let's hear from people with good working systems !!

[rover 2]

OK......so i just purchased a new 2.8 mac pro. I am going to fill it up with the stuff i have now (uad's, waves, altiverb,

chandler, drumagog, etc.). All these plugins worked perfect w logic 8 on my old g5 dual2.0. Not one crash ever!

Logic is really not doing it for me in the audio editing side and power is much needed. I want to come back to DP 6 (former dp 4.6 user).

All i see on this forum is all these systems that are not working or having troubles. We really need

a place to post working systems.[/color] Or some sort of tally/chart of issue vs. no issue. Is everybody having all these issues or is it just the few we hear from? I should be excited about a new computer not bummed out.

[kassonica]

Well I am for one.

I'm running a quad core 2.66 intel machine with 3 gig of ram and DP6.1 and really couldn't be happier.

I've done plenty of editing/MIDI/rewire and audio recording over the last week and it is ROCK solid even at 64buffer.

I also have L8 pro installed and pro tools (which I have not needed really)

All running on Leopard.

[James Steele]

By and large I think the situation can be best summed up by this: If you're running an Intel Mac or a PPC machine with Tiger... you're in pretty good shape. I'm on a PPC machine running Leopard and I'm having issues with some of the Native Instruments VIs. FM7 didn't work right as a plug-in (gave me a blank GUI screen), so I bought the FM8 upgrade and that crashes when I try to load it. KontaktPlayer2.2.4 is crashes on PPC/Leopard machines runing DP6 as well. Since I can't see NI updating KontaktPlayer2 for Digital Performer users on "obsolete" PPC machines, running Leopard instead of Tiger, I have a choice either buy Kontakt 3 for the $279 upgrade price or downgrade my system to Tiger which is a bear because I don't have disk image, etc.

But honestly, as bad as all that just sounded... for the most part my system is working really well. I'm working on it and it's not crashing on me. I just have to work out my Native Instruments issues.

[Frodo]

Generally, when systems are working well people are spending their time making music and/or making money with them. Forums are mostly filled with those asking questions and solving issues.

There's not a whole lot one can say about systems that are working well, except that they are working well. My system is working extremely well, imho. But there are a couple of levels of quirks to deal with:

1. Minor mishaps when installing the DP upgrade with virtual instruments. This was solved by reinstalling the plugins. Some plugins are still problematic but many issues are simply disconnects at the core level which could be anything from a permissions repair to a plist run amuck. Those who are not reporting such problems are probably using a combination of plugins which haven't presented such problems that have given pause to other users.

2. There are some strange things with DP 6 behavior, but these are not due to system malfunctions. They pertain more closely to workflow issues, such as the quickscribe window jumping around if scaled too zoomed in too far or if the window is sized too small. There is still some issue with spinning beachballs, but these could be related to preferences and buffer settings that might be less than optimal for a give project. Other things like the EuCon protocol that is AWOL raises simpler questions that relate to the impression given that DP6 would have it. That may very well be true, but it could be DP 6.1 or 6.2 that have it and not 6.0 as many were led to believe.

You shouldn't feel bummed. Go forth with your upgrade and work with confidence. Know that 80% of the discussions here are problem-related, but this percentage does not at all reflect the state of DP's functionality overall.

Also, keep in mind that the purpose of discussing "problems" is to find solutions. If you have a solution, you don't have a problem. That is the key to keeping one's system in good working order.

My systems:

MacPro Quad 3G, 8GB RAM
10.5.4, DP 6.1
Same machine, different drive:
10.4.11, DP 5.13

G5 2.5 Dual, 8GB RAM
10.4.11, DP 5.13

[rover 2]

Some good responses.....thank you...I will rarely use any VI's with this system, mostly recording live bands. So maybe I'll be in good shape. Out here in LA It seems that i am competing with many pro-tools studio's, so when bands come in and see DP they sometimes dont understand its just a platform. So when we start working i feel sometime i have to show them that it is as stable, and just as cool as pro-tools... I really hate crash's with clients!

It would be cool thou if it were able to tally crash free system vs. problem systems with same setup.

*my new system will be;
Mac pro 8 core
uad-2 quad
DP 6-logic8 w/424 card
plugins-waves,chandler, altiverb,autotune,drumagog,psp lex42,

[magicd]

I run a 2.16ghz Core Duo 1 (first generation) Macbook.
2gb RAM
OS 10.4.11
I run a second monitor off the laptop.

