Multiple track (>4) recording problems (Digi support, can u help?)

[Bangsy]

Hello.

I'm a UK-based (Cardiff, Wales) Pro Tools 5.1.1 LE user who is enjoying my new Digi 001 purchase. However I do have one big problem:

Whenever I try to record 5 or more tracks simultaneously, my computer locks/ hangs on the majority of occasions. No error message, no blue screening - it just freezes up and I have to reboot. I can playback multiple tracks, and have recorded a 5 minute, 13 track demo by building up tracks individually.

NB: No plugins/ FX are being used. No MIDI, ADAT or S/PIDF.

It seems to happen within 1 minute of hitting record, and is worrying me

a) Because in principle, this shouldn't happen &
b) I need to record 8Ts at once with my band for a demo.

The inputs are the 2 line ins on the front and the 6 on the back (ie: 1/4 inch jack plugs). No Phantom power on 1 or 2.

My setup is as follows:

OS: Windows 98 (second edition)
Processor: AMD Athlon XP 1700+ 1.47Ghz SoA
MOB0: AOpen SoA KT133A ATX A
IDE: Maxtor DiamondMax+ D740X 60GB UDMA133 (x2: one 60gb for Audio, one 60gb for system)
Graphics: ATI Radeon 7000 32MB DDR AGP RP VO
Case: AOpen Midi Tower ATX 300W ATX12V
CD-RW: 40r 24w 10rw Int IDE OEM 0
RAM: Crucial Technology 128Mb 168DIMM PC133 NP CL3 (x2) = 256Mb RAM
CD-ROM: Asustek 52x IDE Internal Retail
Fan: Thermaltake SoA Volcano 7
Screen: 15" TFT LCD

Checklist: Just to rule out the (seemingly) usual sticking points I have:

Enabled DMA on both IDE Hard Drives
Disabled the soundcard on the motherboard
Turned off Windows Sounds
Disabled Auto Insert Notification
I can't find any option to disable PCI Parity in the BIOS
I have installed the latest BIOS revision for the MOBO and the manufacturers "4in1" MOBO drivers for Win98se.

This error occurs on both 16 bit & 24 bit recording options, and WAV & AIFF file types. I have tried various Buffer sizes, although I would be interested to hear your theories on the best settings (0,1,2,4 or 8).

I have set the maximum recording time to 5 minutes instead of the default use all available disk space....

All recording I do currently is set to "Destructive".

Pro Tools is residing on my system hard drive (C:), and all recording is done to my audio drive (D:)

One thing I have noticed is the inordinately large file sizes on each of the .wav tracks. Even if I record a 30 second, no plugin demo on 1 mono track, it seems to be 24mb +. But recording a 4 minute long 1 mono track demo, does not seem to be proportionately bigger. Why is this?

Any help would be appreciated because I am delighted with Pro Tools/ Digi 001 otherwise - it's a great piece of kit. However, under the current circumstances, I cannot do the primary thing I purchased the kit for, ie: record 8 tracks at once to capture a full drum kit for a 4-5 minute song.

[img]images/icons/confused.gif[/img]

Please help.

Many thanks.

Bansgy

[email protected]

[NoviceDollars]

A couple of things you didn't mention, but you seem pretty aware of all the possible issues. Anyway, just in case:

Do you have an ethernet card for networking or high speed internet? If you do, disable it. Try creating a separate hardware profile with all your changes, including this one. Make sure you dont have anything running in the background.
by running 'msconfig' in the 'run' menu. Mmake sure to disable all those programs in your system tray. What is your CPU usage set to? Try 80 - 85 percent. Do you have any peripherals connected like USB devices?

[Bangsy]

Many thanks Novice$ for your help, and you've raised some valid points I have implemented, but missed in my earlier mail:

I have no Internet connections/ Ethernet cards set up, as I'm running a pure DAW (in theory!).

All other programs are disabled in MS config/ sys tray.

I have set my CPU usage to 85%.

I have no peripheral connections in my USB port.

So if there are any other points which people think I've missed, let me know.

Cheers,

Bangsy.

[Sixpence]

Are you using the same session each time or a new one? Just in case you have a corrupt session...

Is your audio drive 7200rpm or faster? again just an idea..

Check that the card is seated properly and the cable is properly connected at both ends.. I had some problems once with this...

hmmm.
just try recording nothing and see what happens