Low RAM Predicament

Bane01

Bane01

Like Yeah!
Hi,

Sorry guys if I'm in the wrong section. I've just run into a rather distressing issue I hope you can help me with.

First of all I'm running about 520MB of sample libraries in Cubase Artist 7 on my laptop (specs below.)

Dell Inspiron 1525 Pentium Dual-Core
Windows Vista Home Premium
2GB RAM 1.87gHz
32-bit OS

And so my problem is that when I run my libraries in Cubase I can normally only get 4 tracks to load at times when I need 7 or 8 of them. I have been able to pinpoint the problem as memory, my 2 GB isn't cutting it and extra sample-based tracks are not loading despite my best efforts to make everything in Cubase run lighter.

Now the answer seems obvious, get some RAM sticks, right? But then there's the fact that 32 bit OS's can only address so much RAM, and also a single application can only access up to 2GB. So are there potentially alot of RAM hungry processes running in the background when only Cubase is open? Will upgrading to a total 4GB of RAM help or is there a better way to address this?

Thank you,
Blake
 
You should be able to see what's going on to some extent in the Task Manager / Performance section. With your DAW closed and any other musical apps closed, run the Task Manager and see how much of your 2GB is being used on general stuff that your PC's doing at the time. That might answer your question on whether more RAM will help your DAW performance.

There are various tutorials around here on streamlining your Windows set up for music, if you haven't already done so.
 
Hi and thanks for your reply.

I have checked my task manager as you have advised and it seems that I use 900MB to 1GB with nothing open and about 1.2-1.3GB with Internet open. Most of the heavier sources are system based and therefore cannot be ended.

So I've used Piriform's Speccy program to look at my RAM slot specifications. It seems that I'm using slots filled with two 1024 MB DDRM2. It also says I'm running at 333mHz bus speed.

Are these RAM sticks easy to install? Could I do it myself without screwing anything up?
 
That info seems to be right in line with what I found. Now if I get a 667 or 800MHz DDR2 will that run okay with my machine that has been running 333MHz bus speed?

Thanks for the tutorial as well, very helpful.
 
DDR stands for double data rate. As far as I know 5300 modules (667mhz) run in a system with 333mhz bus speed.

Ordinarily modules that exceed the max bus speed of the board will just run at the max speed, so 800mhz modules should just operate as 667 modules. There's no advantage to buying above the motherboard limitation.

Your existing modules should say PC5300 on them, or whatever they are.
 
Your existing modules should say PC5300 on them, or whatever they are.
Click to expand...

Yes, they do. I found some on Amazon earlier that look to be what I need, but haven't been able to find them today. Strange....
 
Back to your earlier question, it's certainly worth going after anything running in background. I used to use a freeware programme called "Enditall". It takes a bit of setting up and deciding which processes to kill and which not to (which I consider a good thing) but it certainly helps.

Also, if you haven't already, always turn off Wifi, Networking and any Anti Virus before doing serious audio work.

Extra RAM is still and excellent idea of course, but a good clear out helps too.

(If it helps, I used to frequently run 24+ track mixes on a dual core 32 bit Vista machine with 4 GB of RAM--and it all held together until I added too many real time effects.)
 
Yes, you should upgrade your RAM! 2 GB is basically the minimum to get a decently-functioning Vista install. This means that a solid GB of your total memory is going to just the operating system.

Also, when you upgrade, make sure you're not mixing different types of RAM. Adding more RAM that doesn't match what's already in there can actually hurt your performance.
 
Yes, I do try to turn off my WiFi card before doing serious stuff, like recording audio. Unfortunately, my internet card is indeed the cause of my USB interface dropouts. Bad news is I don't have access to the admin acct on my computer, so it's hard to disable it but I do contact the admin if I really need to.

I'm going to order some RAM today. I will be replacing my old ones (2x1024MB) with these new ones that are 2x2GB. If I don't see improvement, I'll have to go from there. Personally I hope that the new update to Cubase 7 coming in February will improve my system stability. Right now I couldn't recommend the new version to anyone, it feels like a freakin beta version. It even has obvious incompatibilities with Steinberg's own hardware (which I've experienced with my CI1)! But that's another story....
 
Its sounds like you have figured out what you needed to. A 32 bit operating system can address 3.5 gigs of RAM, so yes 4 gigs should work for you.

On a typical Dell laptop one RAM stick is accessed through the bottom of the laptop. That's the easy one.

The second is accessed under the keyboard. You use a flat-bladed screen driver to gently pry up the mounting bezel and then lift up the keyboard. I can't vouch that your particular laptop works this way, but the vast majority of Dell laptops I have worked on do. You can go to dell's web site and download the owner's manual or service manual and that should walk you through the procedure.

One last word: if by some chance you have never done so, you NEED to download and install all the service packs for Vista. Vista before SP1 was a abominable pig-sloth of an OS. Once its completely up to date its almost as nice as Windows 7.
 
Haha, no it's my poor internet. My wireless card is screwed up and I have to be 2 yards from a router. Stuff like this makes me hesitant to sink more money into this computer, but guess what? I already did.

I bought one on Amazon: "PNY OPTIMA 4GB (2x2GB) Dual Channel Kit DDR2 667 MHz PC2-5300 Notebook / Laptop SODIMM Memory Modules MN4096KD2-667"

The tutorial video earlier in this thread makes it seem like the memory slots are easy to access and replace. I have indeed started running Vista SP2 as of this month. It runs pretty nicely I think.

But Cubase 7 is probably the other big problem. I was a fool to start a serious project in it before a supported update was released. Nevertheless, memory has been a long-standing problem in my system and I hope the new package will clear some of my issues up and head off memory caused crashes with my sample libraries.
 
Good news, I did upgrade my RAM and everything is running alot smoother with my sample libraries. With more RAM and my wi-fi card disabled my CI1 has been handling the audio well with no dropouts, low latency clicks, or sample library disk/RAM overload. I can finally play my piano libraries in absolute peace, all for $45.

Thanks a million for the help. ;)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top