Optimising XP for audio.
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- KVRist
- 37 posts since 28 May, 2004 from Melbourne
Does anyone know of the best site to setup your computer as a dedicated DAW?
There appears to be alot of articles out there, but has anyone used tips that noticably made audio performance smoother and faster?
There appears to be alot of articles out there, but has anyone used tips that noticably made audio performance smoother and faster?
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- KVRAF
- 5521 posts since 6 May, 2002
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- KVRAF
- 12977 posts since 29 Sep, 2003 from Ottawa, Canada
A few more (including the above one) found here: click me
I've looked at them all, and MusicXP is pretty much the best of the bunch, though with ANY of them you can't take everything as an absolute given. Mileage may vary based on your needs and your system.
Somewhere along the way, I found particular discrepancies regarding the UI setup-- one claimed that "Classic Mode" used the fewest resources, while another that actually -tested- it, found that while nearly identical, the XP UI with all effects turned off actually used less.
Since I like the look of the silver XP buttons, I figured-- either way, the difference is negligible, so I'm going to give my eyes at least a BIT of a break.
Greg
I've looked at them all, and MusicXP is pretty much the best of the bunch, though with ANY of them you can't take everything as an absolute given. Mileage may vary based on your needs and your system.
Somewhere along the way, I found particular discrepancies regarding the UI setup-- one claimed that "Classic Mode" used the fewest resources, while another that actually -tested- it, found that while nearly identical, the XP UI with all effects turned off actually used less.
Since I like the look of the silver XP buttons, I figured-- either way, the difference is negligible, so I'm going to give my eyes at least a BIT of a break.
Greg
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- KVRian
- 1171 posts since 21 Feb, 2004
http://www.bobhug.com/OptimizingXPforAudio.html
this site has the previous one mentioned as well as a few more,
I was reading through the forums and some guy after tweaking had only 58 meg memory usage by XP the rest available for music! and the typical memory usage without tweak is around 170? I don't really know but thasalota ram!
this site has the previous one mentioned as well as a few more,
I was reading through the forums and some guy after tweaking had only 58 meg memory usage by XP the rest available for music! and the typical memory usage without tweak is around 170? I don't really know but thasalota ram!
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- KVRAF
- 12977 posts since 29 Sep, 2003 from Ottawa, Canada
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- KVRian
- 1171 posts since 21 Feb, 2004
[quote="Lunch Money"]Heh, that's the same link I just posted. 
Greg[quote=
No it isn't [quote="Lunch Money"] yes it is [quote=
No it isn't [quote="Lunch Money"] yes it is [quote=
No it isn't [quote="Lunch Money"] yes it is [quote=
No it isn't [quote="Lunch Money"] yes it is [quote=
No it isn't [quote="Lunch Money"] yes it is [quote=
O.K. so maybe it is

Greg[quote=
No it isn't [quote="Lunch Money"] yes it is [quote=
No it isn't [quote="Lunch Money"] yes it is [quote=
No it isn't [quote="Lunch Money"] yes it is [quote=
No it isn't [quote="Lunch Money"] yes it is [quote=
No it isn't [quote="Lunch Money"] yes it is [quote=
O.K. so maybe it is
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- KVRAF
- 1974 posts since 21 Jun, 2002 from Earth
This was one of me favoites! At one point I got real obcessive about resources after a bank of memory took a shit on my old laptop. I was stuck at 512M with no hope for more...
so with those black viper settings, and some serious hackery...
I managed to get XP to do this...

that was some crazy obcessive compulsiveness with full networking too...
finally the machine granaded, and now I'm back to the plush live wasting resources like there is no tomorrow.
I was kinda shocked that XP could actually fit in such limited space and be fully functional as well. 
so with those black viper settings, and some serious hackery...
I managed to get XP to do this...

