- Joined
- Jul 7, 2013
- Messages
- 7
- Motherboard
- GA-Z77X-UP5 TH
- CPU
- Intel Core i5 3570K
- Graphics
- HD 4000
- Mac
- Classic Mac
- Mobile Phone
aisforandrew's Pro Tools Build: Core i5 3570K | GA-Z77X-UP5 TH | 8GB | HD 4000
Components Intel Core i5 3570K Quad-Core Processor
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116504
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO CPU Cooler
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099
Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UP5 TH Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128559
Corsair Vengeance 8GB DDR3-1600 Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233389
SanDisk Extreme 120GB Solid State Disk
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820171567
Corsair TX650M 650W Semi-Modular Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139031
Corsair 300R Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139011
TP-Link TL-WDN4800 PCI Express Wireless Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833704133
Apple Thunderbolt to Firewire Adapter
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008RXYOKY
Already Owned
Apple Mac OS X Mountain Lion
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/os-x-mountain-lion/id537386512?ls=1&mt=12#
Apple 20" Cinema Display (Discontinued)
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trk...ple+20+cinema+display&_sacat=162497&_from=R40
Apple Wired Keyboard
http://www.amazon.com/Apple-Aluminum-Wired-Keyboard-MB110LL/dp/B000V07N9U
Kensington Expert Mouse
http://www.amazon.com/Kensington-Expert-Optical-Trackball-64325/dp/B00009KH63
Glyph GT050Q 1TB External Hard Drive (for Pro Tools projects)
Comments
This computer was built out of the need for a stable and upgradable Pro Tools system and a desire to build my very first computer. I have achieved both of my goals and I am very happy with the results.
The build was inspired by BoomR's recording rig which you can peek at here. It was an invaluable resource for choice of parts, BIOS and Multibeast settings and other troubleshooting tweaks.
I followed the guide for installing 10.8 to the letter. It went almost flawlessly save for two minor problems and one itty bitty one:
1) The BIOS did not get along with my monitor (Apple Cinema Display plugged in via DVI). Switched to an HP monitor hooked up via VGA and we were back to business. The Apple display works fine now, but still scrambles the crap out of the BIOS screen whenever I enter it. Whatever.
2) Once I rebooted from the USB the last time to finish installing OS X, the installer would hang and never finish. I restarted it several times to no avail. Booting with -x helped me reach the end of the installer and complete installation. I realize I was probably supposed to get rid of any offending kexts not letting the system boot properly but everything is working as it should, including power management.
3) USB devices such as my keyboard and mouse would cease to work after waking the computer from sleep. This drove me NUTS, as unplugging them and then plugging them back in would make them work again but only until putting the system to sleep would render them useless upon waking. The Repair Disk Permissions option in Disk Utility fixed this.
Pro Tools
I'm am currently running Pro Tools 10.3.5 with a Digidesign 002r. As I didn't buy a Firewire card to install into the system, I thought I'd take advantage of one of the Thunderbolt ports and buy a TB to Firewire adapter. Downloaded the Mountain Lion drivers for my 002 and it all works as it should. I ran a Dverb test and got a score of 380 plugins @ 1024 in the H/W buffer. I feel like it could be a little more, but I suppose I shouldn't complain considering my last MacBook Pro (early 2011) could only handle about 20 before falling over.
That's all folks!