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Custom built DAW's


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Hey all ye DAW guru's, I saw an ad for a company that custom builds PC & Mac DAW's, that they claim are "optimized" for specific DAW software apps. my question is: what is it that they install/program/config. in their computers that couldn't be aquired by the general public? special code, hardware? Or, are they just "turn-key" systems that are targeted for the well-to-do person who doesn't want to mess with audio 'puters? Hippie
In two days, it won't matter.
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If your planning on using a Windows 9x OS, then yes, there a bunch of tweaks that need to be performed in order to get good audio performance. So, if you don't know these tweaks or feel uncomfortable doing them yourself, then going with a custom DAW builder is an excellent choice. Otherwise, if you plan on using an NT based OS like Win 2k or XP, then you might not need a professional builder since these OS's are great for DAW's right out of the box. If you do want a good custom builder then I'd highly recommend that you checkout [url=http://www.studiocat.com]www.studiocat.com[/url] . [ 11-19-2001: Message edited by: Dylan Walters ]
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[quote]Otherwise, if you plan on using an NT based OS like Win 2k or XP, then you might not need a professional builder since these OS's are great for DAW's right out of the box.[/quote] I would have to disagree with this. On a single CPU PC Windows 2000 will put all the PnP devices on IRQ #9. Win2k must be installed in Standard PC Mode and IRQ's must be assigned manually to avoid this. Since you are not given this option during the install you must know which function key to press (F5) at a specific time (when asked if you want to install any third party SCSI drivers). This qualifies as a major tweak to me.

Mac Bowne

G-Clef Acoustics Ltd.

Osaka, Japan

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Absolutely go with a turn key DAW from a reputable company. There are infinite amounts of possible conflicts, settings etc. that could have you pulling your hair out for years. Unless you know A LOT about computers and PC based recording/various software applications, I wouldn't even waste your time trying to do it yourself. The thing about turnkey DAW setups, is they have already gone through, tried different combinations of hardware, video cards, software ETC, different system settings, resource optimization etc. And the whole system is ready to go. Just don't get ripped off. Some of those companies charge an arm and a leg and sell wack setups. Go checkout Jim Roseberry at studiocat.com. He is a very nice guy, very helpfull, very well known in the internet DAW community and I have no doubt he will absolutely guarantee whatever he sells you. Or do what I did and spend 5 years learning DAW stuff inside and out. Now my machine works about 95% of the time. (arggh that damn 5%) -Josh.
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[quote]Originally posted by gtrmac@hotmail.com: [b] I would have to disagree with this. On a single CPU PC Windows 2000 will put all the PnP devices on IRQ #9. Win2k must be installed in Standard PC Mode and IRQ's must be assigned manually to avoid this. This qualifies as a major tweak to me.[/b][/quote] Okay, so there's one tweak :D . Actually, you can switch to Standard PC mode after Windows is installed, although, it's a better idea to do it during installation. BTW, if all of your ACPI stuff is disabled in the BIOS, then Windows will usually install as Standard PC by default. Still a PITA though.
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I gotta say.. I got a giga system built for me.. The thing has been rock solid since July.. I've left the thing running since.. No weirdness at all.. I paid about $1000 more than off of the street... I waited 2 weeks, it came, I plugged it in and voila.. Giga samples out my ass.. I loved it sooooo much I bought the same system for my Logic setup.. It too has been rock solid... I even forget how to get to Bios.. Is that how you spell it?? What's that shade of blue when ya crash?? They put both systems on 98se.. Both are 1 gig processors @512 ram with raid systems for the audio drives. I haven't a concern at all bout the workload / performance.. I really don't wanna install Xp when all related sofware comes up cause it's taht good.. But I'm an update junkie at heart.. Who knows.. In my opinion it's worth it. Especially when I'm recording that perfect track... I'm not sitting there while the mouse intermittently moves across the screen slowly, slowly towards the file menu to save.. Hopeing it's there when I reboot. Brian
Smile if you're not wearin panties.
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Thanks for all your expertise. I feel fairly comfortable with a PC, I mess with them alot when installing networks, for my job. (I'm often tossed into a situation where I have to make an 8086 boot from a server or some other miserable duty,.. I love my job) Actually, I was thinking the custom DAW builders have some proprietary H/W or code that only *they* have that no one else can duplicate. I'm thinking about going with a Dell 8200, 2 mhz P3, a 32 meg AGP card, a 20 gig (IDE) HD, 1 gig of RAM, and thats it from Dell. Then, on my own I plan on tossing in an Adaptec SCSI Ultra 2 160 PCI (2 chanel card) and hang the new IBM 15k rpm SCSI drive off it (for audio), and a SCSI burner. My only concern with this proposed set-up is, will I overload the PCI buss with the SCSI card/drives while using a MOTU PCI card with 2 2408's? Is there enough bandwidth on the PCI buss to accommodate the 2 power hungry devices? Would I be better off going with an onboard SCSI chipset? (This is alot more money!) Any info. is appreciated.-Tell me what you guys did (re: your DAW construction) and how it worked out. What are the do's and don't's? -Matt
In two days, it won't matter.
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The DAW I went with is one from DAWBOX, [url=http://www.dawbox.com]www.dawbox.com[/url] . I'm not a tech-head, and I would rather spend the time recording than tweaking. This was the best option for me.

