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Need advice about DAW build!

Posted: Thu Oct 11, 2012 9:24 am
by Groovetreatment
Hi everyone im gonna make a new DAW pc build for my new home studio and i will make it hackintosh and need your advice.First of all this is my main build:

Case:Fractal Design Arc Midi
PSU: Antec HCG 620W
Heatsink: Coolermaster Hyper 212 Evo
GPU:Gigabyte GTX 660 OC 2gb (for some gaming)
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws X 16gb 1600mhz CL9 (2x8)
SSD: 2x Intel 330 180GB SSD (1 for Windows 7 +Cubase+VST) (1 for Os x Lion + Logic)
HDD: WD 1TB Caviar Black (samples)
HDD2: Hitachi Dekstar 1TB (back up+Video)


And here is my question now,because with the compatibility with hackintosh im between this 2 choices
3770K + GA-z77X-UD5H (550eurws) or 2700K+ GA-Z68-UD3H-B3 (460eurws)
The 3770K have 10.5% higher score than 2700K in passmark but cost 16.5% more than 2700K(+mobo)
and my question is will i recognise this better performance in DAW or not?
I use about 30channels with 5-6 FX's per channel + about 7 synths (omnisphere included) +1-2 samplers sometimes.
So should i get 3770K for better performance or the 2700K?

Re: Need advice about DAW build!

Posted: Thu Oct 11, 2012 12:31 pm
by CA_Steve
The guys over at Gearslutz can probably answer the performance question better than us. My guess is the 2700K would probably do the job.

If you'd like some comments on quieting your proposed rig/component changes, let me know :D

Re: Need advice about DAW build!

Posted: Thu Oct 11, 2012 12:37 pm
by Groovetreatment
CA_Steve wrote:The guys over at Gearslutz can probably answer the performance question better than us. My guess is the 2700K would probably do the job.

If you'd like some comments on quieting your proposed rig/component changes, let me know :D
Thanx for the help.ofcourse all comments are wellcome!

Re: Need advice about DAW build!

Posted: Thu Oct 11, 2012 7:13 pm
by CA_Steve
The Antec HCG 620W is the Seasonic M12 620W. An older good design, with 80+ Bronze efficiency and quiet but audible (I have the Corsair branded version and ended up replacing the fan). In the US, it's selling for >$100. Your build will draw ~250-275W when completely stress loading the CPU and GPU. In normal operation (DAW work or gaming), it'll be closer to 200W. Some PSUs to consider (all 80+ Gold) in the same price range: Seasonic x 400 fanless, Seasonic x 560 (fan off until ~50% load), Seasonic G 550 (fan always on, but should be pretty quiet at your load). Another is the Kingwin LZP550 Platinum. Take a look at the Noise vs Power table on this page.

Heatsink: might need to replace the fan for quieter operation.

GPU: This Windforce card isn't the quietest beast. Take a look at the Asus DC II or MSI PE Twin Frozr.

At this point, the two HDDs will be the noisiest components. I don't know how fast the sample drive needs to be, but the WD Red 3TB seems to be faster in some apps and quieter than the WD Black. The back up + video drive (assuming video is stored video for playback?) could be a quiet 5400rpm WD Green.

Re: Need advice about DAW build!

Posted: Fri Oct 12, 2012 5:33 am
by Groovetreatment
CA_Steve wrote:The Antec HCG 620W is the Seasonic M12 620W. An older good design, with 80+ Bronze efficiency and quiet but audible (I have the Corsair branded version and ended up replacing the fan). In the US, it's selling for >$100. Your build will draw ~250-275W when completely stress loading the CPU and GPU. In normal operation (DAW work or gaming), it'll be closer to 200W. Some PSUs to consider (all 80+ Gold) in the same price range: Seasonic x 400 fanless, Seasonic x 560 (fan off until ~50% load), Seasonic G 550 (fan always on, but should be pretty quiet at your load). Another is the Kingwin LZP550 Platinum. Take a look at the Noise vs Power table on this page.

Heatsink: might need to replace the fan for quieter operation.

GPU: This Windforce card isn't the quietest beast. Take a look at the Asus DC II or MSI PE Twin Frozr.

At this point, the two HDDs will be the noisiest components. I don't know how fast the sample drive needs to be, but the WD Red 3TB seems to be faster in some apps and quieter than the WD Black. The back up + video drive (assuming video is stored video for playback?) could be a quiet 5400rpm WD Green.
The Seasonic X series in my country are expensive more than 140 eurws and the kingwin is not imported in any store in greece.The antec hcg cost 103 eurws,i dont wanna spend more than 100-110 for psu.thanx for the article i will see if i find any better in same price.I will look take a look asus and msi too.about the HDDS red 3 TB cost 200eurws...too expensive,and i think seagate barracudas is quiter than wd as i read in some articles but have less guaranty.but in fractal design cases i dont think i wll notice any difference in hdd's maybe i choose define r4 than arc midi,cause have better sound isolation.video i mean dvds and movies etc.the hitachi is the cheapest one at 1tb and is good too.thanx for the advices dude!

Re: Need advice about DAW build!

Posted: Fri Oct 12, 2012 1:51 pm
by Irrelevant
I'd definitely plan on replacing the Hyper 212 fan, if I were you. At least on the non-Evo version I have, the included fan was typical of Coolermaster fans: not awful, but not good enough to keep, either, particularly not if you're doing any recording nearby.

I'd also strongly discourage skimping on the PSU. In my experience, a high-end PSU not only makes less noise, it also crashes less than even a "solid", mid-range unit. Keep your system properly tuned and I think you'll notice the difference. Since you can keep a PSU through multiple upgrade cycles, it makes even less sense to go cheap.

And I would NEVER trust a video card's stock cooler in a DAW. The height restrictions mean teeny, tiny, whiny fans that will ruin any recording and probably drive you nuts, even at idle. Maybe I've just bought the wrong GPUs, but I'd be ready to buy an aftermarket cooler if I were you.

I haven't done any DAW-work in years, and did all of it on a PC, so maybe things will be different for you, but I recall latency being less a result of how many effects/synths/etc I was running and more a result of OS, drivers, and hardware. Considering how much more powerful CPUs are now, I'd be more than a little surprised if that's changed. I'd recommend going for the cheaper processor and putting the money elsewhere.

Re: Need advice about DAW build!

Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2012 6:36 pm
by bonestonne
I'd opt for a non-K version CPU. Unless you feel like overclocking is an absolute necessity, there's no reason to get a K model CPU.

My Q9400 has never skipped a beat, though now that I have to do video work alongside audio work, I'm looking at upgrade options for myself.

An i5 would have enough power to do what you want, people underestimate how much power even an i3 has. Make sure you have a lot of RAM (which you do) and you should be fine.

I'm still wary of SSDs, I have started to use a couple in some of my lesser used computers, but still wouldn't trust it for any homework or paid work, so I'd be cautious about backups.

Re: Need advice about DAW build!

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2012 3:04 am
by Groovetreatment
I have decided and will get the 3770K cpu with samsung 128GB 830ssd but which cpu_cooler u reccomend?I think about the scythe ninja that have fan control.