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New Audio rig for a friend

Duckonquack
By Duckonquack
in New Builds and Planning
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Go to solution Solved by WoodenMarker,

Edits: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/1Y6fp

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So my friend just texted me and said his current computer crapped out and is asking me to help him build a new one

 

Now, he needs it for school and says he needs it by next week (I have my doubts as to if that can actually happen but whatever)

 

This is something I just threw together as quick as I could and figured I would come to you lovely folks to help me give him a decent setup

 
Motherboard:  MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($63.98 @ Newegg Canada) 
Memory:  Crucial 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($69.99 @ NCIX) 
Storage:  Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($89.79 @ DirectCanada) 
Video Card:  MSI GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card  ($289.99 @ Memory Express) 
Sound Card:  Asus Xonar Essence STX 24-bit 192 KHz Sound Card  ($193.44 @ DirectCanada) 
Case:  Fractal Design Arc Mini MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($64.88 @ Canada Computers) 
Total: $1050.05
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-05 23:01 EST-0500)

 

He's in an audio program so it'll mostly be used for recording/editing audio (he says it needs to be able to handle upwards of 4 virtual instruments)

Probably some gaming on the side,he really likes skyrim and the sort (I really want him to get into dota2 lol), but that's not the main priority 

 

The only real requirements he gave me were that it needs to be 1k-1.1k CAD preferably under 1k though, a 2TB HDD, and a good sound card

 

He needs this ASAP but he seems to be asleep at the moment so I figure I have some time to bang this out as properly as I can

 

Any suggestions would be appreciated

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get rid of that soundcard

What would you recommend instead? A good sound card was one of his three only requirements 

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What would you recommend instead? A good sound card was one of his three only requirements

Fiio E10
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Get a 7950 instead, and why not a 4670k and Z87 board? SSD?

PC: Corsair C70 Arctic, FX 9370, Corsair H80i, Gigabyte 990fxa-ud3, Corsair Vengence 16gb, Palit JetStream GTX 970, OCZ Vertex 4 128gb and Western Digital Blue 1Tb + 500gb, Antec Gamer 520w

Peripherals: Logitech G19 and SteelSeries Sensei RAW

Toshiba L50-A: i7 4700mq, 8gb, 1TB HDD, GT 740M 2gb

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What would you recommend instead? A good sound card was one of his three only requirements 

for that price, get o2 amp and odac, what headphones will he use?

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PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor ($165.47 @ DirectCanada)

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($28.79 @ DirectCanada)

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($119.99 @ Canada Computers)

Memory: Patriot Gamer 2 Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($38.27 @ Amazon Canada)

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.79 @ DirectCanada)

Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 280X 3GB Video Card ($301.00 @ Vuugo)

Case: Fractal Design Arc Midi R2 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($89.99 @ NCIX)

Power Supply: SeaSonic M12II 750W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($119.99 @ Newegg Canada)

Other: Fiio E10 ($75.00)

Total: $1028.29

(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-05 23:17 EST-0500)

Might want to get a SSD for his next upgrade

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Edits: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/1Y6fp

If you ever need help with a build, read the following before posting: http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/3061-build-plan-thread-recommendations-please-read-before-posting/
Also, make sure to quote a post or tag a member when replying or else they won't get a notification that you replied to them.

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Get a 7950 instead, and why not a 4670k and Z87 board? SSD?

I very much doubt he will be overclocking anything so I figured it wouldn't really be worth it, ssd would add to the cost and not add enough to the system to make it worth it for him, if he really wants it he can buy it later and I went with the mobo mostly because of cost savings if there are any features that z87 adds that would make it worth it I don't really know (I don't know much about the differences in chipsets tbh)

 

for that price, get o2 amp and odac, what headphones will he use?

the o2 and odac are hard to comeby quickly in canada afaik, unless I've been looking in the wrong places, I don't know what headphones he'll be using. I mostly chose the sound card assuming that he would want to use speakers as well as headphones, time is a big factor since he says he needs ASAP for school (by the end of the week even) most,if not all of the parts on the list he could most likely pick up tomorrow/substitute something that he could grab tomorrow or the day after

 

The E10 could be a good idea, I'm not sure if he'll solely be using headphones though 

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the o2 and odac are hard to comeby quickly in canada afaik, unless I've been looking in the wrong places, I don't know what headphones he'll be using. I mostly chose the sound card assuming that he would want to use speakers as well as headphones, time is a big factor since he says he needs ASAP for school (by the end of the week even) most,if not all of the parts on the list he could most likely pick up tomorrow/substitute something that he could grab tomorrow or the day after

mayflowerelectronics is not only cheap but does fast shipping

http://www.mayflowerelectronics.com/

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I very much doubt he will be overclocking anything so I figured it wouldn't really be worth it, ssd would add to the cost and not add enough to the system to make it worth it for him, if he really wants it he can buy it later and I went with the mobo mostly because of cost savings if there are any features that z87 adds that would make it worth it I don't really know (I don't know much about the differences in chipsets tbh)

 

the o2 and odac are hard to comeby quickly in canada afaik, unless I've been looking in the wrong places, I don't know what headphones he'll be using. I mostly chose the sound card assuming that he would want to use speakers as well as headphones, time is a big factor since he says he needs ASAP for school (by the end of the week even) most,if not all of the parts on the list he could most likely pick up tomorrow/substitute something that he could grab tomorrow or the day after

 

The E10 could be a good idea, I'm not sure if he'll solely be using headphones though 

7950's are like $200 now, get that though, SSD would be faster while running his software which would make it more efficient. With the money saved from getting a 7950 get an SSD...

