Transport & Basic Sluggishness???

tommypenngotti · Post by **tommypenngotti** » Mon Sep 26, 2005 1:14 am

Powerbook G4
Ram 1.5 gig
60 gig HD
DP 4.5
buffer size 512

I seem to be experiencing alot of visual latency w/ DP .....the trasport is "jittery" & all the faders LED's are jerky? I thought my new memory venture would cure this going up to 1.5 gigs??

dmshep · Post by **dmshep** » Mon Sep 26, 2005 7:17 am

You didn't mention the processor speed on your Powerbook. After a certain point, it seems that memory doesn't make a difference. When the processor is maxed, it's maxed, and you'll get the sluggishness and jittery visuals. I know with our dual 1.25Ghz G4 we've got 2 GB of memory, but when I get the plugs and track count high enough, all the overload symptoms start to show, and I'm still only using about half of the available memory.

I don't use VI's though. Perhaps extra memory is helpful in that regard?

David

tommypenngotti · Post by **tommypenngotti** » Mon Sep 26, 2005 10:16 am

it's a 1 GHz power pc G4 Processor....contemplating just getting a G5 dual 2.7 ghz processor, my friend has one & claims there isn't any visual latency

David Polich · Post by **David Polich** » Mon Sep 26, 2005 5:09 pm

Go for the G5. That's really what DP works best on.

I have a G5 dual 2.3Ghz. No sluggish UI response here.

croyal · Post by **croyal** » Mon Sep 26, 2005 10:07 pm

did you optimize the os? Do a search for "Optimize OS X" on this board for tips on configuring. Also do a web search for "Tracking the Big Cats" article from Elec Musician and few months ago. The author was ale to get 50 or so tracks at 24/96 on a powerbook. Even 1/2 that many is pretty good for a powerbook at 24/96. The RAM you added will really help.

Don't ignore the last part of what you'll find, which is to defrag the OS disk. That last step is what really makes everything fly, I've found.

boonier · Post by **boonier** » Thu Oct 06, 2005 7:21 am

right this really gets my goat...

so are you guys suggesting (and MOTU) for that reason that any computer older than 3 months is basically below system requirements for DP 4.6?

I bought a PBook 1.67ghz with 1 gig ram and about 3 months ago loaded with 10.4.2. I think this is currently the top of the line powerbook that apple sell. Is this now too slow???!

I also made the transition from Logic to DP, because it was a choice between 'everything' Apple or a 3rd party. I dont really like Apples tactics as a company with its forced market approach. Audio units and core audio woohooo! Like how much better are we for it? We were just forced to update Anyway, I digress....

I cannot fault DP for its features and overall depth, but when it comes to smooth workflow, I find DP is absolutely pedestrian.

I sure theres some serious problems going under the hood here in 4.6. My 300mhz G3 in os 9.2 ran snappier than this. I'm talking visually here, not with the quantity of plugins and tracks it could run. Sometime this is more important than anything, like when you have a sudden flash of inspiration but your waiting for the screen to refresh. Sure the spinning colour wheel is pretty but not when you've nudged a soundbite left a 16th note for the 6th time (maybe a bad example)!

basically I'm venting and trying to come across as constructive here!! I've just spent a lot of money upgrading everything thanks to Mr. Pomme, and i've never spent so much time optimising a computer and checking forums for solutions.....in fact i cant remember the last time I actually wrote some music

come on Motu sort it out! in the meantime wheres my ukelele.......

tommypenngotti · Post by **tommypenngotti** » Thu Oct 06, 2005 1:10 pm

I hear ya , I've had 3 Powerbooks & now G5 on the way ...trying to keep up !! My thing is it all comes down to what bothers you & what it's worth to rectify the problem. I have a friend who uses DP 3.0 on a G3 iMAC (mostly out of fear of updating & losing his vibe) & gets great end results. I personally am more "new gear" oriented & love the tecnologic advances , I also hate latency & sluggish response!!

