New PC --- avoiding the DPC Latency nightmare?

[Thad E Ginathom]

I didn't think before to check our six-year old Compaq Presario Laptop. It is all green, with an occasional yellow spike. The Echo Audofire, via a unbranded 1394a PCMCIA card, works perfectly. I'm very sad about my desktop.

Anyway, collecting together the recommendations from this and another thread now, to check out costings...

I've got the 780 chip noted from another thread. From elsewhere, also the Intel P35 spoken highly of. That requires much less spending, of course, but might not be such a safe bet.

I had thought that Gigabyte, Asus, MSI (apart from Intel) were rated highest for build quality --- obviously I am a bit miffed with Gigabyte just now, and their name seems to come up over and over when checking out this DPC thing on the net

 

[gobble]

I've got the 780 chip noted from another thread. From elsewhere, also the Intel P35 spoken highly of. That requires much less spending, of course, but might not be such a safe bet.

I had thought that Gigabyte, Asus, MSI (apart from Intel) were rated highest for build quality --- obviously I am a bit miffed with Gigabyte just now, and their name seems to come up over and over when checking out this DPC thing on the net

Same here, I thought it is just an OS thing and it should be fine under Linux .. or no?

Better go for the 785G instead of 780 in case you decide ... There are good non gigabyte mobos ..


Regards

 

[spirovious]

I have MSI 945 & it shows 150ms.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Thad - why not try an AMD Athlon processor with a 780G or 785G motherboard? It will work out nice and it will work out cheap as well

So, I guess it is going to be a Gigabyte (!) 785G board, then, with a Phenom IIx4 chip (and a few Mb of DDR3). Not sure which chip: I don't think I'll go top-of-range, as the power consumption rises a lot.

It's going to be a few months, though... my wife lives in the real world :sad: and I'm firmly reminded about the tax to be paid and the car tinkering/painting.

Under the how-wrong-one-can-be heading: I had been looking for AT boards all along. Glad I didn't rush out and buy one, as I cleaned out the PC today, and realised... it takes an ATX board! OK, I've had this machine for five years, so I guess it is more how-stupid-one-can-be

 

[spirovious]

I got lowest around 10 ms when DL is stopped.

 

[gobble]

So, I guess it is going to be a Gigabyte (!) 785G board, then, with a Phenom IIx4 chip (and a few Mb of DDR3). Not sure which chip: I don't think I'll go top-of-range, as the power consumption rises a lot.

It's going to be a few months, though... my wife lives in the real world :sad: and I'm firmly reminded about the tax to be paid and the car tinkering/painting.

Under the how-wrong-one-can-be heading: I had been looking for AT boards all along. Glad I didn't rush out and buy one, as I cleaned out the PC today, and realised... it takes an ATX board! OK, I've had this machine for five years, so I guess it is more how-stupid-one-can-be

Hi Thad

I thought you found Giga boards have a DPC problem? There are other vendors like ECS and Asus and Biostar with 78G chipsets.

Go for microATX mobo and cabinet. ATX is unduly humungous and needless.

In a quad core look for an AMD 600e cpu that consumes 45W TDP at max. In Tri-Core there is 400e with 45W TDP. Look for any cpu with the e suffix.


Edit: The 78G consumes 18W max with the IGP graphics

HTH
Regards

 

[thevortex]

Do make sure you are not over-investing in the processor. A solid X2 550 BE would do at around Rs. 4200 or so. You can unlock the remaining 2 cores with a Gigabyte motherboard and that will leave you with the cheapest quad core processor . Good luck.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

You mean, buy 2 cores... get 4? I've vaguely heard of such tricks!

The temptation to over-invest is always there. My attitude to PCs tends to be to spend as much as I can afford as infrequently as possible. Hence considering the X4

Hoping to keep my current cabinet (a Compaq Presario), which I only just realised is ATX . Expandability is nice... but when was the last time I filled all the expansion slots in a PC? Ummm... never. Power supply is only 350w, I think.

Alternative is to go for a complete build --- and have a spare PC. Not such a bad idea: Mrs. G's Laptop is not immortal and has already gone through a round of repairs (Not doing badly, though, at 5-plus years old!).

Then I shall be looking for recommendations for a full quiet case/PS/fan setup available in Chennai. This thread will be never ending!

 

[deba]

Latency is one of the greatest enemy when it comes to computer related audio and video. I remember using a 8 track (Multitrack) card to do some recording with my Laptop.I think this latency problem may get solved with the future USB 3.0 interface.

 

[thevortex]

I would just look at upgrading the power supply and the processor, Thad.

By the way the trick about unlocking the other two cores really works. And works consistently. Try searching the net.

 

[gobble]

Here is a good new Mobo choice for you GIGABYTE GA-MA770-UD3 AM2+/AM3 Motherboard Review

It consumes 3watts at idle and 10W at max and along with a 400e or 600e cpu makes a great buy for an always on cpu. Just remember to also spend on a untra low noise cpu heatsink and a silent smps with 120mm fan.

cheers

 

[spirovious]

Here is a good new Mobo choice for you GIGABYTE GA-MA770-UD3 AM2+/AM3 Motherboard Review

It consumes 3watts at idle and 10W at max and along with a 400e or 600e cpu makes a great buy for an always on cpu. Just remember to also spend on a untra low noise cpu heatsink and a silent smps with 120mm fan.

cheers

Well,sound chip is 888 & not 889.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Thanks Gobble, for that MB recommendation. The killer, for me, on this is that there is no integrated graphics. It is also DDR2, which, whilst saving substantial money now, would not see me so far into the future as a DDR3 board. Otherwise, I like the 8 USB ports, and the neat and logical layout of the backside ports on this board. The sound chip does not bother me, as I will not be using it.

