Tracking w/ PTLE 8 for 4-hours, reliability issues?

[royceg]

Hey All,

So heres what im running:
-MacBookPro; 2.53GHz Intel Core 2 Duo @ 4GBramm 1067MHz DDR3 @ 7200rpm
-PT 8 LE + 003rackplus + Apogee Ensemble linked via ADAT: all connected to Mac via ExpressCard slot.
-LacieHD with Oxford 911 chipset running @ 7200rpm: connected to Mac via FW800

I've tracked bands with 10-14 mono-tracks with this rig before running at 44.1k/16MB and had no issues or burps in processing. But no Instances of Plug-Ins and i was running about an hour at a time giving the system a break here and there.

What I'm wondering: If i'm running 16 mono-tracks w/ 2 instances of plug-ins (Comp/HPF EQ) for 4 hours @ 48K/24MB what are theee BEST settings to use to ensure reliability over that extended amount of time?

Thanks for the help in advance.

[flommer]

Is this a live recording situation? Are the inputs being recorded also being sent back to the band or house PA or something? I'm not sure why you would want to record with any plugins active?

[Darney]

Originally Posted by royceg

Hey All,

So heres what im running:
-MacBookPro; 2.53GHz Intel Core 2 Duo @ 4GBramm 1067MHz DDR3 @ 7200rpm
-PT 8 LE + 003rackplus + Apogee Ensemble linked via ADAT: all connected to Mac via ExpressCard slot.
-LacieHD with Oxford 911 chipset running @ 7200rpm: connected to Mac via FW800

I've tracked bands with 10-14 mono-tracks with this rig before running at 44.1k/16MB and had no issues or burps in processing. But no Instances of Plug-Ins and i was running about an hour at a time giving the system a break here and there.

What I'm wondering: If i'm running 16 mono-tracks w/ 2 instances of plug-ins (Comp/HPF EQ) for 4 hours @ 48K/24MB what are theee BEST settings to use to ensure reliability over that extended amount of time?

Thanks for the help in advance.

Earlier versions of PT LE recommended setting the disk allocation in preferences for 60 minutes max recording time, I believe to relieve potential disk errors. I used to get errors using PT 6 when I forgot to set that.
However, I don't know about the current limits suggested as I don't do live recordings where you'd need more than 60 minutes for a session. But I still set max session lengths to 60 minute just in case!

[royceg]

The Lead engineer on the project likes to track with some basic compression/EQ. So 1-2 plug-ins for every channel and totaling in at 16 channels plus the stereo master.

Im curious about the HW buffer size, cache size and any other settings related to running PT 8 efficiently for a prolonged amount of time. I too have done 60min sets then pause, new playlist, then track again for another 60min. But never 4 hours straight.

Any thoughts?

[Bender]

What Flommer said. There is no reason to use a compressor pluging now. It would be the same as compressing it later. A software plugin gets the audio after the converter so the only reason to have it as a insert would be if you were monitoring it for the live show. Latency would be an issue and with your system you would be pushing it a little. You can't just stop if it is live.

[royceg]

I understand where your coming from, and i myself don't use plug-ins when recording unless i was sending to FOH.

But, my client is renting gear from me and chooses to do so, so im going along with it regardless. Techniques aside I just want my system to not crash.

So to minimize the drag on my computer i would like to find some settings to optimize my systems performance. Please help, as the only things i know to adjust is H/W Buffer to Lower Samples to lower the monitor-latency and Higher CPU usage for the RTAS processes.

What about RTAS Processors and DAE settings? Which settings are optimal for my purposes?

[tobbenos]

Well.. Be sure to try it first! Put it PT on record before going to bed tonight, and check to see how it went tomorrow morning :)

[royceg]

Gonna do a run through while at work. Setup and track for an hour or two and see how it goes. Ive never had issues when tracking before and my Mac has more than enough to PT processing.

Hope fully no hiccups occur.

[flommer]

Originally Posted by royceg

I understand where your coming from, and i myself don't use plug-ins when recording unless i was sending to FOH.

But, my client is renting gear from me and chooses to do so, so im going along with it regardless. Techniques aside I just want my system to not crash.

So to minimize the drag on my computer i would like to find some settings to optimize my systems performance. Please help, as the only things i know to adjust is H/W Buffer to Lower Samples to lower the monitor-latency and Higher CPU usage for the RTAS processes.

What about RTAS Processors and DAE settings? Which settings are optimal for my purposes?

Well, the HW buffer could come in to it if you or the engineer or the band or what ever are actively monitoring the output. If you have it too high, then the monitoring latency could be distracting. So the idea would be to keep that setting as low as possible without making the system unstable. 128 or less, I should think.

