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  #1  
Old 12-26-2016, 11:21 AM
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Default Advice on Setup - Using Samples, System Performance etc

Hi all. I'm starting to work with more and more samples like spitfire albion using kontakt etc and I've noticed my system struggling now and then.

Does anyone have any advice for what a more ideal setup - or additional hardware/software - would be for recording music for film including lots of samples?

My current setup is:
iMac OS X (10.8.5) - 2.9 GHz Intel Core i5 - 8 GB 1600 MHz DDR3
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660M 512 MB - Pro Tools 11
Focusrite Scarlett 6i6
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Old 12-26-2016, 11:49 AM
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Default Re: Advice on Setup - Using Samples, System Performance etc

Moving to an i7 cpu and 32GB of RAM should give a serious kick in the pants
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  #3  
Old 12-27-2016, 06:21 AM
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Default Re: Advice on Setup - Using Samples, System Performance etc

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Moving to an i7 cpu and 32GB of RAM should give a serious kick in the pants
What will help even more and specifically with the op's setup is a separate external hard drive for the samples. I'm guessing he's using the system drive for samples now. We don't know what exact iMac he has; if it's a 27 incher he can add his own ram up to 32 gig. Also there's the possibility that his iMac has the dreaded Fusion drive.
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Old 01-01-2017, 02:47 AM
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Default Re: Advice on Setup - Using Samples, System Performance etc

I'm guessing updating from an i5 to i7 isn't a simple process, and more just buy a new mac? I'm definitely going to be getting more RAM in the 4 slots I have (I've got 2x 4GB at the moment)

Quote:
Originally Posted by musicman691 View Post
What will help even more and specifically with the op's setup is a separate external hard drive for the samples. I'm guessing he's using the system drive for samples now. We don't know what exact iMac he has; if it's a 27 incher he can add his own ram up to 32 gig. Also there's the possibility that his iMac has the dreaded Fusion drive.
I'm using an external drive for my samples. Here is some info; is it this dreaded fusion drive? (thanks for your replies and help!)


Here's the specs of my internal HD

APPLE HDD WDC WD10EALX-408EA0:

Capacity: 1 TB (1,000,204,886,016 bytes)
Model: APPLE HDD WDC WD10EALX-408EA0
Revision: 07.01D03
Serial Number: WD-WCATRC244491
Native Command Queuing: Yes
Queue Depth: 32
Removable Media: No
Detachable Drive: No
BSD Name: disk0
Rotational Rate: 7200
Medium Type: Rotational
Partition Map Type: GPT (GUID Partition Table)
S.M.A.R.T. status: Verified
Volumes:
disk0s1:
Capacity: 209.7 MB (209,715,200 bytes)
BSD Name: disk0s1
Content: EFI
Macintosh HD:
Capacity: 999.35 GB (999,345,127,424 bytes)


I have an external G Drive 3.0 aswell:

G-DRIVE:

Available: 1.94 TB (1,935,939,162,112 bytes)
Capacity: 2 TB (2,000,054,960,128 bytes)
Mount Point: /Volumes/G-DRIVE
File System: Journaled HFS+
Writable: Yes
Ignore Ownership: Yes
BSD Name: disk1s2
Volume UUID: CF745E2A-3673-30EC-BC6B-DC60DD73E2D3
Physical Drive:
Device Name: HGST
Media Name: HGST HUS 724020ALE640 Media
Protocol: FireWire
Internal: No
Partition Map Type: GPT (GUID Partition Table)
S.M.A.R.T. Status: Not Supported
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Old 01-01-2017, 05:25 AM
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Default Re: Advice on Setup - Using Samples, System Performance etc

Maybe Darryl Ramm can tell whether that's a Fusion drive or not. Again - what exact iMac do you have? 27 inch model? What is the Model identifier? Go to 'about this Mac' when you click on the Apple icon in the menu bar and then click the 'more info' button in the little windowlet and that will open the system profiler. Click on the hardware arrow and in hardware overview on the second line will be the model identifier.
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Old 01-01-2017, 09:09 AM
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Default Re: Advice on Setup - Using Samples, System Performance etc

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Originally Posted by musicman691 View Post
Maybe Darryl Ramm can tell whether that's a Fusion drive or not. Again - what exact iMac do you have? 27 inch model? What is the Model identifier? Go to 'about this Mac' when you click on the Apple icon in the menu bar and then click the 'more info' button in the little windowlet and that will open the system profiler. Click on the hardware arrow and in hardware overview on the second line will be the model identifier.
Apologies. It's a 27" late 2012 - iMac13,2
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Old 01-02-2017, 05:51 AM
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Default Re: Advice on Setup - Using Samples, System Performance etc

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Apologies. It's a 27" late 2012 - iMac13,2
Thanks. Looks like your system drive is not a Fusion drive which is good. That i5 cpu - not so good but there's not much you can do about changing that out. That FW800 external drive connection caught my eye as your machine doesn't have Firewire ports. Are you using an adapter to go from Thunderbolt to FW800? I have a couple of drives connected via FW800 (one via such an adapter and the oher via the native FW800 port) but they're just used as backup drives. My full-time drives are Thunderbolt spinners as I need huge amounts of space for my sample sets and right now I can't afford to go to ssd's large enough. I know that your G-Drive doesn't have Thunderbolt ports; is there any way you can use the USB3 ports for both the drive and to your iMac?
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Old 01-02-2017, 12:58 PM
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Default Re: Advice on Setup - Using Samples, System Performance etc

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Originally Posted by musicman691 View Post
Thanks. Looks like your system drive is not a Fusion drive which is good. That i5 cpu - not so good but there's not much you can do about changing that out. That FW800 external drive connection caught my eye as your machine doesn't have Firewire ports. Are you using an adapter to go from Thunderbolt to FW800? I have a couple of drives connected via FW800 (one via such an adapter and the oher via the native FW800 port) but they're just used as backup drives. My full-time drives are Thunderbolt spinners as I need huge amounts of space for my sample sets and right now I can't afford to go to ssd's large enough. I know that your G-Drive doesn't have Thunderbolt ports; is there any way you can use the USB3 ports for both the drive and to your iMac?
Yeah I'm using the adapter to go from FW to Thunderbolt. Might it run smoother through USB3?

Any recommendations on a Thunderbolt drive to try?
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Old 01-02-2017, 02:13 PM
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Default Re: Advice on Setup - Using Samples, System Performance etc

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Yeah I'm using the adapter to go from FW to Thunderbolt. Might it run smoother through USB3?

Any recommendations on a Thunderbolt drive to try?
Would certainly run faster through the USB3 connection. There's all kinds of Thunderbolt drives to try. You'll definitely want one that's an ssd and not a spinner. The Samsung 850 drives are a good bet you can stuff in the enclosure of your choice. If you want something already assembled LaCie is a good way to go.
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Old 01-12-2017, 05:05 AM
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Default Re: Advice on Setup - Using Samples, System Performance etc

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Would certainly run faster through the USB3 connection. There's all kinds of Thunderbolt drives to try. You'll definitely want one that's an ssd and not a spinner. The Samsung 850 drives are a good bet you can stuff in the enclosure of your choice. If you want something already assembled LaCie is a good way to go.
Are Samsung 850s not just plug and go externals? I'd prob have to go with an SSD LaCie Thunderbolt if so.
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