Setting up a new system. Which OS should I use right now?

[Eiko]

Hello folks, after replacing my old 001 with a new 003R and also getting a nice new MacPro, I'm a bit puzzled as to which OS is recommended for PT.

Should I still go for 10.5 for the time being, or do you guys think 10.6 is safe now. Also, should I bother with this 64bit thing for now, or should I just settle for 32bit, until every company has made the change?
I also use Logic, and learning that 9.1 is now a 64 bit software, I'm kinda intrigued.

In Logic 64 and 32 bit plugins can run at the same time apparently. I doubt in PT this is the case as of yet, right?

What problems will I encounter, if I'm going 64bit? How about 10.6?

If all of these questions have been answered before, I'm sorry. I did some research, but due to time restrictions right now I had to stop.

Maybe someone could give a me a quick answer, that would be highly appreciated!

Thanks!

[Eiko]

Is it too weird a question, that nobody dares to reply?

Man, after reading a bit more here on the DUC one gets the impression that the 003 is a piece of crap, that doesn't work as it should...

I know it's the nature of these boards, that posts mainly deal with problems people have with their systems. Happy users don't see a need to post here, but I'd really like to know are there any satisfied users of a 003 on Mac out there, whose system works flawlessly? If so, what's your configuration?

Thanks for your replies!

[Dism]

Don't take this the wrong way... but I think people don't really want to answer you, because you seem to be making decisions based on fairly radical and uninformed opinions.

I mean "this whole 64-bit thing..." clearly is out of your current understanding of what the difference is. So if you don't know, why should it influence your decision to buy it? That's like deciding what kind of car to buy based entirely on the engine displacement. Don't you care how it drives? The features included? Power sunroof? Air conditioning? Or even the horsepower resulting from the engine displacement?

Let me put it this way... 64 bit processors have been around for about 7 or 8 years now. I still run an early generation AMD Athlon 64 and it's 6 years old. The technology has been there longer than most even know, but all of the sudden "Logic is 64 bit!" and everyone goes "OMG! 64 bit! That sounds so awesome! Why isn't Pro Tools 64 bit yet??" without really knowing what that means. There are still very few programs out there that are written in true 64 bit, mostly because the majority of software still doesn't need to access more than 4GB of RAM at a time. We're finally just breaking through that threshold, and people are reacting as though it is a miracle of technology. You aren't doubling the performance, you're giving individual programs more access to RAM, and that's pretty much it. But if you're only running 4-8GB of RAM, this access is more or less wasted anyway. So if you're getting a Mac Pro with 16-32GB of RAM... I might say you have a valid reason.

As far as the 003 goes... where have you heard it's a piece of crap? I've been running with an 003R for about 2 years now, and it has yet to fail me in any way. The 003R+ has a few complaints that I've heard, however, and I honestly wouldn't get one myself... but I'm sure most 003 owners (be it 003C, R, or R+) wouldn't go so far as to call it a piece of crap.

Either way, all I'm saying is do some research, do some reading. You don't need to spend hours, just Google "003 Rack reviews" and "64 bit processing" and read a few pages. Be informed. There's plenty of info on these forums, too.

[Whiteyguitar]

My 003 has been very stable had an issue when I first bought it but Digi took it back fixed it and no problems since and I bought it when it 1st came out, I've also stayed at 7.3.1 because for me it does everything I want and is unbelievably stable, I have Logic Pro 8 and It's not as stable, Program crashes in the middle of recording, but works well with the 003, Just wish the Program was as stable as Logic Express 7, but I like Pro Tools much better all around.

[Eiko]

Originally Posted by Dism

Don't take this the wrong way... but I think people don't really want to answer you, because you seem to be making decisions based on fairly radical and uninformed opinions.

Well, let me put it this way (and BTW thanks for your reply) I've read a fair bit on the DUC now, which has left me even more puzzled as to which configuration would be the most hassle free. Hence my question.

I mean "this whole 64-bit thing..." clearly is out of your current understanding of what the difference is. So if you don't know, why should it influence your decision to buy it? That's like deciding what kind of car to buy based entirely on the engine displacement. Don't you care how it drives? The features included? Power sunroof? Air conditioning? Or even the horsepower resulting from the engine displacement?

I'm well aware of the advantages (or lack of) of a 64 bit system.
But if you read my question carefully, it was not only about the 64bit issue, but as well about which OS would be the best choice at this time, Leopard or Snow Leopard, based on experience here on the DUC.

As far as the 003 goes... where have you heard it's a piece of crap? I've been running with an 003R for about 2 years now, and it has yet to fail me in any way. The 003R+ has a few complaints that I've heard, however, and I honestly wouldn't get one myself... but I'm sure most 003 owners (be it 003C, R, or R+) wouldn't go so far as to call it a piece of crap.

See, that's all I wanted to hear. Quite a few people were complaining about the CoreAudio driver, that would make it difficult to use the 003 as general output device. Either it won't be seen by the system, or you need to restart the 003 etc.
I used to have a 001, which was totally hassle free, I used it as general output device, no problem. I'd have expected that the 003 works the same way.
I know satisfied users of the 003 are probably under-represented on the DUC, which is the nature of any support forum. Therefore I appreciate happy users confirming me that these are only rare cases.

Either way, all I'm saying is do some research, do some reading. You don't need to spend hours, just Google "003 Rack reviews" and "64 bit processing" and read a few pages. Be informed. There's plenty of info on these forums, too.

I did some reading, and I did read reviews, but there's a difference between some guy testing the device for a few days and people who use the thing every day.

Anyway, I'm glad you're a happy user, so I'm hoping I will be one too

[oulablank]

Sometimes I hate to admit it and sometimes I don't but being a person who has been on both sides of the fence multiple times ( 5.3 , stable - 6.0 disaster for me - 7.4 - more stable then ever - 8.0 so so so far ) is it all worth it , YES ! Every disaster I've had only made me smarter and more aware of the inner workings of my system ( all which I recovered from ) and once I was running , there's nothing like it. I think most of what you see here is truly showing you what people are willing to go through to get up and running because Pro Tools is just that good ! Why should we have to go through anything ? So many diff setups ect ect
I thought I was turning my back on Digi a few months back but after some weeks on logic , i couldn't take it anymore. Nothing beats Pro Tools once you have truly learned the software compat. ins and outs and established your own workflow .

[Eiko]

So can we conclude PTLE 8 with 003R on a MacPro can be a good, working system, and I don't have to be put off after reading all the complaints here on the DUC?

I mean, it's to late now anyway, cos I've got the 003R sitting here, waiting to be integrated into my setup I absolutely like Protools, and given that I had a 001 it was the obvious choice to get a new PTLE rig.
Through hardware exchange I got more for the 001 than on ebay or elsewhere. A unsupported device nobody wants to buy...

Tomorrow, Sunday, I shall start building my new setup

I just hope everything works as expected. I'm so used to everything working right out of the box, so I'm sure this time it'll be just the same

[oulablank]

Very rarely in life are things exactly as expected but if you follow all of the steps on digis site then you should be pleased

[davegibbon]

The other thing to remember is that nobody comes here and creates a post entitled, "Boy, my system is stable and I'm having no issues with the PT 8 upgrade and, by the way, I don't really notice not having ADC".

I've had a 003R for a while now and haven't had an issue with it. I'd go as far as saying that I love it.

[pguy]

003 for two years...... no issues.