PT8 CPU Usage

[SteveFireland]

I'm talking to Digi about this very problem right now... been through all the tweaks you can imagine: video drivers, acceleration, hardware profiles, new XP install, disabling all unnecessary hardware, resolutions... There's a couple of other guys with the same problem on this thread: http://duc.digidesign.com/showpost.p...19&postcount=1

It'd be good if you could post up a Sandra report, it might help the Digi guys find some commonality between our systems. I know pretty much everyone else isn't having this problem so it probably is some oddball hardware thing... =/

Cheers,
Steve.

[spy2520]

Damn, and to think i'm on a Celeron 430 (single core) with no issues. Sure my cpu usage is high, but it never causes issues unless i try to load VIs while a session is running.

[SteveFireland]

Spy2520 - does your CPU usage (in task manager, not PT's own utility) go up and down depending on whether you have the mix/edit windows minimised or maximised?

To give an idea of how mine goes on a brand new XP install, check out http://supra.steve.moore.tv/pt-cpu7.gif ... nice! When the CPU usage is high, the mouse is skittering everywhere, when it's low, it feels fine. Bizarre.

Steve.

[Larry Younkins]

Here's the report from PC Wizard:

<<< System Summary >>>
> Mainboard : ASUSTeK Computer Inc. A8V
> Chipset : VIA K8T800 Pro
> Processor : AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+ @ 2200 MHz
> Physical Memory : 2048 MB (2 x 1024 DDR-SDRAM )
> Video Card : ATI Technologies Inc Radeon 9200 SE Series (RV280)
> Hard Disk : ST3250823A (250 GB)
> Hard Disk : ST380013A (80 GB)
> DVD-Rom Drive : PLEXTOR DVDR PX-708A
> Monitor Type : AL2216W - 22 inches
> Network Card : Marvell Semiconductor (Was: Galileo Technology Ltd) Yukon 88E8001/8003/8010 PCI Gigabit Ethernet Controller (Copper)
> Operating System : Microsoft Windows XP Professional 5.01.2600 Service Pack 2
> DirectX : Version 9.0c

<<< Mainboard >>>
> Manufacturer : System manufacturer
> Mainboard : ASUSTeK Computer Inc. A8V
> Bios : American Megatrends Inc.
> Chipset : VIA K8T800 Pro
> Physical Memory : 2048 MB DDR-SDRAM
> LPC bus : Yes
> PCI Bus : Yes
> AGP Bus : Yes
> USB Bus : Yes
> SMBus/i2c Bus : Yes
> Bus HyperTransport : Yes
> Bus CardBus : No
> Bus FireWire : Yes

<<< Processor >>>
> Processor : AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+
> Frequency : 2200 MHz
> Number of Core : 2
> Support : Socket 939
> Cache L1 : 2 x 128 KB
> Cache L2 : 2 x 1024 KB
> Voltage VID : 1.500 V
> FPU Coprocessor : Present
> Core 1 Activity : 0%
> Core 2 Activity : 0%

<<< Video >>>
> Number of monitor : 1
> Monitor Type : AL2216W
> Video Card : RADEON 9200 SE Family (Microsoft Corporation)
> Current Display : 1680x1050 pixels at 60 Hz in True Colors (32-bit)
> OpenGL : Yes
> GDI Plus : Yes

<<< IO Ports >>>
> Port installed : Printer Port (LPT1)
> Port installed : Communications Port (COM1)
> Port installed : VIA Rev 5 or later USB Universal Host Controller
> Port installed : VIA Rev 5 or later USB Universal Host Controller
> Port installed : VIA Rev 5 or later USB Universal Host Controller
> Port installed : VIA Rev 5 or later USB Universal Host Controller
> Port installed : VIA USB Enhanced Host Controller

<<< Drives >>>
> Number of Disk Controller : 2
> Number of Hard Disk : 2
> Number of CD-ROM Drive : 1
> Drives Letters : A:\ C:\ D:\ E:\
> Floppy Disk : 3œ" HD (1.44 Mo)
> Drive C: (Hard Disk) : 71 GB available on 80 GB
> Drive D: (Hard Disk) : 94 GB available on 250 GB
> Drive E: (DVD-Rom) : 0 KB available on 0 KB

<<< Printers >>>
> Universal Driver : Not Installed

<<< Devices >>>
> Type of mouse : Microsoft PS/2 Mouse
> Type of keyboard : Standard 101/102-Key or Microsoft Natural PS/2 Keyboard
> Joystick : None
> HID Devices : No
> SCSI Host #0 : 2 Device(s)
> SCSI Host #1 : 1 Device(s)
> SCSI Controller : VIA Serial ATA RAID Controller
> Disque : ST380013A
> Trusted Platform Module : No