that was some crazy obcessive compulsiveness with full networking too...
finally the machine granaded, and now I'm back to the plush live wasting resources like there is no tomorrow.
ModuLR / Radio
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- KVRAF
- 12977 posts since 29 Sep, 2003 from Ottawa, Canada
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- KVRAF
- 13446 posts since 14 Nov, 2000 from Hannover / Germany
To me it all seems to be up to saving some RAM.
Might be useful on my laptop, on the desktop I may just put in another gig or whatever, for the benefits of not having to deal with funny tweaks I don't even remotely understand anything about.
I like the musicxp tweaks though as they make XP look (and react) a bit more responsive.
Might be useful on my laptop, on the desktop I may just put in another gig or whatever, for the benefits of not having to deal with funny tweaks I don't even remotely understand anything about.
I like the musicxp tweaks though as they make XP look (and react) a bit more responsive.
There are 3 kinds of people:
Those who can do maths and those who can't.
Those who can do maths and those who can't.
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- The Teach
- 8273 posts since 23 Jul, 2002 from flatness
well ...Lunch Money wrote:Max:![]()
Mod: You are sick. A very sick man. I'm looking to get down to about 70, then I'll be happy.
Greg
... im no hackhead but i followed the black viper tweaks (one of his 'safe' profiles) and my XP is down to 80Mb ...
slainte
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- KVRAF
- 12977 posts since 29 Sep, 2003 from Ottawa, Canada
Sold! To the man with 80MB. 
Sascha-- that's the kind of attitude that allows companies to continue making bloatier software.
It's not just about RAM, though. Some tweaks will prevent your computer from doing "behind the scenes" processing of services you don't even need.
But that's OK, just get a faster processor and that problem's solved. <chuckle>
I hear what you're saying, though-- if your system's not adversely affected, why bother mucking around? I have to admit, it's not necessarily just the tangible benefits for me, but also the knowledge that I'm doing things efficiently and without waste. Regardless of whether or not we need or can perceive the benefits, some of us hold efficiency in high esteem and strive for it in all forms. This is just another expression of that aesthetic.
Greg
Sascha-- that's the kind of attitude that allows companies to continue making bloatier software.
But that's OK, just get a faster processor and that problem's solved. <chuckle>
I hear what you're saying, though-- if your system's not adversely affected, why bother mucking around? I have to admit, it's not necessarily just the tangible benefits for me, but also the knowledge that I'm doing things efficiently and without waste. Regardless of whether or not we need or can perceive the benefits, some of us hold efficiency in high esteem and strive for it in all forms. This is just another expression of that aesthetic.
Greg
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- KVRAF
- 1974 posts since 21 Jun, 2002 from Earth
you can get pretty aggressive with XP. There is a lot of stuff just running for the sake of running... that black viper site can get any xp machine in reasonable condition pretty easy. The main thing is removing all the crap that comes pre-installed on computers now a days... that's the majority of the bloat, then you widdle down xp with those tips.
BTW, someone in the computer hardware forum got their xp setup to load in under 30megs. I tried, but couldn't get it go much lower than what you see...
I've since taken the computer off the diet.. and now it's back to junk food. The lappie is becoming a porker... and I f'n love it!
BTW, someone in the computer hardware forum got their xp setup to load in under 30megs. I tried, but couldn't get it go much lower than what you see...
I've since taken the computer off the diet.. and now it's back to junk food. The lappie is becoming a porker... and I f'n love it!
ModuLR / Radio
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- KVRAF
- 13446 posts since 14 Nov, 2000 from Hannover / Germany
You know Greg, I've been trying out like every twek known to man when being on 98SE - so it's not that I don't understand WHY one would do so.
Also, I'm the first to just turn of about everything running automatically when installing a new program (whatever it might be).
But then, with these days fast machines I hardly ever need that much more performance, plus, there's not much running in my background either.
So, I prefer not to bother much.
Right now I have two 100% identical machines over here, so I may indeed do some tests on of of them the next days, just to see what it performs like... we'll see.
Also, I'm the first to just turn of about everything running automatically when installing a new program (whatever it might be).
But then, with these days fast machines I hardly ever need that much more performance, plus, there's not much running in my background either.
So, I prefer not to bother much.
Right now I have two 100% identical machines over here, so I may indeed do some tests on of of them the next days, just to see what it performs like... we'll see.
There are 3 kinds of people:
Those who can do maths and those who can't.
Those who can do maths and those who can't.
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- KVRAF
- 12977 posts since 29 Sep, 2003 from Ottawa, Canada
I agree, and if the machine's powerful enough, I doubt very highly that you'll notice any appreciable difference.
Right now I'm prepping my machine for clean re-install, and I'm uninstalling all the crap I've accumulated (I'll just copy C: to another partition and sort through it later-- music files are backed up to optical, so nothing can go TOO wrong). It's a LOT. And I'm sure some of them have services running, but I have to admit that I don't notice my system slowing to a crawl or anything like that.
However, I AM interested in saving some RAM at the moment, as I just dished out enough money on other stuff (money I didn't truly have) to prevent me from going up to 1GB RAM.
Point being, I definitely understand both sides, and in a way I almost completely agree with you-- the uber-streamlined installs are in some ways more a reflection of the person's personality than a real performance-enhancer. (that sounds like a viagra ad)
Greg
Right now I'm prepping my machine for clean re-install, and I'm uninstalling all the crap I've accumulated (I'll just copy C: to another partition and sort through it later-- music files are backed up to optical, so nothing can go TOO wrong). It's a LOT. And I'm sure some of them have services running, but I have to admit that I don't notice my system slowing to a crawl or anything like that.
However, I AM interested in saving some RAM at the moment, as I just dished out enough money on other stuff (money I didn't truly have) to prevent me from going up to 1GB RAM.
Point being, I definitely understand both sides, and in a way I almost completely agree with you-- the uber-streamlined installs are in some ways more a reflection of the person's personality than a real performance-enhancer. (that sounds like a viagra ad)
Greg

