Re: [linux-audio-user] Need a new 'pooter

From: Christian Ohm <chr.ohm@email-addr-hidden>
Date: Mon Nov 14 2005 - 21:38:45 EET

On Saturday, 12 November 2005 at 21:06, Bungee wrote:
> The obvious solution is to build a completely new system specifically for sound
> work, but I am totally baffled by the choices. MB, Processor, Memory, Sound
> Card, and on, and on...

Well, I can give you my opinions on suitable hardware, and the
components I have or intend to get soon. That should give you a start
(or confuse you even more, depending on the other advice you got), but I
guess you can't buy that system anywhere.

Processor: AMD. Faster and way cooler than the Intel chips. A dual-core
should make a noticeable difference for audio work. I'll get the AMD X2
3800+, as the faster ones are way more expensive (and get hotter).

Cooling: Probably a Scythe Ninja (passive heatpipe cooler), and two
120mm fans (one in the PSU, one in the back of the case).

Mainboard: Obviously needs the same socket as the CPU. My choice is an
Asus A8V Deluxe, as I want to use an AGP graphics card, and it has a
passive northbridge cooler.

RAM: 2GB of a proper brand, no fancy expensive overclocking stuff.

Graphics card: A Radeon 8500LE modded with a passive cooler. The fastest
card with usable open 3D drivers, and it doesn't get very hot. My main
reason for getting it was the 1600x1200 DVI port, else I'd have stayed
with my Matrox G400.

Sound card: M-Audio Audiophile 2496. Sufficient for me, but perhaps you
need/want more channels.

HDD: One large Seagate or Samsung, those are supposed to be the most
quiet ones. RAID is usually overrated, it's just louder and more
error-prone. I'm thinking about getting a Seagate Cheetah 15k.3 as a
system drive, but that'll also add some noise...

Case: Should have an opening for a 120mm fan in the back where the CPU
sits, a place for the HDD low in the front (with air holes), and no
holes in the sides. That way you can use the two fans (one in the PSU,
one in the back) to get the air from below in the front (and perhaps one
open slot below the graphics card) out the upper back, that should be
sufficient cooling for that system. Ideally you'll have a temperature
controlled fan controller, that'll make it even quieter. Oh, and the
more solid (read: heavy) the case, the more noise it'll absorb.

That should give you a quiet, cool and pretty fast system, or at least
some hints on how to build one.

-- 
A man said to the Universe:
	"Sir, I exist!"
	"However," replied the Universe,
	"the fact has not created in me a sense of obligation."
		-- Stephen Crane
Received on Tue Nov 15 00:15:06 2005

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