I use the computer with a variety of interfaces. My home studio is an 896mk3, which is connected to a Spirit 328 digital mixer with two lightpipe cables. The mixer has problems working as clock slave, so I make it the master and slave the 896 via Lightpipe. Prior to the 896mk3 I was running a pair of 896HDs.

This gives me 24 mic pre amp inputs into my laptop. I record to the internal drive at 44.1/24 bit. I don't typically record more than 18-20 tracks in a single pass, but the laptop has no problem with that number.

I use external Firewire drives for temporary backup.

I've just finished a project that had up to 60 tracks of playback going. I typically print any VIs as I work. I have all the MOTU instruments plus Reason.
For third party plug-ins I use Drumagog, Altiverb, Sonalksis, and RNDigital.

It all works exactly the way it should.

Dave

[vbassguy]

For me, my system,they way I work, and the gear I use, I really could not feel more secure. That is saying a bunch as I earn my living with this stuff. Due to the many projects underway upon the release of DP6, I was initially cautious- to say the least, and subsequently installed v6 and 6.01 on a cloned drive to protect the works in progress within 5.13 (which is really only marginally stable by comparison to 6.01). After several weeks of work with not only new v6 projects but also completing 5.13 projects in v6, I finally feel confident and satisfied at the end of the day. It's just wonderful to put this system through the paces day after day and have it working so beautifully smooth and sounding so good. I have had to find a workaround here and there. I initially had trouble importing audio-but quickly found that if I copy the audio to my desktop first, then import or drag files into DP- no problem. I believe this particular issue is like due to the fact that my quad 2.5 PPC is not capable of reading directly from the many and various firewire and/or usb external drives I have crammed into every port on the box. My internal bays are full too.
So I don't think we can hang that on MOTU.....Seems you folks with the new Intel boxes have not had this import issue.
I am one of the few who absolutely LOVES the new GUI. I have made no modifications
to the stock GUI and have no plans to do so......Love It Motu!!!!

Anyway.... My studio has been so magically stable that I may very well never, ever update anything, Ever again,-as long as I live.....

[Shooshie]

Dp is running great. DP 6.01, Leopard 10.5.4, Intel 2.66 GHz dual duo (quad). 5 GB RAM. Lots of FAST hard drives. You can read my profile below.

What happens to me is that various VI's will exhibit quirks. There may be more traps waiting for me in DP 6.01, because I've mainly done MIDI in it so far, with occasional mixes BTD.

Our trouble here is hyperbole. People say "there is no ruler in the clicks window, and this is totally unacceptable for a pro DAW!" Often when you realize what they said, it is a very small thing, amplified to "unacceptable" out of their own frustration. Don't take me wrong; people DO get legitimately frustrated, but many often do not know that the problem lies elsewhere, or could be a driver issue, or... many, many things. For the most part, DP 6.01 is working. What anyone needs to realize is that a working version of any number upgrade (DP 4, DP 5, DP 6, etc.) is going to go through a process of making it better. It will take time, feedback, and upgrades. If that doesn't work for you, then use DP 5.13. That was absolutely the most stable version of DP I've used since the OS9 days.

Part of being a pro is getting everything to work together. Most of the time I can achieve that, but there are times when I go through frustrations. Usually it involves an interface (1296, 896, 2408, MIDI Time Piece) a VI, or something in between. The problem is rarely DP itself. These days I'm not doing large orchestras, but I know people who are, and DP is not handling their load very well. Logic handles large loads very easily. I think, however, that DP 6.01 may surprise some people with its performance. Very fast.

Another key to DP is getting an Intel machine. Not "key," but just "advantageous." You can never have "too much power."

Keep at it. DP will work for you at some point, and you may not even know why. But there will probably never be a "perfect" version of DP. Meanwhile people will create film scores, symphonies, pop albums, and everything under the musical sun, and will say that they could not do it without DP. Somehow, people always get results from DP. I absolutely love working in it. It feels like a privilege. It occasionally has issues, but MOTU fixes them (eventually )

Shooshie

[Phil O]

Running DP 6.01 with Leo 10.5.4 on a Mac Pro 2.66 Quad w/ 6 GB RAM. A couple of VI bugs, but all is fine on the audio side of things. I have had zero crashes when working on audio only projects.

