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Jeff Hull · Nov 16, 2005, 03:20 PM

I would like to use an xServe for music editing/production. A rackmount unit would be very convenient for mobile use, and the swappable SATA drives would be ideal. Is there anything about the xServe that would prevent installing plain Tiger rather than the server software, and running ProTools?

Todd Madson · Nov 16, 2005, 03:28 PM

Good question. I could see an Xserve in a nice 19" rack of various effectors
and/or other equipment and I'm pondering if this hasn't been done already
by someone in a professional capacity.

mduell · Nov 16, 2005, 07:11 PM

Yes, it should work.
But beware, they're noisy and they don't have any audio ports (so you'd need a PCI, FW, or USB sound card).

Jeff Hull · Nov 16, 2005, 07:25 PM

Thanks for the replies, gentlemen. The interface box is connected via Firewire 400, so that should be OK. A little fan noise is OK for this application, since it would be at some distance from the stage and mics for live recording, and then used offline for editing, effects, and mixdown.

Kyle Dreaden · Nov 16, 2005, 07:42 PM

It's too deep to fit most audio rackmounts. Servers are a whole different animal than normal audio gear.

Check the specs.

mduell · Nov 16, 2005, 08:50 PM

Originally Posted by Jeff Hull

A little fan noise is OK for this application, since it would be at some distance from the stage and mics for live recording, and then used offline for editing, effects, and mixdown.

The Xserve does not have a "little fan noise." Unfortunately I can't find an actual noise level, but this is a machine designed for a datacenter not a desktop.

Also, as Kyle Dreaden notes, the Xserve is 28" deep.

rcleland2 · Nov 17, 2005, 01:38 AM

"The Xserve does not have a "little fan noise." "

Second that mduell. We have 2 Xserves at the office, and they sound like two Hoovers.

OreoCookie · 07:54 AM

Originally Posted by Jeff Hull

Thanks for the replies, gentlemen. The interface box is connected via Firewire 400, so that should be OK. A little fan noise is OK for this application, since it would be at some distance from the stage and mics for live recording, and then used offline for editing, effects, and mixdown.

Well, depending on the model, XServes are loud, not just a little, especially under load. Unlike desktops, the cooling system are trimmed for safety and not quietness.

Judging from my experience with the XServe G4 at work, I would seriously think twice about this idea. Just try the XServe you like under load and wait till the fans kick in. If you are ok with that noise level, then get one. Technologically, there is no obstacle to using one in your case.

edited out some very strange early-morning grammar.

djfreekshow · Jan 9, 2006, 05:26 AM

This reply is sorely late... but I can tell you from personal experience with the G5 Xserve that it is, for the biggest part, a space heater. I am running an Xserve single 2.0GHZ G5 in my room, and it is enclosed in the GizMac Zrack PRO2. That rack is designed to be deep enough (after modification, as I quickly discovered) to hold the Xserve, and has acoustic foam lining every inch of the inside of it. Despite the weight (180 pounds) and the noise of its own fans, it is the nicest thing I have ever run a server in.

In regard to the Xserve itself, I don't know what you're used to. My first personal computer was an Alienware Area 51, so I am used to fan noise. However, in a good acoustic dampening enclosure, like the Xrack, you will not hear it nearly as much. The required space is very low, too. I think it was around 36.5 deep, 22 or some wide, and 12U tall. The panels can be removed, and even the doors. So, if sound isn't that much of an issue to you, remove the sides back and front. The maximum volume of the Xserve fans is astounding. I never thought I would hear a mac do that ever. The only time I have gotten load high enough on it (it's brand new for me... just got it) is when I boot into target mode, and sometimes late at night cause my room is stuffy and it's just sucking back in the air it heats up.

All-in-all... the Xserve is more of a concern of temp than noise, unless you're using extremely sensitive mics that would pick a high freq from behind them or wherever it will be at. I would reccomend extending your XLR's (if that is what you use... some prefer banana jacks, and others different things) a good twenty to thirty feet from the mic, and putting some sort of barrier between the server and the mics if they can catch the high freq from it easily. If you want a sound sample, I can take one for you later on today or this week. I'll be posting pictures of my whole setup in the powermac pictures thread sometime today as well. The machine has my vote for this task.

Good luck!

chris v · Jan 9, 2006, 09:00 AM

A Powerbook with a 7200 RPM drive added to it should be able to record at least 16 tracks simultaneously. A FW 800 external drive would probably up that to at least 24. So long as you didn't run a ton of plug-ins while recording, you'd do fine that way.

djfreekshow · Jan 9, 2006, 03:55 PM

True. A decent powerbook or even a dual G5 PM would do the trick. And the tracks would be even better with the PM. I have to say the PM would be a better alternative to the Xserve cause it's not so needy. Plus it looks cooler.

waffffffle · Jan 11, 2006, 04:17 AM

You can rackmount G5 towers. VT did it to build their supercomputer before G5 Xserves were available.

mduell · Jan 11, 2006, 03:39 PM

Originally Posted by waffffffle

You can rackmount G5 towers. VT did it to build their supercomputer before G5 Xserves were available.

They didn't really "rack mount" them; they put shelves in their racks and put the PowerMacs (upright) on the shelves. AFAIK Apple doesn't offer a rackmount (horizontal) kit for the PowerMacs.

djfreekshow · Jan 11, 2006, 06:53 PM

I wasn't deterring him from rackmounting the powermacs, it just sounded like he didn't have a rack already, and if he did, then a music rack, which would be too small anyway. That's all. However, you do have a good point, the PM can be put on a shelf and held in a rack just like VT did before the Xserve.