#945394 - 07/19/00 08:40 PM
CD burner question
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Buckets75@aol.com
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Registered: 07/13/00
Posts: 6
Loc: Brooklyn,NY,UNITED STATES
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Hi everybody.
I've got a question about CD-RW's and SCSI/USB connections.
For a multitude of reasons, I've decided to upgrade my Windows-based computer system to a newer model. I'd like to get a CD burner installed as part of the system, and I figured I'd get an external one (the HP 8200E) for greater flexibility if I should need it.
Here's my question: When I was talking with my friendly neighborhood Dell representative on the phone, he insisted that if I wanted an external drive, I shouldn't get a SCSI connection-- in fact he told me that Dell wouldn't even install a SCSI port or card as part of their systems. Now I've heard that USB (the alternative he was offering) is considerably slower than the SCSI connections. All the reviews on CNET.com and other sites insist that SCSI's the way to go, but this guy from Dell insisted that SCSI was a dying technology & said that he couldn't offer me a SCSI-based CD-RW drive.
So is this guy off his rocker? And are there other things I should know about getting a CD-R/CD-RW writer for my computer? I've never had one before, and I want to make sure I buy the right thing, and not a "dying technology."
Incidentally, if there are other tips people have about things to look for in a new, upgraded Windows system dedicated to digital audio, please let me know.
(I'm not 100% sure if this is the appropriate forum to ask this question... if it's not, I apologize)
Thank you very much!!!
Adam
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#945395 - 07/21/00 12:07 PM
Re: CD burner question
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THE MIX FIX
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Registered: 03/01/00
Posts: 1552
Loc: NYC Area
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Get the SCSI.
Dells are for secretaries. I know, I made the mistake of getting one, also.
MOST back-up devices use SCSI interfaces, as you may read in the September Issue of EQ Magazine. 
------------------
Bob.
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#945396 - 07/21/00 04:46 PM
Re: CD burner question
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Dylan
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Registered: 02/28/00
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You shouldn't have any problems installing a SCSI adapter in your Dell. Even though Dell's are not designed for music production, they usually work well if you keep things simple.
However, why aren't you looking at a IDE burner? There cheap, fast, reliable, and you don't need any special cards. Check out the Yamaha and Plextor models. I have a SCSI adapter in my PC since I've been burning for years now, but there is no reason to go with SCSI unless you plan on using other external SCSI devices and/or internal SCSI hard drives. Don't bother with USB CD drives, they're very unreliable.
-Dylan
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#945397 - 07/21/00 04:48 PM
Re: CD burner question
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Dylan
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BTW, don't bother with external drives if you want to go down the IDE road. I'd also advise against any HP models and instead look only at Yamaha and Plextor.
Good luck,
Dylan
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#945398 - 07/21/00 05:36 PM
Re: CD burner question
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Buckets75@aol.com
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Registered: 07/13/00
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Loc: Brooklyn,NY,UNITED STATES
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Originally posted by Dylan Walters:
Even though Dell's are not designed for music production, they usually work well if you keep things simple.
Yikes. I was going with Dell because that's the last computer that I'd bought, years ago, and I assumed it'd be hunky dory. But if I'm buying a new machine, I may as well go the right route and buy something that will be right for music production.
So I guess new question: What computer model (Windows-based!) would be best suited toward music production? I'm using a Layla from Event as my interface and Cakewalk's ProAudio to record, if that might make a difference in which model is most appropriate.
Thanks for your replies so far... I appreciate the help.
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#945399 - 07/21/00 05:57 PM
Re: CD burner question
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Dylan
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Check out SoundChaser and Studio Cat. Both of these companies are PC music guru's and build each system solely for music production.
You can find these guys at:
http://www.soundchaser.com http://www.studiocat.com
-Dylan
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#945400 - 07/21/00 06:24 PM
Re: CD burner question
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Uh Clem
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Loc: Atlanta, GA USA
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I have a DELL XPS T 600 I use and it works very well. I have an ATA Ultra 66 internal Drive and 2 SCSI drives (30 GB /80 and 74 GB /160) connected via a MAGMA7 expansion chassis with an Adaptec 2940U2W controller. A newer controller would get the 160 rate out of the 74GB drive, so I'll look into that soon.
I use the ATA drive for software and system. The other SCSI drives I use for audio. New drives continue to come out - can't believe SCSI is dying - look at Seagate's site for big fast drives.
I also have a LynxOne and a Mixtreme card in the Magma box for audio and midi i/o.
I like Dell because they have great service and reasonable prices. No reason at all not to get one. And if you think you might ever use Pro Tools, the XPS-T is on the supported list.
[This message has been edited by stevepow (edited 07-22-2000).]
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#945401 - 07/22/00 05:51 PM
Re: CD burner question
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Buckets75@aol.com
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Loc: Brooklyn,NY,UNITED STATES
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Originally posted by Dylan Walters:
Both of these companies are PC music guru's and build each system solely for music production.
Well if timing ain't everything...
I just received this month's Electronic Musician in the mail (August 2000) and there's an entire article about buying computer systems preconfigured for audio. It looks pretty helpful, and I do indeed think that I'm not going to go the Dell route.
I thought I'd just give everyone a heads-up about this article in case anyone with questions similar to mine happened to be following along with these posts.
Thanks for all your advice everyone.
adam
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#945402 - 07/25/00 09:08 PM
Re: CD burner question
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jso6@mailcity.com
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Registered: 07/10/00
Posts: 85
Loc: Cebu City,,PHILIPPINES
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Buckets,
If you are using windows system for audio, you should SCSI everything or as much as u can. You'll definitely need the speed that SCSI has to offer. Here in Cebu City, Phil., we don't have the luxury of buying a dell like in the states, or elsewere, they cost just as much as an Imac G3. We tend to assemble our own clones here with our own choices of components like motherboard, video cards, general stereo soundcards (yikes!). I recently set up a 256sdram PIII 500 with a 17.2 Gb seagate IDE HD for audio and tried running 16 stereo tracks in SF Vegas with at least 3 different FX plugins each track plus internal track effects to test just what my limits were and instantly found them. With a SCSI I was able to run as much without the audio jittering. I even found out the MAC guys are using SCSI too for optimum system performance. More expensive, but less chances of trouble while a client is waiting in the side. Also, if you use audio in a Windows system, Take all other programs like MS office, Lotus Notes, games and your graphics programs except maybe the video and animation ones. They give hell with buffering , caches and DLLs, which might make you wonder why you didn't get a MAC instead. I do some minor soundtracking for video game programmers here, and most of them use SCSI for real work.
With respect to Dylan, I have had no problems with my HP7500 and 8250i CDwriters after I solved the buffer underrun problems of my HD. But get an internal SCSI CDwriter too, for the communcation speed and to discourage you from bringing around an external writer with you where ther are more chances of breaking it in transit.
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