1. #1

    Helping my friend build a pc

    my friend is looking to build a pc i am a relatively new builder only building 2 computers so far was looking for your guys help. with his computer he plans to do a large amount of music creating and editing on it with mild gaming, he said he would be happy with skyrim on med graphics. i was thinking since this will be for music a sound card plus good speakers/ headset would be recommended. i saw this combo on newegg and its similar to what i had in mind but add a sound card and speakers and a wireless card and go from there.

    budget is roughly around 800 but can be pushed a little over. let me know your thoughts on this computer or if you have a completly different list of parts to cut some cost let me know any help is greatly appreciated.

    thanks

  2. #2
    So im a bit sketchy on this "large amount of music creating and editing on it with mild gaming" im aking it as music editing, so really an i3-2100 and 4gb of ram w/ a decent mobo/soundcard will be more thn enough.

  3. #3
    ok well he creates music on his laptop as a hobby and wants a better setup for it. he plays games on occasion but not too often but he has never had a pc for gaming.

  4. #4
    Deleted
    Budget Workstation Sample Build
    MoBo: ASRock Z68 Extreme3$124.99
    CPU: Intel i7 2600k$299.99
    RAM: Corsar XMS3 1600MHz 4x4GB$86.99
    GPU: HIS Radeon 6870$159.99
    HDD: Samsung Spinpoint 1TB$149.99
    PSU: Seasonic S12II 520W$59.99
    Case: Fractal Design Define R3$99.99
    --------------------------------------------------
    Estimated Total Price – $982
    Add in a soundcard of your friends liking and you are set. I'm not sure what software he uses, but I assume it would warrant a 2600k. If not, save some cash and get the 2500k instead. Add a heatsink if you want some overclocking capabilities and a SSD if you want a smoother browsing experience (and faster boot times). Swap out the case to your friends liking. The above is a very powerful budget workstation.

  5. #5
    as much as i would love to use a 2600k in the build it just simply isnt in the budget, Marest what im looking for is a system that cost about 500-600 leaving me 200-300 9in headroom for soundcard and speakers

  6. #6
    I am Murloc! Fuzzykins's Avatar
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    For video and music editing, AMD will shine in price/performance... I lack the time to put together a build, but I'm sure someone else will chime in.

  7. #7
    Deleted
    My bad then, I just skimmed through and read "800 budget that can be pushed".

    I'm torn between recommending the 1055T, the FX-8120 or the 2500k. They are all around $200, with the 2500k being the most expensive at ~$230. I believe that the FX-8120 will be the best choice at that price point for audio editing, but the 2500k isn't bad and it is incredibly fast in games. The 1055T is an older CPU, and just in between I believe. Depending on how much your friend games, I'd go for either the 2500k or the FX-8120.

    The 2500k vs the FX-8150: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/434?vs=288
    The 2500k vs the 1100t: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/203?vs=288
    The FX-8150 vs the 1100t: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/434?vs=203

    Focus mainly on the audio and video converter software listed I guess. You see that the 1100t is sharper than the 2500k. The FX-8150 (being higher clocked than the 8120 mind) also performs better in those applications. You can also see that the 8150 is about on par with the 1100t, being slightly better in most of the listed programs and applications but just behind in some.

    Personally? I would probably go for the 2500k, but I am a gamer after all. The FX-8120, being an 8-core CPU, is very powerful and would most likely be my choice if there was no intention of gaming. I honestly believe that your friend will be pleased no matter what CPU you pick. You can also pick the 1090t, which is a bit cheaper at around $170.

  8. #8
    Im still believing an i3 would cover it. Audio is not anywhere near as straining on a system as video, now I can also see the minor gaming aspect of going to the other options but really for audio big thing will be the output and if he is serious about music then the end is the real issue, so the best clarity would be my primary goal, and that will land in a professional quality soundcard.

  9. #9
    i feel the same way about the i5 2500k mainly cause micro center has it for 170ish nearby, but idk if it will be overkill or not. but like milkshake said that the main importance will be the sound output. by budget being pushed i mean like 100 bucks or so. thanks for all the help so far guys. i might take the puppy build from SOTM and add on a good sound card and studio monitors? would the puppy build be able to play a game like skyrim on med or would it need a slightly more powerful graphics card?

  10. #10
    Deleted
    Hm, I didn't take the limiting budget + soundcard into consideration. Let's see...

    - The most important component will be the SPU (Sound Processing Unit), i.e. the soundcard. I've heard good comments regarding the M-Audio 2496 as a good price/performance choice.

    - After that, it's the input device(s). A keyboard might work, but your friend will most likely want something a bit more user friendly (a keyboard is after all made to type with; not for music creation), i.e. a proper USB Midi controller. For recording, he might want a FireWire recording system as a music input source. It depends a bit what kind of music and software he intends to work with I assume.

    - It seems that audio creation does benefit from more cores, however it isn't as important as your soundcard or input devices. More and faster cores will simply make the experience more fluent. In essence, prioritize soundcard and input device first, as well as speakers/headset and then put the rest of your budget on the CPU. I reckon a 1090t should be within budget (which is a strong 6-core CPU), however if you can pick up a 2500k for around the same price then that might be the smarter choice - especially with gaming in mind. If overclocking is not of interest, consider the i5 2400 or the i5 2310.

    - Storage is fairly important as high quality (or rather, uncompressed audio) takes up a lot of space. It might also be wise to get a SSD for a more responsive software experience (I reckon a 64GB would be enough for Windows and Audio software), but that might be beyond your friends budget. Start with a fairly fast HDD; you can always add a SSD later and make the HDD storage-only.

    Hope that helps a little, and sorry for listing a PC initially that was far beyond your friends budget.
    Last edited by mmoc7c6c75675f; 2012-01-16 at 05:08 PM.

  11. #11
    @marest I think it's good to sometimes list out of budget builds. In some case's they can mix match and get a better feel for the whole process. My father was a soundtech for years Ill give em a shout as him and my uncle have this ongoing peen fest about akward pc components and such. Growing up w/ these 2 men was hilarious every christmas my uncle would fly in from DC w/ a box of parts, remember playing Falcon(flight sim) and some wild wild random games.

  12. #12
    here is what i have come up with sofar pushing the budget a bit and so forth let me know if anything isnt going to work out or if there is a better option available.

    Processor Intel core i5 2500k
    Mobo GA-Z68A-D3H-B3
    memory Corsair Vengeance 8gb ddr3
    power supply Corsair CX600
    GPU
    Hard drive segate barracuda 2tb 7200rpm
    DVD asus dvd burner
    Case in win mana 136
    Sounnd card m audio
    speakers samson mediaone 4a

    for graphics card thinking about the gtx 460, radeon 6850, or 6870 since that is around the budget left for graphics. i chose these because they have similar price performance on skyrim, the 6870 pulls ahead a bit. if you have any better recomendations let me know for the gpu

    for the processor i was also considering getting the x6 1100T since it is the same price at microcenter and then obviously change the mobo accordingly but what are you thoughts on that?

    ---------- Post added 2012-01-17 at 04:40 PM ----------

    bump any last thoughts will be purchasing within a few days
    Last edited by J-Wallz; 2012-01-16 at 11:59 PM.

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