PC Motherboards and Digital Audio Recording

Lots of questions are circulating around about various PC motherboards and compatibility with digital audio products. Unless there is real standardization in the PC manufacturing industry (which I don’t see happening any time soon) this is always going to be a problem. A typical question is as follows: “I’m hoping to upgrade the motherboard/processor in my computer within the next month or so. All the magazines and Web sites I’ve read regarding digital-audio recording speak in terms of Pentium II’s, but I’ve yet to hear anything about the K6-2. All my computer-nerd friends tell me to go with a K6-2, as it’s been faster and more reliable in their experience, not to mention cheaper. For recording digital-audio, what would you recommend I upgrade to?” If you are using your computer primarily as a music making platform it would be prudent to check with the manufacturers of the hardware and software you use to see what they say. I don’t have enough specific information about the K6-2 in terms of it working with all the various digital audio products to give a definitive across the board answer. I can tell you that to date I have rarely seen an instance where a major motherboard revision (Mac or PC) did not reek havoc on digital audio recording systems. They almost always have to have new drivers or something in order to work correctly. Tread with caution. Talk to the manufacturers whose products you are using.

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