Help building an audio production PC

[Shred Guitar Brony 85]

Hey guys!

 

So I am currently looking to build a PC for audio production. My original budget was around £600 but currently I am up to £700 as I am planning to purchase a fairly decent graphics card so that I may also be able to run some PC games on it as well. The software I will be using on it will be cubase 7 and my budget does not include a moniter or keyboard and mouse as I will be purchasing that seperately.

 

Here is the parts I have in mind at the moment;

 

• Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO (120mm) £23.91

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0068OI7T8/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=AGZZYKTT1GZVV

• Corsair Builder Series CX 500 Watt ATX/EPS 80 PLUS Bronze Power Supply Unit  £42.80

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B009RMP2VE/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE

• Western Digital 1TB internal Hard Drive - Caviar Blue (3.5 inch) £43.99

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0088PUEPK/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE

• Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5 inch Basic SATA Solid State Drive £69.49

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00E391KA8/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE

• Corsair CML16GX3M2A1600C10 Vengeance Low Profile 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 1600 Mhz CL10 XMP Performance Desktop Memory Kit Black £118.97

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B007TG8QRW/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE

• Intel Core i5 4670K Quad Core Retail CPU (Socket 1150, 3.40GHz, 6MB, Haswell, 84W, Intel Graphics, BX80646I74770, 4th Generation Intel Core, Turbo Boost Technology 2.0) £173.99

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00CO8TBOW/ref=ox_sc_act_title_6?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE

• MSI Z87-G41-PCMate ATX Motherboard (Intel Z87, 4x DDR3, DVI, HDMI, 4x USB3.0, GBE LAN, LGA1150 Socket)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00CXOMGEY/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE

• Fractal Design Define R4 PC Case - Black/Pearl

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008NFWNFO/ref=ox_sc_act_title_4?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE  So far it comes to £618 excluding the graphics card which is below.

• Asus HD 7770 2GB AMD Radeon Graphics Card

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Asus-7770-Radeon-Graphics-Card/dp/B0081LDXW2/ref=lh_ni_t?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE

Personally I don't know all that much about computer components and I chose these parts with a friend who knows a bit more about them. I was wondering if anyone who knew a bit more on the subject knew if this looked like a good quality build and If not what I could change. The computer itself will be used mostly for audio production in the sense of making music via both VST's and recorded instruments, but I will be using it to play some PC games on the side. If anyone has any questions feel free to ask and any feedback on the build is very much appreciated!

 

Anyways thankyou for your time and have a happy new year!

 

[MLPForums Phanact 1,374]

Spend an extra 20 pounds and get this GPU: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sapphire-11199-16-20G-Graphics-Display-Express/dp/B00A1572TQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1388688681&sr=1-1&keywords=hd+7870

 

It's miles better than the 7770.

[Shred Guitar Brony 85]

Spend an extra 20 pounds and get this GPU: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sapphire-11199-16-20G-Graphics-Display-Express/dp/B00A1572TQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1388688681&sr=1-1&keywords=hd+7870

 

It's miles better than the 7770.

Sweet, thanks for the advice! I can probably spare another £20

[Commander Fresh 36]

I don't personally use Cubase, so I'm not sure if it utilizes ASIO or not, but if it does, I highly suggest you get an ASIO2 compatible sound card. It'll save you a lot of grief you could potentially run into using an ASIO4all driver. Even if Cubase doesn't use ASIO and/or you have no idea what the hell I'm talking about, a dedicated sound card can be beneficial for a number of reasons. Check this out if you're curious: http://www.practical-music-production.com/sound-card.html

 

Of course, all this will ultimately decide on whether you will be using the extra features provided by one or not. If you're not one to worry about your creations sounding the best it possibly can (to the point where there really is no discernible difference) or if music is more or less a hobby of yours and you feel that a sound card won't benefit you all that much, then move on.

 

One last thing: when you do get serious with music production (as in, doing all sorts of fancy high-tech stuff in your DAW), you should be prepared to melt some of the polar ice caps as well as empty your wallet investing in a high-end CPU. Generally, they're not needed, but when (and if) you start to notice that your effects are consistently getting a bit too mathematical for you computer to handle, you may need to upgrade the CPU yet again. Music production can get very processor intensive. Once again, this wouldn't apply for most people (I doubt for you either, since your chosen CPU is decently fast), but it doesn't hurt to have this bit of knowledge and be prepared for the future.

