Finding the right PC for podcasting is a big task, you have to think about what you are going to be doing with that PC weather it is Video or Audio. Both can tax a system and cause some headaches. CPU, Ram, Hard Drive, Video Card, Sound Card, and even cooling all falls on the needs of you the user.
When doing the research for my production PC, I looked at big box stores, online dealers, and much more. I wanted it to be as quite is possible, but with cooling in mind and the budget I was working with… that wasn’t possible. I dont like buying computers from big box stores, Why? The little geek in side me screams “DONT BUY IT you do not know what the manufacture put in the machine.” So I turned to Dell.
Dell.com lets you pick from a range of computers and then choose what you want in it, NICE HUH? While still working with the budget, I couldn’t buy the one I wanted, So I turned to a website that deals in… Deals!
TechBargains.com has some sweet deals on New and Refurbished computers, from manufactures like Acer, Dell, HP, and others as well as other technology related products. I found a computer on this website that was $449 from Dell. So a computer that would have cost around $700 only cost me $500 with shipping, now that is some savings… and got the same one I wanted.
Now what should a Podcaster look for in a new podcasting rig?
Well since there are two category’s, Audio and Video your needs may very.
A 1 hour Audio should only take about 15 min to encode to mp3 Vs. A 30 min video that takes 3-4 times longer to encode.
Now here is what you should look for in that rig your buying.
CPU: For Audio an AMD or Intel Duel core or i3 CPU will work great. Video I would go with a Intel Quad core or I7
Ram: Audio and Video anything over 4GB will do the job and do it well.
Hard Drive: The More the better 500Gb – 1TB
Video: To tell you the truth I would get the cheapest… and then go to a website called NewEgg.com and buy a new one, and put it in your self. Manufactures dont really give you a large option of video cards. If your editing just audio the cheapest or the one you get with the pc will work just fine, But Video, get the best you can afford.
Sound: Sound cards are a tricky one, some people tend to buy just the basic, and some upgrade, I would if you can afford it.
Other things: Everything else is an option, one thing I would do is have the manufacture take all the software that they install off, like anti virus programs, or any other programs that might tax the system when you go to hook it up.
If your looking for that computer that doesn’t make a sound, and is built for what your wanting to do, check out the computers that Rain Recording manufactures. They make some NICE computers for both Audio and Video production.
If you have any comments, questions or anything else, Please leave it below.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
There are some gaps in this article. I think you should have spent more time talking about the different options people have for ensuring that their PC is quiet as possible such that it does not add to background noise. Regarding aftermarket graphics cards, again you should have pointed out that many of the high end cards can be the greatest source of noise from a PC and that considering a passively cooled card could avoid this issue.
Thanks for your comment Colin, When I wrote this article I was basing it on the assumption of a first time podcaster and/or someone who is looking to buy a new computer and doesn’t know a lot about them.
I am writing an upcoming article about how to make your computer more quit, and going a little more in depth/geeky about the subject, I’ll be talking about all of the fans in the computer and power noise that may be going through the lines. Thanks and please stay toned, Ben