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This
is the second installment of a series
of articles aimed at better understanding
the rapidly changing world of computer
music production and its benefits
to musicians. |
In
the last installment of our Computer
Based Music Production Series we
discussed the pros and cons of the two
major OS platforms used for creating
music these days: MacOS and Windows.
We outlined the elements that set these
two platforms apart and what strengths
and weaknesses each had to offer. This
article will focus on hardware elements
that are similar to both platforms:
specifically issues like graphics cards,
RAM, HD space.
So
without further adieu….
New
Years Resolutions
Graphics cards are becoming an increasingly
important factor in new computers. Especially
for gamers. But we're not talking about
gamers here, so I'm not going to spend
a lot of time on this topic. Most graphics
cards in new systems use an AGP slot.
All
you need to know about this is:
A.) It is a good thing
B.) Your PCI slots can be open for other
things like audio cards
Make
sure your graphics card supports at
least 1024x768 resolution at millions
of colors. Don't worry too much about
2D or 3D acceleration. Almost all current
graphics cards will elegantly handle
all current audio applications. I would,
at the least, recommend going with a
name brand card like Matrox or ATI or
something similar. These manufacturers
tend to spend a bit more time on driver
development which, in the end, means
fewer potential software conflicts with
your audio apps and hardware.
Definately
look for name brand graphics card
manufacturers such as Matrox or
ATI... you will have less problems
with software drivers.
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The
one major consideration you need to
take into account is this: do you want
to use two monitors? The answer, if
you can afford it and have the desktop
real estate, is YES! The current
versions of Windows and MacOS support
(at least) two monitors which will allow
you to put your software synths on one
screen and your multitrack audio program
on another. You will have two options
here: a video card that supports two
monitors or two separate video cards.
I recommend the former as there tend
to be fewer compatibility issues with
these. Matrox makes a great unit called
the G400 Dual Head for PC's. ATI makes
a card called the Radeon VE for Macs,
which is a great card that will support
two VGA monitors.
Monitors
can be had relatively cheaply, so a
dual 17 inch system would be a great
start. If you are really in the dough,
splurge for two 17 inch flat panel displays.
Your eyes will thank you. And your back
(and abdominal muscles and the power
company) will thank you. I expect to
see the death of CRT monitors within
the next 5 years. LCD is the way of
the future. Expect to pay somwhere in
the neighborhood of $600-900 for a good
quality 17" flat panel display.
Apple
offers their own, stylish flatpanel
displays. These use a new type of DVI
connector and, without using a special
adapter, you will have the option of
using only one DVI monitor on your Mac.
There are a number of VGA (the traditional,
analog video connector found on most
PC's today) flat panel monitors that
could easily be connected to a dual-head
VGA card.
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Dual monitors is the way to go
for computer based music production
if you can afford it.
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In
conclusion: get two monitors if
you can afford it. Get flat panels if
you can afford it. If not, get a high
quality CRT and be happy!
Relying
on Memory
RAM is a VITALLY important component
of any PC. Here again, quality is paramount.
I can't express how important it is
that you buy high quality RAM from a
reputable manufacturer. Micron, PNY,
and Kingston are a few of the manufacturers
that turn out a consistent, reliable
product. Cheap RAM can often account
for a wide variety of strange behaviors
including system crashes, hangs and
in some cases, complete system failure.
Depending
on the system you purchase, you will
need to buy a specific type of RAM.
PC100, PC133, PC2100 DDR, are a few
of the numbers that you'll see thrown
around. These numbers refer to the type
of memory, the speed, and the chip configuration.
There are benefits and drawbacks to
each type of memory, but you will generally
want to stick with the recommended RAM
type for your specific motherboard.
Here
is my current rule of thumb:
NO
LESS THAN 512MB OF RAM FOR A NEW SYSTEM
You
think you don't need 512MB? Think again.
Both
Windows and the MacOS will show noticeable
improvements in stability and speed
with higher amounts of RAM. This is
particularly the case in the new OS's
like XP and OSX. More RAM will improve
the performance of the OS itself, as
well as give your software plenty of
room to breathe and grow (with software
synths, FX plugins, etc).
PC or Apple—have at least
512 megabytes of RAM available
for your system, and try to get
a gigabyte if at all possible.
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RAM
prices are currently very low, so you
can easily get 512 without thinking
twice. If you can afford more, do it.
Always give yourself room to grow.
Hard
Drivin'
Some people are religious about their
hard drives. Some swear by SCSI. Others
say Firewire is the way of the future.
Whichever way you go, there are some
considerations you need to take into
account.
In
my opinion, the first consideration
when looking at hard drives should not
be size, but speed. For recording digital
audio, you will want nothing less than
a 7200RPM drive. There are drives that
spin at 10,000RPM, however they tend
to be a bit noisier and operate at much
higher temperatures. Seagate has a new
line of drives called the Barracuda
IV series. These drives operate at 7200RPM
and are virtually silent! I have one
in my Beige G3 Mac and I can barely
hear it! Instead of hearing the usual
"clunkety clunk" of normal hard drives,
you hear a high pitched whine. If your
PC is under your desk, even this is
probably inaudible.
Hard
drives, along with RAM, are very cheap
right now. You can easily get a 60GB
or 80GB drive for less than $200. At
these prices, investing in two hard
drives would be optimal: one drive for
applications and system files and another
dedicated drive for audio files. You
may even want to partition your drives
to allow for backups/mirroring of your
important data. I can't stress how important
backups are - after losing 28GB of data
once, you'll never want to do it again.
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Try to have two seperate hard
drives: one for audio file storage
and the other for all system files.
Your computer will thank you for
it.
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There
are a variety of interface options for
hard drives—USB, Firewire, ATA
and SCSI. At this stage, ATA is the
preferred method for internal drives.
The current ATA specs (ATA66, 100, and
133) offer plenty of bandwidth for doing
at least 24 tracks of digital audio
without any hiccups. Fortunately, most
ATA drives are compatible with all ATA
specs, so that an ATA66 drive will work
with an ATA133 controller and an ATA100
drive, will work with an ATA66 controller.
The bandwidth, of course, will be limited
to the lower of the two numbers.
SCSI
has been a popular option for media
professionals for a long time, and it
still currently offers the fastest speeds
and throughput. These speeds come at
a price, both in dollars and in setup
issues. Current systems will require
a PCI SCSI controller, as well as a
basic knowledge of SCSI termination
and chaining theory. My recommendation:
unless you've got the extra time and
money, or have a need to hook up external
hardware (samplers) to your PC, don't
bother.
Due to its tempermental nature,
keeping a SCSI system running
has sometimes been known as a
voodoo science.
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USB
and Firewire are great options for portable
drives. Firewire offers good throughput
for multitrack audio, while USB's slower
speeds only work well for backups and
smaller files. Two new iterations of
both these technologies are on the horizon,
so it will be interesting to see if
the industry gradually shifts over to
a unified HD standard. In the meantime,
here is a quick breakdown:
ATA
or SCSI - great for internal drives
USB - Good for portability and
backup
Firewire - best option for portability
at fast speeds