Edited January 5, 2014 by Commander Fresh

[FractalMoon 378]

Lose the graphics card, get a sound card and an I7, thank me later. The Intel dedicated graphics chip (on an I5 or I7) will be more than enough for most games on Medium, and you will really appreciate the added speed, transistors, and Hyperthreading for audio editing, ESPECIALLY in Cubase or Audition.

[CMQuickfireTK 751]

Build looks good, I'd go with the card Essy* said though.

[Commander Fresh 36]

Lose the graphics card, get a sound card and an I7, thank me later. The Intel dedicated graphics chip (on an I5 or I7) will be more than enough for most games on Medium, and you will really appreciate the added speed, transistors, and Hyperthreading for audio editing, ESPECIALLY in Cubase or Audition.

I would agree on the i7 bit, but you do not want to drop that video card. If you plan on doing any sort of gaming two or three years down the line (especially with AAA titles), a video card will be a worthy investment to make. I doubt that the IGPs on an i5/i7 can properly play intensive games (eg. Need for Speed Rivals) at a reasonable resolution at 30fps. Regardless, when it comes to future titles, having a video card will save lives.

 

I don't know how far you plan to delve into music production, so take my suggestion with a grain of salt, but unless you know you're skilled and invested in music production as a profession or serious hobby, an i5 would probably be suffice for a while.

[FractalMoon 378]

I would agree on the i7 bit, but you do not want to drop that video card. If you plan on doing any sort of gaming two or three years down the line (especially with AAA titles), a video card will be a worthy investment to make. I doubt that the IGPs on an i5/i7 can properly play intensive games (eg. Need for Speed Rivals) at a reasonable resolution at 30fps. Regardless, when it comes to future titles, having a video card will save lives.

 

I don't know how far you plan to delve into music production, so take my suggestion with a grain of salt, but unless you know you're skilled and invested in music production as a profession or serious hobby, an i5 would probably be suffice for a while.

I'm not into music production, but gaming is my thing. The IGP on an I7 (fourth generation) will run any game for the next 2 years on at least 30fps.

[Commander Fresh 36]

I'm not into music production, but gaming is my thing. The IGP on an I7 (fourth generation) will run any game for the next 2 years on at least 30fps.

I don't know where you're getting that information from, but it can barely manage over 20fps on Battlefield 3 on 720p, there's no way that an HD 4xxx, HD 5xxx or Iris can be an acceptable medium for gaming.

[FractalMoon 378]

I don't know where you're getting that information from, but it can barely manage over 20fps on Battlefield 3 on 720p, there's no way that an HD 4xxx, HD 5xxx or Iris can be an acceptable medium for gaming.

I wasn't running in HD, I was talking about 480 or such.

[CMQuickfireTK 751]

I wasn't running in HD, I was talking about 480 or such.

 

well who plays at that resolution anymore? seriously.

[Commander Fresh 36]

I wasn't running in HD, I was talking about 480 or such.

From what I can tell, I don't even think Frostbite 2 games even support that kind of resolution anymore. Even if it can, playing at 480 is already scraping the bottom, there's really no way it'll be able to pull off Frostbite 3 or other AAA titles down the road.

 

Stick with the video card.

[TorqueEffect 112]

I am not an expert in Audio production but I know wholly for a fact you do NOT need a i7 for such work. Audio doesn't take much power, and gaming definitely won't need that kinda performance for probably the next 5-10 years or possibly more.

 

What you want to invest in is a high quality sound card, and if you plan on using the front audio jacks on a PC case, get one with really good wire shielding because front audio jacks have heavy amounts of interference in cases without it. I can't even talk on skype using the front jacks on my case because my friends complain of static and screeching.

 

A i5, or a 8 core AMD FX CPU will do you just fine. I prefer the latter because it will give you better multi-thread performance and better performance overall, but the I5 will give you better Single threaded performance.

 

I repeat do not settle for Intel graphics, sure they may have improved allot over the years, but there is no sense throwing that kinda cash at a build, but leave it will Intelgrated graphics shite. My friend has a newer I7 in a setup I built for him, and when his graphics card took a dump and had to wait on a replacement, it was chugging on TF2 on medium settings for crying out loud, it could barely play Left 4 Dead 2 on medium to low settings.

Edited January 6, 2014 by TorqueEffect

[Commander Fresh 36]

I am not an expert in Audio production but I know wholly for a fact you do NOT need a i7 for such work. Audio doesn't take much power, and gaming definitely won't need that kinda performance for probably the next 5-10 years or possibly more.

