Gaming PC vs DAW PC revisited

Yes, I'm sitting here enjoying my Sunday coffee and still thinking ahead to when I can start upgrading my PC's...
 
Today's question has to do with the actual differences between a gaming PC and a DAW.  I know that a good gaming PC doesn't make a good DAW (mostly due to latency issues?), but is there any reason why a good DAW can't make a good gaming PC?  And, if so, what needs to be added to make a DAW good for gaming as well?  Just a better video card?  Or?

I think it depends what kind of games you like. Some games require more CPU then GPU power. But for anything graphics intensive a better video card is important... I guess the only concern is the noise of the graphics card fan ( if you record in the same room )

I think the main diff is that the gaming computer is focused on the video display and the power of the CPU is optimized toward that end whereas the DAW is more about the speed of the processor and the quietness of the computer. In a DAW the video is not as mission critical as it would be in a game. The hi res video is not as important to the DAW user as it would be to the gamer, but that's not to say the DAW user doesn't appreciate hi res video, especially if they are working on music video's.

I think a computer could do both fairly well. The thing about the gaming boxes is the audio card is usually pretty crappy when it comes to recording.

Take an average, fairly decent off the shelf computer, put in a nice audio/midi interface, and you will have a decent DAW. Not top shelf, but nice enough to satisfy most recording enthusiasts.

craigb


Yes, I'm sitting here enjoying my Sunday coffee and still thinking ahead to when I can start upgrading my PC's...
 
Today's question has to do with the actual differences between a gaming PC and a DAW.  I know that a good gaming PC doesn't make a good DAW (mostly due to latency issues?), but is there any reason why a good DAW can't make a good gaming PC?  And, if so, what needs to be added to make a DAW good for gaming as well?  Just a better video card?  Or?

I wonder if the real question is, what makes a computer a good DAW computer? Any computer with a GPU, CPU and RAM that meets the specs of the latest games + fans + appropriate power supply = good gaming computer. To make that also usable for DAW, build it in a quiet case and use quiet fans or water cooling.

When you look at the DAW builders such as Sonica, Rain, ADK, etc., I think one of the advantages of having them build a DAW is they all seem to claim that the PC and o/s configurations have been tested with audio interfaces/DAW software and have rock solid stability. You HAVE to attach a value to that. This is very alluring especially for guys like me who are so fed up with god knows what happening right in the middle of a session with a client or potential client. So embarassing, and all my Mac friends just say "wouldn't happen on a Mac". Gawd.

I tried to do as much research as I could, but whether or not my next PC is going to play nice with the ProFire 2626 + Sonar 8 + Pro Tools 9 is undetermined. When I compare the specs of my build to something similar from a DAW builder, I've saved hundreds of dollars BUT; I'm not taking advantage of the DAW builders' experience so I may still pay a price in the end. Good news is, I will have a fantastic gaming computer either way. :)

Dave

I have a custom built gaming PC which turned out to be my main DAW.  The case is 2 Ft high by 2 FT long with 7 fans and lots of air flowing through it.  The video card cost somewhere around 400 bucks at the time.  No DAW software is really going to push the graphics card very high whereas you -cannot- play some of the higher end games without an expensive graphic card.  (well unless you put the settings on black and white)

I think graphic cards and cooling choices (due to the heat produced from the graphic cards) are the biggest difference. 

craigb


Yes, I'm sitting here enjoying my Sunday coffee and still thinking ahead to when I can start upgrading my PC's...
 
Today's question has to do with the actual differences between a gaming PC and a DAW.  I know that a good gaming PC doesn't make a good DAW (mostly due to latency issues?), but is there any reason why a good DAW can't make a good gaming PC?  And, if so, what needs to be added to make a DAW good for gaming as well?  Just a better video card?  Or?

yes just a better video card the 500 series nVidia are very quiet. we sell a good amount of them in DAWs for guys who are corss platform (audio and video)
a 570 would be more than good enough for games and still be quiet.
obviously need a good power supply to drive that..
thought you were going to call?
 
 

Kev999

I think the biggest thig would be noise.

Many gamers build quiet PCs.  In fact, quiet cases are marketed at gamers, not musicians.

Wow I didn't know that. Learn something new everyday.

Today's question has to do with the actual differences between a gaming PC and a DAW. I know that a good gaming PC doesn't make a good DAW (mostly due to latency issues?), but is there any reason why a good DAW can't make a good gaming PC? And, if so, what needs to be added to make a DAW good for gaming as well? Just a better video card? Or?

 
Go with a nice GTX 560Ti

• Works fine in a DAW
• Works well for games
• Supported by the Mercury engine in Premier CS 5.5 (hardware assisted rendering)
• Supports hardware assisted rendering with Vegas
• Not outrageously expensive

 
If you'll be using the machine for DAW and Game purposes, it's important to be diligent in keeping the machine as lean/mean as possible.  ie: Don't let the machine get "fouled up" with extraneous background applets
Always make sure to have an up-to-date backup image file.  Not only is it good for safety purposes... but it's also a nice/clean way to ensure any unwanted demos/etc are completely/fully "removed".  No worries about messy uninstall routines leaving 1001 remnants behind...  (Perfect for those times where you might want to demo a package like Adobe Production Premium CS 5.5 - where the uninstall would leave a major mess)
 
BTW, I also wanted to add that putting noisy components into a "quiet" case is not the answer for a quiet DAW.
Using quiet components combined with a quiet case is much more effective.  

It depends what kind of games you like. Some games need more CPU then GPU power. I think a computer could do both well. The thing about the gambling boxes is the audio card is usually crappy when it comes to recording.