New build for Music Studio.

[Xstatic]

I am looking to build a pc for a Music Studio. Noise is a bad. Very bad. This needs to be as quiet as posssible. This is just going to be running Audio apps like pro tools and/or steinberg apps. I dont want to spend a huge chunk of money but still want this to be fast and quiet.

I am going to base the setup on a E6700 C2D. Already have this so there is no changeing it. Not sure what HSF to use as this needs to stay cool but needs to be quiet.

As far as the mobo, I am looking at probably the ASUS P5W DH DELUXE or the Asus P5B. These are what most of the audio systems are running. But advice would still be appreciated here.

Im not sure what ram to use but I seen the Super Talent STT DDR2-800 2GB (2x1GB) CL4 Dual Channel Memory Kit. It is reported to have d9 chips. and is only $175. They run 4-4-3-8 I believe but it also said, SPD Latency (CL) is: 5-5-5-15, Test Latency (CL) is: 4-4-3-8.(??? what does this mean?) Not sure what it is going to run at. Might grab 2 kits but not sure yet. OCZ and mushkin are also being looked at but the comparable Mushkin to the STT's are over $100 more than the STT's. Any advice on these or others?

I also have to pick out a PSU and I have not been keeping up with what is new and good out there. Are the triple rails PSU's a good choice? Dual rails or single? This needs to be absolutely rock stable for the long haul and needs to be quiet. Its in a studio so noise is a big factor. I looked at the Antec True Power Trio TP3-650 which is 3 rails and the OCZ GameXStream OCZ700GXSSLI which is dual rails. What is the noise level and are they going to be too loud? I need them to run cool but be quiet. Advice?

Video card I guess needs not to be anything special but beable to run the apps nicely. Need to run dual monitors. I seen some with ati x800's and some with ati 1600's and some running NVidia 7300's. Are these over kill or are they what I need? I wouldn't think they need to be too powerful for what I'm running.

As far as HDD's go I was thinking about getting a 10k rpm drive for the OS and 2 7200 rpm drives for the apps and data. Would I be better going with a raptor for the os or 2 7200's in raid? Also what is with Matrix raid? I kinda understand some of it in that it takes the fastest part of the drives and uses them for the os and uses the rest for whatever else I guess but is it hard to setup and is it needed in my situation?

The case I'll be useing is looking to be the Antec P180 but I am still open to others. I have seen other studio setups in this case so that is why I am looking at it. And the price is nice with the $50 MIR from newegg.

I think this is it but I'm sure I'll think of something else. Any help would be GREATLY APPRECIATED.

 

[JCLW]

I've done a few audio workstation builds over the years.

Have you thought of water cooling? Can be made very very quiet.

Single rail is best.

I'm running a matched pair of 1GB OCZ DDR2-800 plat rev2 sticks in my own workstation. They'll do ~450mhz @ 4-4-4-15 @ rated voltage. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227139

If you're going 64-bit, I'd suggest 4GB. Otherwise 2GB.

As for video I'd look for dual DVI passively cooled. Something along the lines of: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125055. You could find something a little cheaper (like a 1300), but you'd get a fraction of the performance and maybe save $20. If you want to run Vista with all the stuff something in the X16XX class would do better anyways.

I believe the last two builds I did both had a Raptor for OS/Apps, and two WD 7200rpm drives in RAID 0 for data (with external backup solutions).

edit: SPD latency is what the modules are programmed to run in when you set your mem timings to auto. This is done for compatibility reasons because most modules need more voltage to run at their rated settings. All boards default to 1.8v on their first boot, and if your modules need 2.2v to run 4-3-3-8 you'll probably have trouble getting into BIOS to change the voltage if they default to 4-3-3-8.

Test latency is what they are rated for.

Sorry, that was all badly written but I hope you get the idea.

 

[Xstatic]

Update:
I pretty much have the PSU from talking to Oklahoma Wolf. I will more than likely grab the OCZ's as everyone seems to be using them with the P5W board. 64bit is a HUGE No-No when it comes to recording. Same with Vista. No one will even touch Vista yet that is serious about recording. Not enough testing and support is out there for Vista being compatible with the apps for recording and mixing. I might go with either the 16xx card or the 7600 card. Both can be had in the fanless flavor, but I need to do a little more research on what ones stay cool and have 2 dvi outs.

I'm still trying to figure out if going with the os and apps on the same drive is smart. I can't afford any performance hiccups. I don't want the apps to be slowed down by the os being on the same drive.