Karaoke Forums

I just finished it!....It's better than I expected, too.

Last winter I decided to build a rackmount full sized PC to use as a DAW and a karaoke machine. I wanted to move my desktop machine to my rack and still have all the advantages of a full size PC but not the clutter and snake's nest all the wires and separate components created. I told myself that I would just buy a rack case and then swapp all I already had into it and be done...but that changed once I started shopping Newegg.

First, I finally found a decent and affordable rackmount 4U high case that was designed for a PC workstation and not a server....That took some doing. Server rack cases are very long whereas workstation cases are lots shorter in depth...That's really important when you are talking portable audio racks...you don't want a 24" case sticking out the rear of your audio rack, you need one only 17/18" long at most....I finally found one at Newegg for less than 70 bucks.

Next was the power supply...It had to be stable, powerful and reliable. I finally decided on one from Enermax, the 480 watt Coolergiant model-75 bucks from Newegg.

Next was the the CPU heatsink and fan....I luckily picked the Scythe Katana Cu for 29 bucks also from Newegg....It's keeping my CPU at 38C degrees max.

Ok, now for the motherboard and CPU...I really got lucky when I found an Athlon 64 3400 and a Gigabyte motherboard combination for only 99 bucks...also from Newegg....That's right, only 99 bucks for both the mother board and a super fast CPU.

Of course I added all rounded cables...another 10 bucks.

Then I found 2 matched sticks of 512 PC3200 DDR400 registered ram for only 79 bucks on a one day sale also at Newegg....While i was there I bought a NEC 16X DVD burner for only 24 bucks.

Once I got all that shipped and assembled, I swapped in my ATI All In Wonder 9200 video card, my M-Audio Delta 44 sound card, my DLink wireless card and my Plextor burners....I added a new floppy that included a 7 slot media card reader.

That's when I stepped back, looked at it all and decided to buy a Seagate Sata 320GB hardrive for 99 bucks and installed it next to my old Maxtor 160GB drive.

After all that was installed, I had no additional excuses to avoid firing it up and seeing how it worked...So I did.

First boot went perfect...I got an instant Post where all was recognized and working perfectly in bios....Yep, dual channel 400 ram bus, 1600 Hz FSB, CPU properly reflected, CPU temps super low, hardrives showing...everything was perfect.

So I installed windows and then all my PCI/AGP drivers and connected to the internet to doa full update on windows.....So far all went flawlessly....Then windows said I had an invalid copy of XP...I cleared that up with Microsoft and hooked it up to the big screen and my mixer inputs....Then I fired up my hosting program and played it thru my PA.

YEHAW!, It was beautiful!...and all for less than 500 bucks!

nice!! what a great deal! Way to go!!

How much do you reckon you save by building it yourself? I may want to get into building one for my audio work. Have never try it, but I don't think its that hard.

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I can neither confirm nor deny ever having or knowing anything about nothing.... mrscott

Well, it really depends on what you must have included in the assembly, and that depends on what you intend to do with the machine....So first start with exactly what you want to use the computer for and then figure out what the machine must have hardware-wize to do it....Once you know how the machine must be configured, then price shop the already built machines that meet those specs.

Once you find all the ready made computers that will do the job, then build one just like it on paper and total up the cost and compare them.

When it comes to music, there really aren't any machines from guys like Dell and Gateway that are truely ready to just plug in and do the job right out of the box....You''ll notice right off the bat that you need a pro level soundcard and a dual display video card....Then you will discover that their installed CD/DVD drives don't support karaoke....So even tho the factory machine has the latest processor and lots of speed, you have to spend additional $$ before it's really ready to meet your requirements.....And if you then decide to buy it and add the features you need, you have wasted money cause you will be swapping out the just purchased sound/video cards and media drives.

The nice thing about home built is you are in total control...You pick each and every piece from the case to the last screw....And you end up with exactly what you need to do the job....You only pay for what you need...If you are smart tho you will also leave room for expansion and future upgrades as additional gear comes avail or as you grow into the hobby. Few factory built machines offer much room for upgrade and expansion.

