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Subject: bin tryin' softs again to no avail!

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Original Message Date: 05-Nov-02 @ 11:42 PM Edit: 05-Nov-02 | 11:46 PM - bin tryin' softs again to no avail!

Steve Roughley

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I've been trying to get soft synths working on my pc again, but they just hate working. Some of you will remember my dilemma with distorting soft synths. Well I tried tackling the problem again and it just isn't happening. So I thought maybe you guys would have some fresh ideas.

I have been getting frustrated with not being able to run soft synths, especially as xoxos is creating so many damned programs that look quite tasty. I tried running xoxos' Kerei (must thank you again for sending me that prog mate!), ES2, ES1 and Absynth but they all start sounding horribly distorted after 10 minutes of use. Even after I restart, delete the page-file, re-install, etc, etc.

So, any ideas???

FYI, here's my setup:

Gigabyte GA-7DXR running:
AMD761 Chipset;
AMD T-Bird 1.4Ghz;
512MB Generic DDR RAM;
40GB Fujitsu MPG3409AH ATA100;
40GB IBM Deskstar ATA100;
MT4 MIDI I/F;
Audiowerk8 MIDI I/F;
Matrox G550 Graphics;
Win2K;
Logic 5.3 (upgrade from 4.0)

Regards.

Steve.

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Message 11/28 07-Nov-02 @ 11:25 AM Edit: 07-Nov-02 | 11:26 AM - RE: bin tryin' softs again to no avail!

Steve Roughley

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Cheers for your replies fellas. I'll post a sample of the problem when I get home tonight. Alhtough it won't show exactly what is happening as the problem gets worse over a period of about ten minutes continuous play. It starts sounding kinda fuzzy, then kinda fuzzy n chunky, then it just sounds like 500hz distortion gone OTT.

I have narrowed it down to just the oscillators of the softsynths. All of the effects on the synths (filters, delays, chorus, etc) work absolutely fine. It is purely the signal generators of the synths. So if we can find someone who knows exactly what happens when a soft synth oscillator is run, then we should be able to seriously narrow the problem down to a few bits and pieces.

Basically, I have cancelled out every device in my machine, save the CPU, RAM and, god forbid, the Motherboard. I know for a fact that everything else is definitely not the cause.

The strange thing is that my system does not have ANY problems WHATSOEVER other than this! I no longer even get Logics overload or MIDI timing errors.

And, Si, the distortion happens no matter what. I have tried your suggestion.

Anyhow, thanks for all of your help!

Regards.

Steve.

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Message 12/28 07-Nov-02 @ 02:27 PM - RE: bin tryin' softs again to no avail!

Ragnaroek

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You mentioned you have cancelled out RAM. Did you test your configuration with someone elses's RAM? Thing is, RAM is one of the things in a computer which is nearly impossible to test without specialized equipment and it could cause the weirdest problems (while everything else is working fine).

Another thing (if you haven't done it yet): try to put your sound card into an another slot.

hope your problem will be solved soon...

/R

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Message 13/28 07-Nov-02 @ 05:28 PM - RE: bin tryin' softs again to no avail!

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Another thing - does this distortion happen if you use the synths in stand-alone mode?

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Message 14/28 10-Nov-02 @ 07:20 PM - RE: bin tryin' softs again to no avail!

brett

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have had similar problems back when i built my pc.

i second the idea of stripping the system back to the video and audio device. Also software. A bad cracked plug-in can cause a system to malfuntion. Don't know if you have any bug ladden plugs in there, or have installed any media software after the logic install that could have currupted it, like a directx update or windows media player codecs. Get back to just the audio card, and video card. swap the ram with a freinds and see if stops, if it is working, start adding hardware and running the app again. this could take a weekend or two but you can get to the bottom of it one program and pci slot at a time. The hardware is so much easier to debug then a software conflict.

There are also things in windows 2k that can cause issues. like networking services etc.

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Message 15/28 11-Nov-02 @ 03:26 PM - RE: bin tryin' softs again to no avail!

Steve Roughley

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Right, I have re-installed Windows200 before only installing Logic (nothing else, save drivers) and the problem still occurs almost instantly. And as I said earlier, I have narrowed the problem down to RAM, CPU, or possibly the motherboard. I have tried using different HDDs, Audio Cards, Video Cards. So it looks like I'll have to find someone with different manufactured RAM to myself, as I am willing to bet that this is the problem. It seems that as the Oscilators run, there must be something corrupting the data stored in RAM, hence the gradual degredation of the sound.

Anyhow, I'll see what I can come up with.

Regards.

Steve.

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Message 16/28 11-Nov-02 @ 05:04 PM - RE: bin tryin' softs again to no avail!

milan

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to be honest, looks more and more like a motherboard problem to me. try the soundcard in another pc with a solid mobo and see. i had all manners of unexplainable and inexplicable problems with my soundcard, mostof which affected my system only partially (like you vsti-only problem)and when i switched to a new pc they all vanished like wiped by a magic cloth.

hope you sort it out.

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Message 17/28 11-Nov-02 @ 07:09 PM - RE: bin tryin' softs again to no avail!

Steve Roughley

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If it is a motherboard problem, then that's a pain, as I have had a briliant time using this mobo. The GA-7DXR works an absolute treat for Audio. Solid as a rock, with the possible exception of this problem, and I am probably not going to switch just for the use of Softsynths.

Regards.

Steve.

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Message 18/28 12-Nov-02 @ 09:25 AM - RE: bin tryin' softs again to no avail!

dARKSTATe

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Ouch! Great mobo or not, that's a big hit you're taking there dawg.. ;) No softsynths in this day and age is a large slice of technology you're cutting out of your make up.. all for a �70 mobo replacement..

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Message 19/28 13-Jul-03 @ 12:07 PM Edit: 13-Jul-03 | 12:09 PM - RE: bin tryin' softs again to no avail!

Steve Roughley

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And half a year later... RESOLVED! It was the motherboard afterall (spot on the nose Milan). I upgraded to an ABIT a little while ago, and over the last week I have been playing about with the EVOC and ES2 synths and they sound great! The EVOC is amazing for filtering drums etc to give your tracks those funky little synth lines.

Software synthesis... Steve has arrived! I'm actually quite excited about this [rubs his hands together and grins].

Cheers to all who helped on this very long and drawn out problem!

Regards.

Steve.

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Message 20/28 13-Jul-03 @ 01:05 PM - RE: bin tryin' softs again to no avail!

milan

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hehe... congrats!

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