Jack Stoner

11 hours ago, DCMG said:

Interesting. Yeah, that's partly the reason I'm deciding to bail. Chances are this isn't the last time I would run into some proprietary Dell detail that would limit options. I think for anyone with limitless patience and/or mainstream needs, the units are nice. The initial experience of firing it up and getting it set up for general use was really easy. For their target audience, they do a good job.

Another option is to have Jim Roseberry build you a custom DAW machine.  He is THE MAN!

I considered a Dell when I built my last system,  but the limited expansion and proprietary hardware nixed it (Dell uses 6 pin and 8 pin motherboard power connections not the standard 24 pin ATX).   Even though I'm on the  Dell forum .

As I noted on the Dell forum, in order to get a useable machine for specific applications such as DAW, users are doing a clean install.  Windows OS, needed device drivers and DAW applications (and Latency Mon).

That's what I had to do on a Dell laptop to have a clean DAW machine (actually a dual boot - 1. The original Dell disc image and 2. The clean install for DAW use).

I posted another response on the Dell forums.

Just saw reference to this NVIDIA custom installer.  I have AMD Radeon so I can't test it.

NVCleanstall v1.16.0 Download | TechPowerUp

NVCleanstall lets you customize the NVIDIA GeForce Driver package by removing components that you don't need (or want). This not only keeps things tidy, but also lowers disk usage and memory footprint.

Unlike the NVIDIA custom installation, you can unselect packages like "Stereo 3D Glasses", "USB-C", Notebook Optimizations or Telemetry from the NVIDIA drivers.

Just as a follow up, friend reports new DAW PC running OK, no problems in ProTools.

Thanks for the info, especially the special drivers if needed.

I've always been a "no NVIDIA" video for DAW's, dating back to my experiences, as far back as Vista.  

Now, I'm helping configure a new Win 11  DAW PC for a (ProTools) friend.  It has an NVIDIA RTX 3060 and Resplendence  Latency Mon does not report any problems!

Jim Roseberry, what has changed?

You don't need an i9.  Its way overkill.  I could have easily used an i5 or i7 CPU.  The i9 generates more heat to contend with and on mine there are cores that are never used.

Thus my suggestion is either an i5 or i7 12th or 13th gen CPU.

Memory is overkill too.   I have 16GB and rarely use over 8 GB.

SSD's for OS and programs and data.

Unless you are into gaming or high end graphics, the built in CPU graphics are all that's` required.

What is the actual Dell model?

Support Assist can be an issue with audio.  Disable it in startup, but don't uninstall it as it integrates with the POST (Power On Self Test) and the Dell hardware diagnostics. (Restart the PC after disabling).   

The 16X08 appears to be one problem, since other interfaces appear to run OK.  If the TASCAM drivers are not specified for Win 11, install them in a compatibility mode for whatever Windows version they are for (e.g. Win 10).

Finally download and  run Resplendence Latency Mon and see what that shows.  

10th Gen CPU meets Microsoft's hardware requirements for Win 11.

My 9th gen i9 9900K runs Win 11 and Cakewalk without problems.

Cakewalk works and looks the same whether on a laptop or a desktop.  Works the same regardless of Windows OS version.

I have a laptop I used for on-site (live) recordings.  I had an MOTU 8 channel (8 analog preamps) USB connected recording interface. 

Laptop worked great after "taming" (latency and dropouts).

I have an  old (2017) Dell "gaming" laptop.  It has a 7th gen i5 CPU (Not officially Win 11 compatible).  It came with a 130 watt power adapter rather than the puny 60 or 90 many come with.  A gaming laptop was selected as it has better air flow and cooling.  The cooling and higher power adapter are a plus when the laptop is powered on and used for long periods.  I find recording a 4 hour gig requires the PC to be on nearly 6 hours.

If I were to buy a new recording laptop today, same requirements for type and at least a current production i5 CPU and Windows 11.

That was flagged last week on the eleven.com forum.

This time of year in the cold climates static electricity can be an issue.

Even in warm Florida, where I live, Murphy's Law applies and I wear a grounded wrist strap when working with computer "innards".

9 hours ago, hockeyjx said:

Intel is on Gen12 ...yours is a Gen6,  so I wouldn't throw a ton of time/resources/money at it frankly.

13th gen is out.

If you reseat the CPU, look (closely) for bent pins.

I've built about 15 desktops over the last 10 years, some for me and some for others.  Only motherboards that I had bent CPU pins were ASRock,  and one was a Fatal1ty board.   However, since it worked and if the CPU was not removed/reinstalled I wouldn't suspect bent CPU pins on this board.

EDIT:  I went back over your initial post and see that you did change/reinstall CPU so a bent pin is sus

We see a lot of problems on the Dell support forums that are fixed with new battery, regardless of voltage.

Disconnect the AC power cord to the power supply.  Press power button for 10 seconds to drain any residual power, remove the 2032 battery for 10 minutes then install new battery, reconnect AC power cord and try.

I had one of those motherboards.  "had" is the key word.    

Replace the 2032 CMOS backup battery as a first step.  This will also reset the BIOS to factory defaults.

I just went through a problem with a Seagate USB connected hard drive.   As it turned out the actual hard drive was OK but the internal interface was bad.

Disassembled the unit and put the hard drive in a new external enclosure and all is well.

My case is the PureBase 600.

Cakewalk is a Windows OS app.  

First thing that I see is only 4GB of  RAM.  That is insufficient.  8 or even 16GB is needed,

I have a BeQuiet full size case and tried that cooler with my i9 9900K.  It barely fit in the full size case and I wasn't happy with the CPU temps idling at over 40C.  I replaced it with a Corsair liquid cooler and the temps dropped to mid 30'c C at idle.

16 hours ago, Byron Dickens said:

The OP hasn't been back since. Must not have been that important.

I see that on computer help forums.  A problem is reported, in the response(s) is the fix.   That is the end of the thread, user got their answer,