Look at your music machine like you would a audio component rack full of various audio components....A perfect audio rack is big enuff to hold everything you have and there is room for growth...it also allows you to swap any one piece of gear and all the other pieces are still compatable with each other....you will discover that many factory computers are not that way....You are very limited usually to what changes you can make due to how they are configured....Those limits are usually because of the motherboard in the factory machine.

A truely flexible and expandable music computer starts with the right motherboard...you want a motherboard that will support current processor tech and also offer lots of open card slots....I would look for one that supports PCI express VS the aging AGP video standard and then has at least 3 open PCI slots....

Do you save any money?....Yes, usually...But you fersure get what you want and only what you want....And you fersure get your money's worth....And by the time you are thru, you can quickly fix any problem that pops up cause after all, you gave birth to it.

...and no, it is not at all hard to do....In fact, girls do it every day.

Keith,  As I'd mentioned, I'm quite fond of New Egg as well, Perhaps the best Customer Service dept I've come across in ages. To me that's important.  Also check out XPBargains.  All bird-dogging is done on just about all tech components, rebates,  double-coupons are explained, everything that can be figured in to give lowest prices is done for the customer...  I use XPBargains because essentially it's a great site that lowballs first, and feely passes the info to the consumer, It's great to have reference sites such as this. New items, Refurbs, closeouts..etc.. Its all there.  I've dealt with them alot, and there're no gimmicks.  You aren't buying FROM them, they are just a research site that explains how to get lowest possible prices, and what is advantageous to purchase when. Customers leave notes and comments as well.  If something proved to be a difficult transaction, it's noted.

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

Thats the trick.

The one that I am using now is almost 4 years old and have undergo several upgrades. It was custom built, it is not worth upgrading it anymore.

I know exactly what I want from my next PC: its going to be a DAW. If I do not have the patience to built it I can get a friend to do the job for almost free.

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I can neither confirm nor deny ever having or knowing anything about nothing.... mrscott

Can you list roughly the minimun specs a person would want for a DAW, MB type, RAM, HD size, etc ?  Possible extra ports ? bays, what type configuration should I person look for assuming they purchase a barebones system from Dell

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

I am going to look around and doing some googling on those spec. RAM should be the max the mother board can take. HD need not be huge. The main HD is for the OS and the recording program. A sec HD should be use for the audio files and that can be huge. The new motherboard now seem to be compatible with many pci based sound card. They carter more for the new gen of video and game cards.
I just need to look up more and learn more about those parts.

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I can neither confirm nor deny ever having or knowing anything about nothing.... mrscott

My main concern will be CPU noise.

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I can neither confirm nor deny ever having or knowing anything about nothing.... mrscott

If by that you mean CPU 'cooling fan noise' then that is easy to overcome...There are many high quality CPU coolers out there that use heatpipes...Heatpipe technology rivals watercooling, but is much cheaper and a whole lot less complicated for the casual DIY guy....In fact, your laptop probably uses heatpipe cooling on the CPU.

Go to www.Scythe-usa.com for an example of heatpipe CPU coolers....I use the Katana Cu (http://www.scythe-usa.com/product/cpu/0 ... etail.html)  

It comes with an adjustable speed fan...I can turn the fan completely off by unplugging it and it still keeps my Athlon 64 below 55C...another nice thing about the Katana Cu is it will fit 30 different CPU's from both Intel and AMD...It will fit anything from old Socket A stuff to the latest Intel core 2 Duo....and it is only 29 bucks, not 39 as listed on the site.

As for the rest of the PC being loud and cranky, it's a simple matter to select special/super quiet cooling fans designed to fit any standard fan location...They are cheap, come in all standard sizes, and are readily available from many places on the web.

Thanks for the info Steven. I'll add them to my favorites.

You want a real no chit DAW?....Of course you do, you are a professional musician...You have a house full of music equipment and instruments, right?...So yep, you of all people need a real no chit DAW....And yes, you can build it yourself for a whole lots less.

Pull up Sweetwater.com and find the DAW of your dreams...Then check their price.

Start here: http://www.sweetwater.com/store/category/c859

Just select the one that meets your needs and build it yourself using the same stuff they used to assemble it for you.

