Is bigger allways better? advice needed

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skate
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2009/03/03 15:31:34 (permalink)

Is bigger allways better? advice needed

Hello,

I am buying a new PC and have been looking on this forum for awhile which has been a big help in deciding what to go for.

I am running Sonar 7 PE (I will upgrade to 8 or whatever is doing the rounds when cash / time / the need arrives), I use a mixture of samples, softsynths and FX in equal measures and my music PC is used for just music (no internet / games etc).

What matters most is that it is fast and stable, as my current (ageing AMD 64 3200) rig cant keep up (projects wont play, lots of crashes, lots of bouncing, freezing and confusion).

I ave decided to go for a system built by a company in the UK and wondered if i would be better going for an I7 920 or the 940?

Also would it be better of with 1600 ram over 1333? (thats the speeds I guess?)

I will be using windows xp 32 for now and use a PCI soundcard.

I am not planning to have to buy again for as long as I can and want to get something that will enable me to get on with producing music with the minimum of fuss as well as being compatible with new versions of Sonar, Windows 7 and going 64 bit at some stage. As you can probably guess from my questions I am no PC expert but am not afraid of tweaking / housekeeping etc to keep things running smoothly.

What I am unsure about is spending the extra £ on a more powerfull version of the same machine - or will I kick myself somewhere down the line if I dont?

I have the funds for either option but want to strike a good balance between getting a great machine and getting caught up in the bigger the better trap.

Any advice would be great.

Thanks.



#1

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    attalus
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    RE: Is bigger allways better? advice needed 2009/03/03 17:33:12 (permalink)
    It sounds like you definitely are in need of alot more power. I can't tell about how much more power you need, you can judge that by looking at your present rig and figuring if you need 2x/3x/4x/5x/6x/etc the power it offers. If you feel you can easily use up a dual core worth of power or that it's just enough power then you best go for a quad so that it lasts you a long time. You want alot of headroom cause power needs can grow much larger rather quickly with just the inclusion of one really hungry plugin in your arsenal. I think i7 920 is the best bang for the buck processor at the moment, the 940 might be overkill and may not be as good of a bargain (depends on the individual). A 920 rig can be built for around $700 here in the USA, give or take a couple bucks. other bargains are q8200 and Q6600 long as you don't buy expensive motherboards and Ram and other components with them cause then it may be best to go with the i7 920.

    i7's and i'm sure other intel quads will prove to be faaaar more greater then 4x the power of your current processor.
    post edited by attalus - 2009/03/03 17:51:23

    A wise man learns from his experiences, a wiser man learns from everyone elses experiences.
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    skate
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    RE: Is bigger allways better? advice needed 2009/03/03 17:45:14 (permalink)
    Hi,
    your right, its my system running out of steam that is causing me headaches.
    I think I am going to go for the I7 as I have budgeted for it and have read some some good things about it.
    I dont know a great deal about the scale of these things - 920>940 - will i notice when using the thing or is it splitting hairs?
    Thanks for the reply.
    #3
    attalus
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    RE: Is bigger allways better? advice needed 2009/03/03 18:01:14 (permalink)
    I don't know whether or not the difference between i7 920 or 940 is that noticeable or not for your particular situation, or whether the 940 price is justifiable for you. Below is a link to benchmarks for Music Production that includes both models and a link to a thread about Core i7's. A i7 920 is cheaply priced but considered high-end for good reasons, the power difference between 920 and your current cpu is so huge that you may be mind-blown and more then satisfied for many years to come with it. One of my old computers had a Amd 3000 processor and for some of my plugins the power difference between it and my i7 920 is 30x. I'm not saying you'll get that same 30x greater power difference for your particular plugins but saying the power difference may be a big surprise to you. And that 920 may be more then enough power, you'll need to give your situation some thought to determine wich model is best tho.

    Here's a link to a thread about Core i7's - http://forum.cakewalk.com/tm.asp?m=1591110&mpage=1&key=?

    Here's benchmarks, just scroll down - http://rainrecording.co.uk/vista/performance
    post edited by attalus - 2009/03/04 02:05:40

    A wise man learns from his experiences, a wiser man learns from everyone elses experiences.
    #4
    Fog
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    RE: Is bigger allways better? advice needed 2009/03/03 20:46:05 (permalink)
    ORIGINAL: skate

    I ave decided to go for a system built by a company in the UK and wondered if i would be better going for an I7 920 or the 940?



    a pc company or one that knows their pro audio stuff as well? if it's a standard pc company..hhm they won't be so clued up.

    here's one that I see advertised a lot of late

    http://www.dv247.com/synergy/

    also scan computers do

    www.scan.co.uk

    3xs systems.


    I mean I shop with DV.. but probably would build my next pc.

    www.ebuyer.com is good for parts. if your getting charged for a monitor etc.. well you can buy that yourself probably at ebuyer a lot cheaper.


    are you bouncing stuff down audio wise? though.. as even with a fast machine it can get slowed down if the plugins are cpu intensive..

    you could always use your current pc with fx teleport if your running a lot of vst's to lighten the load on the new pc.
    post edited by Fog - 2009/03/03 20:53:34
    #5
    skate
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    RE: Is bigger allways better? advice needed 2009/03/04 14:08:31 (permalink)
    Its scan that I have been looking at - sound on sound had good things to say about them and they were pretty helpfull on the phone.

    If i knew a bit more would look into building myself but right now I dont mind paying someone to do it for me - maybe next time around.

    I should bounce down to audio more but tend to be indecisive about sounds and want to keep my options open but good point.

    I have found by using track folders properly, labeling tracks, bouncing, freezing and organising my projects better I can squeeze

    a lot of life out of what I have but it gets in the way and I am looking forward to having a bit more power to work with.

    Thanks for the help.
    #6
    kev11111111111111
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    RE: Is bigger allways better? advice needed 2009/03/04 16:23:14 (permalink)
    ORIGINAL: skate

    Hello,

    I am buying a new PC and have been looking on this forum for awhile which has been a big help in deciding what to go for.

    I am running Sonar 7 PE (I will upgrade to 8 or whatever is doing the rounds when cash / time / the need arrives), I use a mixture of samples, softsynths and FX in equal measures and my music PC is used for just music (no internet / games etc).

    What matters most is that it is fast and stable, as my current (ageing AMD 64 3200) rig cant keep up (projects wont play, lots of crashes, lots of bouncing, freezing and confusion).

    I ave decided to go for a system built by a company in the UK and wondered if i would be better going for an I7 920 or the 940?

    Also would it be better of with 1600 ram over 1333? (thats the speeds I guess?)

    I will be using windows xp 32 for now and use a PCI soundcard.

    I am not planning to have to buy again for as long as I can and want to get something that will enable me to get on with producing music with the minimum of fuss as well as being compatible with new versions of Sonar, Windows 7 and going 64 bit at some stage. As you can probably guess from my questions I am no PC expert but am not afraid of tweaking / housekeeping etc to keep things running smoothly.

    What I am unsure about is spending the extra £ on a more powerfull version of the same machine - or will I kick myself somewhere down the line if I dont?

    I have the funds for either option but want to strike a good balance between getting a great machine and getting caught up in the bigger the better trap.

    Any advice would be great.

    Thanks.





    It's not how big it is,it's what you do with it that counts
    Edit - Or so I've been told.
    post edited by kev11111111111111 - 2009/03/04 16:33:31

    Please Click Me !
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