<<< Multimedia >>>
> MIDI Output : Digidesign Digi 002 port 1
> MIDI Output : Digidesign Digi 002 port 2
> MIDI Output : Digi 002 Control Port
> MIDI Output : Microsoft MIDI Mapper
> MIDI Input : Digidesign Digi 002 port 1
> MIDI Input : Digi 002 Control Port
> Device multimedia : AVIVideo
> Device multimedia : CDAudio
> Device multimedia : Sequencer
> Device multimedia : WaveAudio
> Device multimedia : MPEGVideo
> Audio Compression : Microsoft IMA ADPCM CODEC
> Audio Compression : Microsoft ADPCM CODEC
> Audio Compression : Microsoft CCITT G.711 A-Law and u-Law CODEC
> Audio Compression : Microsoft GSM 6.10 Audio CODEC
> Audio Compression : DSP Group TrueSpeech(TM) Software CODEC
> Audio Compression : Microsoft G.723.1 CODEC
> Audio Compression : Windows Media Audio
> Audio Compression : Sipro Lab Telecom ACELP.net audio codec
> Audio Compression : Indeo® audio software
> Audio Compression : Fraunhofer IIS MPEG Layer-3 Codec (advanced)
> Audio Compression : Microsoft PCM Converter

<<< Network >>>
> Network : Yes
> RAS Connection : No
> Passport.Net : No
> Winsock32 : v2.02
> Network Connection : Local Area Connection
> Network Connection : 1394 Connection
> Network Card : Marvell Yukon 88E8001/8003/8010 PCI Gigabit Ethernet Controller
> Network Card : 1394 Net Adapter
> Network Computer : 5
> Local Group : Administrators
> Local Group : Backup Operators
> Local Group : Guests
> Local Group : Network Configuration Operators
> Local Group : Power Users
> Local Group : Remote Desktop Users
> Local Group : Replicator
> Local Group : Users
> Local Group : HelpServicesGroup
> Local Group : Pro Tools Users

<<< Power Status >>>
> Power Status : Yes
> Battery : No
> Supply : Main supply
> Active Power Scheme : Always On
> UPS : No
> ACPI Tables : 7

<<< Voltage, Temperature and Fans >>>
> Hardware Monitoring : Winbond W83627THF
> Voltage CPU : 1.50 V
> +3.3V Voltage : 3.30 V
> +5V Voltage : 5.05 V
> +12V Voltage : 11.67 V
> Processor Temperature : 33.5 °C
> Processor Temperature (Core 1) : 35 °C
> Processor Temperature (Core 2) : 42 °C
> Mainboard Temperature : 24 °C
> Power/Aux Temperature : 126.5 °C
> Hard Disk Monitoring : S.M.A.R.T
> Hard Disk Temperature ST380013A : 35 °C
> Hard Disk Temperature ST3250823A : 36 °C

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
***** End of report *****

[DigiTechSupt]

Larry - have you done any of the steps in the General Troubleshooting thread yet? Are all your installed plug-ins up to date?

[Larry Younkins]

DigiTechSupt,
Thanks for your reply.
The problem exists with a virgin installation of Windows XP SP2. Installed software: Norton Ghost, PC Wizard and PT8. I did install the ASUS drivers for the A8V motherboard. There are no other plugins other than those installed by PT8.
I looked at the troubleshooting thread and believe I'm compliant with the guidelines. Additionally, this system worked flawlessly w/ PT 7.3.
The problem appears to be graphics related. When both mix/edit windows are minimized the CPU usage as reported by Windows Task Manager is reasonable (and consistent with the PT usage meter). When either window is maximized the CPU usage jumps dramatically (instantly), often to the point where the machine will eventually lock up. However, I have observed that even with both mix/edit windows minimized over time the CPU usage will spike and stay up.
Larry

[Shan]

Originally Posted by Larry Younkins

Hi Shane,
I read through the performance thread. I'm not using any Dverbs so much of the discussion was of little use. What I'm observing seems to be a graphics related. If I start a new (blank) session with no tracks and the mix/edit windows are maximized the CPU usage is around 50%. When both windows are minimized the CPU usage drops to nothing. I have observed that over time, however, even with the mix/edit windows minimized that the CPU usage will again spike up to around 50%. Thanks for all help!
Larry

Interesting, I know two others who are seeing this also on Vista and XP with PT 8. They think it might be graphic card related also. I'll send your thread to these individuals so that hopefully we can compare notes and get to the bottom of this.

I was running some tests to try and duplicate this on my own system but I cant seem to reproduce it at all.

Shane

[Larry Younkins]

An update.
The severity and symptoms of this problem depend somewhat on the type of graphics card installed.
I tried:
1) Radeon 9200SE, 128MB (AGP)
2) Nvidia FX 5200, 128MB (AGP)
I tested with a clean Windows XP SP2 installation w/ only PT8 (no other plugins used) and installed the latest graphics drivers in both cases.
For the Radeon 9200SE with both the mix/edit windows maximized (no tracks) the CPU usage is 32% and it is 15% for both windows minimized.
For the Nvidia FX 5200 with both the mix/edit windows maximized the CPU usage is 56% and it is 15% for both windows minimized.
Anyone else that's having a problem could you please chime in with your graphics card details?
Thanks,
Larry

[TOM@METRO]

When we started with PT8 we had three ATI graphics cards in the system. In PT7.1-7.4 we had no problem with this setup. Then in PT8 we were seeing the above-described issue. Removing one of the cards resolved it. I know this scenario is an unlikely culprit in this case, but… maybe another clue resides here.

[SteveFireland]

Mine's an Nvidia 7300GT, ~50% maximised, basically zero minimised.

My spare card is a 5200, so probably not much point trying that then... =/

Steve.