WHY SHOULD I (or shouldn't) UPGRADE FROM 5.13 to 7?

[mellotron]

I'm 2/3rds into an ongoing album project and have been thinking about up grading to DP 7 (from 5.13) Is there any compelling reasons why I should or shouldn't do this now vs after I finish this record?

I've heard the interface is different and some things have moved around, but how big a re-learning curve is there would you say?

Are there any new features that make it worth the trouble and expense?

I really like like DP, but the conversion compared to LOGIC sucks. Has MOTU improved this?

Are there any improvements in CPU or Playback efficiency?

I don't do much MIDI stuff... mostly just record, edit, mix (w' UAD plugs) and bounce.

Thanks to all in advance!

[jloeb]

Is there a hard deadline? Is it within a month?
I never EVER upgrade if I'm in a project with a looming deadline. It's just not worth it.

DP7 is fantastic and, in my opinion, nearly every aspect of it is better, from cpu efficiency to plugins to file handling to workflow. But I don't think there is anything in it that you absolutely positively must have to complete your project. So if there's a deadline within the month, I would wait until that deadline is past. Then definitely go for it.

[mellotron]

Thanks for chiming in! I'm definitely taking your advice into consideration. I upgraded from DP3 to DP4 on a previous project a few years back and it worked out well, but I don't know how major a change 6 & 7 is from 5?

Also, I'll probably be working on this record off and on for another couple months, but I don't want it to take 3 or 4... you know? A day or two re-orienting myself is fine, but I mostly want to be able to pick up at 7 where I left off at 5... and continue just recording, editing and mixing. How hard can it be? Seems simple, but possibly risky?

[jloeb]

Picking up right where you left off is the ideal - but it doesn't always work out that way due to system issues. That's why I never do it if there's a deadline coming up.

In your case it sounds like there's more of a personal deadline of a few months, so i'd say you're fine to upgrade.

Only things consider would be your system and plugins. If you're on an Intel I'd make sure you're in the latest version of snow leopard; if you're in a G5, perhaps not? (Others who are using PPC could give a better clue here), and make sure your 3rd party plugins and/or firmware are all the latest versions.

[MIDI Life Crisis]

Plugs are a definite consideration as is the OS. Tiger should be fine but Leopard can be tricky if your plugs are not up to date. Kontakt 2 will probably die and I've seen lots of Waves issues on this board with Leo/DP 6+.

Also consider the interface changes. You will be relearning some stuff. On the plus side you'll also have a bunch of new plugs and tools to work with. If the deadline isn't critical and you have the luxury of spending a little time working things out, I'd definitely go for it. If you want to get the project finished "soon" (whatever that means to you) then I'd go with the "never upgrade during a project" advice.

A word of caution: If you are moving from DP 5 and want to be able to go back in case things don't work out (you can keep both version on your machine) be sure to copy and save the "MAS AudioUnit Support.bundle" at root>library>audio plugins>mas as this file was changed in DP 6 and will not work properly in DP 5. To go back to DP 5, you will want to replace that file in the original location.

Also, if you have a lot of HD space or a new HD, you might setup a new bootable partition for DP 5 and DP 7 but that may be overkill. I tend to err on the side of excessive caution in such matters. One can never have too much money or too many hard drives.

[KarlSutton]

I personally didn't enjoy the switch from 5 to 6 UI wise. Assuming 7 is the same I didn't upgrade to that. There was too much stuff needlessly moved around & it made it hard to get work done.

Now if I wasn't in a hurry that probably would be a different story.

Also good advice on the plugins, machine & OS - check all that out first too or your DP7 upgrade could end up costing a lot more than what you originally planned on.

[mellotron]

Great replies so far... thanks to all! Please keep it coming... if there are more opinions I'm interested in hearing them. I've heard the UI is really different and I'm worried that that might frustrate me and make it hard to gain and keep flow & momentum as I finish this record? Does it take long to get use to... is it better when you do? So, the CPU hit is better... very good... what about file conversion's sound/bit quality?

Finally, what are some of the new features that effect the sound other than guitar sim. plugs? Cool new plugins, time stretching of audio etc...? Any more compelling reasons to jump aboard and take the risk?

[newrigel]

I tend to err on the side of excessive caution in such matters. One can never have too much money or too many hard drives.

He he...
I thought we were all platinum artist here?

I would get the project finished before doing anything... DP7 is great! If I was you, and if I had 60 bucks burning a hole... I'd get a drive and just set it up for the whole new system... better safe than sorry. You have a Mac... you got the $$ to go do this. But really, I work in 5.13 everyday... I have 7 and I really don't have to use it.
If you want to use 7 go ahead but I still get work done. I will HAVE to move to 7 one day so I'm getting used to the inevitability.

[cbergm7210]

I was just thinking of doing this move myself, but alas I am not the computer guru that most of you are, so...

I would indeed want to make a separate bootable drive to upgrade my whole system from DP 5.13 running Leo to DP 7.2 running SL as MLC and newrigel have mentioned here in this post.

My 101 question here is...would I need to clone my existing system drive to a new drive and upgrade both OS X and DP from there? This would be the only way to keep all of my plug ins installed and working properly, yes?

And then, I would basically need to just stick with SL as far as my day to day operating system to avoid any problems, I assume. In other words, I'd have to just live in SL and only go back to Leo / 5.13 to work on DP on projects that just won't function under the latest OS or DP version.

Thanks for helping me to clarify this process.

Chris

[jloeb]

Finally, what are some of the new features that effect the sound other than guitar sim. plugs? Cool new plugins, time stretching of audio etc...? Any more compelling reasons to jump aboard and take the risk?

Hey, lucky day for you: MOTU just released DP 7.2 and with a comprehensive summary of all the new features included since 7.0. This is a lot of (but not all of) what you'll get. Take a look:

http://s3.amazonaws.com/motu/downloads/ ... DP_7.2.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Apart from this: Timestretching is basically the same (though some claim it now sounds better at the higher wordlengths/sample rates); DP can now play files of different sample rates within the same session and session sample rate can be switched on the fly; now supports indexed Broadcast Wave format; supports 32-bit file format for bouncing/freezing, etc.

Bottom line: There's (still) nothing here that you absolutely can't live without, but sheeeeeyut: these last versions are by far the best versions of DP I've EVER used, and it's been a long, long, long time. I'd say get the rest of your system and plugs up to spec, and then DO IT.

[KarlSutton]

show v racks in mixer window - hurray!

[Umbrella]

I really like like DP, but the conversion compared to LOGIC sucks. Has MOTU improved this?

If you haven't already, check this out:
http://src.infinitewave.ca/

Use "iZotope 64 bit Steep, No Alias" as a benchmark in the lower frame (it's mentioned in the FAQ).

You can see comparisons between DP 5.1, DP 6 and Logic 9 (as well as a bunch of other DAWs - the FAQ explains a lot).

It looks like MOTU improved their SRC conversion algos quite a bit between DP 5 and 6. Would be interesting to see if 7 bears any more improvement..

The images would suggest that DP's updated SRC is better than Logic 9's...