Hauptwerk Computer Spec

Hi everyone - first-time poster, long-time lurker.

A friend of mine is going to put a Hauptwerk organ in his den, and has asked me to help him spec a computer rather than spending $4000+ to get one from Classic Midiworks (bless their hearts). He will be using the EM Skinner 1928 organ set (though we haven't decided on wet or dry, but that's another thread I need to start elsewhere). At PCPartPicker.com (a site I learned about in this forum), I've put together the following system. Would you knowledgeable folks mind critiquing it? Thanks in advance!

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K
CPU COOLER: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
MOTHERBOARD: Gigabyte GA-Z170M-D3H
MEMORY: G.Skill 32GB
STORAGE: Western Digital 1TB 7200RPM
VIDEO CARD: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 960
CASE: Corsair 200R
POWER SUPPLY: EVGA 500W
OPTICAL DRIVE: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS
OPERATING SYSTEM: Windows 7 Professional Full (32/64-bit)
SOUND CARD: Creative Labs Sound Blaster Z 70SB150200000
CASE FAN: Corsair Air Series AF140 Quiet Edition
KEYBOARD: Corsair K65 RGB
MOUSE: Corsair M65 RGB

Now, the footnotes:

1. I understand a lot of you are future-proofing with 64 GB of RAM which is an option for this logic board, but the EM Skinner organ seems to require less than 32, so I opted for 32.

2. I'm concerned about having enough USB ports - this will be a 3-manual organ, three expression pedals (SW/CH/Cresc), and of course pedals. PCPartPicker doesn't give an option of adding USB ports... do the organ components daisy-chain?

3. My friend is going to do two monitors (which are not spec'd above, we'll pick those later), and I believe this video card supports dual displays. Again, correct me if I'm wrong.

4. I've read in these threads that a high-end audio card is necessary to deliver realistic sound. Because this organ is going in a den, my friend is planning to connect a small Bose system he already owns, which can connect via the 1/8" audio output. Any foreseeable problems with this?

Again, thank you in advance for all of the collective wisdom here. I've learned a ton from you!

Eric

I am sorry, but I don't keep up-to-date with hardware specs unless I am actively looking for a new machine.

However, a few things jump out:

► The motherboard has 3 monitor connectors and these all work at once. If they are also independent then the motherboard will drive your monitors without the need for a graphics card. Please double-check that with someone who knows for sure.
► The graphics card would appear to be a bit over the top for HW use. It is more of a "gaming" card and may be noisy with all those fans.
► Windows 7 is getting a bit old now. I would consider getting Windows 10.
► The sound card may be OK but if you spend some of the money you save on the graphics card on the sound system that would be beneficial.
► I am not sure that you will need a special cooler unless you intend to overclock the cpu. I always use the standard one. Just make sure you get the version of the cpu with a cooler included.

Notes on you footnotes:
1. I have only 32 GB and it has always been enough. However, I use mostly dry large organs and small wet organs.

2. You have 6 USB ports on the rear panel and 4 more on headers on the motherboard. This shoul be more than adequate.

3. There are multi-monitor outputs on the motherboard. I would think these would be OK for your application. The video card you suggest is way overkill, by the way. Save money here and buy a better sound card.

4. be sure the sound card is ASIO output. I would upgrade from the spoundblaster.
The Bose speakers will work and give a fair sound, but are feally inadequate for organ use. They are mainly designed for home theater use.

Ollie Mayes

Thanks, both of you - so we'll ditch the video card for sure and use the onboard graphics with the motherboard. I've also ditched the CPU fan and left the case fan on the order.

Can you recommend a reasonable ASIO audio card? PCPartPicker has lots of audio cards, but none specify ASIO compliance.

Here are two that I have used in the past.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... -_-Product

http://www.zzounds.com/item--FOCSCAR6I6

I prefer the Focusrite external unit. If you are ever planning multiple speaker setup, Focusrite makes larger models.

In general, external sound cards (connected with USB or Firewire) have ASIO capability. Also look for one with an included reverb capability if you are going to buy dry organ samples.

Ollie Mayes

Here is a pretty good sound card that has reverb, but I don't know if it is still made. You might find one on ebay

http://www.guitarcenter.com/E-mu/0404-P ... -System.gc

This is just a personal view but I would never buy any "old" computer equipment and that includes sound cards.

You are just asking for compatibility issues and problems with obtaining suitable drivers. The cheaper card and module makers often do not bother updating drivers when new versions of the OS are introduced. You cannot expect any support from the manufacturers, either.

Can you recommend a reasonable ASIO audio card? PCPartPicker has lots of audio cards, but none specify ASIO compliance.

If you want to have a very good audio interface with solid drivers buy a RME one.
The only con is that they are expensive (the new Babyface pro, the smaller model, is around €700).

[mdyde]

Hello Eric,

For Hauptwerk purposes, Creative's sound cards definitely aren't ideal. They're primarily designed for home multimedia/games/etc., rather than 'professional audio' purposes as such. They do have an ASIO driver, but it's rather limited (only works at a fixed sample rate, whereas Hauptwerk needs to be able to control the sample rate depending on the sample set used).

These documents (linked from our 'Support | Prerequisites' page) have some broad recommendations and background information on audio interfaces:

https://www.hauptwerk.com/clientuploads/documentation/PDF/HauptwerkPrerequisites.pdf
https://www.hauptwerk.com/clientuploads/documentation/PDF/HauptwerkBackgroundTechnicalInfoOnComputerHardware.pdf
https://www.hauptwerk.com/learn-more/requirements/

Yes, by all means do not go with any Creative Labs Soundblaster cards, I've tried two different versions in the past and you will not be happy with the results. They're fine for basic computer music, movies, gaming and the sort, but don't come close to cutting for Hauptwerk use. Although I used them at the time I was running an older XP machine, my main issue with both units I tried (both internal and external units) was lots of audio glitches, computer freezes, blue screens of death and so on, also although they are supposedly multi-channel, they do not show up as having multiple channels in Hauptwerk. They're really nothing more than a slight upgrade from a built in sound card such as the Realtek that comes on most PC's.

Marc

Thanks all - we've ditched the Creative card and found something more high-end. Thanks also to Martin for mentioning those three PDF documents - looks like the rest of the computer setup is better than spec.

Now we're just trying to resolve the monitor issue (which I've put in a different thread).

The memory is fine as long as the MB can handle 64GB. There is a sample set that would require it. The video card is way more than you would need. You could probably save a few bucks by getting something that is not gamer quality.

Greetings again - not that anyone cares, but I thought I'd update you on the progress of this project.

First, thanks to everyone's input, I did build a very successful computer - and chose to ditch the video card as the motherboard supports dual monitors. I decided 32 GB of RAM would be sufficient for the 1928 Skinner wet sample, so that's what I stuck in there. Hauptwerk Advanced is installed, and the wet Skinner set is installed. Currently, this computer is sitting here in my home office, hooked up to a dumb M-Audio 49-key USB keyboard and a pair of Bose computer speakers, and today I'm having a lot of fun working on fingerings in the Dupre Cortege et Litanie.[i][/i]

Meanwhile, across town, my friend and organ student is assembling the Hauptwerk console. Pretty soon it will be time to say goodbye to this lightning fast, whisper quiet computer and deliver it to its rightful home.

Thanks again to all of you who helped me sort this out!