Computer help please!

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So first off, I know very little about computers. Mine have always been out of date and quickly ended up loaded down with programs and viruses (YAY PC!). My current PC is extremely old and slow and can't do what I need it to do....Its about 7 years old with a celeron D processor

ANYWAY, Here's what I'm looking to do-
-record and edit hi-fi audio
-Graphic design/photo editing
-Web design... if I can figure that out
-mechanical/electrical design CAD


I think a used mac would be great as I'm on a budget but more importantly, I want something that will WORK and be enjoyable to use. I'm not sure what hardware/software requirements I need in order to do the things listed above. Open to any and all suggestions

You are going to need a shedload of RAM for CAD and graphic designing. Just get as much RAM as you can afford. You also may want to decide which software you want to use before you get the new computer, as not all will be available for a Mac.

If you want to keep that old PC around, delete Windows and install Ubuntu Linux, or wipe it clean and re-install Windows. There is some free CAD and graphic design software for Ubuntu you could try.

For hi-fi audio you have a few options.
1. Buy a high end sound card. This can be external or internal.
2. You can use ASIO4all internally if you have a decent enough CPU

Then you have to invest in an audio program like Reaper, Acid Pro, Cubase, FL Studio or whatever have you.
Then, of course, it all depends what kind of recording you plan to do. If it's electronica then you'll need VSTi plugins like Native Instruments, etc.

Thanks starkid, I considered keeping the old PC around just for free CAD stuff.

@ redrobin:
Not looking to modify my existing PC as its just too old. I'd rather have a mac for ease of use.

For media editing mac would be the way to go. I use FL studio myself for audio sequencing it has a bit of a learning curve though.

Since you keep getting loaded with malware and viruses, a mac may be a good idea in your case. It's great for all the media stuff too. RAM is dirt cheap these days so long as you get one that takes DDR3.

Keep an eye on apple.com's "refub" section - huge discounts to be had and are accepted by all as perfect condition units. Sometimes you even get higher specs than you paid for!



...of course, you could stop clicking willy-nilly on things and stop downloading viruses too....

It's time for that old machine to go though... a single-core celeron from 8 years ago STINKS in comparison to even the lowest $40 processor today. Drives and memory are also much larger and faster (and cheaper!)

The problem with a Mac though, is that it costs more than Generic x86 hardware, and they can can be nearly impossible to upgrade with larger drives without spending even more money for a Mac Specialist to do it for you, as in the case of MacBooks.

I would stick with either a Windows machine loaded with a lot of memory, or a Linux system, again loaded with a lot of memory. Also, you can free up even more memory with both by turning off all compsiting and eyecandy features, which hog a lot of memory and contribute nothing to any task you may want to accomplish.

Although Ubuntu has been mentioned, I would suggest Lubuntu (essentially Ubuntu with a desktop environment which is lighter than the default Unity desktop), or a distro such as SolusOS which is essentially a respin of Debian Stable with updated software packages and a focus on desktop computing.

OK I think I'm going to go for a used/ re-furbed mac. How old is too old?

Not necessarilly, it depends what software you are using and/or what projects you are taking on. I use a 3D CAD program called Blender which has a very small memory footprint. Even old and low spec computers can run Blender no problem.

Often having a good operating system and graphics card is more important than throwing RAM at it. I bought my Dual Core 2 computer in 2007 and in hindsight I wish i'd got 64 bit Windows instead of 32 bit Windows. Its badly affected the maximum performance of my hardware. Also in regards to your RAM make sure you are aware about binary memory channels. You need to keep your RAM sticks symetrical otherwise it'll make your performance worse. For example having one 1GB RAM stick and having one 2GB stick is worse than having two 1GB sticks.

It may be because I'm a PC fanboy but I'd stay away from Mac's unless you are looking to do specific development projects. In my experience software tends to be PC orientated.

ONLY get it off the apple website (refurb section) ... those ones are only one generation old instead of some older Core2Duo system (which is still leaps & bounds better than the klunker you have!)

Unless someone is selling a used one locally for much less...

You'll need to learn how to use the Mac operating system - but a new Windows PC is so different from XP you're in for a learning curve anyway so you should get the machine you're happy with.

I gotta' say... iMac does it with style!

Partly true... it still is for AMD-based machines, but Intel took a step up in the later Core2Duo era... Instead of only single or dual-channel RAM, it introduced hybrid-channel memory. For 2 sticks (2GB + 1GB) it would take 2GB as dual channel and 1GB as single channel.

Although it hardly matters... the performance difference is tiny... like 2%

An iMac will come with 2x?? sticks with room for 2 more. Get your RAM 3rd-party for 1/3 of the price.