd need 6 cores, four is plenty. Unless you have a ton of money you want to part with.
^ this is the setup i would buy if i were to build a PC, except i would slap 4x 4gb ram sticks in there. 16gb is dirt cheap these days, even now for laptops 2x 8gb sticks aren't too bad.

User avatar
llennnn16
Posts: 273
Joined: Fri Oct 08, 2010 2:41 pm
Location: NYC
Contact:

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by llennnn16 » Wed May 23, 2012 3:33 am

ended up getting an iMac OS X Lion, 2.8Ghz Intel Core i7, 16GB 1333 MHz DDR3, 1TB SATA HD, AMD Radeon HD 6770M 512MB.

i would have gone for the build my own PC but this is what happened:

in a span of 2 months maybe less, i had both my laptops (the one i was using and an older one i had laying around) crash on me, rendering them unbootable. I had some things backed up but still ended up losing a lot of my music and works in progress. That made a total of 4 times i've had PCs crash on me leaving nothing but a dead machine.

In the past, i've had, with lots of struggle, been able to reboot my desktop and laptop after careful troubleshooting, and one time had no choice but to reformat the hard drive to make it useable again.

I was fed up by this point and thought, ill give this "Macs do not get viruses", a chance. Been a good month+ into it and i have no complains except that i did not know that FL Studio was not compatible with Macs :corncry: :dunce: . Now im trying my best to work with Ableton but i have to admit, close to 10 years using FL Studio makes Ableton a hassle to work with.

So im taking the route of bootcamp. Unless there's another choice?

Mazak
Posts: 123
Joined: Mon Apr 02, 2012 1:13 am
Location: Rochester, NY

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by Mazak » Wed May 23, 2012 3:52 am

Have you considered logic? I made the switch from live and I'll never go back.

User avatar
llennnn16
Posts: 273
Joined: Fri Oct 08, 2010 2:41 pm
Location: NYC
Contact:

Re: Help me build my own workstation

Post by llennnn16 » Wed May 23, 2012 4:01 am

Mazak wrote:Have you considered logic? I made the switch from live and I'll never go back.
have never even seen the interface. will give it a go. hope there's a demo version or something so i can try it.

Locked

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 0 guests