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DAW COMPONENTS

As a rule, Steinberg software runs on all standard computers, provided that these satisfy the system

requirements printed on the given product’s package. Happily, you’ll see that today's market offers a

computer to suit every application and budget. Affordable computers for smaller projects are readilyavailable, as are highly specialized multiprocessor systems for professional applications in the music and

movie industries. You’ll even find powerful systems for mobile use so that nothing stands in the way of

deploying Steinberg software on stage and producing music on the go, away from your studio.

Depending on what you wish to accomplish with the software, your computing demands may entail

special requirements. These requirements hinge upon the type of project you intend to work on. Severa

performance-related factors figure prominently, such as sample rate and bit depth, as well as the

number of tracks, plug-ins, instrument voices and effects used in a project. So, if you need a computer

to realize elaborate projects, ask yourself this question:

"Which computer is right for my application?"

To answer this, you must first determine what it is you want the computer system to do. Depending on

the tasks you have in mind, you may be looking at very different hardware requirements: If you wish to

employ many VST instruments, happiness lies in fast hard drives, acres of RAM real estate, and a

relatively fast processor. If your focus is on pure audio recording, a fast hard disk with a slightly slower

processor can get the job done nicely, contingent upon the number of tracks and format. Be sure to

take your working environment into account when weighing the relative merits of systems. By and large,

you’ll find that the more powerful the system, the higher the noise level. The reason for this is that

higher-performance hardware generally necessitates more intense cooling. And if you’re aiming to go

mobile without mains power to tie you down, be aware that frequently a fast laptop equipped with agaming-enabled graphics card adversely affects system latency because it draws a lot more power from

the battery pack. Lesson learned: The fastest system is not always your first choice!

Help is near if you feel that your projects may entail special demands. To assist you in pinpointing the

computer system that is right for you, you’ll find some vital tips below that complement the information

on Steinberg products’ individual system requirements as indicated on product pages and packaging.

This supplementary info will help you zero in on and choose the right computer system and rise to every

challenge a project may pose using Steinberg products.

Processors

Chipsets

Hard Drives

Random Access Memory

Audio Cards

Graphic Cards

Operating Systems

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Processors

Steinberg products work excellently with the standard processors found in PC and Mac computers

today. When selecting a processor, speed certainly counts because it has such a tremendous impact on

many processes within the computer. This is why Steinberg applications support

multiprocessor/multicore systems and enable very high performance. Below you can find an excerpt of

current processors/systems that can cope with today's demands and large projects. If you feel the

need to upgrade your DAW, take a closer look at the hardware listed below. Nevertheless, it is of course

possible to use an Intel Core 2 Duo system or an Apple Mac Mini depending on the environment and

workload.

AMD PROCESSORS

AMD Category Cores

Phenom II X4 Desktop 4

Phenom II X6 Desktop 6

FX Desktop 4-8

Opteron Desktop 4-12

INTEL PROCESSORS

INTEL Category Cores

Intel Core i3* Mobile/Desktop 2

Intel Core i5* Mobile/Desktop 2-4

Intel Core i7* Mobile/Desktop 2-6

Intel Xeon* Desktop 4-6

APPLE SYSTEMS

APPLE Category Cores

MacBook Pro (Intel Core i5/i7)* Mobile 2

iMac (Intel Core i3/i5/i7)* Desktop 2-4

Mac Pro* Desktop 4-12

* This processor supports Hyper-Threading. See details...

https://www.steinberg.net/en/support/knowledgebase_new/show_details/kb_show/hyper-threading





Chipsets

The chipset used on any motherboard is one of the most crucial components of a DAW (digital audio

workstation). It handles all aspects of the communications between system components (e.g.

processor, system busses, periphery) including the integration of the audio devices. Especially on the PC

Windows platform there are several options available, including chipsets from Intel, AMD, and nVidia.

However, we can tell from our own experiences that not all chipsets are equally suitable for demanding

audio applications. The need for low latencies and high data transfer rates for hard disks, audio cards

and DSP cards can make one specific chipset or motherboard either completely inappropriate or highly

recommended for audio production. As this is again a matter of compatibility between all hardware

components rather than between our applications and the hardware, we recommend that you contact

the manufacturers of the audio and/or DSP cards of your choice. They can provide all the necessary

information on compatible and recommended chipsets as well as the chipsets you should avoid. A well

configured and compatible hardware is the most important basis for being able to work satisfactorily with

our applications!