Go to that page and just for grins select the first music PC they list...It's a Creation Station TowerPlus for only $1300 bucks.....Heh, heh....The motherboard it uses sells for $51.00 on Newegg....The CPU only costs $91 from Newegg....Another 50 bucks for 512 Ram....another 150 for the two harddrives and 50 for the cd/dvd drive....

That's less than 400 so far....Ok, another 50 for the case and another 75 for the powersupply...now we are at 525.....So let's splurge and spend 200 on a M-audio soundcard.....725 total!

And they want 1300?  :O But wait a minute, they didn't even mention a sound card!...and only 512 ram?...Naw, lets make that 2GB for another 150....Now we are at 875 and we already have a much, much better machine they they are selling for 1300.

So Steven, do that way...Let them spec it for you, then use those specs to build your own much cheaper.

Keith   post pic's when you can....of your new PC

Thats what I mean. My now pc is so loud it reg -55db.

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I can neither confirm nor deny ever having or knowing anything about nothing.... mrscott

Keith,

I have been looking for a 4U rackmount case like you describe and for the life of me cannot find the one that will fit these specs. I can find many cases in the price range you paid but not rackmount. Mind pointing me in the direction of this unit? Appreciate it.

Yep,  go here:

http://www.plinkusa.net/web4032.htm

That must be an old pic...it actually has two extra USBs above the PS/2 front port on the left....The front USB's come in real handy when it's racked...You can relocate your rear audio jacks to the front real easy if you add a jack panel in of one of the 5.25 bays.

That's my exact case except for the missing front USB's.....And it's even cheaper now!  They seem to have lots of other choices now too, so make sure to check them all out.

Thanks for the link. And you're right there are a number of choices. Room to grow!

I'm building a 2U rack computer for karaoke..

Pentium 4, 3.0 gig CPU, ECS motherboard, (with s-video and composite out) 2 gig of DDR2 ram, 500 gig Hd for data, 160 for the OS..

Motherboard and CPU, $119.00

Ram $149.00

500 Seagate Hd 5 year warr. $199.00

160 gig, 49.00

Other parts off the shelf..

Picked up a Toshiba laptop too.. (Just in case.. )

Very nice. That is a lot of bang for the buck! By the way, do you think there is any benefits from a dual processor approach?

Actually, yes..

The new Core 2 was $499.00 for the mobo and CPU, and I said.. na...

After it drops in price, sure.. 100% faster, 50% less heat..

I have several dual CPU servers that could be used (add a sound card) and it would be actually cheaper..  :wave:

I just built my system and my suggestion is to stay away from 2U. I built mine with 3U, which allowed a full PCI/PCI-X cards to be installed verticalled, not horizontally using stacker card. It's too much pain to do it.

Here is what I used to build mine:

- My 3U case. This case is perfect because it's made from aluminum, which cuts down the weight of the system. It also conducts heat well so it stays cooler. It's a bit noisy but I am planning on replacing the fans with the super quiet 28db fans in the future. About $200, higher cost but better case than most.
- AMD 64 3500+ CPU with 512k cache. About $100
- Asus A8N-VM 939. Has only 2 PCI and 1 PCI-X slots and two memory slots but more than enough for me. Has built in GeF6100 PCI-X Graphics. About $65
- Patriot 2x1GB 400MHz DDR with heat sink. About $105 with rebate ($50 rebate)
- Airlink Gigabit Ethernet card $20
- Maxtor 300GB, 7200RPM SATA drive, $80
- Plextor PX-760A DVD/CD Writer $120
- ESI Maya44 PCI sound card About $100
- Gyration Wirelss compact keyboard/mouse combo $99
- Gem 17" LCD screen $99 after rebate ($60 rebate)
- I bought a Viewsonic Q7 17" monitor earlier for about $130 for the singer screen
- My expensive venture - Infrant ReadyNAS 1U NAS system $500 barebone with 3x Maxtor 300GB 7200 RPM SATA drives $79 each.
- Compact NETGEAR  5 port Gigabit Ethernet Switch $60

I also have AMD based eMachines laptop as my back up system. Both my systems and NAS gets plugged in to the switch. I am thinking of adding a wirelss so I can access the entire system from my office while it's in the garage.

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Seize the day and SING!!!