PC: Corsair C70 Arctic, FX 9370, Corsair H80i, Gigabyte 990fxa-ud3, Corsair Vengence 16gb, Palit JetStream GTX 970, OCZ Vertex 4 128gb and Western Digital Blue 1Tb + 500gb, Antec Gamer 520w

Peripherals: Logitech G19 and SteelSeries Sensei RAW

Toshiba L50-A: i7 4700mq, 8gb, 1TB HDD, GT 740M 2gb

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I very much doubt he will be overclocking anything so I figured it wouldn't really be worth it, ssd would add to the cost and not add enough to the system to make it worth it for him, if he really wants it he can buy it later and I went with the mobo mostly because of cost savings if there are any features that z87 adds that would make it worth it I don't really know (I don't know much about the differences in chipsets tbh)

If he's not doing it, overclock it for him. 

I'm pretty sure the ssd would make the biggest difference to him. Just do it. Whether he understands the difference or not, what he will experience is a world of difference. 

If you ever need help with a build, read the following before posting: http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/3061-build-plan-thread-recommendations-please-read-before-posting/
Also, make sure to quote a post or tag a member when replying or else they won't get a notification that you replied to them.

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mayflowerelectronics is not only cheap but does fast shipping

http://www.mayflowerelectronics.com/

It says they're out of stock with 2-3 weeks wait time, but I'll keep that in mind for myself :) thanks

 

 

 

If he's not doing it, overclock it for him. 

I'm pretty sure the ssd would make the biggest difference to him. Just do it. Whether he understands the difference or not, what he will experience is a world of difference. 

That would add a lot of downtime to get a proper stable OC that he's not willing to deal with

 

 

I think this looks good, maybe the one I'll go with? Unless anybody has any better suggestions

 

 
CPU:  AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor  ($165.47 @ DirectCanada) 
CPU Cooler:  Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($28.79 @ DirectCanada) 
Motherboard:  ASRock 970 Extreme3 R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard  ($65.00 @ Vuugo) 
Memory:  Patriot Gamer 2 Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory  ($38.27 @ Amazon Canada) 
Storage:  Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($89.79 @ DirectCanada) 
Video Card:  Asus Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card  ($259.99 @ Memory Express) 
Case:  Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case  ($53.52 @ DirectCanada) 
Power Supply:  Corsair CX 600W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply  ($54.99 @ Canada Computers) 
Other: Fiio E10 ($75.00)
Total: $919.81
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-06 00:26 EST-0500)
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That would add a lot of downtime to get a proper stable OC that he's not willing to deal with

For gaming, it doesn't take much to get a decent oc on the 7950. You can just show him how on msi afterburner. Very, very easy to do.

If you ever need help with a build, read the following before posting: http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/3061-build-plan-thread-recommendations-please-read-before-posting/
Also, make sure to quote a post or tag a member when replying or else they won't get a notification that you replied to them.

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Hey there, just building a PC for audio/video work as well. I would go for an external audio interface since it'll offer your friend loads of more opportunities - especially if he's using monitors/external audio devices. Focusrite audio interfaces are, according to a good friend of mine, a good and not too expensive way to go :)

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for that price, get o2 amp and odac, what headphones will he use?

 

Fiio E10

 

These guys don't know what they're talking about.

 

 

Hey there, just building a PC for audio/video work as well. I would go for an external audio interface since it'll offer your friend loads of more opportunities - especially if he's using monitors/external audio devices. Focusrite audio interfaces are, according to a good friend of mine, a good and not too expensive way to go :)

 

This one does. Presonus has similar products as Focusrite, for more options.

PC Build in LTT Gallery - JBL J88 - Fostex T50RP (Modded) - Pioneer SE-A1000 vs audio-technica ATH-AD500X - Skullcandy Aviator  
audio-technica ATH-T400 - CHC Silverado and Laredo - Clip-On Headphone Roundup - Sony LinkBuds

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These guys don't know what they're talking about.

 

 

 

This one does. Presonus has similar products as Focusrite, for more options.

\o/ Thanks :D Yeah it doesn't really matter as it is a matter of personal preference and need.

OP: Leave the extra audio card and tell your friend he should get a decent audio interface since he's the only person knowing what he really needs. If he just needs some basic in- and outputs I'd recommend the Focusrite 2i2.

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Thanks a lot guys, I mentioned both the 2i2 and the e10 to him and told him to choose which one he thinks he'll need since I have no idea what he'll actually be doing lol

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Thanks a lot guys, I mentioned both the 2i2 and the e10 to him and told him to choose which one he thinks he'll need since I have no idea what he'll actually be doing lol

Should be fine, he knows it best haha - glad I was able to help out :)

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