PTLE 6.9 freezes on startup: please help!

[vladdy]

hello,

today i upgraded to protools LE 6.9 with the dv toolkit. i'm running windows XP home edition with service pack 1. i was previously using PTLE 6.4 here with no problems at all.

the very first time i launched 6.9 after installation tonight, the software froze on me during its opening "loading" splash screen. during its "loading plug-ins" action, it gets up to "broadband noise reduction LE.dp" and freezes.

so i reinstalled 6.9 and gave it another shot. exact same problem, freezing at the same start-up point.

can anybody help me? i'm not sure what LE 6.9 is having problems with that 6.4 did not. but i could really use some advice here... :confused:

thanks!

[scottdemarko]

Try upgrading to service pack 2 in windows. This version is right in the middle of SP1 and SP2 and after this verion version 7 and beyond only works with SP2. It's recommended (not required) that you have SP2 on your machine while using the version your on...

PC Optimization Guide for Windows XP

Welcome to the Windows XP PC Optimization Guide. Here you will find a comprehensive guide to optimization of any Windows XP Machine for use as a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation)

It is important that you read through this documentation as it covers several crucial optimization steps recommended when setting up your DAW. Because Windows XP is meant for an entire spectrum of users, by default, the user interface is designed to have a nice GUI. (Graphical User Interface) Many of these GUI settings are nice to look at but every visual element comes at a price – CPU resources.

This guide is intended to step you through optimizing your machine in preparation for your new Hardware and Software to gain the most out of your system without experiencing the heavy processor loads of poorly optimized machines.

Deciding on an OS

Although there are several choices for Operating Systems, Windows XP is now the industry standard for any Audio based machines and applications. For anyone still using Windows 2000, Windows 98 or ME, it is strongly recommended that you consider upgrading the OS. There are five basic editions of Windows XP: Home, Professional, Media Center Edition, Tablet Edition, and Pro x64.

Home and Professional are the standard accepted editions, and are the two that DAW applications are designed for. They provide the most stable environment, the widest support, and the simplest configuration of the Windows XP editions. There is more discussion of these versions in the next section.

Windows Media Center is an option as it is based on Windows XP, but be aware that additional applications and services reduce the amount of CPU resources you have. Many sequencing applications are not supported in Media Center at all (see Knowledgebase article #30163), and therefore only the Home and Professional versions are recommended. When running Media Center, it is always recommended to reduce the number of visual enhancements to allow for more CPU overhead.

Tablet PC's are also an option. While not fully tested, they nevertheless appear to provide a stable working environment for DAW applications. Keep in mind, though, that the extra services embedded in the OS can conflict with processor-intensive sequencers or plugins.

There has also been much discussion lately of 64-bit operating systems. Microsoft currently has one such OS: Windows XP Pro x64. This OS is extremely powerful (it utilizes a 64-bit processor and can support up to 128 Gigabytes of RAM), but is not yet universally compatible. Most software is designed for use in a 32-bit OS. Unless you have software that specifically lists support in XP Pro x64 (such as Sonar 5 x64), stick with XP Home or Pro.

Windows XP – Home or Professional?

Assuming you’re going with XP, you’ve essentially got a choice of two versions. For the most part, the differences between the Home and Professional versions of XP have little relevance to the audio user. XP Professional contains much more by way of networking and connectivity, features absent from XP Home. As a basic rule of thumb, if you’re not planning on using your computer for any network based functions, the Home edition should serve your needs.

Update or Fresh Install?

Generally speaking, a fresh install on a wiped (full-formatted or brand new) hard drive is the best insurance against potential problems; leftover registry items and other orphaned legacy files can lurk in your system for months, only to cause unanticipated conflicts with a newly-installed program or driver at a later date. A fresh install is recommended.

Hardware Requirements

All software should display minimum system requirements to give you an idea of what the application will consume. It’s important to realize that the minimum is never the recommended configuration for a DAW.

Here's What You Need to Use Windows XP Home/Professional:
• PC with 300 megahertz or higher processor clock speed
recommended; 233 MHz minimum required (single or dual
processor system);* Intel Pentium/Celeron family, or AMD
K6/Athlon/Duron family, or compatible processor
recommended
• 128 megabytes (MB) of RAM or higher recommended (64 MB
minimum supported; may limit performance and some
features)
• 1.5 gigabytes (GB) of available hard disk space
• Super VGA (800 x 600) or higher-resolution video adapter
and monitor

This is recommended to ensure smooth operation of your DAW:
• PC with a 2.0 megahertz or higher processor clock speed.
• 512 megabytes (MB) of RAM or higher recommended (128
MB minimum supported; may severely limit performance and
some features)
• 10 gigabytes (GB) of available hard disk space It’s common
to see configurations with an 80GB System drive and an
additional 120GB – 200GB Audio drive for storing samples
and Session data.
• Super VGA (1024x768) or higher-resolution video adapter
and monitor

Updates and Service Packs

Microsoft has issued updates and fixes for every operating system they’ve ever released, and XP is no exception. It’s pretty much unavoidable with a new OS that there will be some programs and/or hardware that don’t function as expected, and that’s what the updates are intended to address.

