Hardware questions (PC)

[op76]

I will update my hardware sometime soon, so I thought that it would be a good idea to ask you, if there's some compatility problems, or what works best in general:

1. Is there combatility problems with DDR3, or do you think, that there is even any benefits against DDR2?

2. AMD or Intel, 2 or 4 cores?

3. Operating system, XP/Vista/7, 32 or 64 bits? I think Linux is out of question, as I don't have much experience of using it?

This machine is for Reaper use only (and of course lot's of VSTs), no internet connection, no gaming. Our mixer is Alesis Multimix8 USB.

Oh, and no i7 or that kind of very expensive stuff, we're not millionaires :-/

[pelanj]

I would like to build a Reaper-dedicated (and SW sampler) PC too. So I am also interested in this topic. I use Tascam US-1641 at the moment.

I was told two tricks:

1) Use a separate USB card for the soundcard.

2) Get two harddiscs - one for system, one for recording data. A third would come handy if someone uses lots of samples.

As far as the HW concerns, I would like to use a case as small as possible.

[manning1]

phenom 2 quad processor for budget.
if running lots of plug ins of course memory is important..
remember win needs memory too.
hard drives 7200 rpm, WITH 32 MB CACHE.
mebe i7 prices will come down,
i saw a i7 in the states with 12 gigs ram for 900 buks.
dont buy sight unseen ...run tests prior to purchase
if you can so you get no unpleasant surprises.
stay away from budget el cheapo laptops like the plague.
(slow internal drives being one reason).

if really budget conscious there are loads of refurbed
with warranty/used dual core pc's around with xp on for 150 buks or so.
good for 80 traks in a song.
just add a dedicated drive 7200 rpm WITH 32 mb CACHE
for recording to. top up the memory etc etc. run tsts before purchase if you can again.

[op76]

Many questions still unanswered. Is it possible to use 32bit plugins with 64bit windows and 64bit Reaper? If some of you have 64bit systems, could you please tell me, if you have ran into any problems? And same goes with DDR3, 'cause I have heard, that there has been major compability issues with those (at least some mainboards haven't supported all brands or so).

I guess Reaper supports 4 cores or more, and it would be wise to buy AMD Phenom 2 (955) BE then.

[EvilDragon]

Yes, you can run 32-bit plugins on 64-bit Reaper. Reaper has built-in bridging for that. And if that fails, you can use JBridge.

DDR3 shows its teeth best only with i7.

Intel>AMD.

Quad>Dualcore.

Most problems on 64-bit systems is due to drivers. You must have 64-bit drivers for your OS (Windows 7 suggested) for ALL of your hardware. The rest is easy.

[Ollie]

Originally Posted by op76

And same goes with DDR3, 'cause I have heard, that there has been major compability issues with those (at least some mainboards haven't supported all brands or so).

Independent of DDR2 vs. DDR3 (which is mostly determined by the CPU you are going to buy), selecting proper RAM recommended for that particular mainboard model by the MB manufacturer can be important. This is not a "DDR2 vs. DDR3" issue, this is more a general "recommended RAM" issue, all mainboards are tested only with a handful of memory modules from assorted brands. That doesn't mean other products won't work just as good, there's just no guaranteed function for these products and your chances to buy the wrong stuff increase.

Buying no-name/cheap RAM may result in the oddest problems ever and even if you buy random high-priced overclocker's ultra-cool pet RAM with go-faster-stripes, you may end up with issues as well and have to find out the proper mem timings to set in the BIOS all by your own to say the least. So you/we can't answer that question without knowing the particular mainboard you're going to buy.

Alas RAM recommendations are sometimes hard to find or missing on the manufacturer websites. Checking what other users of a particular mainboard use for RAM may help there a bit.