Updated Old Pc With Ssd (experiences) Options

[Mertay]

So if you're thinking about a boost to an old PC which still works fine for you, here's my experience. First some notes;

-Check if the motherboard has Sata ports. If yes then great, current SSD's are sold as Sata 3 compatible while old PC's may have Sata 2. Don't worry, just like USB Sata 3 can work on Sata 2 input and still is faster than a HDD.

-I wanted a really cheap option so bought a crucial bx500 240gb. There are 120gb models too but their lifespan is 50% shorter as SSD's have a limit of writing data to the same space. This model isn't considered durable but the math says it should work for 5 years if I move 48gb a day, so considering my computer is old it should be plenty.

-The 240gb SSD for me is windows and programs only, the 1TB HDD is now used for other data (for storage or use)

-While installing I did bump into 1-2 problems, not with the SSD but when installing a new windows. My cousin is a computer wiz. and helped me on the phone, but if you don't know anyone like that get the job done by a tech. as they ideally shouldn't charge too much. My problems were related to the machine being older than 5-6 years (old bios), if yours is not as old likely there won't be problems, give it a shot if you're confident. It's a really good idea not formatting the windows on the HDD before you finish installation on the SSD.

After when I setup everything and started installing stuff the first thing I noticed was the lack of HDD noise its something minor but when its not there you definitely notice it.

Windows opening speed wasn't as drastically improved as I read about, but you really notice the launch the speed after you install things like webbrowser, DAW, virus program etc. . They're pretty much launch instantly but also work way faster too.

Naturally internet speed doesn't get affected but when you enter a site where there are lots of pictures it will open-up much faster.

One interesting thing I noticed was the HDD got much faster when it isn't running windows anymore, I'd say about 30%. I've done a lot of moving data and never remember getting such speeds from it before. I haven't installed Kontakt yet but pretty sure instruments will open a touch faster.

So since small size SSD's are really cheap now, I definitely recommend the upgrade for whatever reason you're still using an old PC.

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This post has been edited by Mertay: Jul 28 2020, 11:42 AM

[Phil66]

Best upgrade ever.

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[Todd Simpson]

Agreed. Best upgrade one could make to just about any computer. It's a great way to get way more speed out of just about any computer. if your rig is feeling sluggish, get the biggest ssd that's practical for your budget and make it your primary drive. I bought a Terabyte SSD for my mac laptop build years ago and it's still the best investment I ever made. It's been large enough to keep current project on the local drive which is very handy as big daw projects can be slow to pop up from standard drives. On an ssd, even a large project pops up quick, as do photoshop projects and video editing projects. It's the one thing that will make any machine feel way faster imho.

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[Mertay]

My cousin called to ask how things were going and commented after he switched to SSD's every purchase he made the size got bigger and bigger.

Before I bought the SSD, I checked my computers needs first. The HDD had 2 partitions, I try to keep the windows partition smaller for virus scans or system restore if needed. It was about 50gb so then I made-up my mind on not needing a huge SSD.

I only installed EZ Drummer which uses samples and naturally takes way more space compared to a synth vsti or guitar amp. Likely every project I make has those drums+I tend to freeze drums first to save ram or cpu power during work. The HDD has kontakt samples which takes-up a lot of place and I don't use them too often.

But if I were to being into video edit/render then yeah there's no way around it.

Newer machines comes with M2 SSD's which are 10x faster than standard SSD, its very likely to be the tech. standard in the future so if and GMC'er is thinking about making a new PC, make sure the MOBO has atleast one M2 input.

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This post has been edited by Mertay: Jul 29 2020, 11:55 PM

[Todd Simpson]

It really is the one piece of hardware that is a game changer on any system. Even if you buy the smallest one you can find, like a 128 which is what I have on my backup mac, my mack book air with 8 gig ram and dual core i7 cpu, it's still the best money you can spend on any system. My little backkup unit, which costs $300, (pretty darn cheap for a mac) will run a huge logic session and not complain. Having an SSD as it's main drive is the key.