XP is currently at Service Pack 2, which has no compatibility issues with the LATEST software versions. Keep in mind, however, that older software may not work. Ensure that all of your software is up to date before deciding to upgrade to SP2 to avoid any unwanted incompatibilities. Check the software requirements to see if there are any SP-related requirements.

Mass Storage Devices

A single track of audio for an average song can easily take up more than 20-30 MB - multiply that by 24 tracks and you can see that larger drives are no longer a luxury. With the price of hard drives dropping almost by the hour, many users are now opting for larger drives and even RAID arrays. Redundant Array Inexpensive Disks protect your data by writing simultaneously to more than one drive (when used in traditional RAID format). However, many professional audio setups also employ RAID arrays in a different mode where multiple physical drives are seen as one large drive, allowing for throughput far exceeding that of a single drive. In the event of a hard disk crash, the data is replicated on a second or redundant drive.)

System Performance Tweaks – Stuff to Do After Installing

Performance

Under Start > Control Panel > System, select the Advanced tab. Click the Performance "Settings" button and select the Visual Effects tab. Choose “adjust for best performance” and then select the Advanced tab. Under Processor Scheduling, select "Background services” to ensure lowest latency with ASIO-based drivers (ASIO drivers run as background services in Windows). Select "Programs" under Memory Usage to ensure that enough RAM gets allocated to your applications.

Virtual Memory

Windows defaults to setting virtual memory (sometimes referred to as Page Swap or Swap File) automatically. Under most circumstances this is fine, but for audio it can sometimes be a hindrance to performance. For this reason, we recommend you disable virtual memory. Go to Control Panel > System and select the Advanced tab. Under Performance, click the "Settings" button and select the Advanced tab. Under Virtual Memory, click the "Change" button. Select "No paging file" and press "Set," then "OK." It’s also a good idea to defrag your drive after changing virtual memory settings (see below for more on defragmenting).

NOTE: In some circumstances, you may need to enable virtual memory. These situations might include errors related to paging files, not enough physical RAM ofr an application, or a program that requires the use of virtual memory. If this is the case, then rather than choosing "No paging file," choose "Custom size" and set the minimum and maximum values to a multiple of 2 (for example, 128, 256, or 512), to a maximum of 512 MB. Be sure to set the minimum and maximum to the same value. Then, choose "Set," "OK."

Power Options

Windows allows for custom configuration of its power settings. This is useful for conserving energy when the computer is not in use. It works by automatically powering down or 'hibernating' one or more components of the computer system when the computer has been idle for a predetermined amount of time. This can pose a major problem for users who record long session, as the computer may power itself down in the middle of recording! To optimize the power setting for audio performance, go to Start > Control Panel > Power Options. Under Power Schemes, select, in order: "Always On," "Never," "Never," "Never." Also make sure that "Hibernate" is unchecked.

DMA (Direct Memory Access)

There are several different ways in which data on a disk can be accessed. DMA is one of them. This format is the best and fastest method available, so it is recommended for audio. To make sure you are running DMA, go to your Device Manager by right-clicking on My Computer and selecting "Manage" and then "Device Manager." Select the "+" next to IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers. Right-click on the Primary IDE Channel and select "Properties." Under the Advanced Settings tab, make sure that the Transfer Mode is set to "DMA if available" for both Device 0 and Device 1. Press "OK." Repeat these steps for the Seconday IDE Channel. If there are two of each device listed, do this for all listed Primary and Secondary Channels. After doing this, do not be alarmed if the Current Transfer Mode is either "Not Applicable" or "PIO." Some devices are unable to run in DMA mode; the goal is to make sure that DMA is on IF available.

NOTE: There is a third class of controller under the IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers. In some cases, changing this listing to "Standard Dual Channel PCI IDE Controller" has been known to increase performance. Note, however, that this is not a known step to optimize your system. It is an optional step that MAY increase performance. For full instructions, see the 7-step process in Sweetwater's Knowledgebase article #30047.

NOTE: Intel-based PC's have been known to perform better with updated chipset software. Again, this is only an optional step, but one you might consider. See Sweetwater's Knowledgebase article #30063 for full instructions.

On-Board Devices

An on-board device is any device built in to the computer. Examples include built-in modems, audio cards, ethernet devices, etc. Most of these are fairly benign, but some have been known to interfere with digital audio software. The most offending devices are wireless internet cards and audio cards; we recommend disabling these, at least while using your software. On-board wireless internet cards periodically send and receive information when activated, and these bursts of data transfer can cause audible pops and clicks in DAW applications. On-board audio cards can cause driver conflict problems, and are not as high in quality as professional interfaces.

