will more RAM help with latency?

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samich17

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i've previously posted i was having with my computer skipping when i would record. well, it still does it...i've read through system configurations to help this, but they confuse me. would it make any difference if i got more RAM? right now i have two 128MB cards in. i use Cool Edit 2000 to track...1st track always works fine, second track skips occasionally and it gets worse the more tracks i add. please help, this sucks.
 
Buy as much as you can afford

And what your system will take. 98SE may not accept more than 512MB though this is not always the case. I have no idea about mac. Peter
 
It definately wont hurt but there are too many variables to say that it will fix the problem.
 
I added ram back a couple of months ago, it has helped my machine in eveything I use this computer for. RAM is dirt cheap these days. Find out how much ram your machine can take and give it to it. It usually is a pretty easy upgrade to do yourself.

scodu
 
I don't think the ram would help you.

WHy? because I only have 128 Ram and I have no problmes with recording several tracks in CEP.

I'm no expert in comps, but what processor do you have, how fast is your hardrive, and how is your proceesor configurated?
 
too many plugins going at once? This is why the computer is rally only good as a mastering medium, and for burning cds as well.
 
Try cleaning your tray of any other programs that may be running while you are using cool edit. The problem may be related to your antivirus program. some of us even get a second hard drive to record on to aviod skipps. Ram does allways help.
 
Could be your HD...

Not fast enough?
Fragmented?
Using the old 40 conductor cable?
Paired with a CD-Rom?
etc...
 
thanks for all the responses so far...

my computer:

1 Gig processing speed
Two seperate 128MB RAM cards
45 Gig HD, reduced to 20Gig (defragged often, still skips)
Echo Mia soundcard
Norton Anti-Virus

don't know what else to say...i clear my all running programs before tracking with Cool Edit 2000 and i still get haults, skips, hiccups etc...when i try to track any tracks after the first one...i thought it might be the fact that 1/2 my HD is used, but it's been happening from the beginning. Didn't improve after adding second 128MB RAM card. WTF!!??
 
there you go get rid of that antivirus program. Its running in the background and causing those artifacts. now you know what you have to do.
 
do you mean delete my Anti-Virus program all together or just shut it down when i'm tracking? thanks
 
Don't delete your anti-virus program. Just shut it down before tracking.

I really think the problem has to do with latency on your sound card.
Surely, with the ECHO MIA Sound card, there's a way to adjust the latency (aka "Buffer Size"). Try setting it to somewhere around 46ms for starters.
 
Also empty your Windows Temp folder before recording and after every hour or so of recording. A full Temp folder will do excatly what you're talking about.

And I agree with whoever said that the computer was best for mixing on but not for tracking. I've always regretted it. Just one problem after another.
 
Yeah, I would highly NOT recommend getting rid of your Antivirus program. Unless you really know what you are doing with a computer your best bet is to just shut it off while doing your recording stuff....

That said, if you are very comfortable and SMART using your computer and the internet then I say get rid of the Antivirus program. Those damn things are such resource hogs that it isn't even funny.
 
1. get enough RAM... you've already done that.

2. buy a second hard drive. keep your applications on your original hard drive, and your audio on the 2nd hard drive.

3. defrag your application and audio drives.

4. turn off any background software, while you are working.

5. make sure that your audio card is not competing on the same IRQ as other cards... network/modem cards and audio cards are a big problem.

I have a 1.2ghz AMD desktop with 512mb SDRAM, a 20gb HD that i use for applications and a RAID-0 80gb HD (actually 2x40) that i use for audio data. I use the frontier design's WaveCenter card.

On the most plugin intensive song, I have 16 - 48khz/24bit audio tracks with Ultrafunk EQ and Compressor plugins in each track. I also have a DSP-FX delay plugin runnin on the guitar track. I then have 2 delay plugins, and a reverb plugin as aux effects. Finally, I have Waves C4 (multi-band compressor) and L1 (peak limiter) plugins in my main out.

I also have a 1.2ghz laptop with 512mb SDRAM, with a single 40gb HD, and the m-audio USB enabled Duo. So far I've been able to push 8 tracks of 48khz/16bit with basicly the same plugins mentioned above.

With a 1ghz system, you should be able to do quite well.
 
Do you have a big enough buffer setting in CE2000? I had a similar problem with skipping, and increasing the buffer fixed it.
 
Your hard drive speed will play a part as well....
If you're pushing alot of tracks with any kinds of effects and you're using a 5400 speed HD, you'll get that same stutter...

Might find that part out!
Sounds like your CPU and RAM should be fine!
 
Don't be too sure...

Speaking from months of experience, I now know all too well that your motherboard's chipset can be the root of a great deal of evil. I don't know specifically how picky your card is, but I had to move away from VIA chipsets altogether in order to do the recording work I needed to.

That's as deep as I wanna go, but check your card mfgr's website and see what they say about chipset compatibility.
 
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