Memory
 

384mb............while not alot, is kinda high. Why does PT M-powered need so much?? will it run at all with less?? How does PT manage memory??

Re: Memory
 

You're kidding, right?

Re: Memory
 

Hahahahah!

I bought Kinston DDR ram 512MB for £40 the other day and only 512 becuase I was running tests on my pc.
(Really I should of gone for atleast a 1gig stick)

Nowadays I'd say 512 is the bare minimum in any pc weather your using it as a DAW or simply playing games on it.

Your running PROTOOLS not Solitaire! some of us have Waves plugins and more than a handful are open at one given time could you even think of doing that on 384MB...erm no

Re: Memory
 

Hahahahahahah....................

NO, I built my system what 4 years ago??? I can run Sonar, and Cubase, and the Waves plugins, no problem. And I've only got 256Mb...

I don't have a problem putting more memory in there & I'm not trying to make this a "this app is better than that app" thread. It just seems PT is doing something different with memory, and I'm wondering what it might be.

Re: Memory
 

Man how big are your sessions in sonar and cubase...? you say no problem like you have 40 plus tracks open with plugins... I just find it hard to believe that you can run a DAW on 256MB...I mean you can but what sort of performance are you getting???

Re: Memory
 

The operating system itself requires 128MB (Windows XP Requirements), sometimes more if you are running several services.

Sonar's minimum requirements are only 128MB, yes, but they recommend 512MB (and so do I, as a long time Sonar user also).
(Sonar Requirements page)

The minimum requirement for Cubase is 384MB (Cubase Requirements page)

While you might be able to run these programs on a lesser machine (especially if your software is 4 years old as well) I would challenge you to get any kind of serious performance from them: 32+ tracks of audio, with real time plugins on each track, 8 MIDI tracks going to 8 different softsynths, without bogging that machine to a halt.

Re: Memory
 

I really don't see what every one is getting so upset about. Today, my system might seem a little old, But It works. I'm using the original SX, and I don't remember what the memory requirements were for it(I'll check when I get home), and Sonar 3PE....even though they are recommending 512, they only require 128.
most of what I do barely goes over 24 tracks, an eq on many of them, maybe three compressors, and 3 or 4 verbs, everything seems to work fine for me. If I felt I needed more memory, I'd get it.

I hadn't checked what every apps minimum requirements for memory was, it hadn't been an issue with me. I have thought about M-Powered, and saw the memory requirements. I thought it was high. I could understand if it was the recommended amount, but it is the required amount. At first, I thought maybe PT does a premix that is stored in memory, I believe Samplitude does something like this, which is why I asked.

Re: Memory
 

I don't see anyone getting upset. What we are trying to tell you though is that it's not just protools or MP (MP is not doing anything special as you seem to be inferring) but all of the current versions of audio software (except, somehow, Sonar and I honestly would recommend 512MB from practical experience with it). And it's not only audio software. As programs progress, add new features, and increase the quality of their output, the memory requirements will naturally increase. Most system manufacturers know these trends, and unless you're going super cheap, any new PC you buy today will come with a minimum of 512MB.

Cubase SX1 required 256MB, but recommended 512MB. The current version, SX3 requires 384MB, just like PT. Pro Tools LE 5.1.1 only required 192MB. The latest version requires 384MB and recommends 512MB.
Windows 98 only required 16MB to run. XP requires 128MB? (now that seems like a lot)
See my point?

For audio performance, though, it's not the memory that matters most times, but the processor.

Basically, though, it boils down to whatever works for you and how you work. If you're happy with your system/software as it is now, and it works for you, why change? If it does everything you need it to, there's no reason. If, for some reason, you need to use PTMP, or the newest cubase, or something like samplitude, you'll need at least the required memory to make them run.

For me, 512MB isn't even enough in PT or Sonar. But I use a lot of virtual synths and samplers in what I do, which add to the memory load.

Re: Memory
 

OK

Re: Memory
 

I was having just recently some deeply crap problems with my setup, and for an experiemnt threw in a 512meg stick to up from my current 512meg setup. (Ie now a gig).

The catch is , due to a fault in the chip (the fault being the reason I havent installed the chip), I had to throttle the speed of the processor back to a 1.5mz speed.

Regardless, with the doubled memory and the 166 -> 133 clock slowdown (or whatever it is) pro tools goes from a slugish pile of doo doo to a slick little unit. (This btw is with my beloved Kontakt sampler , which is a memory hog).

Moral of the story: Memory may just be more important than CPU (however, for some things like , I suspect reverb, its probably the other way round).

Either way. Go 1gig at least, and you'll be cooking with gas.