Hey Guys,
 
I have somewhat of a challenging question for me because I'm not sure exactly what the problem is.
 
I have a Inspiron i5 Quad-Core 3.20 with 8GB of memory and two Sata drives. I'm having all sorts of CPU issues once I get past 2 VST's and if I use the pro-channel strip it adds up super quick. All processor, not memory, issues. RME UCX interface, running USB. I start off at 96 samples at 48k, but I just finally dropped to 44.1 and 128 and like I said, it doesn't take long to start clicking & popping, especially if I use Strum Session 2.0 & say, Abbey Road drummer (unusable config). This is obviously pretty problematic.
 
I recently purchase Komplete 10 and was so excited, but it ate my old computers lunch. So, I upgraded and thought, well, hell, that compueter was old...circa 2008, surely anything I buy now will clean house....um, nope. Finally got some routing and multi-proc issues figured out and it was running "ok", but I still can't gas the the thing. Now, I've taken to work flows that don't require having multiple VST's / Instruments running at the same time...but now with Platinum, I'm finding that I'm still dropping out with just a few tracks going. 
 
Two questions;
1. What's the realistic setup my computer "should" be able to handle given a Sonar Platinum setup?
2. What kind of computer can I buy or do I "need" to build one and what should that look like?
 
Please & thank you.
 

1) An idea setup for DAW - the most basic one is not running WIFI. Download the DPC Latency Checker to test your system :

http://www.thesycon.de/deu/latency_check.shtml
 
Hard disk should be 7200 rpm or above, no green drive (5400 rpm).
 
2) So many possibilities, but something like my setup below or better (i7 4790, etc) would run Platinum fine.

What Tom says.

UCX is awesome! I love mine!

Get or build a custom PC that has low/consistent DPC Latency.
This will allow you to effectively run heavy loads at small ASIO buffer sizes.
With the right motherboard, the i7-4790k can be locked at 4.4GHz.
At 4.4GHz, the 4790k is fast.  Since you're not over-clocking, the CPU also runs cool/quiet.
Great balance of cost/performance...
16GB of RAM is sufficient for most scenarios.  
If you're making heavy use of virtual instruments, bump that up to 32GB.  
Note that adding unused RAM doesn't increase performance.  
IOW, If your projects only use 10GB, installing 32GB won't increase performance vs. having 16GB.
 

And I'd say the opposite of course. Off the shelf PC's offer great value for money, and in most cases as good as a custom built, maybe even better, you just need to spec them correctly and perhaps add a couple of your own customizations. It's all basically the same mass produced components give or take..

Performance has increased hugely over the last five years with PC's but still software demands have hardly gone up at all... My 5 year old Dell PC copes with Komplete just fine.

Everybody owns a super computer nowadays, I would get an i7 if you can though. Look at SSD's and consider 16gb RAM.

Btw the clicking and popping issues, Kontakt for instance puts in a load of unnecessary convelution reverbs that's bound to kill CPU. Kill them and you run just fine. I suggest you start another thread, giving us full steps to repro from a new project and telling us what you are experiencing in the Sonar forums, maybe this can be resolved..

You should be looking at tools like latencymon, process monitor and process explorer. Making sure your power management is set up correctly, software drivers are up to date etc..

gswitz
What Tom says.

UCX is awesome! I love mine!

AGREEEEEEEEED A MILLION TIMES! I love it.

OK - so, I think I'm going to take your advice and post a step by step because I feel like this thing pops WAY before it should.
 
So - just for grins I'll see if I can get it to a 15 minute or less screencast. I know I'm asking a lot, but I hope you guys can help.
 
@Doktor - is there any way to globally turn off convolution within Kontakt? Or do you have to do it each time and for every instrument?
 

Doktor Avalanche
And I'd say the opposite of course. Off the shelf PC's offer great value for money, and in most cases as good as a custom built, maybe even better, 

 
When you're comparing an off-the-shelf machine to one where you hand pick literally each component for maximum DAW performance and minimum noise, there's absolutely no way any off-the-shelf machine is equal... let alone superior (not even a Mac Pro).  That's ignoring the obvious fact that off-the-shelf machines are built for general-purpose use and to a specific price point.  
 
The BOD at HP aren't taking "DAW use" into account when spec'ing a typical $800 machine.
 
Whether the OP needs that level of performance is a question only he can answer.
 
BTW, If you have the right machine, there's no need to turn off those Convolution reverbs in Kontakt/etc.
A modern well-configured machine can handle it... even at small ASIO buffer sizes.
 

Here's the question; are there any posted specs & parts lists to use? I'm not really a PC guy and I don't honestly know the difference between this part and that motherboard, etc.
 
or is there a custom PC configurator?