Here's some tips for optimizing your pc:
Windows XP and music.
When working on a PC with Windows XP there are a few things to consider if you want to use the PC as professional music workstation.
On an ideal professional music system you do not need any games or office programs, any software you do not need for making music should not be installed on the computer. You also should be cautious when using internet on your music PC – regarding virus attacks and downloading unsafe software programs.
Windows XP installs a few things in the startup folder that you do not need. First you should get rid of the Windows Messenger, as this program likes to run always in the background. You can open the windows messenger when clicking with the right mouse key on the messenger symbol in the taskbar and choosing “open”. You can also find the windows messenger in the program files folder on drive C. Once opened choose the menu “tools” and then “options”. Choose “preferences” and uncheck all options, especially “run this program when windows starts” and “allow this program to run in the background”. Click on OK and close the program choosing the menu “file” and then click “close”.
The windows messenger is most probably not the only program running in the background. To check, what programs are running you should do the following:
Click on start in the windows taskbar and then “run”. Type in “msconfig”. Choose “startup”. Here you will find a list of programs that are started as soon as you run windows. It does not make a difference, if you uncheck all – your computer will work without any problem. We suggest to leave the programs related to your sound devices, e.g. the mLAN manager, and eventually virus scanning software checked and uncheck all that you do not seem to need, especially Office programs. You can do nothing wrong when trying around different settings here. Every time you have made new settings and clicked on OK you have to restart your computer to make the settings active. After restart a Windows message appears. Check the box to avoid that this message appears every time you start up Windows XP.
It also helps to deactivate virus scanning programs when working with your music software. We suggest to turn it off directly in the taskbar and not to uncheck it in the startup configuration. Most virus programs can be deactivated when clicking on the respective symbol in the taskbar and the choosing “exit” or “close”.
Every program running in the background uses CPU power and memory of your computer – CPU power and memory that you need for your digital audio workstation. But even a bigger problem is that any programs running in the background can cause serious audio dropouts or crackle noises.
There are more things you can do to optimize your PC. Click on start, select the control panel and click on “system”. Choose the “advanced” file and click on the performance settings button. Check in the upcoming window “Adjust for best performance”. After that choose the “advanced” file. In the processor handling settings check “background services”. This setting is recommended by most audio software manufacturers for optimal performance when running their programs. Click on OK to apply the settings you have made.
Choose the file “Remote” and uncheck “Allow remote assistance invitations to be sent from this computer”. After that choose the file “Automatic Updates” and check the box “Turn off automatic updating”. Click “OK” to apply the changes.
On an optimized audio computer you also do not need a screen saver. Right click on the desktop, choose “screen saver” and set to none. Then select the monitor power options, choose the file hibernation and uncheck the box.
These are some fundamental settings to run Windows XP optimized for audio applications. More useful tips can be found here:
www.musicxp.net.
Terry
