Computer Guides Update
The guides section of the Podcomplex website has now been updated to include some computer hardware information. The section on tweaking a PC for better DAW performance is one of the oldest parts of the site, but now it is joined by a part-by-part introduction to computer components, as well as buying guides for laptops and desktops…
Taking The Hard Road
As this is a music technology site, it’s probably about time that it had a section dedicated to the most versatile piece of music technology ever invented – the computer.
Outboard gear is still very much in vogue, but it’s entirely possible to create great music using only a computer and a single DAW – whether this be Logic, Reason, Pro Tools, Sonar, Reaper…or any one of the many software solutions out there. Of course, it’s still not easy to create great music – you’ll need plenty of know-how, and plenty of talent – but at least everyone now can access facilities that only those lucky few signed to major label contracts could have dreamed of twenty years ago.
Introducing The Parts
Bearing in mind that it’s easy to forget how bewildering the area of computer music can be to beginners, I’ve created a page that provides a component-by-component guide to the innards of our computers.
At the moment, it just covers the basics – Processor, RAM, GPU, Hard Drive, Monitor – but over time this will expand to deal with other areas such as connectivity, and the evolution of new architectures (such as Intel’s latest Core i7/i5 lines).
Choosing A New Computer
There are also new guides that deal with buying a new laptop or desktop computer. These are not aimed specifically at musicians, but are (hopefully) suitable for anyone who is thinking of getting a new computer.
However, there is a section that deals with some specific considerations that come into play when choosing a computer for music production. As this is probably the section that most readers here will be interested in, I’ll be expanding this to cover as many considerations as possible – including the thorny issue of sound card matching…