RAM vs. New Computer vs. Rollback

[Mattf]

So I finally made the upgrade from WinME to WinXP and installed 5.3.1 and some new plugins. But now almost all my sessions which ran fine on ME either hang PT or constantly get the "increase H/W Buffer size" (but its already set to its highest - 1024). If I try to pop open SampleTank 1 now it completely hangs protools, whereas on ME it ran great. I installed some new plugins after I installed XP like Intak but since I am not even using them in a session it shouldn't make a difference, right?

Here are the relevant specs:
Digi001 5.3.1 software
Dell Dimension 8100
1.4 Ghz Pentium 4
256MB RDRAM

So the general questions to you all is - What the heck is going on with my machine? Has anyone else had a similar experience and if so how did you fix it?

My specific questions are - RDRAM is so dang expensive but do you think it will help solve my problem by getting more? Is my computer outdated... should I buy a new one? Should I rollback to the crappy WinME so I can finish these sessions?

Thanks all,
mf

[scoobydoo]

I would run right out and buy a 512 meg stick if I were you. Not just for PT, but its amazing what some more ram will do for your whole system. And with your rig, its shouldn't be more than $100. As for you "increase HW buffer" there were some bugs in that version when it came to that I remember. And we'll have to get somebody else to help out how they were squashed. I remember having that same problem.

If your using Waves plugs, make sure you have the newest version you can get your hands on. They did a lot of work with CPU usage a while back and it made a HUGE difference.

Make sure you've set your CPU usage in Playback Engine prefs. back to 85% I think it defaults to 65% when you first install.

I would recommend more ram, and also I recommend updating to 6.1 actually.

256 is the minimum amount recommended by Microsuck to run win XP. It actually takes a ton of that just for itself. Actually come to think of it, I'd bet money its your ram for the simple fact that XP uses close to twice the memory that ME/98 did. You could actually run 98 on a PC with 128mgs. Not well, but it would run. That makes sense to me. But I've been wrong. Anybody you know that could loan you a stick of ram to try it out? And BTW, make sure its compatable ram. Some of those name brand boxes are picky about there ram. If you try to use incompatible ram, you'll corrupt files and all hell will break lose.


Can anybody else help him out about the HW buffer problem?

[JMS40]

Yes, increase the Ram.

The buffer problems are probably drive setup/ controller related.

There were few bugs in 5.3.1, by the way... nothing I can recall that would directly cause this problem.

I got the first release and it's been like a rock since.
I've got comprable CPU power in an AMD 1800 with 512mb and my setup stays at 128 samples.

In my opinion, you have a configuration problem and 5.3 is not to blame. You may even take a performance hit by upgrading to 6x...

[The Neophyte]

Have you checked out this thread.

It could be the problem you're having in which case it should be an easy fix.

Not to say that you shouldn't increase your RAM too

-Neo

[Mattf]

Great info people... Thanks.

Guess I am going to buy some more RAM. Maybe you guys can help with this as well...

My computer is a Dell Dimension 8100 and on the Dell site it says the compatible RAM for this computer is RAMBUS Memory modules. The problem with this is that a stick of 256MB is $157 AND you must install them in pairs (at least thats what is says on the link below), which makes it roughly $300 for 512MB.

http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/p...&page=external

So do any of you brains know:
1) Do I have to use RAMBUS RAM or can I get away with the cheaper RAM (like DDR RAM)?

2) If I have to buy RAMBUS RAM, does anyone know a cheaper place to buy it than Dell?

Thanks again people!

-mf

[The Neophyte]

Hi mf,

It's all very well that you'll be getting some more RAM and you should too...

BUT have you checked out the thread I have linked to above. If you haven't then I strongly advise you to read it, because it could be the root cause of your problem in which case there is an easy fix. Otherwise, even adding RAM may not solve matters for you.

-Neo

[Mattf]

Neo,
Yeah didn't mean to sound like I was ingnoring your suggestion. I read the thread and am thinking that could TOTALLY have something to do with my prob.

I will investigate it tonight and let you know. Thanks again!

-mf

[The Neophyte]

just looking out for ya

[Mattf]

Neo,
I was really hoping that I had the PIO issue which is stated in your thread above, but I don't. The one curious thing was that my newer (audio hard drive) is in DMA Mode 2 whereas the hard drive that came with my machine, which is much older, is in DMA Mode 5. I opened my box to see if my newer drive was using 40-conductor cables and its not. The cable is basically going to my older drive then going out the older drive into the newer drive, so its basically the same cable type (80-conductor).

Any ideas on how to get that drive into DMA mode 5? Or even if this would be the cause of the H/W buffer errors?

Thanks,
mf

[The Neophyte]

This is bit of a tricky one. There's nothing immediate that comes to mind.

You could try and make sure that the actual drivers for the audio hard drive are up-to-date, by going onto the manufacturers website. It could well be that XP has discarded the original drivers you had for your audio drive and opted for its own drivers instead. In this case, you might just be able to check the drivers for that particular hard drive and roll them back.

You could also (perhaps) try to change the order of the hard drives around. It seems that currently you have your System drive as slave and audio drive as master. Maybe changing this the other way round might help. At this stage, I think anything could be worth a shot. Also, I believe its quite common that System drives are usually the master, and not the slave as you have at the moment. But I don't know if that makes much difference, although it might.

The other thing is that you should try and check the jumper settings to make sure the drives are set correctly when you change them around. These are small jumpers which sit on pins on the hard drive itself. Just have to check that one is set to master and the other is set to slave. It should be clearly marked at the back of the hard drive.

As I am typing this I am thinking though, that if this was the order of your hard drives prior to the upgrade then there is no reason that it should be a problem now.

As for whether Mode 2 is the cause of the H/W errors, I am not sure. Certainly, in any case, there should be an overall performance boost by getting it to work in Mode 5, which it most defintately should be capable of if its less than a couple of years old. Again, it might be the cause of the errors, but the only way to find out is to try and see.

If I think of any other ideas then I'll get back to you.

In the mean time, best of luck!
-Neo