[bblue]

Originally Posted by yyyesbaby

Before I respond I forgot to mention in the starting message post... when I was using 7.4 I had to reboot maybe 2-4 times per month. Since committing to PT 8.0 it's about 6-12 times per session.

With any PT version it's usually a good idea to reboot every few days, at least.

No. BEFORE I updated to PT8 I got ahold of Line6 (for PodFarm & GearBox), IK MultiMedia (for ARC) & DigiDesign (for Strike). All manufacturers assured me they were compatible with PT8.

For the purposes of testing to determine the cause of errors like you're having it's best to remove anything that didn't come with PT8.

>>
Do you think you could generate a plugin list?
<<
Generate? How do you "generate" a list? If you mean MANUALLY type a list of ALL plug-ins then... uhhhh... how about this (NOTE: all items taken from Pro Tools LE 7.4 and/or 8.0 "bundled packages" EXCEPT for IK MultiMedia, Line6 & Strike):

You can generate a list with version numbers from the Digidesign Tech Support Utility. It's in the Downloads section of the website.

>>
Even if you are not instantiating outdated plugins, just having them active in the plugins folder can cause big problems.
<<
I didn't know that. OK, I just uninstalled Reason Adapted 4, Torq and 2ea Izotope plug-ins.

NOTE: Since the Bomb Factory and Trillium stuff isn't listed in Windows "Add/Remove Programs" I don't know how to uninstall them (as of yet I have not used them).

All RTAS plug-ins live in the directory c:\program files\common files\digidesign\DAE\plugins. There is a .dpm and .rsr file for each plugin. Simply move an appropriate pair out of that directory (into the 'unused' directory, for example). You don't actually have to go through the uninstall process except for permanent removals. Moving them just prevents PT from seeing them when it runs.

>>
Also which Firewire controller are you using for your 003?
<<
I don't remember the model number but... it is a card I purchased per the spec listed on the DigiDesign web site last January 2008 (when I had the PC built). The card contains the TI chip.

FYI, although I run with the TI card, the 003 also works the same with the motherboard's firewire.

Confirm that the 003 is really connected to the card with the TI chip.

>>
Have you tried faster/different RAM?
<<
No.

>>
DDR2-800 is fairly slow for that motherboard.
>>
Slow? Did I screw up somethng? Are my 800s causing these problems?

At the time of my build (January 2008) FASTER chips were available. As I revisit my build spec emails to the local PC shop, this is what I found...

"
---->ItemNo:A4300563--CORSAIR TWIN2X2048-8500C5D 2048MB XMS2-8 Qty: 2
Holy $#!%... a $290 increase to the bottom line?... AND that's after taking the mouse and keyboard off?... AND I don't get to "use" the 4th gb?!!! haHahaHaha... forget that! Use the 800s.
"

I had to chuckle when I saw "that" quote (what a cheapskate I am).

Looks like there's a promo ($78 for 4gb AFTER rebate) on these Corsairs until Feb 15th. What do you think? Will it be a PROBLEM SOLVER?

Not a guarantee that faster RAM will fix all (or any) of the problems you're describing, but it will certainly improve overall performance.

You should be able to find good DDR2-1333 RAM for about that same price (as the sale).

PROBLEM: #11
Playback Engine settings were set at
H/W Buffer = 1024
RTAS Processors = 3
CPU Usage Limit = 95%
RTAS Engine = unchecked
Disk Buffer Size = Level 2
Cache Size = Normal

Playback stops (not quite completing the 2nd pass on a LARGE loop)

ERROR MESSAGE:
The operating system held off interupts for too long. If this occurs often, try increasing the "HW Buffer Size" in the Playback Engine Dialog box -9094.
----------------

Playback Engine settings were set at
H/W Buffer = 1024
RTAS Processors = 4
CPU Usage Limit = 85%
RTAS Engine = unchecked
Disk Buffer Size = Level 2
Cache Size = Normal

Hmmmmm... strange... I expected an error to pop up a lot quicker after INCREASING Processors and DECREASING Usage Limit. Instead I completed 7 passes on the LARGE loop WITHOUT getting an error (finally had to stop to move on to the next song part).

Played around with a SMALL loop for about an hour without incident.

Increased my selection loop to include BOTH previous selections and started to play along. COULD NOT COMPLETE the first pass. Same error. I'm noticing (when it does occur) it's in the same area of the song (right after a big crash crescendo/break). FYI, my Strike cymbals are set to medium (playback quality).

ERROR MESSAGE:
The operating system held off interupts for too long. If this occurs often, try increasing the "HW Buffer Size" in the Playback Engine Dialog box -9094.

Another thing I noticed is I DID NOT have to REBOOT the PC during my 2.5hr session (which was nice for a change). Still haven't added any sugar to any of the waveform tracks though.

I usually run the disk cache size at LARGE rather than NORMAL. It can eliminate transient problems. Sometimes, moving the buffer size to 2048 will help smooth things out.

-------------------
BTW, since I am on the front end of this digital audio experience AND out of curiosity... GIVEN... a quad core, 4gb ram and a dedicated 7200rpm audio recording drive AND... IF everything WAS working just fine... what do YOU GUYS think I should "reasonably expect" for an average "active" TRACK and PLUG-IN count?

Dozens. Easily.

Do you still get the same symptoms when not using Strike? I have since switched to BFD2, but when I was using Strike I found that it was quite memory hungry even at what should be modest settings, AND it started acting strangely (it and the entire system) after making a series of kit piece substitutions, mixer changes, etc. Once things got to that point the only solution was to close PT and restart.

Are you using the /3G switch in boot.ini to get the extra 1G memory allocation to the OS? Without it, PT will quickly run out of memory, especially with hungry VI's.

Most of the problems you describe can be caused by inadequate memory, sluggish disk i/o, or just poor system performance in general, including a heavily fragmented PT data disk. A few of the really crazy messages you're getting could happen with PT is running memory starved (past the point of just starting to have errors) or there is a hardware problem such as bad RAM, flaky mobo, etc. But since everything seemed ok in 7.4 we can at least for now rule out bad hardware issues.

I've seen almost all these issues at one time or another when PT8 (especially) runs memory starved, but it can also happen with PT7.

I hope something from this might be helpful.

--Bill