Hard Drives

As a rule, Steinberg products may be employed in connection with every hard disk found in

contemporary computers. The hard drive’s capacity to enable elaborate projects involving many audio

tracks and serve as a delivery medium for sample content destined for VST instruments that work with

disk streaming technology hinges upon the following factors:

Rotational speed: Let’s start with laptops whose hard drives are rated for 4,200 RPM (rounds per

minute): This RPM rating has a direct influence on how many audio tracks the hard disk can record and

play simultaneously. Expect no miracles from these hard disks because the risk of bottlenecks

constricting data transfer is quite high. Use 4,200 RPM hard drives for small audio projects only. Some

manufacturers equip their laptops with 5,400 RPM hard disks, and they deliver acceptable performance

in terms of the audio track count. If you’re looking for professional-grade performance for audio systems

running scores of tracks, you will find what you’re seeking in later-model laptops sporting 7,200 RPM

hard disks. Another option for attaining sufficient hard disk performance is to choose an external hard

disk offering good data throughput and connect it via FireWire or USB 2.0/3.0. Newer systems might als

feature eSATA ports for connecting external hard drives to. Those drives usually offer the same transfer

rate as internal SATA drives and thus are recommended.

If you’re in the market for a desktop system, avoid hard disks that run slower than 7,200 RPM. Hard

disks rated for 7,200 RPM normally deliver the data throughput required to enable elaborate audio

projects with many tracks and at the same time furnish sample data to VST instruments. Bear in mind,

though, that this is one of those cases were more is indeed better. For example, S-ATA (see below)

10,000 RPM hard disks can certainly help prevent throughput bottlenecks. Another strategy for boostingaudio data throughput entails using several hard disks. Experience teaches that partitioning makes good

sense: Dedicate one hard drive to the operating system and installed applications, and the other to

audio data. If you wish to make extensive of use of sampler plug-ins, you could even devote a further

hard disk exclusively to sample content delivery.

Especially for sample content, the rather new Solid-State Disks (SSD) might be worth considering. SSDs

use flash technology and thus do not need any mechanical components. The advantages are obvious:

the access times are much lower than those of regular hard disks and the data transfer rate is usually

higher which makes them the first choice for sample content streaming. In addition, they are extremely





robust and silent. However, SSDs are still very expensive, do not offer the same storage capacity as

conventional hard disks. When using SSDs, Windows 7 should be the preferred operating system as it

automatically detects a SSD and makes certain optimizations for best performance (e.g. disable

defragmentation, support of the TRIM feature). TRIM support on Mac OS X has been activated with Mac

OS X 10.6.8 for Apple's own SSDs. Third party SSDs will still have to work without TRIM for the time

being.

Cache: Hard drives come with a buffer memory called a cache. It also influences hard disks’ access

speed. In the main it can be said that the bigger the cache, the better the hard disk’s capacity tohandle large amounts of data. Caches sized 16 MB and more have proven very useful for applications in

the audio field. Laptop hard disks’ caches are generally substantially smaller; on standard desktop

computer models, hard disk caches usually range from just 4 to 8 MB. If you wish to use the hard disk

for streaming sample content, be mindful of its cache size. Along with rotational speed, cache size has

an immediate impact on the amount of individual samples you can load at a time, say, while VST

instruments (for example HALion) are being played.

Interface: The access protocol for hard disks is particularly important if you want to run an audio

workstation tweaked for top-drawer performance. ATA debuted as a parallel protocol, but a serial

version (S-ATA) was introduced to replace it. It is the preferred standard used today for Mac and PCsystems. S-ATA revision 2.0 and 3.0 are boasting even higher data throughput rates and optimized disk

drive addressing (for example NCQ, short for Native Command Queuing, a related technology “borrowed”

from the SCSI world). Nowadays SCSI systems are no longer a necessity for turning a computer into a

high-performance audio workstation. Though SCSI is indeed a very powerful technology, the upscale

price tag does not always justify the performance gains. If price is not an issue but performance is, you

may wish to work with SCSI hard disks because some models are rated for up to 15,000 RPM. If you are

entertaining this notion, be aware that heat and noise build-up is a factor with such systems. If you

intend to set up an ultra efficient media server for a studio network or carry out epic recording sessions

with hundreds of tracks, SCSI or its serial successor Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) is certainly a good

choice. Alternatively, you can connect several S-ATA hard disks in a RAID system and use it to serve

the same purposes.

