I give up!

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Goodrat

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I cannot record two tracks of audio without random pops with an FIC VA-503+ MB @400MHz, 128MB ram, and a pci128 sound card using Cakewalk.

What a shame, it would have been nice.

[Edited by Goodrat on 02-05-2001 at 09:13]
 
Pops and Clicks

The January issue of Recording has a good article called
"The DAW's and Don'ts of upgrading your windows computer for Audio".

There is a bunch of good info. Pick up a copy and check it out. It may have some solutions for you. One example is:
Manage the size of the Windows disk cache file by specifying a minimum and maximum in the System.ini file.
Open that file by running MSCONFIG from the start menu. You need to add the following under the [vcache] heading:
[vcache]
MinFileCache=2048
MaxFileCache=2048
While you are running MSCONFIG, take a look in the Startup menu. There's a list of all applications and utilities that will run in the background after you boot. Get rid of everything you don't need, including power management schemes and test schedulers, etc. Keep it clean.

That's word for word out of the mag. Pick up the issue.

Good luck,

Nemal
 
Thank you.
But been there, done that. I know all the tweeks. If maybe a driver existed for a ct4751 pci128 oem sound card that might fix it. I only get clicks on simultaneous rec/play, and tweeking buffers helps only a little. All windows tweeks have been done.
What's the next typical cheap sound card for pci?
 
Cheap sound card

I've only been recording on computer for a short time. My first system was a 200MHz Pentium and a bootleg copy of Cakewalk. I bought a cheap Montega sound card by Turtle Beach.
http://www.voyetra-turtle-beach.com/site/products/montego2/

$50. 16 bit but duplexed. I recorded my first MP3 with this system. I have to admit, the quality of the recording is very low, but most of that is because I didn't know anything about recording, which is just a little be less than what I know now. Go to nemal.tv. That's my website. There is a Rock MP3 called Rooster.mp3. Listen to that. I recorded it on this sounds card. I had many tracks playing simultaneously. Again, pardon the quality...I could have done much better with that card. Of course...now I have a custom setup...

Good luck again,

Dirk
 
I'll check it out.
Even cheap cards have a decent signal to noise, and if it duplexes without pops at 44.1K, 16 bit, we should be able to record good quality. Of coarse balance, eq, effects play a role in the final mix. The weakest link will not be because we pay $30 for a pci cound card.
But because I have an oem version, it is dificult to identify what driver update, if any, will improve my situation. Even if the proper markings and stickers imply I have a CT4751.
Installing and uninstalling drivers can cause some trouble too.
 
Here's an update.....
I picked up a sb16 pci because I can actually get the updated drivers from Creatives site. And.... I still have random pops! So it goes back, the PCI128 might as well go back in.
So it's not my drivers, sound card, network card, video, windows 98 optimization. I don't think it is memory since with two tracks, i'm not even hitting my virtual memory yet.
I wonder if I slow down my buss clock.
Maybe it's off to Cubase land and I should bother those people. Cubase does not pop.
 
I've been lucky, I have not had any problem with pops and whatnot. Here are a couple of things you can try -

1) you mentioned you have a network card. Try setting up a computer "hardware profile" that has the netcard disable. Or just remove it and run some tests. Network cards can cause pops, especially if on a active network connection.

2) If you are overclocking, set it back to the base speed the hardware is supposed to run at.

3) If you are using an internal modem, try removing it and test again.

4) Cakewalk has a LOT of custom buffer setting you can play with. My Gadget Labs card manual came with 2 pages of suggested Cakewalk changes to improve performaance. Some of these suggestions are duplicated on their website. Check it out (I know you probably already have....)

It sounds like you have already tried the other stuff I can think of - I run Cakewalk on three different pCs, two with SoundBlaster Live Value cards, one with a SB16 plus a Gadget Labes Wave 824. No pop problems yet.
 
This is the test to see if you can get pops:

Record audio with a mike on channel one. Sing a steady "Ooooh" into the mike for about 20 seconds long. All one note. This will make a nice sine wave that you can look at later. Return to beginning and record another on channel two while listening to your first one in full duplex.
Rewind and listen to your second track on solo.

If no one else gets a pop at around ten seconds in, I'll be amazed. When I look at the sine wave, I see a sudden break in the cycle either up or down to zero. As if the computer decided to go do something else for a millisecond then return.
 
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