Upgrade time where do i start?

[Bloodz]

This is what i have to date:

1.3 ghz Amd Athlon 1800 1 gig ram, 2 hard drives (80 gig, 120 gig), Uad-1 ver 3.4, windows XP, Roland Vm3100 studio pack with RPC-1, Cubase sx 2.2, reason 2.5. Basically, it is time to upgrade my VM3100 pro mixer and soundcard to individual components and also give my pc a facelift.

Should i make my first move by upgrading to a decent soundcard (looks like RME or Lynx2) or start with the computer? I heard you should pick your card and then find what chip will work best with that particular soundcard. I also have the noisiest computer on the planet, i think it could compete with a 747 at times, I thaught a new antec case might help? I have changed all the fans to quiet "whisper" fans if there is such a thing but they seem to be shouting just as loud as the old fans. My system constantly crashes so my goal is stability and pro sound quality. Could you guys kindly suggest a pro setup that will allow me to create without being intereupted with system crashes and hardware malfunctions.

Thanks guys,

Chris

[SaxonSound]

Well, if your system is crashing constantly, I'd say that is a more pressing concern than upgrading your sound quality.

The key to building a stable computer is compatability. Say it again and again. IME, The number one cause of unstable systems is components that do not play nice with each other.

Decide what audio hardware and software you will be using (Roland or otherwise), and research it. Are there known problems with this hardware/software combination? Now build the rest of your computer with components that are known to work well with your audio stuff. Be especially certain you have a motherboard/chipset that will work well with your audio card.

Research, research, research... Do google searches, read user forums, ask people who are using your audio hardware/software about their systems..... do they run well? why? why not? what other hardware is causing the problems or lack thereof (motherboard, CPU, video card)?

There are so many people who have had good/bad experiences with different hardware combinations, there is no need to go into this blindly.

now, about your noise problem:

Most important is your power supply. You should head down to your local computer store, and listen to several. I ended up with a rather cheap generic power supply, that had plenty of power and is much quieter than the more expensive Antec and Enermax models.

You can check out www.frozencpu.com for fans. They have a big selection, and have numbers and stats on all of them.

At the risk of setting off a CPU religious war, I'll say that you'll get less noise with an Intel CPU, since AMD CPUs tend to run hotter, thus requiring stronger fans.

[Bloodz]

I have allready changed my power supply. It was the quietist i could find at our best computer store in Calgary. We a/b'ed several and my antec 480 watt was the best they had. I think my case is a big noise culprit, it has vents cut down the sides and is alluminum. I should be able to get the noise issues, however im really stuck on what system upgrades to make. Thanks for your reply, i appreciate it.

[Bloodz]

I realize this topic is a common beaten dead horse, does anyone have some links on other sites with reference to the Daws used by the pros?

[SaxonSound]

Originally posted by Bloodz
I realize this topic is a common beaten dead horse, does anyone have some links on other sites with reference to the Daws used by the pros?

I added a lot to my post after you replied to it, so if you didn't notice, take a look.

Probably doesn't matter what the pros use. YOUR daw is a very personal thing, tailored to your needs. If you want one box that will do it all without worrying about customization, get a Mac.