Hello, I would like your help choosing a PC configuration suited to VCV’s needs because my 13-year-old PC is no longer suitable. The CPU is always at 100%, which causes constant crackling even with a very simple patch. I especially want to know which CPU to get. How much RAM? And if a graphics card is necessary or just the IGPU? Thank you.
VCV’s system requirements recommend a decent CPU and a dedicated GPU.
For RAM, it’s definitely gonna depend on what you’re doing, VCV itself tends to run pretty lean, so it’ll mostly depend on the amount of RAM the other apps are using. I wouldn’t recommend going under 8GB nowadays with how big apps like browsers and even the OSes are. I’d generally recommend at least 16 GB, particularly if you tend to keep a lot of things running in the background.
An important note is that RAM has its own frequency, and that can affect performance. Some CPUs are also affected more than others by slower RAM (e.g., AMD’s earlier Ryzens), so you’ll want to check around for info about the CPU you’re getting before deciding what RAM to buy.
For the GPU, I used to have a GTX 1060 and that worked perfectly with VCV, so anything around that level of performance or better will definitely be enough, whether Nvidia or AMD, but I imagine you can go a bit lower spec than that too.
The most important here is the CPU. You’ll want something good, and I personally recommend going as new and as high end as you’re willing or able to go. The better the CPU, the bigger the patches you’ll be able to make, and the longer it’ll take until you need to upgrade it again.
In the past I personally recommended Intel CPUs, but nowadays AMD tends to be better all around: cheaper, faster, and more efficient.
There’ve also been a few other threads here about computer specs for VCV, particularly this one about laptops: which laptop do you use?
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Welcome, @jorbriand ! @phantombeta’s advice is excellent. In terms of systems requirements, VCV Rack is closer to a modern video game than a lot of music software (with sampling rate being analogous to frame rate). If you’re able to get something reasonably beefy you won’t regret it.
Get the fastest single thread CPU you can afford. I did that nine years ago (Intel 4790K) and even now I rarely run out of grunt for VCV.
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Thank you for your reply. I’m thinking of getting an entry-level graphics card like an RX 6500 or 6600. For the CPU, I’m thinking of getting a Ryzen 7 7700, which seems like a good compromise between good performance, low power consumption, and a recent generation, all at a reasonable price. If you have other, more interesting suggestions at this price, please don’t hesitate to ask. Thank you for your help. Envoyer des commentaires
I’ve said it a million times, but I’ll say it again. module’s CPU usage varies all over the place. Usually if you have crackling it’s a few modules that are grossly inefficient that are causing the issue. Just don’t use those modules.
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For all types of computers, where VCV Rack is concerned, I’d say the following:
- Don’t get a computer with less than 16GB of RAM, that’s just good general advice these days.
- Get a computer with great cooling!
- Get a computer with a dedicated graphics adapter, not builtin graphics.
- When you have the choice get a CPU with high single-core performance.
- Get a newer Apple computer with Apple Silicon (ARM, M*) if you can afford it, they’re brilliant for Rack, and in general.
If you’re getting a Windows laptop the point about cooling and graphics is doubly important. You should probably look for a “gaming laptop” which is built for this kind of thing. Big and bulky is definately better than slim here. I will also go on record and say that a Windows laptop is the worst kind of computer for Rack.
nah, my 6yo laptop (dell workstation) runs better than macbooks from that era, it always had. 48 GB of RAM, good cpu and an M5000M as a video card…just a better hardware than standard 2019 macbook. that said, these machines are outperformed by a lightyear today by the cheapest M1 available. I agree 
Intel Macbooks were mostly crap, way too little cooling for that hot CPU. The ARM Macbooks are a whole other ballgame, fantastically good. From the worst cooling to the best 
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Having owned and/or used many windows laptops, windows towers, Intel macbooks and ARM macbooks I think @LarsBjerregaard is correct here. ARM macbooks are really good for rack. Some windows laptops are, too.
from vcvrack source compile.mk and dep.mk:
ifdef ARCH_X64
FLAGS += -march=nehalem
endif
ifdef ARCH_ARM64
FLAGS += -march=armv8-a+fp+simd
endif
“Nehalem /nəˈheɪləm/ is the codename for Intel’s 45 nm microarchitecture released in November 2008 . It was used in the first generation of the Intel Core i5 and i7 processors” wikipedia
On a recent cpu running windows, we’re missing out on rougly 15 years of cpu/compiler progress when the code is compiled using “arch=nehalem” compared to the mac arm 64. ?
I’m curious if anyone has recompiled rack on a 2020’s non mac-arm-64 cpu using -march=native, and done some benchmarking?
Pretty sure I tried it once and it didn’t make much difference?
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