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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 20
Enthusiast
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OP
Enthusiast
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 20 |
If I were to build or buy the ultimate Band in a Box PC, what should I focus on?
Or, better yet what would the ultimate config be?
Accessories?
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: May 2007
Posts: 1,616
Expert
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Expert
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 1,616 |
For performance, production, etc?
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 20
Enthusiast
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OP
Enthusiast
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 20 |
I've been tinkering for a while. Finally decided to get serious and record my songs. I have a Fostex mr 80, vocal harmony, professional recording mic. Now my pc seems to be suffering. Takes a long time to render any RT styles. Planning to get 2013 (I still have 2008). Thinking of the audiophile version.
Guess it would be production.
Ideas?
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: May 2000
Posts: 38,502
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Veteran
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 38,502 |
During the beta testing, I ran BB2013 from the USB drive on an aging XP laptop, on a Win7 Desktop and two sessions back to back on a brand spankin' Win8 laptop.
All performed remarkably well, the only exception being a slightly longer loading time for Realtracks when using the older XP machine. Don't take this the wrong way, the wait state is bearable, I'd say averaging about 20 secs (guesstimated, not timed) at most to load an all realtracks demosong.
Things just kept running this year, no crashes, freezes or the likes.
That said, I wouldn't recommend going with a bottom end economy puter, but I don't think you have to have a supergamer i7 either, although such is icing on the cake.
--Mac
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 3,926
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Veteran
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 3,926 |
See my basic specs below. I built it specifically to run Propellerhead Reason 6, but it manages BIAB quite handily. Closely based on a design from iBuyPC.com,* I built it from components. Price for equivalent performance now would be a little better than the +/- $1,000 it ran this past spring. (Or you could spend the same money and blow me out of the water.)  Anyway, decide on a budget and go from there. HTH, Richard *They build primarily for gamers, but with the right sound card they're great for music production. All PCs are burned in and guaranteed for 3 years(!). Spec a silent case and liquid cooling for added value as a music machine.
"My primary musical instrument is the personal computer."
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 2,458
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Veteran
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 2,458 |
CACntryGuy, welcome to the forums!
My box is close to what Ryszard has -- slightly faster i5, no SSD, different flavor of graphics card -- and everything's running golden. More to the point, my previous computer (sitting here until I clean out some space in the bedroom for it), with a lot less RAM, a lot slower CPU, and less than half the GPU, also ran it just fine.
Seriously, I think the most important thing would be a decently fast and roomy hard drive. As long as the rest of it is anywhere close to at least lower-mid-range, you should be just fine. Better sound card than mobo is optional but preferred; note that Creative cards have really lousy luck with 64-bit Windows.
Best, Tom SmithWin10/64 • i7-8700K • 24 GB RAM BIAB 2026 • Reaper 7.57 • Izotope MPS AKG C1000S • IK iRig I/O Pro
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 20
Enthusiast
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OP
Enthusiast
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 20 |
Awesome info guys.
I was figuring more memory and a high end sound card would be the biggest contributions to the best machine. But, the higher speed hard drive makes sense.
"Mr Immediate" (me) was looking for 'immediate' RT rendering. So, I could see the memory and harddrive having the most effect at least lessening the rendering time.
Thanks for the advice!
Also, thanks for the welcome. Been a long time BIAB tinkerer.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: May 2000
Posts: 38,502
Veteran
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Veteran
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 38,502 |
Your assumptions about ram and hard drive are correct.
The hard drive store the raw realtracks, but when a song is generated and played, the results are pulled off of the hard drive and stored in ram and then played back from ram.
--Mac
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: May 2000
Posts: 15,944
PG Music Staff
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PG Music Staff
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 15,944 |
You would want to install the whole BB install to your PC's internal drive (likely c:\) The Everything Pak is 65 GB. So you'd need to have that much space available. Most PC's come with at least 250GB, so that shouldn't be a problem. But some come with Solid State Drives - great drives, but only 80-120GB in total. So I wouldn't get one with a SSD as an "ultimate BiaB PC", unless there was another drive on that PC as well. Other than that, CPU horsepower is good - faster the better. And fast hard drive is good too. Of course you'd want the latest goodies, like USB 3.0. If its a laptop, the quality of the built-in speakers would be important too - since you would be using that a lot. You can measure the speed of your PC by a geekbench test (free http://www.primatelabs.com/geekbench/ ). Most new PC's are above 2000, and the real screamers are up around 8,000. I program BB Windows on a MacBook Pro (running Windows 7 under Bootcamp) and its' Geekbench is about 3,500. I also test it on my older XP laptop with a geekbench of 1,100, which works, but obviously things are slower.
Have Fun!
Peter Gannon
PG Music Inc.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 204
Apprentice
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Apprentice
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 204 |
Peter thanks for the link. I ran the Geekbench test and this is what I came away with. I have an HP pivilon dv7 64. The free version will not read 64,only 32. My final score is 7991. What does this tell me ,if anything.  Leon
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: May 2000
Posts: 38,502
Veteran
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Veteran
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 38,502 |
Quote:
Peter thanks for the link. I ran the Geekbench test and this is what I came away with. I have an HP pivilon dv7 64. The free version will not read 64,only 32. My final score is 7991. What does this tell me ,if anything. Leon
While you're waiting for Peter to weigh in, I'll tell you that AFAIC that's an impressive geekbench score, certainly your machine should run Band in a Box quickly and efficiently!
--Mac
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: May 2000
Posts: 15,944
PG Music Staff
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PG Music Staff
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 15,944 |
<<< My final score is 7991. What does this tell me ,if anything.
Smokin' !!!!
Have Fun!
