Cpu Overload .....already???, Protools / Powerbook G4 Options

[vinrock]

Hey guys, I'm hoping this is a simple oversight on my part and one of you can help.

I'm getting constant 'CPU Overload' errors when trying to record an audio track. This is what I have for track listings, plug ins etc... I'm on a brand new Powerbook G4 1.67 1.5 gig ram

Tr 1 - midi drum track
Tr 2 - Aux track - BFD drum plug in ( I suspect this is very CPU heavy)
Tr 3 - Audio track I'm recording guitar on (clean)
Tr 4 Aux track - Amplitube
Tr 5 Aux track - click (for count in)


Settings are:

CPU Usage limit - 85%
DAE PLayback Buffer = level 2 (default)
HW Buffer Size - 512 it tracks a little longer on 1024 but the latency is a killer there

My completely newbie guess is to pull out BFD and just use a midi drum sound while tracking, then crank H/W buffer for mixdown but could it be something else. Is that the max this Powerbook can handle?

Thanks so much in advance and hope you all have a happy and safe New Year !

Vin

[zeze]

right vin, the BFD drum plug in is very CPU intensive,
i had the same problem with my G4 MDD Dual 1.25/2GB ram - MBox2/PT LE 7.0 - Tiger 10.4.2,
when using the Bosendorfer and a few other plugs; simply put my G4 could'nt do the job;
i bought a new G5 Dual Core 2.3/2GB ram and now i can work with a lot less problems (PT LE 7.0 is still buggy, but i suspect not all the plugs and synths have been upgraded for it to work).
i'm also upgrading the 2gb ram to 4gb, it seems that, these times, the more ram you have, the better you work. byez.

[vinrock]

I did some tests with the Activity Monitor and CPU usage and yep, huge difference with BFD on and off. Short of buying a new G5, which I can't do at the moment, what are my best bets to maximize this powerbook....up it to 2gig Ram? BFD recommends putting BFD on it's own seperate firewire drive, would that help? Anything else?

I know I won't get a gazillion tracks with this G4, hoping for 12-14 max with a couple of plug ins at most. Am i asking too much?

Thanks!

Vin

[Chris C.L]

Hi vinrock
An external drive to run audio will take some load off or at least partition the powerbooks drive for better optimisation. Make sure run a regular maintanance thing using something like Xupport or macjanitor to prevent things laging.

Keep big cpu plug ins to a minimum.

What host are you using?

[mazza_lives]

I have a similar problem. I have a G5 1.8 w/768mb RAM and I can hardly get 3-4 channels without it saying CPU overload in Logic Express. I have a Presonus Inspire and ESI Midi controller keyboard attached. I have noticed the CPU being more active since I have attached these devices - do they drain CPU power by being attached?

I thought I would have enough power to have at least 8 tracks without it being overloaded.

[mazza_lives]

I have found out that the problem lay in my firewire audio interface (Presonus Inspire). Once I unplugged that I was able to play songs in both applications simulataneosly without any problems. Before it would overload 5 seconds into the song even with 4 tracks. Now I have to figure out best solution of getting my Inspire to work without jamming up my system.