To disable these devices, go to the Device Manager again and look under Network Adapters. All devices in this category can be disabled (right-click on the device and choose "Disable") EXCEPT 1394 Net Adapters (1394 is shorthand for FireWire). If you need the devices again after your DAW application, simply right-click on them and choose "Enable." Now look under Sound, Video and Game Controllers and locate and disable your on-board audio card. Make sure you do NOT disable any of the following: Audio Codecs, Legacy Audio Drivers, Legacy Video Capture Devices, Media Control Devices, Video Codecs, any other devices that you regularly use.

Virus Protection, Firewalls, and Other Utilities

While virus protection software is almost a necessity for general-use systems, they often run in the background and can cause problems with audio systems. If you’re running a dedicated audio machine with no or a very limited internet connection, it’s best to not install them at all. If your machine is connected to the web, it’s safer to protect yourself, but try to find utilities that only run when called up. System tune-up utilities are also quite useful in most circumstances, but some tend to optimize according to the needs of general usage, and can change settings that can compromise audio performance. A clean, minimal setup is your best insurance.

Firewalls will have a similar effect as virus protection software, but it is more pronounced in computers with Service pack 2 installed. SP2 includes a Windows firewall (Start > Control Panel > Windows Firewall) that is best left turned off (from the General tab). It it must be left on for securit and protection, then disable the Firewire firewall. Go to the Advanced tab and uncheck "1394 Connection" and press OK.

Display Properties

The display properties affect how Windows handles graphics, video, and the overall appearance of the OS. The processing required to keep the display at its sharpest can interfere with the processing needed to keep audio at its cleanest. Some of these properties are adjusted with the general performance settings, yet a few other small tweaks may still be necessary.

Right-click anywhere on the desktop and select "Properties." Set the theme to "Windows Classic" if it isn't already. Screen Savers should be turned to none. Under Appearance, make sure "Windows Classic style" is selected for Windows and buttons; the Color scheme and Font size will not affect performance. Under the Settings tab, adjust your Screen Resolution to the desired size. Most applications work the best with "1024 by 768 pixels" selected; other sizes make make submenus and windows the wrong size for the text within. Finally, your Color quality should be set to "Medium (16 bit)" (also in the Settings tab). Also, in the settings tab, click "Advanced" and make sure you are running at 96-DPI (Dots Per Inch). Keep in mind that these adjustments are optional settings and will likely not make or break your audio performance. They are merely suggestions that will nonetheless give you a boost in resources. If you do a lot of work with video, then these settings can be customized, or even disregarded, as the project requires.

This article continues Click here to read the rest of the article (http://www.sweetwater.com/sweetcare/ts/detail.php?Index=30058&keyword=optimization%20guide)

[vladdy]

thanks for the tip, i'll give service pack 2 a try. i'd been avoiding it since i've heard mixed things and was afraid that some of my older software might stop working.

i'm mired with a dial-up connection so it will probably take a little while to download, but i'll bite the bullet and post the results!

[vladdy]

well, here's the latest.... i installed windows service pack 2 and installed the PACE updates. i also reinstalled all of this new protools software, just to be safe.

unfortunately after all this i'm still getting the exact same problem :(

PTLE 6.9 still freezes up when it reaches "broadband noise reduction LE.dp" on the opening splash screen.

please help if anyone has advice or knowledge...

thanks

[scottdemarko]

If you purchased this from Sweetwater please give the tech support team a call @ 1-800-222-4700 x6400

If not, I think I saw you mention you were going to try SP2. Did that work? How much RAM/What's the processor, chipset etc for your computer?

[vladdy]

here's the latest.... it turns out my version of windows xp is media center edition, not home. and MCE is not officially supported by protools.

thankfully this was never a problem for me because i ran PTLE 6.4 with my mbox for years on this media center desktop with no problems. my desktop is an HP media center M390N. ignorance was bliss!

i have decided to try creating a new partition in my computer so that i can install and run windows xp home separately and see if that makes PTLE happy.

so, my new question is: is there software i can pick up that will allow me to create a new partition without wiping out my entire drive? it would be a huge undertaking to backup my desktop for a total reformat (over 100 gigs of projects i'm in the middle of!)

i've ever attempted creating a new partition before and am way more on the creative side of these programs than the technical.... so any bone-headed step by step instructions anyone could offer would be fantastic

thanks

[scottdemarko]

There is software that will do it. I have seen examples at Tigerdirect.com and Best Buy.... Though all things considered you could almost build a windows XP Home computer bare bones for about $350. It would probably be more worth it in the long run to have a computer dedicated to audio if possible. You will certainly save a few hairs from going gray and falling out...