djtommye
Let me start by saying that I've been using VDJ on this same computer system for about two years. This is a custom-built rackmount PC with an Intel mobo and dual core 2.0Ghz or so CPU. (I'm having to remember this because the system isn't here with me). It has 4GB of memory.
I'm running Windows XP Pro. This computer has a Buffalo WiFi card built in, a Maya internal sound card, one built-in hard drive for the OS and another hot-swap for music (so I can bring it in and keep it updated).
I had a reception a few weeks ago and everything was running great. Last night, at a party, I started experiencing some very poor performance. I really don't recall doing any updates between events, but if I did it was probably stuff through Windows Update.
In the past, I've been able to run VDJ, Compuware (DMX Lighitng controller), and Adobe Audition all at the same time with now problems. Last night, if I tried doing ANYTHING else with VDJ running, the song would audibly slow down and even come to a stop.
I found the latency checker and disabled alot of stuff, including the WiFi card, on-board LAN, on-board audio, etc. I got the DPC into the green, but would still have audio problems if I opened Windows Explorer. I made it thorugh two events like this, just being extremely careful about what I did. The troublesome thing is that this system has worked great for so long, and now - without anything changing that I can put a finger on - it's having all sorts of problems.
I've disabled several drivers, even uninstalling the video driver, as well as some other programs, to no avail.
Any suggestions? I'll probably bring the rig in and can provide more specifics if needed.
Thanks!
I'm running Windows XP Pro. This computer has a Buffalo WiFi card built in, a Maya internal sound card, one built-in hard drive for the OS and another hot-swap for music (so I can bring it in and keep it updated).
I had a reception a few weeks ago and everything was running great. Last night, at a party, I started experiencing some very poor performance. I really don't recall doing any updates between events, but if I did it was probably stuff through Windows Update.
In the past, I've been able to run VDJ, Compuware (DMX Lighitng controller), and Adobe Audition all at the same time with now problems. Last night, if I tried doing ANYTHING else with VDJ running, the song would audibly slow down and even come to a stop.
I found the latency checker and disabled alot of stuff, including the WiFi card, on-board LAN, on-board audio, etc. I got the DPC into the green, but would still have audio problems if I opened Windows Explorer. I made it thorugh two events like this, just being extremely careful about what I did. The troublesome thing is that this system has worked great for so long, and now - without anything changing that I can put a finger on - it's having all sorts of problems.
I've disabled several drivers, even uninstalling the video driver, as well as some other programs, to no avail.
Any suggestions? I'll probably bring the rig in and can provide more specifics if needed.
Thanks!
geposted Sun 01 Mar 09 @ 2:25 am
discobrian24
Double check that you arent running the skin MAXIMIZED. I had a lot if issues if I accidentally maximized the skin. I ended up modifting the skin and got rid of that button. I am a touchscreen user so accidentally hitting buttons sucks.'
The easiest way to check to see if you are running maximized is if you cant drag and move the skin, if you cant you are running in Max mode.
Do you run Video??
The easiest way to check to see if you are running maximized is if you cant drag and move the skin, if you cant you are running in Max mode.
Do you run Video??
geposted Sun 01 Mar 09 @ 3:39 am
djtommye
I'm quite sure that I'm not running Maximized, but will check that. I've been using the basic black skin that comes with VDJ. I do have video on my system but was not running any video the last two nights (when all this was happening).
Here's my plan of action.
1. Install XP SP3 and complete all system updates
2. Re-install video driver. I keep coming back to that because I think that's the only thing that has changed between the system working and not working. Although, at the moment, I've uninstalled the driver and it's still jacked up.
3. Run a anti-virus / anti-malware app to make sure nothing is getting in there and stealing resources.
4. Strip down XP so I'm not running a bunch of stuff I don't need. (see http://home.comcast.net/~SupportCD/OptimizeXP.html). There are several sites out there with tips like this.
5. Check to see what IRQs are being shared with my sound card. Sometimes, moving a sound card to a different PCI slot will remedy this, though the sound card has been in this same slot for the past couple of years.
I'll post more info as this progresses.
By the way, this has really been a solid system. In the past I have been able to do the following, all at the same time:
1. Run VDJ with Master Tempo enabled (which I assume would use a bit more resources) and mix music.
2. Run Adobe Audition to record a send from my mixer.
3. Run Compuware to control DMX lighting.
4. Run iTunes to purchase music if someone wants something I don't have, or maybe run Firefox over my wifi card and buy something thru amazon.com.
Again - this has been extremely solid, so I'm very miffed and can't wait to find the culprit.
BTW - I have a gig on Friday, so if this isn't resolved in a couple of days, I'll just buy new components and bulid a new systerm.
I've been using Intel motherboards, and would consider a quad-core processor. Any thoughts on that? I'm running XP Pro because it's quite solid.
Thanks a ton!
Here's my plan of action.
