Slow Graphics

[Nocturnal]

I have a G4 400 with 320 mb.

My problem is that when I am using Protools LE, the scrolling of the screen becomes very slow and jolty during scrolling when the screen starts to get busy i.e. lots of stracks on screen.

Is there anything I can do to remedy this? Or is it something that is inherent to sequencing software?

[Nocturnal]

Oh yeah I forgot to ask if working with two monitors would change anthing. How do I go about doing this?

Cheers

Nocturnal

[search-one]

thats host based apps. for you. it slows down cause your cpu is doing all the work.

[krazee]

are both monitors on the same resolution?
same colours?

they have to be on the same resolution and colours

[Zar]

Are you useing QT movies in this session? If so take the picture track out of the Edit Window and just use the 1/4 frame QT window

[Nocturnal]

Krazee - I'm not using two monitors yet. I was just wondering if it would make a difference.

Zar - I'm not using quicktime video -just midi and audio. Not even many audio tracks/maybe 6 at the moment. Mostly I work with Midi.

Search-one - so its a CPU problem then and nothing to do with Ram.
I do find it annoying. I mean Apple talk about G4's being the first super-computers and I cannt even scroll down thew page without it jolting all over the place.

[ThomCat]

In my limited experience with two monitors I've found that asking the CPU to redraw two monitors instead of one is an extra load on the CPU, and from the sound of things you have yours maxed out already. I think the bottleneck, the reason you are seeing slow redraws, is because the CPU can't keep up, not because you can't pump the data through a single video card fast enough. Two cards would only make things worse, unless the original card is a dog and the new ones are state-of-art.

My research was on an admittedly slow computer, a circa 1994 PowerMac 6100/60, but using the Norton System Info benchmarks I took a 30% speed hit when using two monitors against using just one. Lots has changed since the venerable 6100's day, but the laws of physics still apply. Unless you're in a TDM or other non-host-based system I'd advise against it.

[Chompers]

The slow screen redraws seem to be more of a Digi problem than an Apple one.
For example, on a full blown TDM mix plus system and a G4 400 at my studio, screen redraws are WAY slower than screen redraws on my 9600/350 when I use ANY other audio program.
I can get 24 tracks on DECK, cubase, Studio vision Pro, and the screen redraws are almost instant!
On the "top of the line" pro rools it is embarrisngly slow. So much that when I first set up the TDM system at the studio, I thought something was wrong! Now that I have a digi 001 at home on my G4 533, I can see that the redraws are still SLOW as sin compared to any other audio app I use.
It is a defenite drawback to pro tools.
The useability of pro tools is suprisingly "loe end" compared to "less powerfull" apps.
Just look at the graphics. Everything is simple 2d grey boxes! And they still cant render as fast as my 2 year old copy of DECK.

[search-one]

nocturnal: im no expert but from exp. working with large and small sesions it sounds like it most likely is the cpu. i get 24 tracks plus 6 aux with about 10 eqs 5or6 comp and maybe 1 or 2 dverbs and 1or2 mid delays. and a master track using Q10-C1. i have a G4 400 mhz 352megs. when you think about it that is alot to ask of this lil chip to do. read my post on pt 5.1 on the pt forum and on general forum

[guitates]

Hello---??...Slow screen re-draws IS about Too many Plugs being open...close 1 at a time and check it out....

Audiosuite and bouncing with import back to session is 2 areas that PTLE blows LOGIC out of the "AUDIO" recording water...These allow you to close the offending Plugs...