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Any one here makes music?

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Just a simple yes would suffice, just so I know who you are and what your computer is like.

I have a friend who is thinking of building a computer that would help him make music, so just doing a bit of research.

If you don't make music but still have any input, all would be welcome.

:toast:
 

brandonwh64

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Dave couple probably answer this. He does a lot of guitar stuff on his PC
 
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I use mine to make mixes, virtual dj software. my friends make a lot of music and there system isn't as good as mine. they use reason mainly

I know its a bit longer than yes.
 
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I use mine to make mixes, virtual dj software. my friends make a lot of music and there system isn't as good as mine. they use reason mainly

I know its a bit longer than yes.

So any tips? Processing speed needed? High RAM? Dump all the money into sound cards?
 
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Instruments.
 
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With music software (recording or otherwise) you need two things most importantly.

A fast CPU.

The more RAM the better.

Make sure whatever software that is going to be used is fully compatible with whatever O/S you're going to use.

Other things... Only use as many fans as you need and you'll probably want them to be lower RPM and use molex connectors directly to the PSU to power them. Use motherboard connectors as little as possible.

When looking for a motherboard you'll want to find something that is built with high quality components (capacitors, resistors, vrm, etc.). You'll probably want something with more than a couple USB ports as well.

Bottom line, the less electronic noise the better.


As far as sound cards you don't really need one.. Unless this is for music playback, but there you're getting into a whole other kind of madness.
 
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Instruments.

Ha.....


He likes his dubstep and such. He has a keyboard that hooks up the computer and two pretty nice yamaha speakers were delivered today. We were talking about it in passing and started bouncing a few ideas around. As I can build PCs I was wondering what would be bad/good/ugly for a build.
 
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As far as sound cards you don't really need one.. Unless this is for music playback, but there you're getting into a whole other kind of madness.

Most likely this will be done. I have given him my old Xonar D2/PM that I had kicking about.
 
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cadaveca

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Also important is the amount of ram, the sound card used, and what you plan to do with it. There are many different aspects of an audio rig, and what you plan to do will dictate what you need. As an example, what I need for myself is very different from nearly every other local musician I've built rigs for. Most play a different instrument, and those instruments have different connectivity needs.

CPU isn't that important right now. CPU needs depends on whether just recording, or using VSTs(virtual Studio Technology).
 
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Yes I do recordings.
The rig I have is what I use for recordings.

A pro audio sound card is important.
They are designed for low latency.
Low latency is important to get the fastest possible signal from the time someone presses a key on a keyboard and when the sound comes out from the speakers.

Most people use an external pro audio sound card.
 
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dubstep?! now Im interested. tbh ive seen music made on shitty computers and all depends on what is plugged into it, my mate has Stanton decks, allen and heath mixer. and has added all sorts of effects/equaliser modules etc, separate bits of equipment and does it all of a dell laptop.

the sound is incredible, jbl 12k loudspeakers and pioneer amps.

the laptop can handle it all, but the processor is heavily loaded.

spend the money on the external stuff, your pc is good enough for the rest.
 

cadaveca

My name is Dave
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Yes I do recordings.
The rig I have is what I use for recordings.

A pro audio sound card is important.
They are designed for low latency.
Low latency is important to get the fastest possible signal from the time someone presses a key on a keyboard and when the sound comes out from the speakers.

Most people use an external pro audio sound card.

You are talking about ASIO latency. ;) that'll help finding the best card. Personally, I found the Creative X-Fi to be ht ebest Windows-based card, with near 2 ms delay possible, while most other windows-based cards sit aroun 6-8 ms. For a musician, 8ms is a long time.
 
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dubstep?! now Im interested. tbh ive seen music made on shitty computers and all depends on what is plugged into it, my mate has Stanton decks, allen and heath mixer. and has added all sorts of effects/equaliser modules etc, separate bits of equipment and does it all of a dell laptop.

the sound is incredible, jbl 12k loudspeakers and pioneer amps.

the laptop can handle it all, but the processor is heavily loaded.

spend the money on the external stuff, your pc is good enough for the rest.

No no no this wont be done on my computer. Were thinking of building one for him.
 
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FruityLoops. M-Audio or TurtleBeach with MiDi/firewire. 2 turntables. GOOD mixer. A CD/MP3 deck if you're in to it. GO!
 
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aww fair enough, youll have loads of fun making samples for dubstep, and the bass line!!

I wanna parttaayyyyy now lol

booo wooo woo woop woooppp
 

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Depends on the level he's doing things on too. If he's a professional, CPU and RAM. If it's just toying around, nothing really matters beside the sound card. RAM is cheap though, no point in bying less than 8 GB anyway.
 
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what software you planning to use? on their sites they advise on systems.

and a microphone, very important!! don't forget you got to record that noise and distort the shit out if it....... boooo woooooppp
 
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Nice price on that card, but that's a bit outdated. I'd opt for PCIe card, if possible, not PCI.

I was looking for cheap. I have the lower end model, but unfortunately it's an even older version that only works on XP. Though... the newer one doesn't look all that different, I guess I'll grab those drivers.
 
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