PT24 / NT - Any FAQs or More details on how it works and operate on NT?

[Echo studios]

Lets put it that way.
This is a BRAND NEW system and the main thing here is....its on PC!
We're used to see Digidesign products released on -and- for the MAC.
Now this is a premiere.
I think that all Session 8 PC users, like me, out there would appreciate to have a kind of general F.A.Q. on the new release of PT24 on Windows NT. How DAE will work with it. Which IRQ, port, ressources does the cards take...What IS compatible with it and what is NOT. you see?
Does the code of the software rough and stable enough?
I know its the same software, same I/O's as Macintosh, but Im sure that we HAVE to know if there is a way to communicate audio with other programs too and also, to get scoops on what you PLAN to do with PT24...software upgrades, else..
Thanks for taking this into consideration.

Dan
Echo studios

[Przemek]

YES

[Bengt Tedeborg]

Oh yes!
I am not going to trade in the superb Session 8 system without knowing exactly what I get in return.

[Digi Engineering]

I'll try to give you some additional info:
-DAE is a dll that loads when Pro Tools loads.
-DAL is our kernel driver that manages the audio cards.
-We have no hard set IRQ and support Shared IRQ's.
-PCI parity must be off for the cards to work.
-The software is in pretty good shape. Our beta sites have found it to be very stable.
-When you create a Windows only session PT records .wav files that should be comptible with any other editing apps that support .wav, including sound forge and CD-architect.
-We are working on wavedrivers so that other apps can access our hardware.
-The current plan is to keep the two platforms as much in sync as possible. We still have a few things to add to the PC version to get it in sync with the Mac. After that is done we hope to do simultaneous cross platform releases as much as possible.
Hope this helps.
-Mike Rockwell

[Echo studios]

Well...thanks for all the latest details Mike and Tom...
hmm...but from what I see here, ProTOOLS 24 on NT is not done yet...I mean there are SEVERAL things not implemented into it yet.
Like the USD thing, I didnt knew that there was NO Usd setup on PT/NT v4.2.1 (and ..i was just about to buy the USD device..think i'll think it twice!!!).
Also, the facts about the wavedriver, midi interfaces and everything else...
Would also like to know if you are actually shipping Protools V4.2.1 for NT yet?

Thanks ...but i'll still wait before upgrading

Dan D.
Echo studios

[p1]

Hey guys, I gotta tell ya, you're quibbling over details. As a PT beta tester, I have a system w/ 2 DSP farms , hooked to a 3/4" video deck. PT controls the video deck, so when I cue up PT, the video follows. In the last two days, I produced 8 radio spots, 2 TV spots, sweetened a 30 minute video, and produced a demo for a surround format show at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago, all using PT. It has PLENTY of power & speed to do complex recording & editing tasks, even now, before it's officially released. I have many of the same concerns as you, but I have found that thery're all either being dealt with or I'm being concerned about things that really don't matter. For instance, 2 G partitions. Yes, it's true that w/ FAT16 that's as big as you can go..I was worried. Then I found out about the PT round robin recording allocation feature that lets you record different tracks to different drives. Sounds like just the fix!!
The point is that Digi enginners are aware of your points, and if they aren't, the beta team on this project is NOT shy about making our wishes known (as Mike Rockwell can testify).
So sit tight & get ready for a system that'll put a smile on your face every time you use it.
BTW, I am NOT a Digi employee...just a small studio owner lookin' for the best solutions...
-------------->Denny Conn

[Echo studios]

// Best solutions ....yeah this is true.

But not for everyone.

We're really happy to see that you managed to produce 8 radio spots, 2 TV spots, sweetened a 30 minute video, and produced a demo for a surround format show at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago all using PT/NT.

The point is that I have somthing in my studio that wont work with it at this time and i WON'T tolerate a MAJOR downtime here.
I got a Midi/sync device, named Opcode Studi 64XTC that wont work under Windows NT.
And I dont have another 250$ to spend for a cheap MidiMan 4X4 interface.
The same thing applies to Soundforge, hey I bought for over 1000$ of plugins like TC Electronics reverbs to EQ's ...everything you could imagine...now the main question is ..hmm wll they work at this time with pro tools Pci cards ..the answer is: -NO-

Youn know i'm really gonna upgrade to ProTools 24. But my only hopes are in the hands of Digidesign and Opcode.


-Dan
Echo studios

[DigiTechSupt]

Mike covered most of it. Just to be a bit more specific, Inter App Communication (shadow port) is not working. Sync with sequencer apps. will have to be hard wired for the time being. The MidiMan (ISA card with 4X4 octopus) is the best recommendation for a Midi interface right now. The USD is operating through the serial port on the D|24 card. There is current no USD setup app. for the NT side. I assume this is in the works. We'll have a production cable in a month or so that will allow a machine control hookup. We're supporting the Bit 3 13 slot expansion chassis. Only one D|24 card is supported on this system (32 tracks on disk. 128 virtual tracks). As many Farms as a chassis will support (up to 10 cards total including the I/O card). SCII PCI cards are OK. Only core plug-ins are available (DigiVerb included) until third party developers port over. Some will be faster than others. Two Ultra Wide drives and an Adaptec card are required for full track count and performance. FAT 16 is highly recommended. FAT 32 will not work. NTFS will work but the compatibility issues are a big hassle. There's more but, check out the compatibility doc on the Digi web site for basic platform info. For what it is right now, it rocks. I hope this is helpful

Tom S.

[Przemek]

Fat16 has only 2G partitions! And what do you mean ...NTFS will work but the compatibility issues are a big hassle...? Does it work or not? NTFS has bigger partitions! It will be real pain in the @#$ if PT24MIX will support only FAT16 - with its 64 24bit tracks... :-(
I'm waiting for PT24MIXplus/NT, but as I see it is not so fine system as I thought :-(
BTW 128 virtual tracks with d24 - this is more than Mac, isn't it?
Thanks,
Przemek.

[Drum]

Tom

In your reply yopu said "SCII PCI cards are OK" in the PT NT system. Correct me if I'm wrong but SCII on the PC is only available on ISA and not PCI.

So, I'm a tad confused. Will it be possible to use SCII on the NT platform or no?

DRUM