Phil

[gearboy]

I run DP4.61 on both a Dual 1.8 G5 and a Powerbook G4 1.5Ghz. Both of my machines run great. All of my NI plug-ins work great, as well as Waves, TRacks, Miroslav, my Nomad Factory vintage Studio Bundle, plus all other 3rd-party plugs and VIs. I'm on 10.4.11 and seriously have no need to upgrade, though I would love to upgrade DP and be current. At some point I'm going to pick up either a MacBook, MacBook Pro, or Mac Pro Tower and at that point I'll pick up DP6. For interfaces I use a MOTU 828mk2 that has been modified (analog/internal clock) by Black Lion Audio. I also use an Apogee Duet, and it's been my default interface for mixing and overdubbing on both the Powerbook and the G5. I use the 828mk2 for larger sessions. At some point I'll most likely pick up a lightpipe-based preamp system for additional tracks, but until I have a need to record over 10 tracks simultaneously, which the 828mk2 allows me to do, I'm fine as is. I have a variety of preamps to choose from as-is and the 828mk2's modified preamps sound really great.

With everything working the way it should for the past several years, I'm reluctant to mess with it until I move to Intel.

Jeff

[James Steele]

I run DP4.61 on both a Dual 1.8 G5 and a Powerbook G4 1.5Ghz. Both of my machines run great. All of my NI plug-ins work great...

Stay on Tiger! The Native Instruments stuff (at least some if it) won't work right if you were to upgrade the machine to Leopard.

Yeah... I'd really like to be able to solve my few VI issues by simply spending $2000+ on an Intel machine. But that's not something I can responsibly afford to do right now.

[billf]

I'm running 10.5.4 on a MacIntel 3g, with DP 6.01, and it's stable. I'm careful about making changes and do updates to the core OS and QuickTime only after they've been out for a while and the complaints about new versions has vanished. Also I keep third party plugins to a minimum.

I do have Tiger on a separate internal drive, but haven't had much reason to go back to it.

[Kubi]

This may be a bit useless information since you can't really get DP5 anymore, but I am having the greatest experience ever with DP5.13 on 10.5.4 on a 2008 8core MacPro, 10G RAM, QT 7.5.4, all other software and plugs up to date. Main plug-ins: Audioease, Waves, Sonalksis, Stillwell/Schwa, Sound Toys, NI, MOTU, U-He, Softube, Abbey Road (Brilliance pack at v1.03, the newer versions don't play well with DP, they're working on it), etc.

Driving DP hard, always locked to video, always on cycle record or playback, never above 512 buffer, usually at 256, tons of plug-ins (all except Spectrasonics Atmosphere wrapper bullsh*t working great). Not a crash in sight - the only time I ever crash is very occasionally when I open Sonalksis EQ during loop-playback, something about the Sonalksis EQ's GUI that occasionally causes trouble. But it happens so rarely that I still just open it anyway, the rare crash beats having to stop playback.

Everything's working so well I have yet to install DP6, and will not do so until my current project is finished, sometime late this year. Life is good.

[kwiz]

I run a 2.16ghz Core Duo 1 (first generation) Macbook.
2gb RAM
OS 10.4.11
I record to the internal drive at 44.1/24 bit. I don't typically record more than 18-20 tracks in a single pass, but the laptop has no problem with that number.

I use external Firewire drives for temporary backup.

I've just finished a project that had up to 60 tracks of playback going.
It all works exactly the way it should.

Dave

Dave,

Do you have your internal drive partitioned? If so, how many partitions do you have, how large is the drive, and lastly, how many rpms is this drive.

It's always been said that you should never record to your internal drive but obviously you're doing it with great success!

[David Polich]

PPC Dual 2.3Ghz,4.5GB RAM, 2nd internal drive for audio, MOTU MIDI Timepiece AV, MOTU 828 MK II, OSX 10.4.11 (Tiger), DP 5.13. Most VI's running on a separate PC connected via MIDI. Waves 5.9.7, Liquid Mix, Blue Tubes, T-Racks, Native Instruments Reaktor 5, Guitar Rig 2, Amplitube2, Amplitube Jimi Hendrix, Amplitube Metal, Ampeg SVX, Channel Strip, Izotope, Wizooverb, Virtual Guitarist 2, Arturia, Stylus RMX, microtonic, u-He Zebra 2,
...I can't remember everything else, and it's a lot.

Rock-solid. Best system I've ever had. Since most of my VI's are on a separate computer, I usually
run at 35% to 65% CPU, even with upwards of 50 to 60 tracks and two convolution reverbs going.
So glad I never went to Leopard.

Awaiting DP 6.13 -