Intel board with i7 support and 3 pci slots looks good

[irrelevance]

http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ ... h77kc.html

compatible with i7 3770s (up to 3.1ghz)

I've looked into the supermicro boards(thanks for helpful links ) but the xeon processor seems to be geared towards server applications and not desktop. I know servers have to be bombproof but they do not run processor heavy apps like daws/games/image editing etc.

[garyb]

most of the XEON boards accept 17s and 15s and 13s and celerons.

the XEON is the highest spec processor, not for benchmarks, but for the most error-free cores. XEONS are required if the system is mission critical. i series aren't as clean, core-wise, down to celerons which are the poorest quality cores that still function properly. all of them will work well enough to make great music.

what are you doing with the computer? playing video games? then you certainly want gamer-spec components.
if you are building a workstation, then you want the most stable components, ones that can run for years and for long periods of time without failure.

for audio use, the XEON is a perfect choice. the i7 will also do the same job. i really doubt that it's worthwhile to fret over server and desktop apps and which processor is superior. for long term sustained use, the XEON is more bullet proof, it's consevatively clocked and meant to last forever. ir's also more expensive. the i7 is cheaper and offers a little more power since it's clocked a little harder(and will probably last effectively forever), but it's expected to be replaced much sooner than the XEON. almost everything else is marketing.

[irrelevance]

Thats good to know thanks Gary. I had been led off on a journey of more research regarding cache size differences/daw performance between i7/ xeon. Haven't found anything definitive though.

The 5 slot supermicro posted here by dawman is i3 only but I only need 3 slots anyway however most other supermicro boards I find tend to be priced a few hundred dollars higher than this board and i7 boards. Just specing components atm so will see which core has the better (theoretical) cost to performance ratio.

[dante]

Im getting the i7 4770 - is that a good one Garyb?

[garyb]

you know that's a good processor...

[dante]

not really - I don't keep up with the latest bits, I only care when buy time comes once around every 4 - 5 years. Its simply the one the dealer recommended without me doing any other research whatsoever, except I knew it was a quad core @ 3.4 ghz, coz it says so on the quote !

But you giving it that kinda rap means I don't have to research it any more

[garyb]

well, it's the processor where the price break happens.
it's about the second tier, in terms of performance, just below the super expensive top tier processors that cost twice as much, but about the same price as the tier below. so, i'd say it's a good choice.

[dante]

cool. good ta know

[Bud Weiser]

cool. good ta know

Intel Core i7 4770k Haswell (quad core / 3.5GHz) here is EUR 289.- and it has 8MB cache being a socket 1150 processor.
http://www.alternate.de/Intel%28R%29/Co ... t/1063382?

Intel Core i7 4820k Ivy Bridge-E (quad core / 3.7GHz) here is EUR 289.- too, but 10MB cache and it´s socket 2011.
http://www.alternate.de/Intel%28R%29/Co ... t/1087527?

Now when you use SCOPE and VSTis,- 10MB cache is more polyphony for the native running virtual instruments (p.ex. Kontakt as also Reason) and socket 2011 is twice the data thruput because of quad-channel RAM support and more lanes which is a big advantage when using lots of samples from Kontakt (streaming) and Reason Refills (faster loading).

So, the i7 4770k is a good processor but the i7 4820k is the (eventually much) better processor for the same price.

The mobo and RAM sticks make the price difference then.

Now I don´t know if socket 2011 will support old PCI cards flawlessly, but when they do,- I´d go that route.
The AsRock x79 Extreme 4 has 2 PCI 32Bit slots and costs EUR 179,90.
http://www.alternate.de/ASRock/X79-Extr ... ct/961044?