Peter Gannon
PG Music Inc.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 27,494
Veteran
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Veteran
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 27,494 |
More than three times my score (four year-old Core 2 Duo, which works fine with BIAB).
Smokin' is putting it mildly.
BIAB 2025 Win Audiophile. Software: Studio One 7 Pro, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Presonus 192 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Slate VSX, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 4,047
Veteran
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Veteran
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 4,047 |
My newer unit doubled to ONLY 6000, but very happy with it
and the ATI grapics built into the APU.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 204
Apprentice
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Apprentice
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 204 |
Mac, It is very quick. My wife has a toshiba i5 all in one and it is much slower. My question was about Geek Bench not reading 64 units. It could be that these #'s are not correct. Never the the less it is fast enough for my needs, which at 73 years are few, if you get my drift.  -Leon
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 2,458
Veteran
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Veteran
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 2,458 |
For what it's worth, I just got 9607 on my i5-3570K in 32-bit mode, which is apparently right on track, and the chart for 64-bit mode says it'd get around 16K. Agreement with everybody, you should have no trouble running BIAB at speed.
Best, Tom SmithWin10/64 • i7-8700K • 24 GB RAM BIAB 2026 • Reaper 7.57 • Izotope MPS AKG C1000S • IK iRig I/O Pro
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Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.
ChatPG's knowledge base includes the full Band-in-a-Box User Manual and sales information from the website.
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PowerTracks Pro 2026 for Windows is Here!
PowerTracks 2026 is here—bringing powerful new enhancements designed to make your production workflow faster, smoother, and more intuitive than ever.
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Tablature now includes a “Save bends when saving XML” option for improved compatibility with PG Music tools. Plus, you can instantly match all track heights with a simple Ctrl-release after resizing, and Add2 chords from MGU/SGU files are now fully supported... and more!
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Band-in-a-Box 2026 for Windows Special Offers End Tomorrow (January 15th, 2026) at 11:59 PM PST!
Time really is running out! Save up to 50% on Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows® upgrades and receive a FREE Bonus PAK—only when you order by 11:59 PM PST on Thursday, January 15, 2026!
We've added many major new features and new content in a redesigned Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows®!
Version 2026 introduces a modernized GUI redesign across the program, with updated toolbars, refreshed windows, smoother workflows, and a new Dark Mode option. There’s also a new side toolbar for quicker access to commonly used windows, and the new Multi-View feature lets you arrange multiple windows as layered panels without overlap, making it easier to customize your workspace.
Another exciting new addition is the new AI-Notes feature, which can transcribe polyphonic audio into MIDI. You can view the results in notation or play them back as MIDI, and choose whether to process an entire track or focus on specific parts like drums, bass, guitars/piano, or vocals. There's over 100 new features in Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows®.
There's an amazing collection of new content too, including 202 RealTracks, new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, “Songs with Vocals” Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 5, two RealDrums Stems sets, XPro Styles PAK 10, Xtra Styles PAK 21, and much more!
Upgrade your Band-in-a-Box for Windows to save up to 50% on most Band-in-a-Box® 2026 upgrade packages!
Plus, when you order your Band-in-a-Box® 2026 upgrade during our special, you'll receive a Free Bonus PAK of exciting new add-ons.
If you need any help deciding which package is the best option for you, just let us know. We are here to help!
Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows® Special Offers Extended Until January 15, 2026!
Good news! You still have time to upgrade to the latest version of Band-in-a-Box® for Windows® and save. Our Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows® special now runs through January 15, 2025!
We've packed Band-in-a-Box® 2026 with major new features, enhancements, and an incredible lineup of new content! The program now sports a sleek, modern GUI redesign across the entire interface, including updated toolbars, refreshed windows, smoother workflows, a new dark mode option, and more. The brand-new side toolbar provides quicker access to key windows, while the new Multi-View feature lets you arrange multiple windows as layered panels without overlap, creating a flexible, clutter-free workspace. We have an amazing new “AI-Notes” feature. This transcribes polyphonic audio into MIDI so you can view it in notation or play it back as MIDI. You can process an entire track (all pitched instruments and drums) or focus on individual parts like drums, bass, guitars/piano, or vocals. There's an amazing collection of new content too, including 202 RealTracks, new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, “Songs with Vocals” Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 5, two RealDrums Stems sets, XPro Styles PAK 10, Xtra Styles PAK 21, and much more!
There are over 100 new features in Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows®.
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Upgrade to Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows® today! Check out the Band-in-a-Box® packages page for all the purchase options available.
Happy New Year!
Thank you for being part of the Band-in-a-Box® community.
Wishing you and yours a very happy 2026—Happy New Year from all of us at PG Music!
Season's Greetings!
Wishing everyone a happy, healthy holiday season—thanks for being part of our community!
The office will be closed for Christmas Day, but we will be back on Boxing Day (Dec 26th) at 6:00am PST.
Team PG
Band-in-a-Box 2026 Video: The Newly Designed Piano Roll Window
In this video, we explore the updated Piano Roll, complete with a modernized look and exciting new features. You’ll see new filtering options that make it easy to focus on specific note groups, smoother and more intuitive note entry and editing, and enhanced options for zooming, looping, and more.
Watch the video.
You can see all the 2026 videos on our forum!
Band-in-a-Box 2026 Video: AI Stems & Notes - split polyphonic audio into instruments and transcribe
This video demonstrates how to use the new AI-Notes feature together with the AI-Stems splitter, allowing you to select an audio file and have it separated into individual stems while transcribing each one to its own MIDI track. AI-Notes converts polyphonic audio—either full mixes or individual instruments—into MIDI that you can view in notation or play back instantly.
Watch the video.
You can see all the 2026 videos on our forum!
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