I know, this question is hard, but maybe someone can give me advice:
I will buy Pianoteq and I want to use it in Ableton live for more experimental stuff, using
two or three instruments with Effekts like Loops and Resonators.
Is an core2 with 3.0 Ghz perfect for it, or should it be a quad? An I7?
Thanks, Ulrich
Dualcore is gonna be very good. Quad and i7 CPUs are bit more expensive, and Pianoteq simply FLIES on them, allowing you usage of LOTS of VSTi at the same time. If you decide to spend a bit more money now, get the i7 and 12 GB of RAM. You'll have an excellent system for years to come.
My PC runs on a 'single core' AMD Athlon, 64 Processor 3400+, 2.20Ghz, 300Gb RAM (older RAM). It could easily run Pianoteq while a host of other media task are running: TV, DVDs, Internet; (streaming Video content; YouTube, BBC iPlayer (or similar)), Norton running background tasks. The PC is about 7 years old and is starting to feel old now.
I'm sure any modern PCs specification running on a dual core and above processor, latest memory etc.., will make light work of Pianoteq. If your PC does struggles to run it, check the 'Sample Rate' and the 'Polyphony' count in the 'Options' menu and adjust it accordingly. Test it by hammering all the keys at full velocity, whilst using full sustain (head phones recommended at this point, if you're sharing the habitation) and keep an eye on the little '0%' found in the top left corner, near the 'Midi' controls. If your PC doesn't bottle-neck at this point you should be ok.
I don't know how much of the CPU Ableton live will use. I'd go for the best CPU specification (and Hard-drive space) that I could afford, because I find all the other elements easier to upgrade later.
Perfect question for me to answer, per my configuration below: the dual-core is very good at that clock speed (I can run about 4-5 instances of Pianoteq, with plenty of effects -- though heavy-duty effects probably cut that to 2-3), so you would be _happy_ with it...
BUT: I wish I had a quad-core! (Well, more like an octo Mac Pro. ;^)
I'm insane and want to run at _least_ 6 instances of Pianoteq to form a sort of "mega-gamelan" orchestra with plenty of effects. Therefore, the quad-core would leave plenty of room for growth!
dhalfen, you need an i7. FAST!
dhalfen, you need an i7. FAST! :)
Believe me, I _know_ that I do! Don't make me cry! ;^)