 

What you want to invest in is a high quality sound card, and if you plan on using the front audio jacks on a PC case, get one with really good wire shielding because front audio jacks have heavy amounts of interference in cases without it. I can't even talk on skype using the front jacks on my case because my friends complain of static and screeching.

The i5 vs i7 issue (as far as music production goes) goes back to what I previously said. An i7 is generally not needed for the more casual user, but any sort of audio work is fully capable of reaching the point where a top of the line processor is necessary, which is quite commonly seen installed on audio production PCs and Macs (I've personally maxed out a mid-range i7 CPU while working in a DAW). Of course, you do not need anything close to an i7 (Extreme) to play a video game, but there are some AAA titles such as StarCraft 2 or anything that uses Frostbite 3 that would definitely warrant at least a mid/high-ranged i5 to be safe, and emulating a current-gen console (if you're into that) would require a decently fast CPU as well.

 

A sound card is not absolutely necessary for any bit of casual audio work. While certainly beneficial, you wouldn't normally NEED one until you're at the point where you're using an i7 processor for your work. Don't overshoot your budget by getting something that you're not sure you'll be needing. If you need an i7 for audio production, you'll probably know already. If your DAW is giving you a lot of sound/recording related grief, a sound card could potentially help. This is all dependent on how "hardcore" you are at this.

 

Lastly, as far as that video card goes, the people here have overwhelmingly voted "yes" on getting it.

[A Blithering Div 247]

Drop the CPU cooler and instead get this CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116906

 

It's essentially an i7 for $50 cheaper. Or go with the standard i5 4670 non-k. Never OC a production rig.

[Shred Guitar Brony 85]

Thanks for eveyones help so far I really aprecciate it! Sorry for the belated replies btw I've been busy with various college work the last couple days.

 

 

 

don't personally use Cubase, so I'm not sure if it utilizes ASIO or not, but if it does, I highly suggest you get an ASIO2 compatible sound card.

 

 

I forgot to mention that I already own an audio interface which i believe acts as an external soundcard. I've heard good things about the I7 processor, I think I may well swap the I5 for an I7.Does this model look good?  http://www.amazon.co.uk/Intel-Unlocked-Unleashed-Hyper-Threading-Technology/dp/B00EONU086/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1389131505&sr=8-5&keywords=i7+processor  

[Commander Fresh 36]

Thanks for eveyones help so far I really aprecciate it! Sorry for the belated replies btw I've been busy with various college work the last couple days.

 

 

 

 

 

I forgot to mention that I already own an audio interface which i believe acts as an external soundcard. I've heard good things about the I7 processor, I think I may well swap the I5 for an I7.Does this model look good?  http://www.amazon.co.uk/Intel-Unlocked-Unleashed-Hyper-Threading-Technology/dp/B00EONU086/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1389131505&sr=8-5&keywords=i7+processor  

Well, first off, let me say that this is a very pricey processor, but you probably already knew that. The particular processor in question carries an "Extreme" label, which makes it a high-end i7. Uses for all that performance are generally limited unless you are skilled at some sort of computer related work, such as video editing, file converting, the world's most intense spreadsheets (really, really intense spreadsheets!) and of course, audio work. Would you consider yourself skilled at music production? If not, do you intend on being very skilled at it? Generally, in a DAW, what is most tasking for a processor are effects. When you have a buttload of them going off at once, your processor will start creeping up towards 100%. The question is, how do you plan to use effects? If you plan on creating more complex EDM or weird sound effects, then a fast processor will start to shine as your number of effects going off at once increases. Realistically, this is true for all kinds of audio work, but you're more likely to run into processor trouble with EDM or SFX. I'm not sure how your DAW handles the processors, so I wouldn't be able to comment much on the benefits you'll be getting from an i7's hyper-threading. As far as I can tell, the i5 would PROBABLY be enough, but if you're willing to make the upgrade, an i7 (not necessarily an Extreme version) would definitely benefit you in more complex projects. That, and also bragging rights! You'll never have to worry about CPU-related lag in (CPU intensive) games for quite a while either.

