why does pro tools have to suck???

[sethbrand]

I have just about had it with this system as I cannot get anything done without problems after problems. I have all night to record, which i am excited about, that is until I turn on my equipment and 3 hours later have accomplished nothing. I was hoping this problem would go away mysteriously just as it appeared, but it hasn't. One day out of the blue my system started popping and cracking while recording. Not while playing back, just recording. I have an m audio firewire 1814 hooked up to my laptop via firewire. the popping is there whether i have my external connected to the system or not, so it is not a daisy chain problem. why would it just all of a sudden start doing this one day and not go away?

[dillon99999]

what type of firewire card?

is it on the motherboard (the firewire)?

as previous people have found out, it is NOT recommended to use a firewire hard drive on the same chain as the 1814.

please post information about your system / hardware.

what version of pro tools?

are you using the 1814 driver from m-audio's website - or the one from the CD?

without this information, it is just about impossible to diagnose your problem.

[Jim Roseberry]

Hi Seth,

Do you have Wireless Networking enabled?
If so, try disabling that...
That can cause glitches.

Disable the FW controller as a Network Device (in Device Manager)
Have you tried removing and reloading the MAudio driver?
Last but not least, I'd swap out the FW cable. Just to be sure...


Jim Roseberry
www.studiocat.com
[email protected]

[Mixchump]

Seth,

I think I have an answer for you. After spending a whole evening trying in vain to get a PC to run ProTools Mpowered properly, I can tell you without hesitation.

You need to get a Mac.

Aaaaaarrrrrgggghhhhhh.

[dillon99999]

No "Mac vs. PC" platform wars allowed on the DUC.

[sethbrand]

Hey guys!
Thanks for all of the replies and tips. Sorry it took me so long to get back, I haven't messed with my set up in a while. Anyways, here is my rig:

pro tools m powered 7.0
m audio firewire 1814 (as it came, I have not updated drivers)
Firewire connection to my laptop 1394 firewire import. (my firewire port was built into laptop.)
My computer is an HP Pavilion zd8000 with 3.0 ghz and 512 MB or RAM. It is only 5400rpm and I know i should have 7200rpm, but that is not why it started popping and cracking after almost a year, b/c it was fine for a year.

I have some more questions too:
How can I update from 7.0 to 7.3?
How can I update my m audio drivers?
I do have a wireless connection but don't use it. How do i disable it(details)
How do I disable the FW Controller as a network device? In my device manager under Network Adapters it says 1394 Net adapter, should I disable that?

Ive swapped firewire cables and its not the cable.
Thanks,
Seth

[southboundloco]

no don't upgrade to 7.3 if u think u have problems now wait till u upgrade to 7.3 just have a read at the posts about 7.3

[spkguitar]

It is only 5400rpm and I know i should have 7200rpm, but that is not why it started popping and cracking after almost a year, b/c it was fine for a year.

Did you start recording or building more tracks? I got to experience first hand the crackling and popping with the 1814 recently (details in this thread ) and it was most definitely related to the hard drive, how it was connected to the computer, how much data was going to it, and how fast that data could get there.

Do yourself a favor and get your computer at least up to specifications and using a 7200rpm drive. ALso, if you are going with an external firewire drive, make sure you get one that is recommmended, and you will not be able to chain it between the computer and the 1814. You will need a separate FW interface like the belkin that I was using in the thread I linked above. (I still don't know the model number, but it had a green label, if that helps)

How can I update from 7.0 to 7.3?

At this link right here.

How can I update my m audio drivers?

this link right here

I do have a wireless connection but don't use it. How do i disable it(details)

Right click the wireless icon on your taskbar and select "Disable". (If you don't have a wireless icon on your taskbar, Go to control panel->System click on the hardware tab click the Device Manager button, find your adapter, right click and select Disable).

How do I disable the FW Controller as a network device?

You don't want to do that.

In my device manager under Network Adapters it says 1394 Net adapter, should I disable that?

No.

And contrary to loco's advice, I would personally recommend upgrading to 7.3. Many people seem to have had issues with it, but I haven't and it's been running smoothly since I got it. There is one known bug that is harmless (happens at startup if you have your network card turned off), and there are issues with older, outdated plugins, which are solved by updating your plugins.

[sethbrand]

[QUOTE]
ALso, if you are going with an external firewire drive, make sure you get one that is recommmended, and you will not be able to chain it between the computer and the 1814. You will need a separate FW interface like the belkin that I was using in the thread I linked above. (I still don't know the model number, but it had a green label, if that helps)[QUOTE]



Hey thanks a lot!

I plan on putting in a 7200 rpm hard drive soon and adding more RAM, but for now, here is how i am connected:

Firewire 1814 straight into build in firewire 1394 port on my laptop (no daisy chaining).
I have an external hard drive connected to a seperate usb port in my laptop, but the popping is still there whether my external is connected or not. That is all I have connected.

As far as adding more tracks, no. The cracking is there from the start of every session from track one and it cracks about once every 4 measures(pretty ridiculous) and it makes recording impossible. I even tried clearing out all of my sessions from my hard drive to clear up some space and it still does it.

What do you think about reformatting my entire computer and just wiping it clean? How would I do that?

I guess I will try to update my m audio drivers and upgrade pro tools (I don't want to pay 200 bucks for the upgrade to 7.3 so should I at least upgrade to pro tools 7.1?) After all of my upgrades I will try freeing some space as best I can and hopefully that will solve it. If not I will get a new hard drive (7200 rpm) and see what that does. Thanks!

[sethbrand]

Also, when i go to the m audio site to upgrade my drivers, there are three different upgrades:

How do i know which one to select? The newest release?