Hi guys !
First post here, it's been a while since I enjoy the videos and forum, but now I desperately need help and advice ! I have a big music/multimedia project that I'm putting together and the problem I have is audio wise.
Here is what I want to do :
I want to build a PC that will process in quasi real-time about 32 channels of audio. Basically, I'll use my PC and my DAW live instead of passing through the venue's console, allowing for much better quality, sonic possibilities (effects and what not) and fidelity (I'll use almost the same setup to record the albums and to perform the shows, so it will sound very damn good live).
The problem :
Latency. Latency is a bi*** when it comes to heavy audio processing. I could already run the whole show with the PC I have now but I would need to raise the Buffer size of my audio interface, which adds latency. Now of course, no latency at all is not what I am aiming for. And in fact I am already getting 70% of the performance I need with the latency I want. But I really have the feeling that I am not using my PC to it's true potential and that I could build a better one. Also, I need the system to run everything smoothly and be the most bulletproof possible. A live crash is just not an option. If I have the smallest doubt, I'll buy another one in backup, but still, I can't afford to go through a crash or interruption of any kind during live performance.
Here's what I have :
-My interfaces (I use two to have more Ins and Outs) are PCI/PCIe ones whose drivers are well known for being among if not THE absolute bests. (RME - Multiface)
-My PC : DP67DE Mobo - i72600 Intel CPU - 32GB Corsair DDR3 1333Hz RAM (pretty overkill here I think)
-Good PSU but not so good cooling (stock CPU fan and big GPU in the way (I'll downgrade for sure on the GPU side with the next PC. I think I don't need something good for what I want to do anyway)
-Windows 7 x64 and my DAW is Reaper, which seems to be handling quite well the multiple cores
-I use plugins that add no latency at all and that are quite CPU friendly. I could use some that are even more CPU friendly but I would lose quality big time. These are the best compromise I've found.
I am willing to pay big bucks for the PC but I'm not sure what I should get. I have the feeling that higher CPU frequency is a key element but mine already runs quite high and I may be partly wrong anyway. Xeons ? Dual CPUs ? ECC Memory ? Also, I think getting SSD drives would help (and anyway, It'll make everything boot faster, which is a big plus. Oh and SSDs can probably stand traveling much better)
When I load up too many plugins, the sound starts to crackle and dropout on and off. That's at around 35-40% of CPU capacity according to the task manager. Should I be able to go higher than that ? According to the infos I gathered, Windows may not be the best OS for the task. I don't know much about it but I've read a couple of things about Linux and some of the real-time processing it allows. But I'm not sure I know enough to go that way, I have no knowledge in programming and these things seemed a little to deep for my current teksavvy-ness. I'm ok with using the machine and doing a few workarounds but that's about it ! So that's why I need you guys help quite badly !!!
This is a project I've been working on for years and I've been feeling like I hit a wall with this issue. But you guys know much more than me about PCs right ? So all hope is not lost yet ! Haha
Any help leading to better results would be amazing. Thanks a lot !
Emmanuel