Wanting to upgrade my computer. I am running a HP Z400 with 6 core Xeon W3690 @ 3.47 Ghz cpu with DDR3 24 gig ram.

Love this computer! Works 6 days a week 8 hours a day running Pro Tools 12.5 and never a single problem.

Only issue is I am using a RME HDSP9652 PCI audio card and I do not want to replace it.

Was wanting to upgrade to a HP Z4 G4 with a Intel 8 core Xeon W-2145 3.70 GHz or W-2245 3.9 GHz cpu and DDR4 32 gig ram but the HP Z4 G4 does not have a PCI slot.

Only options I see are the Dell Precision 5820 or the Lenova ThinkStation P520 using one of those cpus. Both have a (bridged) PCI slot which should work. Main difference I see between the two are the Lenova P520 does have a 2 x M.2 PCIe Connectors Onboard and the Dell 5820 uses a M.2 PCIe/NVMe carrier card.

Am I missing something? I can't find any computers that are better bang for the buck that has a pci slot with comparable speed. Any suggestions?

Also, any recommendations on video cards and memory size? Was looking at Nvidia Quadro K4000, Quadro K4200, Quadro P2000. I only use this computer for audio and checking email, not running any games.

Thanks for any help!

 

PCI is dead, you can definitely find RME HDSPe RayDat on used market that will do everything you want from older HDSP9652

HP Z4 G4 is decent if you can find a good deal on one, but you can also build a decent specced workstation on your own,

when it comes to video cards, unless you need some specific professional features, get some lower-end gaming gpu - for one specific reason - it will be able to turn off its fans completely, making it dead silent most of the time, something like RTX3050 (or RTX5050) would give nice performance without being power hungry
- that said you might want to consider a lower-tier used workstation that already has integrated graphics built in the processor, for ex. HP Z2 series

why exactly you're thinking about the upgrade though? anything specific that no longer works on your build?

EDIT: unless you need much more performance, for reference something like i5-12400 already outperforms your current cpu significantly: https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare/1275vs4677/Intel-Xeon-W3690-vs-Intel-i5-12400

 

try this

Check the comments, some reviews include RME cards running ok

this one

need to watch out, two colors acutally have USB positioned in a different direction, but also people report PCI cards running ok

and this one

RME9632 reported running ok

So i would just get one of these, or two of these, hopefully one will work and you can run whatever system you want.

 

tzzsmk, thanks for the help brother!

Yeah, I know PCI is dead. It's been so long since I thought about a new computer I had forgotten the HDSP9652 was PCI. Just don't want to spend an extra $500.00 for a new audio card right now.

"anything specific that no longer works on your build?"
Thats the thing, system runs great! Never any problems with track count or plugins and only VI I use is Superior Drummer 3 so no problem there. Just thought it would be nice to have a slightly faster cpu and a little more ram.

Had been wanting the HP Z4 G4, but remembered the pci slot issue...

 

KORG3R, I have read where people have been able to use the PCI Express adapters with the RME cards, but the problem is getting the card to fit in case slot. But it is an option.

 

Yes, agreed, if you for exsample end up getting some mATX mbo with a i5-12400 like it was proposed, you would have 2-3 back ports free and the only thing you would need to do is to fixate the PCI adapter under the motherboard.
https://ae-pic-a1.aliexpress-media....cd585b676ee7cc34abaZ.jpg_960x960q75.jpg_.avif

You also have an option
B350 mbo like MSI B350 Tomahawk(2xPCI) and a 5700X3D, there is several more brands that had made B350 boards with PCI ports. Less power hungry compared to Xeons, literaly can be put together for like 150€/$.
https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compar...0-vs-AMD-Ryzen-7-5700X3D-vs-Intel-Xeon-W-2245

 

Great suggestions! Didn't even know about the B350 Ryzen boards. The only reason I have been looking at the Xeons is because they have been so stable in my two computers and the HP Z400 is one of the (approved) Avid computers, so I knew it would not be any compatibility problems. Lots to think about.

 

I was researching mobo's because of my PCI RME too and Asus have a line that you can check out, business C/CSM and they are green in color, have PCI slots and more recent chip sets for both Intel/AMD.

 

tzzsmk, another question for you. Since you mentioned the i5-12400, are there any other i5, i7 or i9 cpus you would recommend? GHz speed and number of cores? Don't worry about the pci slot for now. Just a great computer.

Also, why is the i5-12400 kicking the crap out of most cpus I look at? It is only 2.5 GHz.

 

Last edited: Mar 31, 2026

Melodic Reality, I see the Asus B150M-C does have a pci slot and a socket for LGA 1151 cpu.
Did you end up buy a motherboard you are happy with?

 

z170 also have PCI slot

 

I ended up with a Mac, really wanted to build desktop PC, actually built it for I friend based on those spec's (minus PCI requirements) and decided to try something new, as M series laptop was something I was dreaming all along.

Having said that, hunting for my next build has been my hobby for few years before upgrading and now I'm still researching my next one, going daily through listings, what really made most sense to me was HP/Dell workstations with i5-12600K and i7-12700K.

 

to be honest I'd rather spend 500$ extra on a rock-solid audio interface I could rely on another 10+ years than a overly strong PC anyday,

hmm since you'd be going all-new build, not reusing older parts, why not try sell your current old PC, OR leave it as it is for now as secondary/backup PC until you finetune your new build?

I suggested that cpu specifically, because it's one of last that doesn't mix performance and efficiency cores, and is reasonably priced,
don't get fooled by on-paper low frequency, it has fairly agressive boost which can be achieved fairly easy without getting into thermal throttling, also it's much newer platform, so it can handle tasks faster even at seemingly lower frequency,
for ex. when you take a look at newer 13400 it already mixes P and E cores which on paper gives nice multicore performance, but isn't always flawless scheduling processes, which for audio is crucial,
another option would be AMD (there are many threads on that matter here at forums), but that's a completely different topic - if budget wasn't a limit, I'd look into HP Z6 G5 A but for audio it's too much overkill for sure

 

my biggest concern there would be software compatibility, although RME always provides drivers as long as possible, you never know when Microsoft or Apple decides to kill old PCI completely (just like they did with FireWire and Thunderbolt 1/2),
newer PC will inevitably mean newer operating system, so that's the breakpoint/uncertainty I wouldn't risk with my money (just because a newer PC has old PCI slots doesn't mean they'll work reliably in the long run through system updates)

 

tzzsmk, I really appreciate all your help. Your right, I need to update the audio card. I'll add that to my budget. The good thing is, because I don't need to replace my computer today, I can piece it together and get a great deal. Ram prices are insane!

 

SSD's too

 

Man, I know. Why didn't I start building a pc in December haha!

 

Yeah hahah

I got an offer for a Ryzen build in August, been on the verge thinking like should I just get Mac Mini or wait for the prices to drop more, like I wanted to save 50-100 bucks more to be the same price as Mini, yeah, now RAM cost 80% of that price and with SSD hikes, for that same amount I got only those two lol

 

Interesting video on ram prices starting to come down. No, it's not an April Fools joke.