The Brown Noise is believed to be ninety-two cents

below the lowest octave of E flat..

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Matt, The P4 is not the best value for CPU performance out there, but it will work fine. Dell's usually work fine for DAW's since they use standard, non-proprietary hardware, but I'd still recommend going with a DAW builder if you have the choice. If you call Dell because your audio card requires it's own IRQ and need assistance you'll probably end up with some squeaky voice kid who'll say "sorry sir, I only know how to configure a SoundBlaster". At this point in the game I'd opt to go with an Athlon XP setup if your looking for the best CPU for running real-time plug-ins. As far as hard drives go, SCSI really isn't needed anymore unless you plan on tracking more than 24 tracks at a time. Your run of the mill 7200 RPM Maxtor or IBM IDE drive will let you stream tons of tracks without any problems. But hey, if you want to shell out the cash for crazy fast SCSI drives, then be my guest :D .
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Thanks, Dylan The kicker is, I already own the SCSI card, and my current DAW is SCSI based, so I wanted to hock the good parts from the old and into the new to save $$$. As for the Athalon, I got turned off by non Intel procs. 'cuz (way back when) software requirements used to say things like, "not recommended for non intel.....". I need to revisit non Intel processors or even Celerons. A while ago, you had posted about getting 1.5 ms latency, I would like that, but I'm not gonna hock the farm for it. If I can get 7ms, I feel I would be doin' good. Please keep posting the good ideas!! -Matt
In two days, it won't matter.
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[quote]Originally posted by Dylan Walters: [b] Okay, so there's one tweak :D . Actually, you can switch to Standard PC mode after Windows is installed, although, it's a better idea to do it during installation. BTW, if all of your ACPI stuff is disabled in the BIOS, then Windows will usually install as Standard PC by default. Still a PITA though.[/b][/quote] Hey Dylan, how do you switch to standard PC mode after installation? I've already loaded up 2K and need to reconfigure.... Thanks, Dogfur
Woof!
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This is a topic which I can speak volumes about... The pros of a turnkey: 1) The hardware has been proven to work together 2) Most tweaking is taken care of for you 3) It's relatively cost effective 4) You have someone to turn to and call when things go wrong (and they will go wrong at some point) The cons: 1) You're not getting anything proprietary or magical. And you're not getting something perfect. You will do LESS tweaks with a turnkey, but you will still tweak. 2) These are very small companies with limited resources. Don't expect 24 hour Dell tech support from three college buddies in a rented garage. 3) There is no return policy (again, this isn't Dell or Gateway) 4) I have yet to see a well packaged system (suitable for shipping long distances). When I got mine, it was packed in foam peanuts. Not exactlty the most confidence inspiring experience. I recommend turnkeys for your first DAW. You can then poke around the various menus of the OS and BIOS and see what it's all about. I can now build my own, but I could never have gotten there on my own, or with a major computer retailer. And I would recommend the following vendors: 1) Audio Computing (www.audiocomputing.com) 2) Sound Chaser (www.soundchaser.com) 3) Wave Digital (www.wavedigital.com) All the best, Wiggum
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