I've got a 2.8ghz P4 and 512MB RAM...

I would recommend 1gb of RAM but the CPU does well for VST Instrument usage.

At 16bits/41 sample rate I can get about 6 instances of z3ta before it starts to run slow

I can have as many instances of Atmosphere as I want since it runs off of RAM..

V-Station I can have about 10 or so instances before it runs slow

but this depends A LOT on what sample rate you run at and how many voices each VST Instrument is using

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hey i run about the same setup

i have 2.8 over clocked with asus p4t533 to about 3.2mhz
have 256ram . i used to run 768ram and the biggest diffrence i seen was when i incresed my cpu

if u plan to run lots of vst like 3 or 4 on 6 tracks u should be fine

right now i can run 5 V stations with no problem.

See if u can get a mother board that u can over clock... if u get 3.2 and with 15% "safe overclock" thats over 400mhz right there

also look for fast audio card... such as motu 828, 2408, those cards use pci card and audiowire cable to the unit but u will be blowen away with the performance..

quote:

Originally posted by alanzo V-Station I can have about 10 or so instances before it runs slow

try running in 24bit ..lol

Vanguard can only have 2 instances and then it fucks everything up
I have 1,4ghz 512 + 128mb ram, somehow enough for now.

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quote:

Originally posted by matpocx i have 2.8 over clocked with asus p4t533 to about 3.2mhz have 256ram .

Talk about bottlenecks...

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quote:

also look for fast audio card... such as motu 828, 2408, those cards use pci card and audiowire cable to the unit but u will be blowen away with the performance..

to reiterate an often repeated fact - soundcards have absolutely nothing to with performance or improving performance or alleviating cpu load or allowing you to use cache more VSTi's and samples. the only thing they do is

1) give you connectivity to external devices using 1/4" TRS jacks/RCA jacks/XLR jacks, give you MIDI connectivity and in most cases they give you a digital out (either S/PDIF as is most common, or if you shell out *loads* on a soundcard aes/ebu digital out).

2) allow you to record audio at 24 bit/96 khz although you'll need to record in decent soundproof studio type environment with decent mic preamps to really take advantage of this.

soundcards do NOT alleviate cpu load. they do not significantly enhance audio quality. swapping between my delta 1010 and my on board soundcard i notice no difference whatsoever. however, i have a virus b in the mail and i cant hook it up to my on board soundcard's single headphone jack. hence the delta 1010. if you do not plan to connect alot of external devices like hardware synths, samplers and/or rack effects to your soundcard then purchasing something like a motu 828mkII would be a profound waste of money.

hes the bottom line you want to sound like a joke go get edirol ,delta, tascam,

which will sound the same as your soundblaster.
Motu A\D converters are almost the same as digitec A\D

If u want to get serius sound card make sure its not:
USB
only 16bit
rca ins
unbalanced ins



also any standalone unit with firewire connection is going to give u the least latency ... the smaller the latency the faster the hole thing runs...

quote:

Originally posted by Derivative 2) allow you to record audio at 24 bit/96 khz although you'll need to record in decent soundproof studio type environment with decent mic preamps to really take advantage of this.

You can take the advantege of 24bit over 16bit, when you are recording a line from the synth. What happens is the Signal has more room per sample meaning the "shhh" or a SAW PAtch with be more clear


I have virus c and motif rack now with motu2408. I allways record at 24bit 96hz, then add some sonicmaximizer and it sound the SAME as when i direct monitor ,losing only maybe 2-5% quality

quote:

Originally posted by Airscape Well my p3 1.4ghz doesnt exactly serve to well with vsti and with only 256Mb Ram i cant really produce much to a standard without crackles and crashes thats why i need a new Pc (im 15 so im not totally sure about pc stuff but i do know abit) but i should be getting one for christmas. What is the most important things Ram or CPU? I dont need speakers or an amp etc as i already have these (technics amp and 100W Wharfendale Speakers) Anyway I was looking into something along the lines of 2.8Ghz 512Mb Ram or 1024Mb Ram Dunno about sound card to many to choose from And one of those shuttle thingys Seeing as i run Fl Studio and Cubase and loads of VSTs is this enough or not? Thanks

If you use ROMplers (synths based on samples, like Atmosphere or Stylus) or samplers (Kontakt, Intakt, Halion, whatever) more than instruments, then you need to get more RAM. If you use virtual synths more than sample-based ones, you need a better CPU. I have been searching for new one for quite some time now, and it looks like AMD Athlon64 is the best bang for buck out there. Now I am getting an Athlon64 2800+ with 1 GIG DDR400.
You might also need a new soundcard - if you do not need microphone input, emu0404 is the way to go, since it is good quality, has low latency, and is ridicilously cheap (less than 100 USD).

quote:

Originally posted by Derivative to reiterate an often repeated fact - soundcards have absolutely nothing to with performance or improving performance or alleviating cpu load ....

Not strictly true - if you purchase a soundcard with onboard DSP then that will allow you to use the DSP chip for effects rather than your CPU (check out the new EMU 0404).

quote:

Originally posted by h.vox emu0404 is the way to go, since it is good quality, has low latency, and is ridicilously cheap (less than 100 USD).

Lol - I posted the above post before I say this. Great minds think alike!