Thoughts on this computer?

[salmon256]

I use to be an apple user and I had all of your complaints, right now for me it doesn't make sense to buy one since I'm low on money and I find apple products get worse over time unlike my windows computers (ignoring I have an issue with my main rig but its been going strong for 8 years up on till now) but I also find modern day Apple you can't fix it them you use to. You could go in them and mess around, now I believe they are way harder to do that. I think you are better off building a computer using PC part picker to budget what you want and having a better build.

But I do agree if you do not want that hassle, if pre-built is your thing Newegg has some good brands that pre-build. But honestly at that point for your goals go with a Mac Mini or Apple product because they are way better for your goals. Swappa you can buy used products for pretty good prices and they company makes sure no one is re-selling stolen/scam/broken goods a serial number must be sent and other proof plus most places that big tech centers would refund you in a heartbeat if a problem. Again though you might as well go new.

If I had the money and wanted to do some serious at home recording for a bass YT channel or something, while I love Windows and some of the awesome apps you can get on Windows I would in a second go with a Mac over it because Logic and Gargaeband are way easier to use and are truly plug n play if you ask me.

 

[brianrost]

That CPU can't support Windows 11, and Windows 10 support is ending soon. You 100% want a computer that still gets security updates.

That was the very first thing I noticed. Security is really important with Windows machines that will be on the internet. If you will be off the net…if it’s only for recording it doesn’t have to be on the net…then security is less an issue.

 

[Jason Sypher]

And if you’re set against a Mac the next thing I would do is build my own PC

 

[DigitalMan]

Hey all,
My home computer that I used for recording music crapped out, so I'm looking for something new. I had been clicking around on some different websites, and (without prompting) Amazon popped up with this the next time I went on to buy something.

Amazon Sign-In

I'm just a hobbyist who enjoys using free DAWs and plugins (Tracktion Waveform). The most inputs I use at once are 2 (acoustic and vocal, though I generally would just do one track at a time anyway). The main use is basic pop-punk (4 rhythm guitars, 1-2 lead guitar, 2 bass tracks, Lead vocals, double vocals, bgv, some electronic instruments, etc-- all with multiple plugins).

Though I was planning to look at other options, I thought this might be enough for what I need. Two questions:
1. Are either (or both) going to be able to handle that work load, or should I look for something else. I have a budget of up to around $400 if I want to go that high.
2. Should I get the G1 EliteDesk, which has higher processing speed and storage and costs $40 less, or the G4 ProDesk which is newer?

Open to all thoughts-- thanks!

Windows 10 is end of support in October, and that processor is not officially supported on Windows 11.

I'd pass and look for something that will be supported (software, drivers, vulnerability and bug fixes, etc.) for a longer period of time. Otherwise, who's to say that when you update your DAW next year that it doesn't break everything because it is no longer being maintained for a version of Windows that is end of life?

 

[BassicJazzy]

Windows 10 is end of support in October, and that processor is not officially supported on Windows 11.

I'd pass and look for something that will be supported (software, drivers, vulnerability and bug fixes, etc.) for a longer period of time. Otherwise, who's to say that when you update your DAW next year that it doesn't break everything because it is no longer being maintained for a version of Windows that is end of life?

Yeah, that's what happened to me with my HP all-in-one. It came with Win10 and had enough RAM to run that effectively, but when it upgraded to Win11 suddenly I found my available RAM had shrunk to 6%. Win11 is an incredible RAM hog. Ableton Lite barely ran, latency was terrible, it was unusable. iOS is a much more efficient user of Ram, as long as you don't activate Windows Intelligence. Plus you don't need Antivirus unless you do stupid things with it. With Mac, if you have the chip to run the AI, no problem, otherwise you could find that dogs out too. Anyway, I won't ever go back to Windows PCs. Got burned badly.

 

[DigitalMan]

Yeah, that's what happened to me with my HP all-in-one. It came with Win10 and had enough RAM to run that effectively, but when it upgraded to Win11 suddenly I found my available RAM had shrunk to 6%. Win11 is an incredible RAM hog. Ableton Lite barely ran, latency was terrible, it was unusable. iOS is a much more efficient user of Ram, as long as you don't activate Windows Intelligence. Plus you don't need Antivirus unless you do stupid things with it. With Mac, if you have the chip to run the AI, no problem, otherwise you could find that dogs out too. Anyway, I won't ever go back to Windows PCs. Got burned badly.

Windows 11 was just a minor update to Windows 10. It was entirely a marketing decision to call it Windows 11. The reality is that software keeps getting bigger to utilize the resources of whatever is available. Windows is simply the boiling frog in some respects. Apple has more control over their ecosystem and they end of life things a little bit faster.

Also, you absolutely need antivirus with a Mac these days.

RAM is the place where most people make their mistakes with any type of computer. When the typical/good amount was advertised to be 8GB, the reality was that 32GB was more like it, especially if there is any sort of media involved. I'd consider 32GB minimal today and would probably go with at least 64GB when/if I update.

While most every laptop or PC will have a flash drive today, that wasn't the case a few years back either. The PC the OP posted still had a spinning 1TB HD drive for data, which is a total anachronism at this point. 4TB of NVMe will cost around $200-300 for a PC and is probably the best money to spend on a new device, whereas a similar upgrade from Apple for a Mac will run around $1600.

There are always tradeoffs.

 

[mikewalker]

those older HP machines are great for running some flavor of Ubuntu ( I use Kubuntu on mine) but if you really want to run Windows then bite the bullet and buy the newest processor /chipset you can afford. Win 11 spec starts at 8th gen Intel I think - see Windows processor requirements Windows 11 supported Intel processors

 

[MuseChaser]

A few thoughts...

1. Unless you're running a ton of real-time effects and samples, pretty much ANY computer these days can handle the basic DAW usage described in the original post.

2. "Windows support" for any given operating system is immaterial if your DAW is not used online, but simply as a dedicated DAW station. I still have an XP machine capable of 16 simultaneous input tracks via two Midiman Delta1010 interfaces running in one studio that I built a VERY long time ago. It works great. Any serious DAW should be offline.

3. What matters most is....are there drivers available for your operating system and desired interface hardware?

4. Storage - more is always better, as is the presence of fast I/O for external hard drives. These days, with storage being so cheap, I'd shy away from anything not capable of at least a TB of internal storage.

 

[KJMO]

I'd look at something like these:

Products

official store

www.minisforum.com

There are some around 300 that are pretty decent, and at least fairly up to date. Plus, new.

I found an open box Mac mini M2 about a year ago at Best Buy for 250, so you can find deals on Macs too. I had been using PCs for years and wish I'd switched earlier. I could get PCs to work fine, but way more messing around.

 

[StringCanvas]

Thanks guys. Local I found a Ryzen 5 Pro 2400GE build with 16gm ram for pretty inexpensive, so I think I might pull the trigger on that. I know it's still an older chip (2018) but can run Windows 11. I'm not extremely worried about updates because I don't connect my computer to the internet or intend to update it at all once it's running. The only issue I might run in to in the future, I'd think, is eventually new plugins might not work, but I have all I really NEED right now, so I'm not super concerned.

I've read mixed reviews on Ryzen for audio production, but my experience with two other stations (not mine) was pretty good so I guess we'll see.