 

I haven't seen anybody touch on the topic of hard drives yet, so I'll get into that a little. If you are going to do a lot of recording or work with a lot of samples (chances are, you will), consider investing in a fast hard drive. I haven't seen any RPM stats for the hard drive you currently have selected, but I recommend going for at least 7200 RPM. A slow hard drive can keep your project from loading or playing smoothly if many samples are involved (especially true if you plan on working with sampled instruments), and it's also annoying to see that your games are loading slower than everyone else's. As your primary hard drive, an SSD would probably be unnecessary (keep an SSD for Windows though); the increased performance is overshadowed by the increased price at this point. If you're willing to pay for an SSD though, then by all means, go for it. I really would recommend against anything lower than 7200 RPM though.

[Lost 1,410]

SSD snip

  

snip 

Just as something to think on.

 

I've got a 120GB SSD that I don't use, I used it for my OS drive, when you've got windows installed, you're probably looking at a usable space of somewhere around 70GB, you may think that could be enough, however there are some programs that will either straight up refuse to install anywhere other than your OS drive or will not operate properly when not on it. 2 examples I could give are iTunes and Sony Vegas Pro 12. My iTunes library is a mess because it is installed on one drive and the music is on another. My Vegas is unstable as hell, after recommendation from sony's support, I moved it to my OS drive and it is slightly more stable, sony support fully refused to help me until the software was on the OS drive.

 

The point is, that 70GB will fill quickly.

 

I reminded this by drooping a large sum (around £280ish) on a larger SSD, a 320GB one, which broke after only a few hours use, the replacement I was sent also broke, after a week though, so instead I got a refund.

 

To replace my SSD OS drive I bought a Wester a Digital Velociraptor, they are 10,000RPM hard-drives, available in 1TB and 500GB sizes, I already had one to run games off and it performed perfectly for those.

 

So, swapping to that drive gave me more space, more reliability and cost less, however it is a slower drive, with what you're using it for I doubt you'de ever need SSD transfer speeds, plus to make the best use of them you'de need to be moving files from SSD to SSD. However, there is a HUGE difference in boot time. I timed my boot time with my SSD, from pressing the power button to having all of my start up programs launched and being able to use my PC took at time of 14-16 seconds, not bad considering I have around 7TB of disk-drives with a lot of software and start up programs to initialise, however, boot times on this current hard-drive are about 1 min to 1 min 30ish, it's very noticeable.

 

 

So what I'm saying is; get that SSD if you wish, however I would think somewhere down the line, you'll get major space issues, and a fast WD drive will do the job, just with slower boot times. Ofcourse you could go for a hybrid drive, however I have no experience with them, but you'll get more space for your money and your most used applications and boot time should be quicker than a fast HDD.

 

 

I hope that helped

[CMQuickfireTK 751]

@@Lost Why can't he get both an SSD and HDD?

Edited January 8, 2014 by z77e-d3h

[TorqueEffect 112]

@@Lost Why can't he get both an SSD and HDD?

 

That would probably be the intelligent thing to do.

[Commander Fresh 36]

  

 

Just as something to think on.

 

I've got a 120GB SSD that I don't use, I used it for my OS drive, when you've got windows installed, you're probably looking at a usable space of somewhere around 70GB, you may think that could be enough, however there are some programs that will either straight up refuse to install anywhere other than your OS drive or will not operate properly when not on it. 2 examples I could give are iTunes and Sony Vegas Pro 12. My iTunes library is a mess because it is installed on one drive and the music is on another. My Vegas is unstable as hell, after recommendation from sony's support, I moved it to my OS drive and it is slightly more stable, sony support fully refused to help me until the software was on the OS drive.

Correct me if I am wrong, but I do believe that the reason you were experiencing those issues were because the material you were working with were installed on a different drive than your program. I've never had such issue with multiple hard drives, except for one time where I store all my files in different disks. After that, I always kept my music and media player and footage and video editor on the same disk, and I've never run into any major problems again. With that being said, if this is the case with you too, you may be experiencing a somewhat isolated case, because nobody else I've talked to have ever had these kind of issues. On the flip side, this may be an issue somewhat related to the choice of hardware, which would make this problem kind of a chance thing.

 

Ultimately, I think this is a non-issue, but if you wish to be a bit more careful and drop the second drive completely, more power to you. My suggestion still stands that you should get at least a 7200 RPM hard drive.

 

BTW, the performance gains you will experience in a DAW with an SSD will mostly be minimal, unless you work with a huge amount of samples, or samples of massive size. Lost is right though, your boot time will blow minds with an SSD. Have a mop handy.