Random Access Memory

For Steinberg applications, nothing less than 1 GB RAM will do. However, all up-and-running applications

and the operating system access the main memory at the same time, so installing more RAM is highly

advisable. You may find that even sizable main memory acreage of 1 GB won’t suffice to deliver

satisfactory system performance for larger projects. The reason for this is that VST instruments and

audio projects load audio samples into the main memory and read them there. If you have don’t have

much RAM installed, less material can be buffered there, and more data must be handled via the slower

hard disks. This means access takes longer. Under normal conditions, Windows XP, Vista and 7 32-bit

editions can use up to 2 GB RAM whereas Mac OS X can address up to 4 GB and Windows Vista/7 64-bit

even more than that in connection with Steinberg’s current Cubase/Nuendo versions. More RAM

definitely does good things for your system’s overall performance.

Audio Cards

Audio devices are available on the market today for all leading computer interface

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TRIM





USB 1.1

USB 2.0

Firewire 400 (IEEE 1394)

Firewire 800 (IEEE 1394b)

PCI

PCMCIA

PCIe

Now, which of these interfaces should you choose? That depends largely on the type of application and

computer system. For example, most of today's systems lack PCI slots. What’s important is that ASIO

2.0 (PC) or Core Audio (Mac) compatible drivers are available for whatever audio device you have set

your sights on. These drivers serve to achieve very low latency on both platforms and are therefore

highly recommended. Particularly when working with VST instruments and auditioning the recording

signal via the software, driver-induced delay may not exceed a few milliseconds; anything higher is

noticeable and quite annoying. Alongside a well-configured and powerful system, the audio card’s driver

is one of the most vital components of a good DAW. It takes both to attain latency as low as 1.5 ms.

Graphic Cards

The dark days of incompatible graphics card drivers are for the most part history. All three leading

graphics cards manufacturers (nVidia, ATI/AMD and Matrox) today offer solid drivers, so these vendors’

products are viable options. All of them offer cards for multi-monitor setups. Some even offer HDMI

and Display Port connectors in addition to DVI and VGA.

Video Engine

With the release of Cubase 5.5 and Nuendo 5, Steinberg introduced a completely overhauled video

engine which is now able to utilize the GPU for scaling and playback of a video which is a noticeable

improvement especially when dealing with HD material. There are some requirements that have to be

met though:

The graphics card needs to support OpenGL 2.0 or higher and the correct (usually the latest) driver

should be installed. However, the OpenGL 2.0 specification is available since late 2004 and almost all

current desktop or laptop solutions support at least version 2.0.

A very comprehensive overview on the supported OpenGL versions can be found in the Wikipedia articles

for AMD/ATI, nVidia and Intel.

But even without an OpenGL 2.0 capable card, you should be able to play back video files although the

overall performance of the system will be reduced. In rare cases and with very old graphics cards, only

the video import is available but no playback is possible. Our applications will display a dialog hinting at

this. However, no system that meets the system requirements for current Nuendo or Cubase releaseswill have such outdated cards installed.

For details please have a look at the dedicated knowledge base article on the new video engine.

Operating systems for Apple computers

We generally recommend the current version of Apple's operating system. Unless noted otherwise in the

system requirements of a specific product, this version is best suited for current Steinberg products.

https://www.steinberg.net/en/support/knowledgebase_new/show_details/kb_show/New-Video-Engine-for-Cubase-and-Nuendo

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Intel_graphics_processing_units

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Nvidia_graphics_processing_units

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_ATI_Graphics_Processing_Units





Operating systems for PC systems

We recommend using Windows 7 for our current product range. Please have a look at the system

requirements on our website and on the product boxes for additional information!

http://www.etracker.de/app?et=bssZBV

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