slow import of audio since 5.1

[Ploch Klaus]

The icons of audio-files recorded with 5.1 do have color now - before they where b/w. Never mind...
Strange problem is now:
AudioFiles recorded (and saved) pre 5.1 do import into 5.1 as usual (quite fast) - but when I try to import a audiofile recorded with 5.1 into a 5.1 session in takes ages. I cannot (with clients in the studio) import 10 atmospheres (each 3 min-stereo) recorded with 5.1 into a session because it would take several minutes to import them (no SR-conversion.... we do everything here with 48kHz....)

Any ideas?????????????????????????

I have the same problem on a G4-533-MP, PT-Mix+, DC-30+, lots of RAM, MacOS-9.1....

and on a 9600 (G3-500 upgrade from Newer), PT-24, DC-30+, lots of RAM, MacOS.9.1.......

[germ]

We've noticed this same problem too - with a slight difference, we're finding it doesn't matter what PT they were recorded with (5.1 or pre 5.1). Importing files into the Region bin takes ages, no sample rate conversion or bit conversion going on here.

The fingers tap for a good five times more ever before, it seems - a quick "waveform overview" appears to blat up (although these files have been recorded in PT, so they should already have overviews??). All our file types are 16bit, 44.1 SD2.

Problem on a G4|433 Mix++ & a 9600|G3<400> D24 Core.

This is regardless of size of file.

Ideas? Digi??

[DigiTechSupt]

-I cannot reproduce this behavior with a Beige G3/300MHz, Mac OS 9.0.4 and PT 5.1 (Mix hardware).

-I do not experience a delay (tapping fingers, etc) when importing audio into a 5.1 session that was either recorded in PT 5.1 or pre-5.1 does not of the same sample rate and bit depth.

Suggestions:
-Reduce the Disk Cache in the Memory Control Panel to 512k and restart the computer.

-Rebuild the Desktop file. Hold down the Apple+Option keys while the extensions march across the bottom of the screen during boot-up. Hold the keys down until you get a window prompting you and then Click “OK”.

--Increase the Preferred memory size of the Pro Tools and DAE applications. Click on the icon once to highlight it and choose File>Get Info in the Finder (shortcut: Command+I). Increase the DAE Preferred size to 80000k (80MB) and Pro Tools to 60000k (60MB). If you have changed the Minimum memory settings to Pro Tools or DAE, you will need to set these back to their default values. Reset DAE Minimum size to 30000k and Pro Tools Minimum to 35320k.

-Open the Extensions Manager Control Panel. From the selected set pop-up menu, select “OS 9.x base” click on “Duplicate Set" at the bottom of the window. Name the set whatever you like. Enable the following extensions and restart the computer:
-Digidesign Control Panel
-DigiSystem INIT
-Digidesign Direct I/O
-Digidesign DSP Manager
-Digidesign Stream Manager (only if using DirectConnect)
-Open Music System
-USB Floppy Enabler

-You may have a corrupt session. Launch Track Transfer (Digidesign>Pro Tools>Pro Tools Utilities), move the tracks into a new session document, open the new session in Pro Tools and see if the behavior persists.

-Check the integrity of your drives with Disk Warrior or any other such utility.

Brent

[germ]

Thanks Brent,

We've just tried all the above on our G4, we've tracked the trend down a little further now. It may possibly have being too presumtious to say "all files" :

Grey iconed SD2 files whip into the region as fast as you'd expect. Coloured icon SD2 files (we've created these by exporting as files from the region bin in another session, a 5.1 session). Importing these into another session takes 2-14 seconds of finger taping before it starts to create overviews, and it does this before every file. After the last file, and before they show in the bin takes the longest "finger tap".

10 files all under 2 meg each took 22 finger tapes before we could touch the machine.

This happens in numerous sessions, so hardly going to be a corrupt session - and drives are checking out fine in Nortons.

Anymore ideas - now that we've traced the problem to specifics??

[Paul Greyson]

I believe you must be working with large sessions that originated in PT 5.0 or earlier, yes?

The problem has to do with some logic that insures that you don't have multiple files in your session with the same "unique id."
It will only occur when importing new files which have unique id's into a session that contains many files that don't.

The problem has been fixed in 5.1.1.

The only workaround I can think of is for you to do a "Save session copy (copying audio files)" of the session you're working with. That will create new audio files with unique id's and the slow import should go away in the copied session.



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Paul Greyson
Digidesign Engineering

[DaveP]

Originally posted by Paul Greyson:
I believe you must be working with large sessions that originated in PT 5.0 or earlier, yes?

The problem has to do with some logic that insures that you don't have multiple files in your session with the same "unique id."
It will only occur when importing new files which have unique id's into a session that contains many files that don't.

The problem has been fixed in 5.1.1.

I am having this problem - with a number of projects. The sessions were all created in 5.1 however, there is a great deal of material that I have imported from sessions cut in previous versions of Pro-Tools. It is taking me as long as 20 minutes now to import new PT5.1 clips from other sessions (I have very large film projects going on 150 gigs of drives- I can see that PT5.1 is searching through those drives on every import) This is dragging me to an absolute stop and is very embarrasing when clients are in the room. Here is the question -- WHEN CAN WE GET 5.1.1. I am very close do a deadline and even If a copy my sessions to another drive I would still be adding in old files without ID's that I presume would make this start all over again.

HELP

Dave P

[Ploch Klaus]

Tanks - I already thought something is going on completely mad here - but at least other users have the same problem.

dito - how to get 5.11 (fast) - here this is also a real problem - into each new session I have to import at least about six Gigs (a session has rarely less than 10 GB of files)

Yes, we are working with big sessions with loads of sounds imported - but we do also have the exact same problems with new or older sessions.

By the way - why change something that worked? Sometimes I had the same audio-file twice in a session (imported them into two diff. folders) and never had a problem with that.

[Paul Greyson]

DaveP, I don't think you'll see a major hit until you've got several hundred "old" files in the session. So maybe the "Save session copy" workaround will get you through your current project.

I understand that this is a nasty one. 5.1.1 is coming soon.

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Paul Greyson
Digidesign Engineering

[DaveP]

Paul,

One thing I have noticed is that the larger the file. The longer the import takes. It is definitely not doing a conversion or copying the media. But the import takes much longer on large files. Again, it only happens with files created in PT 5.1. Is this consistent with the File ID bug??

Dave

[Paul Greyson]

I wouldn't expect it to be related to the size of the file. You sure?

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Paul Greyson
Digidesign Engineering