When I only use XITE-1D or XITE-1 and additional VST / Phead-Reason, I´d go w/ a socket 2011 mobo for sure when building a new machine.
The MSI X79MA-GD45 (7760-034R) / 2x PCIe X16 / 2x PCIe X1 / USB3 / SATA3 x2 / passive cooling is EUR 150,15 only.
You need a graphics card w/ the socket 2011 solutions.
Something like the: PNY NVS300 x16 LP DVI / passive cooling / 64Bit / 500MB DDR3 RAM / DVI-I x2 for about EUR 100.-

Bud

[garyb]

i believe socket 2011 is ok, but i don't have backup on that.

[dante]

Thanks Bud. Well if anyone can verify reliability of 4820 for a system running 2 x Luna 2 + 1 x Scope 2 + XITE-1D I might consider it, but the proven stability of 4770 will be overriding factor.

I can run a lot of Kontakt + Reason samples at once on my current system already - I'm not saying I wouldnt run more if I could, but I wouldnt sacrifice known throughput / stability of the 3 PCI cards.

Having said that, I only use the 3 PCI cards to run a couple of Bowen synths (ProWave, Profit 5) then ADAT that to XITE project - no reverbs or samplers etc. Maybe that doesnt use much PCI bandwidth anyway (??). I mean, it would use it during load time but not during performance - is that right ?

Even so - at this stage I think Ill stick to the 4770 by the sounds of it. I already have the motherboard ASUSZ87C so to change to another socket would mean change the MOBO as well isn't it ?

[Immanuel]

Having said that, I only use the 3 PCI cards to run a couple of Bowen synths (ProWave, Profit 5) then ADAT that to XITE project - no reverbs or samplers etc. Maybe that doesnt use much PCI bandwidth anyway (??). I mean, it would use it during load time but not during performance - is that right ??

Forget about bandwith. If your PC gives you 50 TB/S bandwith on the PCI-bus but this comes in chunks of 100 TB/½S and then ½ a second of nothing, you are still royally screwed.

[garyb]

exactly. all of the motherboards have proper bandwidth, in theory. how usable that bandwidth is depends on implimentation. there haven't been many that don't work for a long time, not really since xp service pack1. the socket 1155 and AMD boards of the same age all were crappy, but before and after those models, the cards are perfectly happy.


if you already have the motherboard, just get the matching processor. the performance difference won't be THAT extreme. i'm pretty sure that i remember socket 2011 motherboards working correctly, though.

*edit* actually, thinking a bit more about it, i think the happy 2011 users were XITE users. i think i'd stay away for PCI cards.

[dante]

Yep, Im sticking to the plan : 4770 - socket 1150 ! Thanks all.

[dante]

Yep, Im sticking to the plan : 4770 - socket 1150 ! Thanks all.

Well now that I go to buy, the dealer tells me the 4770 is discontinued to be replaced by a slightly faster 4790.

Looked at comparison chart, seems like slightly faster clock speed is the only difference, now to see how the price differs when they quote me next week.

[garyb]

that's why it was a good buy.

there's also Amazon and ebay, if there's a big price jump.

there's never any point to planning for any one computer part, if you don't have money to buy today. the whole point of the computer business is to always offer new products, even if they're not needed. we've become accustomed to this and we think it's normal and makes sense.

just buy the best dollar/vs performance processor that has the correct architecture for you. you'll be fine. maybe make sure there's no crazy internet furor about how it melts all motherboards to slag or only runs for 15minutes at a time with the stock cooler...

[dante]

Will do. I was thinking of getting a water cooler. that's mandatory for DAWS isn't it to avoid the fan noise. I don't have the space to acoustic insulate the rack.

Then the SSD.... Dual head graphics card...The list goes on.

[garyb]

water cooling might be a cool thing, but the current fans are very quiet.

i don't think pc noise is really an issue. there are many more pressing problems in most rooms.

[dante]

PC noise is definitely the no 1 issue in my room. Getting rid of noisy fan is one of the things I'm looking fwd to most with this upgrade.

[Immanuel]

Water cooling requires fans too. Recently, I purchased a CPU cooler from Noctura, and I was VERY surprised by the low noise level I can achieve with it. I have had a fanless PSU which created worse acoustic noise ...