GEAR UPDATE ADVICE

[milfus]

plus a mac 8 core is like 8 grand, *shudder*

[devin]

Jul 3, 2008, 2:34pm, ernstinen wrote: Works great, and the 24" monitor is a must for me because I work on scores a lot. Most people wouldn't need one that big, methinks!**pst!*****ern!!!!*****my wife sometimes reads over my shoulder. PLEASE DON'T SAY STUFF LIKE THAT!!!!****the correct answer is "I don't know how anyone can live without a 24" monitor...and a Harley*****deal?***

[devin]

Jul 3, 2008, 2:03pm, windowman wrote:Thanks everyone. I'd love to go the MAC route, but $$$ is an issue. I was thinking more along the lines of Milfus' idea, but I'm not sure what parts I would need. If I knew what to get, I have someone who could build it. And I don't want VISTA.If I were to go the Mac route with Logic, which one would be advisable to buy & what other parts would I need to get to make it all work?Sorry about my complete lack of knowledge on these things.WadeThere's probably a good dozen folks paying very close attention to these tidbits Wade...thanks for leading the charge, it's helping lurkers like me out too!FWIW my PC system has been doing really well for me, but I'm only running a couple soft synths max...if Mazz walked up to the keyboard I'm sure it would raise the white flag in a heartbeat (and then die). I do mostly live tracking, and the VST stuff during mixdown isn't too taxing yet (using a UAD-1 for most processing though).I'll shutup now, because I'm in the back of the pack for what's available today...

[matto]

Hey Wade,I use a stock Dell PC. I've had it for about 3 years I think. Before that I had another stock Dell PC. Neither were the highest priced ones. I use my computers at least 12 hours/day, every day. They have been very reliable for me. Yeah they are a bit noisy but so are Macs. Maybe I'm just lucky...but in my humble opinion, you don't need the latest greatest fastest and most expensive equipment out there to record some good music. If you can't afford a Mac don't sweat it. If you can, then Logic *is* a very attractive DAW these days because of it's modest price and bundled software.But any of today's established DAWs, running on a reasonably current mid-prize computer will let you record plenty of quality music.If anything, I would look at the various DAWs and see which one seems to be the most straighforward to you personally, and your way of working. That way you lessen your learning curve. And I couldn't agree more with milfus about reading the manual. Makes a huge difference...Btw, my next computers will be one of those fancy purpose built music machines, now that I make decent money from music it makes sense to go with something more quiet. But back when money was tight I went with the least expensive solution that would let me get the job done. There's no shame in that...

[ernstinen]

Jul 3, 2008, 5:30pm, devin wrote:Jul 3, 2008, 2:34pm, ernstinen wrote: Works great, and the 24" monitor is a must for me because I work on scores a lot. Most people wouldn't need one that big, methinks!**pst!*****ern!!!!*****my wife sometimes reads over my shoulder. PLEASE DON'T SAY STUFF LIKE THAT!!!!****the correct answer is "I don't know how anyone can live without a 24" monitor...and a Harley*****deal?***Um --- Most people doing music NEED a 24" monitor --- and a Harley.Deal! BTW, I agree with Matto --- I ALWAYS opt for the less expensive option as far as the latest processor etc. No need to go for the "newest" thing! Even the guys at VisonDAW told me that ---Ern

[milfus]

yeah but I heard that if you have a harley, a 24 inch monitor, and your own wet bar, you can make MILLIONS

[sgs4u]

I also totally agree that buying the fastest, most current computer is unnecessary. A 3 year old computer with a 2 big, cleaned hard drives, is gonna blow your current system out of the water pretty quickly. Yes there will be lots to learn, but you're ready for it now, aren't ya! The stuff you are about to learn will be equally tough on a Mac or a PC, when you're not used to DAWs.I use a PowerMac G-5 1.8 GHz. 2 Gigs of Ram, with 2 hard drives, a 200gig and a 300gig. I have a 1000gig, extra external hard drive. It's about 3 or 4 years old. My DAW is Logic7. Logic 8 is the new improved (& easier to use) version. I'm not an authority on Macs, or PCs. I can tell you that I prefer Macs, and Logic is a truly amazing program. I've never been very patient at reading manuals. I prefer Macs for 2 important reasons. I've never gotten one virus in 10 years of Macs. nada And how a Mac's file system works, is more to my liking. It just seems more bulletproof. My studio is on the smaller end of the scale. An older Mac G-5 (like mine) might only cost $1000, and Logic might only be $500 or so. The lower priced version of Logic, is called Logic Express. I think Squids is using that. When you factor in the prices of all the extra items & software plug-ins that a PC will need, the prices are going to be very similar. Because you are a guitar based composer, you might find that ProTools suits your needs more. I had a Roland MC-500 for years, too. Being a geeky keyboard player, it was an easy choice to go from sequencing on a Roland to an Atari, and then to a Mac. At no time, have I ever wished I had a PC instead of the Macs I've owned. I'd like to have a PC in addition to my Mac, because of all the non-music things I learned to do with a PC. Whatever you choose, there's a learning curve. But you're smart. Dive in good luckJul 3, 2008, 8:41pm, matto wrote:you don't need the latest greatest fastest and most expensive equipment out there to record some good music. If you can't afford a Mac don't sweat it. If you can, then Logic *is* a very attractive DAW these days because of it's modest price and bundled software.But any of today's established DAWs, running on a reasonably current mid-prize computer will let you record plenty of quality music.

[stoney]

Milf: Interested to know what you are running on your 8 core PC and if you have any stability issues?

[devin]

Jul 4, 2008, 2:11am, stoney wrote:Milf: Interested to know what you are running on your 8 core PC and if you have any stability issues? Milf has been through a lot this year, and he's still solid as a rock. But I'm not sure about his software...have you loaded that new machine up yet Milfus? I thought I read you were testing it out...If you're thinking about the "less is more" approach Wade, I can host you at my place for a beer. I think we're about an hour away from each other.My 3 year old stock HP PC is whisper quiet for some reason...running Cubase with a MOTU 828 MK2 (via firewire) for A/D and midi interfacing.

[Mark Kaufman]

Windowman, two things to consider:I don't see any mention of an audio interface (although I might have read too fast), and you will need one. I'll leave the authoritative suggestions to the experts, although a Presonus Firebox for $260 really rocked my world, and it came bundled with Cubase and a lot of extras.The other thing...check out this link from GearSlutz (a very good site filled with prickly people who tend to know a LOT, plenty of pros there). They pretty much agree that Reaper is an incredible system, as good as Cubase, yet only $40. You can also download the fully usable program for free trial use. I haven't used it, but it comes well recommended on this link. Might save you some jing...http://www.gearslutz.com/board/low-end- ... eaper.html