1. Install XP SP3 and complete all system updates
2. Re-install video driver. I keep coming back to that because I think that's the only thing that has changed between the system working and not working. Although, at the moment, I've uninstalled the driver and it's still jacked up.
3. Run a anti-virus / anti-malware app to make sure nothing is getting in there and stealing resources.
4. Strip down XP so I'm not running a bunch of stuff I don't need. (see http://home.comcast.net/~SupportCD/OptimizeXP.html). There are several sites out there with tips like this.
5. Check to see what IRQs are being shared with my sound card. Sometimes, moving a sound card to a different PCI slot will remedy this, though the sound card has been in this same slot for the past couple of years.
I'll post more info as this progresses.
By the way, this has really been a solid system. In the past I have been able to do the following, all at the same time:
1. Run VDJ with Master Tempo enabled (which I assume would use a bit more resources) and mix music.
2. Run Adobe Audition to record a send from my mixer.
3. Run Compuware to control DMX lighting.
4. Run iTunes to purchase music if someone wants something I don't have, or maybe run Firefox over my wifi card and buy something thru amazon.com.
Again - this has been extremely solid, so I'm very miffed and can't wait to find the culprit.
BTW - I have a gig on Friday, so if this isn't resolved in a couple of days, I'll just buy new components and bulid a new systerm.
I've been using Intel motherboards, and would consider a quad-core processor. Any thoughts on that? I'm running XP Pro because it's quite solid.
Thanks a ton!
geposted Sun 01 Mar 09 @ 11:33 am
djtommye
Update:
I updated the OS to XP SP3, and updated all my drivers. I've got a Radeon X1550 video card, M-Audio 1010LT sound card, and a Buffalo WLI2-PCI-g545 wifi card in this system. The motherboard is an Intel DP35DP with a 2.6Ghz processor and 4GB of DDR2 800Mhz memory.
Using some resources I found on the web, I changed the startup of alot of services to be either disabled (for those that I definitely don't use, like Fast User Switching, Windows Image Acquisition, ATI Hotkey Poller), or manual (IMAPI CD, Windows Audio, IPSec, etc).
I also updated the mobo bios.
One thing that was causing problems was an Intel Desktop app that was running to monitor CPU temps, fan speeds, etc.
Using the DPC Latency checker app, when I began this project, it was at the top region of yellow most of the time, with spikes into the red.
Now, it's barely visible (green) most of the time, but does have occasional spikes into yellow and even red. To compare, running this on my office pc was mid-to high yellow most of the time, with no tweaking.
I put a call into Intel (I'm a channel partner with them, so I get free support). I was hoping to find out what IRQ was assigned to each PCI slot, but the guy really didn't know how to answer me. His solution? Upgrade my 400w power supply to 1000w.
I'm also going to try moving the sound card to a different PCI slot (there's really only one other one available that's accessible) to see if I can get it on a IRQ that's not competing too much with other hardware. It's currently on iRQ21, which is the same as the SATA controller.
I'll let you know how that goes.
The other thing I may try is to install a quad core processor. Apparently, DPCs are assigned per processor, so that would almost double the handling of DPCs and decrease latency. That's about $200, and well worth if if I don't have to go through this again!
I updated the OS to XP SP3, and updated all my drivers. I've got a Radeon X1550 video card, M-Audio 1010LT sound card, and a Buffalo WLI2-PCI-g545 wifi card in this system. The motherboard is an Intel DP35DP with a 2.6Ghz processor and 4GB of DDR2 800Mhz memory.
Using some resources I found on the web, I changed the startup of alot of services to be either disabled (for those that I definitely don't use, like Fast User Switching, Windows Image Acquisition, ATI Hotkey Poller), or manual (IMAPI CD, Windows Audio, IPSec, etc).
I also updated the mobo bios.
One thing that was causing problems was an Intel Desktop app that was running to monitor CPU temps, fan speeds, etc.
Using the DPC Latency checker app, when I began this project, it was at the top region of yellow most of the time, with spikes into the red.
Now, it's barely visible (green) most of the time, but does have occasional spikes into yellow and even red. To compare, running this on my office pc was mid-to high yellow most of the time, with no tweaking.
I put a call into Intel (I'm a channel partner with them, so I get free support). I was hoping to find out what IRQ was assigned to each PCI slot, but the guy really didn't know how to answer me. His solution? Upgrade my 400w power supply to 1000w.
I'm also going to try moving the sound card to a different PCI slot (there's really only one other one available that's accessible) to see if I can get it on a IRQ that's not competing too much with other hardware. It's currently on iRQ21, which is the same as the SATA controller.
I'll let you know how that goes.
The other thing I may try is to install a quad core processor. Apparently, DPCs are assigned per processor, so that would almost double the handling of DPCs and decrease latency. That's about $200, and well worth if if I don't have to go through this again!
geposted Mon 02 Mar 09 @ 2:52 pm