Recording Studio Rig: i7-2700K | GA-Z68X-UD7 | Radeon HD6870

[Stork]

Folks! See BoomR's marvelous G5 Case Mod description! A great read!

 

[BoomR]

Thanks much for the kudos - I had fun doing all the work myself! LOL

In the Mac world (unlike the PC world), this whole concept or paradigm of a "sound card" is definitely not the same. In the early days of Mac - right up to today, the ability to hear sound through speakers or headphones on Mac systems without any additional hardware was almost always a part of the Mac design. Unlike PCs which typically were business tools and you had to buy an "add-on" sound card to get any sort of audio out of the machine. Creative Labs SoundBlaster was probably one of the first & very successful ones for PC. But even today, these types of cards are not typically used in Macs, let alone by PCs in commercial recording studios.

With the advent of Firewire and USB (coupled with WAY more powerful native processing by computers these days), the need for a PCI-based card for hobbyists, "Pro-sumers," or even smallish pro-quality project studios has really dwindled. Depending on your needs in your studio (and of course budget), you should be able to do JUST FINE with a USB or Firewire audio interface. Most all current gen Firewire and USB interfaces have their own software mixer/management software + includes "near-zero latency" monitoring modes. Just disable the software monitoring in your DAW, then fire up the interface's mixer app & monitor that way.

Honestly (and this is totally my 2 cents), the only folks that really depend on the power & features of a PCIe-based recording system are those in very high-end commercial facilities where they have & need very high track counts for both simultaneous recording/tracking, and playback and 48k (and higher) sampling rates.

Personally, if I had to recommend a top-notch audio interface for someone's home project studio, I'd jump all over the new Apogee Quartet, followed closely behind by the new Focusrite Forte (if $$ is tight). Of course you can't go wrong with the latest gen of either USB or FW Mbox products from AVID (and you get ProTools in the process). If you need more mic pre's/inputs than these options, you may also consider waiting until the new Focusrite 18i20 hits the streets. This looks really exciting, and of course is USB2.0 - again, for smaller project studios USB2 has PLENTY of horsepower (believe it or not).

For an interesting explanation about why some manufacturers are not rushing to USB3.0 or Thunderbolt in droves, there's some good technical information & comparisons on Apogee's Web site. Click here, then scroll down to the next section labeled: USB 2.0 & check it out. There's also a link to a related post explaining latency in USB/FW devices, and how the current crop of USB/FW interfaces from Apogee (and other manufacturers) handle the issue of latency & can boast this "near-zero latency" monitoring.

Hope this helps!
--B

 

[Stork]

Ouch! Spend $1,000+ USD is not for home (re: hobbyist) recording unless you're into a garage band with your friends. However, at least with the Avid Mbox at $600 USD, you get Pro Tools 10, which hasn't yet been updated for Mt Lion.

But, I'm impressed with Apogee's Maestro software for the iPad. (Santa brought me an iPad 4 for Christmas. Unfortunately, Maestro isn't cleared to work on an iPad 4.)

So, for the meantime, I'll keep using my PreSonus Inspire 1394 and Firebox using Apple's GarageBand. But...sigh...I can lust after an Apogee Quartet, or an Avid Mbox, or a MOTU 828mkIII Ultralite Hybrid or an Apogee Duet 2 (which has Mt Lion s/w). Unfortunately, non of them will make my guitar playing sound better.

 

[djsmootht]

Nice build you got here, can you post your method on what you did to install your graphics card for others to see. Thanks.

 

[BoomR]

Ouch! Spend $1,000+ USD is not for home (re: hobbyist) recording unless you're into a garage band with your friends. However, at least with the Avid Mbox at $600 USD, you get Pro Tools 10, which hasn't yet been updated for Mt Lion.

But, I'm impressed with Apogee's Maestro software for the iPad. (Santa brought me an iPad 4 for Christmas. Unfortunately, Maestro isn't cleared to work on an iPad 4.)

So, for the meantime, I'll keep using my PreSonus Inspire 1394 and Firebox using Apple's GarageBand. But...sigh...I can lust after an Apogee Quartet, or an Avid Mbox, or a MOTU 828mkIII Ultralite Hybrid or an Apogee Duet 2 (which has Mt Lion s/w). Unfortunately, non of them will make my guitar playing sound better.

Nay-nay, oh great white winged one who delivers the goods!!

Avid needs to update their main system requirements page - it's woefully out of date.

• Click here to read more about AVID/Pro Tools compatibility (multiple versions) and a special note about Mountain Lion compatibility.
• Click here to read more about audio interfaces approved for use with Pro Tools 10 (10.3.x), and
• Click here to read the updated Pro Tools 10.3 System Requirements

And as far as the $1000+ interface, of course I was starting with the A+/"pie-in-the-sky" interface sugestion, followed by some more sensibly-priced interfaces for hobbyists & pro-sumers. I like to think of the current crop of 2x2 or 4x4 interfaces that are 1/3U or 1/2U in size - and price range of $150-300 are the ones marketed for home enthusiasts/hobbyists. Those that are around $500-650 are for those who are in the "pro-sumer" category, or hobbyists who are looking for a step-up in quality & # of inputs/outputs. Those at the $1000 & above price point are those that you'd find pros & commercial facilities using...IMHO...FWIW...

