I know that this thread comes up all the time but so does gear. So, right now, I’m looking at a Core i7 (which one is adequate?), 16 GB RAM, 512 GB SSD and seeing quite a few pre-built for about 900-1000. But, my nephew is going to build it for me so it’ll be cheaper. The majorsoftware will be Windows 10, Cubase Artist 9.5 and Komplete 11 (middle version). My analog interface is a Zoom R16 so the connect will be USB, unsure what else I will need for ins and outs etc. or other hardware- suggestions? and as always, thanks.
Depending on your budget I would go for the i-7800X (6-core) or i-7820 (8-core). And depending on what type of Kontakt libraries and how many in one project you’re planning to use you might be more happy with 32GB of RAM. Especially orchestral libraries from vendors like Spitfire Audio and 8Dio can can consume a lot of RAM. A golden rule is: get ‘more’ memory rather than ‘faster’ memory. Don’t be fooled by speeds up to 4600GHZ. It’s a lot more expensive than average 2133MHZ. And it looks nice in synthetic benchmarks but in real life performance it doesn’t bring much more extra to the table. I had a good deal on a 64GB/3200MHZ set and I’ve tested it with both 2133 and 3200MHZ settings and I couldn’t notice any difference in Cubase/audio performance. So again look for a good deal on ‘more’ memory rather than faster and forget about the memory speeds. And if you want to have to option to upgrade later go for memory you can actually upgrade! Sometimes people go for 4 modules of 4GB instead of 2 of 8GB to later find out they need to replace all for an upgrade. Also if you can afford it I would go for a separate OS SSD and put your audio/samples on a separate one. So for instance install Windows on a 128GB M.2 drive and use a separate 512 GB or 1TB drive for audio/samples/libraries. Good luck!
Thanks, yes I store samples on an external 4 TB HD, but will likely use no more than 4 kontakt items on any given song. Am hoping to upgrade to full Halion Sonic and then I will have so much material I won’t know how to start. Reaktor is pure RAM suck.
32GB of 2133Mhz Ram is expensive! Thats almost $500 right there - I’m trying to get out at around 1k to $1500 for everything…
if i had money i would buy
Jumping on this question.
I’m working with a limited budget. I’ve thought of getting the new Mac Mini but that might be beyond what I can afford at the moment.
If you could pick only one configuration, what would you choose:
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A high-end i5 with 16GB of RAM
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A mid-range i7 with 8GB of RAM?
What would perform better - a faster processor, or more RAM?
I’d be tempted to go the i5. I too am about to build a new PC, Impressed by the PCIe SSD’s, time to kiss goodbye to SATA. Previously I wasn’t excited by the concept of using an expensive i7 but apparently Steinberg have addressed the issues there now.
When it comes to Ram, I’d agree with Nickledome, I’m not sure what advantages the top speed ones will actually give.
Okay, my computer guy just got back to me- he says that 16 GB of 2666 DDR4 RAM is better than 32 GB of 1866 DDR3 - opinions? The DDR4 option is $100 more…
No NVME SSD. I’d suspect that’s the best improvement currently available. I’m probably going to go for the i5 9600K OC to 5. It’s a lot cheaper than the 8700, does the hyperthreading at slower clocks actually perform better with audio yet?
How about a sound card? I like the Asus Essence STX ii - anyone have experience with it? Any other suggestions?
Motherboards tend to have decent sound cards built in now, especially the ones that run the chips we need for good DAW performance. Which is a shame, most of us don’t need that and use an Audio interface instead. All those Audio Quality Capacitors going to waste.