I friend told me yesterday that Pro Tools has a different architechture that allows it to run smoother than DP....I would hope MOTU is on this & striving to beat all competitors

bitmaniac · Post by **bitmaniac** » Thu Oct 06, 2005 6:21 pm

i remember reading that DP 4 was simply a port to OS X and had pretty much zero optimization. the optimization was due to happen in the next revision. did that ever happen? doesn't seem like it.

boonier · Post by **boonier** » Fri Oct 07, 2005 4:42 am

bitmaniac wrote:i remember reading that DP 4 was simply a port to OS X and had pretty much zero optimization. the optimization was due to happen in the next revision. did that ever happen? doesn't seem like it.

If thats the case, then they must be up to something.

I havent heard a peep from anyone on this forum with regards to what they might be upto. Maybe its coming in the 4.61 revision......they're keeping tight lipped so as to not promise anything they can't deliver..i really hope so

There some pretty extensive bug sheets - enough to keep the developers busy for some time i rekon

The DYnamic CPU management thing introduced in 4.52, whilst being a damn good idea, may have been a 'temporary' fix to alleviate the lack of optimisation.....although this risks sounding like a conspiracy theory

tommypenngotti · Post by **tommypenngotti** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 1:05 am

got the new G5 2.7 / 2 GB ram & the tracks (30 trx w/ 20 or so DP FX) are flying now!! Don't even have the internal drive yet (which I plan to acquire soon)

thanks 2 all that helped w/ advice

MR Booth · Post by **MR Booth** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 10:53 am

I am experiencing the colour wheel for long periods of time too. I am in the process of updating "everything" and have updated to DP 4.6. However it won't open any old files so I'm using 4.5 (.2?) and that's sluggish. Now I suspect this is because I'm running a G4 (g3 300 ... processor) and 512 ram. Right???
Will an increase in Ram make any difference or should I just hang out for a G5?

By the way 4.5 wouldn't run with 4.3 sharing the hard disk. Maybe it's the same with 4.6. sharing with 4.5

Mike

sdfalk · Post by **sdfalk** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 11:05 am

Magic dave has suggested (On many occassions on this forum)
to set "work priority" to medium for powerbook users.
Apparently this solves some problems using Powerbooks
with DP.
Have you tried that?
Also, no you don't need a G5 to run DP.
That's ridiculous.
I've run it on a 667 mhz Powerbook.
Properly setup and configured it was recording 16 channels of
24 bit audio on an external Firewire drive with no problems.

boonier · Post by **boonier** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 11:25 am

sdfalk wrote:Magic dave has suggested (On many occassions on this forum)
to set "work priority" to medium for powerbook users.
Apparently this solves some problems using Powerbooks
with DP.
Have you tried that?
Also, no you don't need a G5 to run DP.
That's ridiculous.
I've run it on a 667 mhz Powerbook.
Properly setup and configured it was recording 16 channels of
24 bit audio on an external Firewire drive with no problems.

hi

I'm using a Edirol Fa-101 and I have to set my work priority to Low....

If I set it to Medium it goes all fuzzy, high is even worse, which is why i keep it Low.

any ideas why this might be?

I would have splashed out on a Motu firewire interface, but I didn't have the beanz at the time..

ps. Sdfalk - thanks for the big up recognition on my freeze tracks tip! your all such nice considerate people. Glad you like my layman approach there

sdfalk · Post by **sdfalk** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 11:30 am

I wish I did
Has Edirol given you any input on the problem?

"ps. Sdfalk - thanks for the big up recognition on my freeze tracks tip! your all such nice considerate people. Glad you like my layman approach there"

Well..in many respects I'm still a layman myself.
You're insights are as valuable as anyone elses.

I noticed the front panel has (what looks like) adat connections.
Is it possible to disable them in software when not in use.
I'm (obviously) guessing, but maybe that would free up a bit of CPU?
Also have you flipped around different sample rates to see if the
problem continues?[/quote][/b]

boonier · Post by **boonier** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 11:34 am

sdfalk wrote:I wish I did
Has Edirol given you any input on the problem?

not really, just says its 'out-of-the-box' compatible with osx 10.3 upwards and
even goes through installation in DP in the manual...

freaky, there a fresh topic just started about the fa-101 literally now...how mental is that??

MOTUnation.com

Transport & Basic Sluggishness???

Transport & Basic Sluggishness???

powerbook

Mission Solved!

sluggish