Upgrade, buy new PC, or switch to Mac

[jbugg86]

I'm getting back into music production and was given the ultimate P.O.S. Dell Dimension 2400. Being that it was a gift I tried to work with it. Once I installed my Fl Studio 7, Reason 8.0, Adobe Audition, and various plugins and sound libraries, she started to drag. The latency is kinda jacked up and when I import certain tracks to my DAW, the CPU meter goes up and I get the "stuttering" affect. I was told this was due to the program and I would have to get a better processor. In order to fully complete my songs I need to be able to mix and master the instrumentals and it's impossible with the stuttering. Also, I need Fire Wire to be able to hook up an Audio Interface to. If I can't do that I need a better sound card so I can get accurate response from the bass and so forth. Can I install something like the M-Audio Revolution 7.1 sound card? Someone told me I needed at least: 3.0Ghz, 320Gb HDD, 2Gb Ram, 52x/20x CD/DVD burner. I have the thing completely torn down for cleaning, so before I put it back together I would like some input. Remember this is for music production, the above specs were advise for use with music production, and above all sound accuracy from the programs is my number one concern. I'm a married, father of 2 so money is my biggest issue. If I was doing the single, I'd have the MacPro by now. Upgrade, buy new PC, or switch to Mac???????

 

[klepto12]

i wouldnt waste money on that computer for upgrades instead look at a new pc a $500 pc that you could build would be way better than the setup you have now.

 

[klepto12]

you might try something like this
case- Antec Three Hundred $59.95
cpu- AMD Athlon 64 X2 7750 Kuma 2.7GHz $59.99
MB- GIGABYTE GA-MA770-UD3 AM2+ $69.99 ($59.99 after $10.00 Mail-In
Rebate)
ram- CORSAIR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 $46.99
Video card- SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 4670 512MB $69.99 ($59.99 after $10.00 Mail-In
Rebate)
HDD- Western Digital Caviar Black 500GB $69.99
PSU- CORSAIR 400W $49.99 ($29.99 after $20.00 Mail-In
Rebate)
DVD burner- LG Black 22X $22.99

alot of this stuff has free shipping and rebates total comes to just under $450

 

[SNGX1275]

As one of the few Mac users on this board I'm going to suggest just building a PC. The reason is you are already familiar with PCs, and already have the software necessary. A Mac will cost you more money than you can buy a similarly spec'd PC and the only audio editing software that you'll have is Garageband and Audacity (free dl). After that you'll have to buy audio editing software, no reason to do that if you already have it for PC.

Basically if you are going into this with the goal of saving money your only real choice is a PC. If you are going to be making a career out of it then shell out for a refurb MacPro, or at the very minimum an Intel Mac Pro from ebay. The iMac, while more powerful than what you have now, isn't designed to be a production machine, the Pro is, and carries a price tag that reflects that. Its something to consider once you've made enough money to justify the purchase. But at that point you may be quite accustomed to the PC software you are using and not want to make the switch.

 

[jbugg86]

Thanks for the info. I plan on selling my music and there was talk of maybe getting a studio. There's a little studio already set up about 15 min away from me, I just need the equipment. So, I'll probably just build a PC to save a little money for my music hardware I'll need. I haven't been inside a computer in about 7 years though and I just don't know what all has come out since then as for as quality wise. I can get away with spending about $500-$600.

 

[Rage_3K_Moiz]

For your budget, I suggest the following:

• AMD Phenom II X4 920 2.8GHz CPU - Retail - $172.00
• Gigabyte GA-MA74GM-S2 Micro-ATX Motherboard - Retail - $49.99
• OCZ Fatal1ty 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR2 1066MHz Dual-Channel Kit - Retail - $47.99 (without $10 rebate)
• Corsair 400CX 400W PSU with Active PFC - Retail - $49.99 (without $10 rebate)
• Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid-Tower Case - Retail - $54.95
• Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB Hard Drive - OEM - $99.99
• M-AUDIO 2496 Sound Card - Retail - $83.99 (or any other card of your choice)

All this should easily be within your budget, and you can save a little more on that particular card if you use Google Checkout. Also, most of the items come with free shipping.

Hope I helped.