Plug-Ins=CPU Spikes

[RokVox]

Uhhhhh,

I'm using Pro Tools 7.1 not 7.3 and unless I'm missing something, why would I need a FW PCI Adapter???

[filosofem]

I'm using Pro Tools 7.1 not 7.3

Yes ...and that's how you'll suppress those errors.

why would I need a FW PCI Adapter?

Not all onboard FW Ports work as expected.






filosofem

[tomdiek]

It is worth checking into the firewire ports and if they may be bad. I bought a brand new Apple G5 dual 2.0 opened it up, turned it on and it shut off after 2 minutes. I had to return it for a new one. The point being sometimes these machines are defective in one way or another. Or, there are things that can cause a port or cable to be bad. It's also possible that the firewire interface board in the drive has an issue.

[marty martin]

I had a similar problem with a couple of plugs (iDrum in particular) and switching to a single processor solved it for me.
Not a brilliant solution by any means but it meant I could get back to work!

[The Dubnicks]

I agree that it might be specific plug-ins, I still have issues of CPU spiking with one of the BF Pultec EQs (the silver one - can't think of the name right now) which is disappointing, considering it's a Digi plug in. I still love Pro Tools, especially for audio editing, but I've been using both Logic Pro and Digital Performer a lot lately, and every time I fire up PT LE, I'm shocked at the difference in the CPU efficiency/consistency - it's kind of all over the place. I wish Digi would implement some sort of pre-rendering the way DP does and finally offer full plug-in delay compensation. What's sad is, I've been reading a bit about Reaper, which is just finishing it's Mac beta testing, and it's feature set is more than the equivalent to all three of the above listed (64 bit mix engine, beat detective equivelent, full plug-in delay compensation, etc.) and it's $40. Kind of a bummer.

[RokVox]

Thanks to All,

filosofem, so there is no way to "turn off" these alert messages that are stopping playback in Pro Tools 7.1cs10? And although I checked all the FW ports and cables, I agree with you that sometimes these ports just ain't working right. That said, what FW PCI Adapter do you recommend? I have a Power Mac G5 DualCore 2.3 with PCI Express slots.

tomdiek, thanks as I mentioned above I checked out the FW ports and cables but you never know.

marty martin, switching to one processer seems to make it a little better, (if any). Which leads me to believe that some of these plugs, or maybe Pro Tools 7 is not really that well optimized for Dual and Quad core machines and actually does the opposite, puts more strain on the CPU.

Dubnicks, I agree, I think the problem is specific to the those "plugs". I get the same thing with the BF Pultec EQs as well.


Thanks again!

[filosofem]

so there is no way to "turn off" these alert messages that are stopping playback in Pro Tools 7.1cs10?

No, only version 7.3 or higher has RTAS Engine suppression.

By the way, although I'm running Pro Tools on a Windows DAW, I have no problems with the latest version of Pro Tools (7.3.1 cs2) and you should consider upgrading. The percentage of successful 7.3 Mac users out there out weights those that are having issues, that said mind you, using RTAS Engine suppression isn't really going to fix your problem, despite some other obvious reasons, through definition, RTAS Engine suppression can and does cause digital distortion because it's suppressing an issue that shouldn't be present in the first instance and really needs to be addressed.

what FW PCI Adapter do you recommend?

I use a SIIG 1394 3-Port PCI Adapter which is compatible with both Windows and PPC Mac's OS 8.6 or higher. You'll need a spare PCI Slot though. Check Digi's site for the specific Model number, very important that you keep with the Model number Digi recommends.









filosofem

[RokVox]

Thanks,

The Adapter card is incompatible with my computer. It does not have PCI slots. I just checked with my guy @ OWC to confirm that.

Anyone with a MAC set up care to comment???

I can't believe there is no way to disable these messages from stopping playback. In the Pro Tools preferences maybe? Again I'm using 7.1cs10 for Mac.

DIGI could please comment on this???

Thanks

[The Dougfather]

Hi there, i had this problem for a while and it was due to a dodgy 3rd party plug. I know you say that you have the most current updates, some third party developers are notoriously crap at making there software function well with Pro Tools. I've had no end of hassle with Korg for example, i have the most current updates and it still crashes Pro Tools for no reason whatsoever.

Have you tried removing all third party .dpm plugins from the plugin folder and restarting the machine. If you do this and Pro Tools starts to play nice then you know it's a duff plug.

Just because your not using a plug in a session doesn't mean it won't causes problems. Pro Tools allocates resources on launch so a dodgy plug used or not can spike a session.

Cheers

[RokVox]

Hey Dougfather,

Yes, I have removed all plug-ins and I have no problems. The problem occurs for example when I just leave Amplitube 2 in the folder and BINGO, [bleep] happens. If you read all of my postings, you will see what I have done to try and tame this nightmare!

I agree with you 100 percent, even though the plug-ins are the latest versions and according to DIGI and the 3rd party developers, are Pro Tools 7 compatible, they are still on the funky side!

Again, Is there a way to disable these messages from stopping playback. In the Pro Tools preferences maybe? Again I'm using 7.1cs10 for Mac.

DIGI could please comment on this???

Cheers!