If you are talking about using ProTools Digirack plugins, then they are pretty light on the CPU. You should keep plugins to the minimum needed to get the job done (again, you realize that the plugins' output does not go to "tape", right? It will only be heard for monitoring purposes..).

Host processor setting should be the max your computer has (2 for core 2 duo) - 1... So 1. Here is a thread that touches on the need to reduce the proc count by 1. With plugins in mind, and this just occurred to me, you might want to remove any unneeded plugins (especially 3rd party) from the "Plug-in" folder for the event. All plugins in that folder are loaded when PT starts up regardless of if they are used in the session or not. So that just uses up RAM and CPU resources unnecessarily. Just move them temporarily to the Unused Plug-ins folder.

Processor utilization can be 99%.

I would leave the other settings in "Playback engine" at their defaults.

Make sure to run through the optimizations listed here

Especially make sure spotlight indexing is disabled.

Make sure your recording Hard drive has plenty of open space. ( The rough amount of space needed will be about 40GB. I would have at least 200 GB free, preferably on a mostly blank disc with no fragmentation) Make sure your HD will be able to keep cool. Many external HD enclosures have no fans (cooling is passive) and are not really meant for continuous use like you are proposing to do. If your Lacie is like this then you might consider getting a new HD or even just setting up a fan. Really depends on the ambient temp where you record. When you test (see below) you should get an idea of how much the HD is heating up.

Personally, given the time, I would test the rig, with a session set up as close to the one that will go down for real, for 5 hours just to be safe. Just set it up and let it go. Open the System usage and keep an eye on it. The file size limit in PT will limit you to about 7hrs of continuous recording so don't push it too close to that.

[royceg]

Well, the HW buffer could come in to it if you or the engineer or the band or what ever are actively monitoring the output. If you have it too high, then the monitoring latency could be distracting. So the idea would be to keep that setting as low as possible without making the system unstable. 128 or less, I should think.

-We will be monitoring, idk why, but we will. The lead engineer has a monitor station setup.

If you are talking about using ProTools Digirack plugins, then they are pretty light on the CPU. You should keep plugins to the minimum needed to get the job done (again, you realize that the plugins' output does not go to "tape", right? It will only be heard for monitoring purposes..).

-AHHH ok, Im sorry if I misread the responses before. But I do see what you mean now. Shoot, I thought plug-ins while tracking would print to track(never tried it). I may have to tell the Lead guy that they'll only be on the monitoring output.

Host processor setting should be the max your computer has (2 for core 2 duo) - 1... So 1. Here is a thread that touches on the need to reduce the proc count by 1. With plugins in mind, and this just occurred to me, you might want to remove any unneeded plugins (especially 3rd party) from the "Plug-in" folder for the event. All plugins in that folder are loaded when PT starts up regardless of if they are used in the session or not. So that just uses up RAM and CPU resources unnecessarily. Just move them temporarily to the Unused Plug-ins folder.

Processor utilization can be 99%.
I would leave the other settings in "Playback engine" at their defaults.

-These setup steps I was looking for. Something that is not really published? Much appreciated for this info.

Make sure to run through the optimizations listed here

-Thanks for the Guide.

Especially make sure spotlight indexing is disabled.

-Done Did. Had this setup disabled in my PT partition when i started tracking Live-bands.

Make sure your recording Hard drive has plenty of open space. ( The rough amount of space needed will be about 40GB. I would have at least 200 GB free, preferably on a mostly blank disc with no fragmentation) Make sure your HD will be able to keep cool. Many external HD enclosures have no fans (cooling is passive) and are not really meant for continuous use like you are proposing to do. If your Lacie is like this then you might consider getting a new HD or even just setting up a fan. Really depends on the ambient temp where you record. When you test (see below) you should get an idea of how much the HD is heating up.

-My Lacie should hold up if I clear up space and compress any unused sessions. I will add "fan" to my packing list for the event. Good looking out. The event will be in a well-cooled Hotel Ballroom and such but the fan will help in general for Laptop and HD cooling.

Personally, given the time, I would test the rig, with a session set up as close to the one that will go down for real, for 5 hours just to be safe. Just set it up and let it go. Open the System usage and keep an eye on it. The file size limit in PT will limit you to about 7hrs of continuous recording so don't push it too close to that.

-I was planning to setup the rig here at work and let it run for a few hours and see how things shape up after 2-3 hours. To be safe i may ask the Lead Engineer to take a system break every 2 hours and have the show promotors take Program Intermission to cool down the rig.

Quick question, even without signal, the System Usage meter will show accurate info about how the system is responding? I assumed it was a close idea, since its up and running, but not accurate bc theres the lack of signal to process?

Thanks again for the info. Much obliged.