PC Recommendations
Recommendations for PC hardware to buy.
First, a great website to examine: Silent PCs. This website examines lots of different ways to make your computer as quiet as possible. Everything from what to buy to what to modify. Some of the modifications may get a little difficult.
Case
Power Supply
Fans
Really huge fans are quieter for the same amount of air-flow (cooling).
CPU
New CPUs are consume much less power and therefore deliver more processing power with less overheating which means you need less cooling.
Choose the processor you want first. It is the most expensive item and it sets which kind of support chipset and therefore which kind of motherboard you need.
Intel®
These seem the best price point:
AMD
Motherboard
- Motherboards that support the Intel® 975X Express Chipset (for E6300 or E6320)
I like these two from ABIT:
- ABIT AB9 buy me $119
- ABIT AB9 Pro buy me $139
Memory
Be careful. Buy memory that is compatible with your motherboard. The motherboards' websites should have a compatibility list. For example, from ABIT.
Graphics Card
This is the easiest part. You don't need much graphics for audio editing. A reasonably cheap card should do well. Look for one that is not meant for gaming. It will be cooler and have less fan noise.
Audio
Many of the motherboards have built-in 2-channel digital audio with [1]SP/DIF ins and outs. This will be OK -- but you probably really want an external conversion box.