How much power do I need?
I know, the short answer is as much as I can get. But I'm trying to figure out what CPU in particular to use for a new build for SONAR. I would be switching from DP on a G4 Mac so I don't have much of a reference in the Windows world.
My goal is to be able to run 24+ audio tracks, 16+ MIDI tracks (triggering outboard gear), comp./eq plugs on some of the audio tracks (I have some Waves plugs I will try to port from the Mac, along with whatever comes with 8PE), and a handful of soft synths. Like BFD, Reaktor, FM8, Kontakt (or equivalent), and a piano synth like Ivory or Akoustic Piano (no particular preference for NI, those are just the titles I know of). I normally wouldn't use all of them at once, but would like the option to use 4 or 5 at a time if needed.
Obviously I didn't do anything like this on my dual G4 - only BFD, which it could handle ok with RAM maxed, as long as I had nothing else going on and converted to audio to continue building up a track.
I'm thinking Dual Core, Quad Core or i7. I honestly don't know what such machines can handle in relation to my ideal above. Any ballpark ideas people can give would be greatly appreciated. (Every benchmark I've seen uses unrealistic and unhelpful tests, like "this machine ran 4 instances of a convolution reverb" or "96 instances of a compressor" - I want to know how it performs in the context of a real project - any project will do, just to give me an idea.)
Thanks.