If I were you, I'd take a 2nd look at that Mbox...esp. if you want to make the move to PT. Or, I'd DEFINITELY check out the Focusrite Forte - I **think** that's a bit more bang for the buck (ins & outs-wise) than the Duet 2 (although you really can't beat the nice compact size & A-D/D-A quality of Apogee).

 

[BoomR]

Nice build you got here, can you post your method on what you did to install your graphics card for others to see. Thanks.

There was nothing special I did - it worked OoB (out of box). I initially had to boot using GraphicsEnabler=no at the Chimera screen upon reboot after install - but before setup wizard. Then add the same setting using the MultiBeast option (as I'm using the video card & not HD3000 graphics).

That was it...really!

 

[Stork]

BoomR,
Thank you for those links. You've injected the gear lust hormone into my vessels. I use to suffer from GAS (guitar acquisition syndrome), but, after accumulating seven guitars and three amps, the G in GAS has now been elevated to Gear. ("Oh, No! Mr. Bill!")

I'm now looking at the Duet 2 and the Mbox as a high end hobbyist. My PreSonus Inspire & Firebox are clunking looking while the Duet 2 is sleek and appropriately looking to sit beside my MBP which is my main recording tool. And, the Duet 2 can be used with Apogee's Maestro for both the Mac and iPad. (In the summer time, it would be nice to sit on the deck with a guitar, Duet 2 & iPad just "fool around.") However, I haven't ruled out the Mbox. Ahhhh, choices.

 

[Lotion]

Hi everyone and especially Tony!

This is my first post. I'm a long time mac user but have never built a custo-mac(TM). I am an audio hobbyist with champagne tastes, hence I am buying a beast for my new rig.

Based on the info in this thread and the DSDT section, I've laid money down on the following parts:

Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD5-B3
Intel i7 2700K (which I plan to overclock moderately)

The mobo choice was specifically to get a TI chipset for FW. I'm taking a risk and hoping that I can run my mlan based cards (yamaha 01x, i88x) on it. They can operate under an OS no later than snow leopard 10.6, so that's what I'll be using. No Lion or ML for me. Hence why I'm sticking to sandy-bridge. Otherwise the cost ($685 AUD for the above two alone) would never be justified.

Any advice or hints as to what I can expect would be much appreciated! Wish me luck!

EDIT:Thanks for the reply BoomR! I'll start a new thread.

 

[BoomR]

Hi everyone and especially Tony!

This is my first post. I'm a long time mac user but have never built a custo-mac(TM). I am an audio hobbyist with champagne tastes, hence I am buying a beast for my new rig.

Based on the info in this thread and the DSDT section, I've laid money down on the following parts:

Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD5-B3
Intel i7 2700K (which I plan to overclock moderately)

The mobo choice was specifically to get a TI chipset for FW. I'm taking a risk and hoping that I can run my mlan based cards (yamaha 01x, i88x) on it. They can operate under an OS no later than snow leopard 10.6, so that's what I'll be using. No Lion or ML for me. Hence why I'm sticking to sandy-bridge. Otherwise the cost ($685 AUD for the above two alone) would never be justified.

Any advice or hints as to what I can expect would be much appreciated! Wish me luck!

Welcome to the forum! Since you're new here, a few things to help you on your way & keep things on-topic:

1. The CPU and mobo you list should be just fine for a Snow Leopard build. As for Yamaha mLAN stuff, I don't know of anyone currently a member here using that gear. You might want to check & search here: Forum > Clubhouse > Music sub-forum to see if there are any others who've posted with similar mLAN hardware.

2. There's a whole forum for posting requests like this ("I'm a newbie - will this hardware combination work for CustoMac?"): Look in Forum > The Build > Buying Advice.

3. Make sure to read the install guide for Snow Leopard very carefully before you begin. In addition, you might want to check out some of the older "Golden Builds" posts to see other forum members who have created very detailed posts on their builds using the same/similar hardware + Snow Leopard. Reading such posts by more experienced forum members are also great resources to help you with your build.

4. You might get better responses for assistance during the build process if you actually start a proper thread in the forum I suggested in #2 above. Once you get started & get stuck, you should first search the Forum > Installation > Snow Leopard for others who have posted about the same/similar issues. If you can't find your answer, start your own thread & request assistance. This particular thread for my Golden Build is specifically designed for those to ask questions/get clarification as it relates to my build's hardware configuration, OSX setup/config, optimization, etc. Things not related to this are considered off-topic. Thanks for understanding!

Best wishes on your build!
--B

 

[thenightflyer]

Boom, you are my God i'm planning to build a customac to use as DAW. i read everything about your build...but i've a question for you....why you didn't use a XEON processor ( i plan to buy this)? I read in other music forum that a XEON is better when you use daw, vst, etc...
What's your opinion?
Thanks