If you are thinking about spending money on your computer, skip the ram, etc. Buy an SSD drive. Youre budget will be you guide. Whatever you can afford, will determine how big of a drive you get. Even the smallest one will let you put your operating system. Bigger ones will let you put current projects on as well which will change your life. Being able to open a huge daw or video project without waiting forever is a wonderful thing. I keep other projects on external drives. But whatever I'm working on right now, goes on the SSD. I honestly wish I had a second one. I may eventually get another ssd and put it in the optical drive bay as I rarely use the optical drive at all these days. I used to use it all the time. Just not anymore.

My cousin called to ask how things were going and commented after he switched to SSD's every purchase he made the size got bigger and bigger.

Before I bought the SSD, I checked my computers needs first. The HDD had 2 partitions, I try to keep the windows partition smaller for virus scans or system restore if needed. It was about 50gb so then I made-up my mind on not needing a huge SSD.

I only installed EZ Drummer which uses samples and naturally takes way more space compared to a synth vsti or guitar amp. Likely every project I make has those drums+I tend to freeze drums first to save ram or cpu power during work. The HDD has kontakt samples which takes-up a lot of place and I don't use them too often.

But if I were to being into video edit/render then yeah there's no way around it.

Newer machines comes with M2 SSD's which are 10x faster than standard SSD, its very likely to be the tech. standard in the future so if and GMC'er is thinking about making a new PC, make sure the MOBO has atleast one M2 input.

You are at GuitarMasterClass.net

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[Mertay]

If you are thinking about spending money on your computer, skip the ram, etc. Buy an SSD drive.

Well that depends a bit on usage or even the music made. Sample stuff requires a lot of ram, if you visit filmscore guys they don't recommend under 64gb of ram for beginners

For drums and bass (what we rock guys only use that uses samples), likely 8gb of ram even today would be satisfactory unless super huge libraries aren't used (best of the best stuff). But when you add piano, strings then it gets ram hungry...many also preferes synth. stuff as sample too.

But there is a flip side to it which surprisingly very few people know about. In kontakt, there is a memory adjustment slider. It's set to HDD speed meaning the optimal RAM-TO-HDD share when playing a sample...so if you get the fastest SSD, then you can really lower that value and ram usage decreases almost %50

And yeah likely this virus isn't going away soon so its a good time for investing on a computer.

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This post has been edited by Mertay: Jul 30 2020, 01:37 PM

[Todd Simpson]

I'm mostly talking to our audience here at GMC who mostly are using their computer at their home to create mostly guitar based music. Certainly there are exceptions to every rule or we wouldn't need rules. Sure, massive amounts of ram are need for film score stuff. I was more talking about guys here who are putting together tracks that feature their guitar playing. If a machine has a decent amount of ram, say 16gb, or at least 8 at a bare minimum, it's enough ram to do work in a daw making guitar music. the SSD will speed pretty much everything up including launching the daw and plugins.

But yeah, if you are doing stuff that's really ram heavy, get more ram

Well that depends a bit on usage or even the music made. Sample stuff requires a lot of ram, if you visit filmscore guys they don't recommend under 64gb of ram for beginners

For drums and bass (what we rock guys only use that uses samples), likely 8gb of ram even today would be satisfactory unless super huge libraries aren't used (best of the best stuff). But when you add piano, strings then it gets ram hungry...many also preferes synth. stuff as sample too.

But there is a flip side to it which surprisingly very few people know about. In kontakt, there is a memory adjustment slider. It's set to HDD speed meaning the optimal RAM-TO-HDD share when playing a sample...so if you get the fastest SSD, then you can really lower that value and ram usage decreases almost %50

And yeah likely this virus isn't going away soon so its a good time for investing on a computer.

You are at GuitarMasterClass.net

Don't miss today's free lick. Plus all our lessons are packed with free content!

Don't miss today's free blues, jazz & country licks. Plus all our lessons are packed with free content!