Is protools 9 "multiclient" on windows? + RANT

[collinsylex]

Hi Everyone,

I am pretty fed up with protools 9 right now. 1 big thing that is really bugging me is my inablitlity to play system audio and record it into protools (windows). I can run system audio and route it via total mix on my 13' macbookpro, but i really dont like using the little thing for protools and serious sessions. I do all the heavy lifing from my windows7 i7. (funny sidenote to this, when i briefly had the mbox pro, if i opened itunes on the mac protools would pop errors and need to restart... the rme smoothed out all that behaviour on the mac)

Since upgrading to the i7 PC from my core2quad box, i have ALL the exact same dumb issues. System audio will not play while pro tools is open (as in the play button in ITUNES stopps working, windows media player won't play...).. OK not the end of the world... OH but WORKSPACE FREEKING CRASHES ALL THE TIME (new and old pc's EXACT same behaviour) so that means to do every and any little thing i must close protools, find another way to record off an ipod or youtube or whatever... then open protools, import the audio file... and hope it doesn't stall doing the import (from a windows explorer window due to flakey workspace )

Basically, protools 9 has been a massive waste of time for me. I am so pissed because i have invested alot into this program (got a control surface, upgraded to a better soundcard, PAID FOR THE BROKEN SOFTWARE, done system tweaks that compromize security and functionality of NORMAL computer use, list goes on)... oh, its really cool when half the time bounce to disk freezes for no freeking reason too (simple session with only digi pluggs had my bounce crash lol)... This has been the case on my old and new PC's too... the mac kept on popping because i used 3 or 4 instruments... OHHHHH instrument tracks take up CPU LOL Jokes, protools is running like garbage .. anyone useing Vacume with sucess??? biggest CPU hog EVER! , or SANSAMP??? sounds good but it causes system instablity as a realtime plugin, and appairently has been a problem for a few revisions of PT now... OH man, shipping broken software over and over??? I can't believe i paid money to join the PT club.

I know there are a few users out there who are happy with PT9 but i have tried it on 3 different computers i own, and every time i end up going WTF!??

So dissapointed. The next update better be a good one... as in something i can trust not to embarass me infront of clients that are excited to track and mix in Pro Tools cuz its the best! (I have been finding it to be the biggest waste of time, money and effort i have EVER gotten involved with in my whole life!)

Current workflow is to compose in logic and mix in protools when no one is around. Thats working as i can take my time and troubleshoot or reboot on my own dollar... Clients shouldn't have to pay for time wasted due to the latest and greatist software being unrelyable garbage that sounds fantastic if you can baby it enough to let you get thru a bounce to disk


So yah, tell me guys, is this the same for everyone, or just RME users?


*** im not even gonna bother posting specs as instablitly is consistant from my windows 7 ultimate machine and now my windows 7 home edition.. I have loads of ram, a couple TB of extra hard drive space on caviar blacks, everything should be BEAUTIFUL and ya know what... in ever program but pro tools i am having a great user experience~!

Get it together Avid... I really hope to see some stablitly come thru! If nothing else, compile a list of DO and DO NOT that i can follow... like "do not enable Network ports or you'll crash" ... oh, AVID/EUPHONIX MC Control is ethernet controller... perhpaps ill just look at it unplugged in the corner while i use the mouse and keyboard in PT9!! what a joke


/rant!

[albee1952]

Personally, I chose long ago to avoid all that hassle by feeding my non-PT sounds out of the computer's own sound card. Since I went with motherboards that have optical SPDIF out, and added a Presonus Central Station to my rig, the sound quality is great and I never have a hardware conflict.

[Ludia]

I can understand frustration when something is not working as expected.
I even have a realy short fuse to that concern.

However the issue you're describing of not to be able to play system audio when PT is running is not an issue for me at all. I can even play a PT session and at the same time Windows Media Player without any problems what so ever. I'm not sure if this is a PT limitation you are facing as perhaps it's a hardware limitation. I don't know what audio hardware you are using but I use (since day one with PTMP7.4) the M-Audio ProjectMix IO. Upgrade to PTMP8.0 and now for a couple of months on an i7 rig with PT9. I just tell windows to use output 1 and 2 from the PJM. Sometimes I set it to 3 and 4 so things can play together and then use the button on the Presonus monitor station to choose what output I want to hear.
Getting system audio into PT is also possible by of course using the wav or mp3 import directly or again switching the system out (a normal audio soundcard on board) via spdif out into the PJM spdif in. It does this all without any issues....so far

[Dism]

So... You accuse Pro Tools of being broken yet you won't give us the specs of your computer, even though you claim it runs smoothly on the Macbook... Good luck.

