CPU upgrade

[Alphadingo]

I'm thinking about upgrading my processor and/or adding another CPU to the motherboard. Would two processors get me anything with mixbus32c? If I stick with one processor, would I be better off with a quad core or a hex core CPU?

[Ben@Harrison]

More processors will allow you to run more tracks and plugins.

There are very subtle differences between processors ( such as memory access, bus speeds, hyperthreading, etc) that can have a significant effect on the system's low-latency performance. But if you are only interested in pure horsepower ( using a buffersize of 1024 for mixing ) then more is nearly always better!

-Ben

[Matt]

What is your system/motherboard? Are you sure it's dual cpu capable? If so, then by all means get a second cpu. It will have to be the same as the one you have. Unless you buy two.

Just from my own past experience. I had a 2009 2.66 ghz quad-core Mac Pro. Upgraded to a 3.2 ghz 6-core. Made a significant difference. Totally worth it. Not sure which made a bigger difference. The 2 extra cores or 500 or so MHz. But it was a beast. Eventually sold it, as it was more than I needed at the time.

Well times change and I recently acquired another 2009 Mac Pro. This time a 2.26 ghz 8-core model. I've been eyeing the 3.33 and 3.46 ghz 6-core CPUs. But they're out of my budget right now. However l did just buy a pair of 2.66ghz 6-core CPUs. Hoping they get here before the weekend. That should pep things up. And maybe one day I'll find a pair of the faster CPUs. but until then I'll let you know how this goes.

[Frank]

What is your system/motherboard? Are you sure it's dual cpu capable? If so, then by all means get a second cpu. It will have to be the same as the one you have. Unless you buy two.

They have to be the same type and the same stepping
Stepping is a kind on minor version number.

Be sure you include that demand in an CPU order.

A difficult issue with warranty. and long time support. I remember fighting Intel that they should keep stock of older models of high cost CPU.

Note : doubling the CPU does not double the power: there is always some overhead.

Note: Our feel of a machine being faster is somehow logarithmic: the first step of a faster machine is with double power. Just like sound.


regards

[Alphadingo]

I have an HP z600 that I'm considering putting two of these in:
http://www.servermonkey.com/3-06-ghz-six...cache.html
along with 24 Gigs of ram. Ben, would mixbus 32c take advantage of all of that horsepower?

[Frank]

I have an HP z600 that I'm considering putting two of these in:
http://www.servermonkey.com/3-06-ghz-six...cache.html
along with 24 Gigs of ram. Ben, would mixbus 32c take advantage of all of that horsepower?

I know i am not called Ben

feels like a dream machine to me

I used similar machines for roentgen analysis workstations.
what i remember : that you could control the the amount of cycles a busmaster could hold the bus: essential for real time audio

What OS are you intending to use ?

Kind regards

[madmaxmiller]

I have an HP z600 that I'm considering putting two of these in:
http://www.servermonkey.com/3-06-ghz-six...cache.html
along with 24 Gigs of ram. Ben, would mixbus 32c take advantage of all of that horsepower?

Overkill I would say. Unless you want to run >50 tracks in 96kHz along with a dozen virtual instruments and heaps of plugins...
I would invest the extra money into 2 4k-monitors, that will accelerate your workflow a lot.

MMM
(happily running 32C on a 6-core AMD A-series and 16GB)

[Frank]

I have an HP z600 that I'm considering putting two of these in:
http://www.servermonkey.com/3-06-ghz-six...cache.html
along with 24 Gigs of ram. Ben, would mixbus 32c take advantage of all of that horsepower?

Overkill I would say. Unless you want to run >50 tracks in 96kHz along with a dozen virtual instruments and heaps of plugins...
I would invest the extra money into 2 4k-monitors, that will accelerate your workflow a lot.

MMM
(happily running 32C on a 6-core AMD A-series and 16GB)

did you consider pricing ?
I saw machines like that are rather cheap

But true 4k monitors

[Alphadingo]

I was the benefactor of someone else's upgrade cycle! I figured for $140-$300 at most I'd have a pretty rocking machine! I'd be running Win 7 on it unless 8 is better for audio. Thanks for the input, gents. Can you guys suggest an affordable AES card? I'm currently using a mac mini and a metric halo ULN-8 and there isn't a way to get from the ULN-8 into windows without an AES card.

[madmaxmiller]

I was the benefactor of someone else's upgrade cycle! I figured for $140-$300 at most I'd have a pretty rocking machine! I'd be running Win 7 on it unless 8 is better for audio. Thanks for the input, gents. Can you guys suggest an affordable AES card? I'm currently using a mac mini and a metric halo ULN-8 and there isn't a way to get from the ULN-8 into windows without an AES card.

This being a killer machine - you will end up with RME to match the rest of the hardware. This of course kills the idea of an inexpensive upgrade
MMM