One of the reasons that I am sticking with Gigabyte, despite some misgivings from current experience, is the TI Firewire. Otherwise, they just seem to offer the right things for me in the package, compared to other manufacturers.

I scribbled a tentative list, which, so far as I can make out today (someone has put a wet cup down on it!!!) and with rough pricing, reads:

Gigabyte MA785GMT-US2H @5650
Phenom II x2 5558E 3GHz @5150
DDR3 2 * 2Gb @5800
Antec Sonata case inc PS @9450

There we have a total of about 26,000. I'm sure there will be little extras, and I'd dearly like to add a small SSD as a book drive! Of course, that's a luxury that could be added any time in the future.

One thought is... whether this "future-proofing" thing should dictate USB3.0? I'm a little suspicious of going for the new technology now.

Anyway, there is still at least two or three months, of other financial commitments, for the plan to solidify.

 

[gobble]

Thad

I think you misread the review - this one has integrated graphics but without crossfire support. Which means you cant add another GPU and share the graphics processing between the two.

USB3 promises good stuff, but unless you are going to upgrading to a USB3 based DAC in the next 4 years or buying a USB3 based external HDD, I wouldnt worry about it. By then there will other temptations like upgrading to a new computing platforms that work with half the energy consumption at twice the speed ...

For those considering this mobo remember to check for Rev.2.0 with a SB710 chipset and not buy the Rev 1.0 with SB700.

Regards

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

...this one has integrated graphics but without crossfire support.

I looked for the socket on the I/O panel and didn't see it. Generally, I do this to check out the connectivity before reading the list; it is usually a good shortcut

I'll look again <Blush> ...but any comment on my spec above, that I put together a couple of days ago?

<Later>

Nope: I see no onboard graphics. Gigabyte's own page -->here

 

[gobble]

I looked for the socket on the I/O panel and didn't see it. Generally, I do this to check out the connectivity before reading the list; it is usually a good shortcut

I'll look again <Blush> ...but any comment on my spec above, that I put together a couple of days ago?

<Later>

Nope: I see no onboard graphics. Gigabyte's own page -->here

Sorry - my bad! it does not have IGP.

Good choice except I think you are paying too much, maybe "firangi" prices. Try sending a brown skinned agent to inquire and make purchases.

Cheers

 

[gobble]

Note that not all phenoms support HT 3.0. You want to check that before buying. Why do you need 3ghz for an audio pc? Remember you may not be able to underclock a 65W TDP cpu effectively for low heat or fanless ops a few years later if you want it to lie in the corner serving stuff.

Regards

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

The prices are off the net, from, eg The IT Depot and Delta Pages. I do know a guy who knows a guy... We have an electrician who has a brother with a shop in Richie Street. I'm in two minds about using contacts, though; unless one is very familiar with the market, there is no guarantee that it will have any benefit, and one is placed under an obligation to go ahead with them. Can one expect a discount for buying all the bits on one place?

This is a general PC, not just for sound. Of course, browsing is hardly processor intensive, and most of what I do could probably still do on a 486! However, it is possible that the handycam might come out of the cupboard one day, and processing video, even at the most basic level, must be the most intensive thing I have ever done. The VCR, too: I'd like to digitise some VHS tapes (which means another interface on the shopping list, of course).

Added to which, it is well-known fact that owning a high-spec machine leads to having certain larger bodily parts :yahoo: --- or, to be more realistic about it, it is that thing called pride of ownership. And I have already talked myself out of top-of-the-range Phenom, after seeing how the power consumption leaps.

Seriously... If there is going to be a dedicated media server anyday, that'll be another machine, probably fairly minimalist, and in a small case.

Although not my first hand-made PC, this is my very first Do-It-Yourself homebuild.

 

[gobble]

The prices are off the net, from, eg The IT Depot and Delta Pages. I do know a guy who knows a guy... We have an electrician who has a brother with a shop in Richie Street. I'm in two minds about using contacts, though; unless one is very familiar with the market, there is no guarantee that it will have any benefit, and one is placed under an obligation to go ahead with them. Can one expect a discount for buying all the bits on one place?

This is a general PC, not just for sound. Of course, browsing is hardly processor intensive, and most of what I do could probably still do on a 486! However, it is possible that the handycam might come out of the cupboard one day, and processing video, even at the most basic level, must be the most intensive thing I have ever done. The VCR, too: I'd like to digitise some VHS tapes (which means another interface on the shopping list, of course).

Added to which, it is well-known fact that owning a high-spec machine leads to having certain larger bodily parts :yahoo: --- or, to be more realistic about it, it is that thing called pride of ownership. And I have already talked myself out of top-of-the-range Phenom, after seeing how the power consumption leaps.

Seriously... If there is going to be a dedicated media server anyday, that'll be another machine, probably fairly minimalist, and in a small case.

Although not my first hand-made PC, this is my very first Do-It-Yourself homebuild.

Nice. Have fun building it!

Cheers

 

[thevortex]

Thad,

If you are interested in having somebody assemble the whole machine and procure the needed components at a good price, send me a PM and I can direct you to somebody who works in this line with my office.