[spenner]

Originally Posted by collinsylex

So yah, tell me guys, is this the same for everyone, or just RME users?

Not everyone. Media player and Windows system audio run fine while PT9 is open and I did not do anything to get it to work. It just works with my interface.

*** im not even gonna bother posting specs as instablitly is consistant from my windows 7 ultimate machine and now my windows 7 home edition.. I have loads of ram, a couple TB of extra hard drive space on caviar blacks, everything should be BEAUTIFUL and ya know what... in ever program but pro tools i am having a great user experience~!

There are many people running PT9 fine on Win 7. Some like me have been happy stability wise since LE6 and a tweaked out XP Home Edition on a P4 (ah, the good old days). This is why a Sandra is requested because not everyone is having the issues you are having. Why not post one and be be certain?

[daeron80]

Must be something system-specific. Since installing PT9, for the first time I can run Pro Tools, iTunes, and Skype all at the same time, all directly through my 002R. Revolutionized my world. Sorry I can't help you with how to get yours to do it. I just installed it and it worked.

[collinsylex]

I'll try post a Sandra after work and sessions tonight (sessions using something other than PT lol)

Sorry if i came off as a hater or something... cuz i really do like pro tools and want to get it running correctly...


So as far as my current system specs, I7 with 8gb ram, 1TB system Drive, 2tb data drive (caviar black) Nvidia Gforce video (1gb ram dedicated memory) (not on the approved list i see...) RME FireFace UC.

I saw on the RME website that protools takes over the RME driver...
As far as i know, Digi00X users have a digi driver which enables multi client operation under windows, so i am wondering what that means for other 3rd party devices under pro tools...

System audio is important but actually one of the lesser issues i am having because i can WORK AROUND (even though its a complete Joke that i'd have to)

The thing thats bugging me the most after all, is when i get finished working on a session and my artist has to get out of the studio... then pro tools bounce freezes up for no reason!! i have tested with and without antivirus, all programs closed, all windows minimized... doesn't seem consistant. Leads me to believe that the software is not coded to great Also, issues i mentioned such as sessions containing instruments popping error messages at less than 20percent cpu usage, or sansamp being unusable (kind usable if you like cpu interruptions ever 30 or 45 seconds) as a rtas yet is still included and not fixed!



I actually switched from the mac as i was trying to compose and go full in on pro tools... it wasn't able to satisfy me as far as using instuents was concerned. it would pop cpu errors at low usage... so annoying! but yes, system audio did pass thru!! lol

basic tracking works ok on both the pc and the mac, probably a bit more stable on the mac but the screen is so small, cpu is 1/4 of what i have on the I7pc... and i usually have the RME hooked up to my I7 windows box so thats what im working with.

I can run LOADS of instruments in logic with no problem... in pro tools, its asking for trouble to even run a few it seems (mac or pc)


... Can other 3rd pary device users having success with multiclient operation?( i see its working for the maudio profire user above, i dunno if thats really even 3rd party as it comes from the AVID camp)

... No one else having issues with workspace crashes more often than it should?
... no one else having issue bouncing seemingly harmless protools sessions?

[daeron80]

Originally Posted by collinsylex

RME FireFace UC.

I saw on the RME website that protools takes over the RME driver...

That would make sense.

[collinsylex]

The RME mod also seemed to think that there is nothing much for them to do about it on the RME driver development side... All other audio apps i use can play nice together... Protools hijacks the whole driver. So, there is something about the way protools is coded which is restricing my device... something un-necessairy i would presume!

Cubase, Acid and Soundforge are all working great, i can stream from internet explorer or itunes/wmp/whatever with no problem... so as long as i keep protools closed, my computing experience is good lol!

So whats up pro tools, why are you hijacking my driver when maudio users get to have their cake??! I have 3 maudio cards laying around but i would rather quit pro tools than hook up any of that stuff again

[daeron80]

Oh, this is weird. I searched Ideascale to see if someone had submitted a bug report about this yet, and found the opposite! The guy can't get his 003 to multiclient, but his RME does it just fine.