time restrictions

[kevinsimons]

All,
I've searched the documentation and can't seem to find the time restrictions on a single session. I'm recording an on-site training session over the course of two days, 8 hours each day. Can a session last that long? I'm going to be recording 4 channels of audio the entire length of the session(s).

My current setup:
2.4GHz 8-core Mac
6GB RAM
secondary 500GB internal ATA drive
PTLE 7.4.2
Digi002

Any recommendations on how to best split it up if I'm not able to record it straight through?

Thanks!!
Kevin

[kevinsimons]

Will an upgrade to PT8 increase the time restriction? I found one other post with info on time restrictions in PT HD 7.x.

I do believe the instructor will be taking periodic breaks, so I'll have a chance to kick off a new set of tracks, but I don't know how frequent that will be.

Thanks again for your responses.

Kevin

[albee1952]

Make sure your audio drive has plenty of space available(like way more than you think you will need). Go to Setup>Preferences>Operation tab and set Open-Ended Record Allocation to "Use All Available Space". I would create a few sessions in advance(all with the same attributes) and name them something like "seminar 1", "seminar 2", etc. That way, whenever you do have a break, you can save/close the session you had running, and get the next session ready to roll. There is no difference in allowed time between any version of Pro Tools (since version 6 anyway).

[Phil Ogden]

There used to be a technical restriction in that PT could only handle a maximum file size of 2GB. Something to bear in mind/investigate.

http://www.myspace.com/philogg

[flommer]

From the "What's new in PTLE8" document:

Pro Tools 8.0 supports file sizes up to 3.4 GB (the
file size limit used to be 2 GB). This lets you have
longer, single file recordings.

The length of your recording will depend on sample-rate/bit-depth. 44.1/16 should be fine.. Unless you anticipate studio quality acoustics/performance..

One thing I am not sure about is the 4 tracks.. Each track gets it's own audio file, so I'm guessing the 3.4 Gb is not cumulative.. Just per track. Correct me if wrong..

I would plan on stopping/starting during the breaks. No need to deal with regions that are 8hrs long if you don't have to. Plus if your system crashes, you lose everything if you just keep it running. Stopping occasionally will reduce your exposure to that kind of disaster, as well. If this is mission critical (as in you are dead if it doesn't work or you are getting paid), consider a parallel recording system. I would at least test your setup by leaving it running for a long time while recording 4 tracks.

Good Luck

[Shawn Simpson]

For no real value, here's a little info regarding file length:

At 44.1kHz/16bit/mono, a 3.4GB file would be 11.49 Hours.