Official Giga Survey-- submit now, resistance is futile!

[Jerry Kahn]

Ok, maybe not quite official. Two other members of this bbs and I constructed this thing, on another thread. It would be of the utmost service to all your fellow Gigapersons (and most of all, me) to cut out this survey, paste it in a reply post and fill it in. It should take you maybe a few minutes, and you absolutely will be rewarded in the afterlife-- that\'s a guarantee!

And here it is:
-----------------------------
-processor (ie PII, PIII, Athalon, etc.)
-chipset (ie BX, Via kt-133 )
-motherboard (ie:Asus)
-ram
-hard drive(s) (use SCSI?)
-sound card(s)
-standalone use?
-video processor/card/settings
-BIOS settings (i.e. - turning off USB, memory latency, etc.)
-Midi Input Card
-other processors
-recording system - hardware/software
-sequencing system - hardware/software
-polyphony (# voices achieved in Giga)
-click/pops in Giga? sometimes?
-sound quality (1-10)
-midi performance (built in/stand alone/win 2k ect.)
-other problems
-comments/suggestions
--------------------------------------

See-- That wasn\'t so hard

Thanks, and Bless you All, Every one of you!

rgds,
jk

PS: if something doesn\'t make sense to you, or you forgot the spec or don\'t feel like digging it out, just leave it out!

To see how this awesome survey was carefully developed, from inception to final product, refer to the outstanding thread:
http://www.northernsounds.com/ubb/NonCGI/Forum1/HTML/000394.html (\"http://www.northernsounds.com/ubb/NonCGI/Forum1/HTML/000394.html\")

[Chadwick]

-processor ... PIII 800e
-chipset ... BX
-motherboard ... ASUS CUBX something
-ram ... 256
-hard drive(s) ... 4 on ATA 66 controllers
Progs = IBM deskstar 15gb
Sound = IBM deskstar 30gb
2 identical backups
-sound card(s) ... Pulsar 2
-standalone ... No - Logic (midi) also
-video proc ... Matrox dual head (Acceleration turned down)
-BIOS ... no USB
-Midi Input ... Unitor 2
-other proc ... Pulsar 2 has DSP for its stuff
-recording sys ... Otari Radar (wish I could use Logic as well)
-sequencing ... Logic (LAP) - wish I could use audio part
-polyphony ... 50-120 before latency sets in, or the whole PC thing locks up.
-click/pops ... never
-sound quality ... 9/10 for Giga - good level and very quiet. Panning is wierd sometimes
Pulsar has some phase issues.
-midi perf ... Usually very good.Sustain pedal can cripple it though
-other probs ... Quicksound won\'t update my drive.It errors right at the end of the job.
I need more money for library but spent it all on the PC http://www.northernsounds.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/frown.gif
-comments ... I\'d like to see Nemesys put a benchmark system description together which specifies parts and GUARANTEES the performance which they advertise (and which some people obviously achieve!). Maybe several different combos should be specified so that all the card manufacturers are kept happy. It wouldn\'t have to be on the mobo, OS or CPU which is at the bleading edge. Whatever allows you to run 160 poly, midi sequencing on lots of tracks, a good number of audio tracks and some plugins http://www.northernsounds.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/smile.gif
Keep Kevin, Dave and anyone from Nemesys who posts here on staff forever, at increased salaries http://www.northernsounds.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/smile.gif

[This message has been edited by Chadwick (edited 02-02-2001).]

[toby]

-processor … Celeron Coppermine 633 @ 700
-chipset … VIA Apollo Pro 133
-motherboard … Winsonic $60.00
–ram … 256MB
-hard drive(s) … Maxtor udma 66, 8.5ms , & Ethernet 100
-sound card(s) … Sonorus StudI/O
-standalone use? … YES
-video processor/card/settings … G400 DH, accel. Full.
-BIOS settings …. USB off, CAS=2,
-Midi Input Card … Roland SMPU2
-other processors …. no
-recording system -
-sequencing system -
-polyphony … max. 70 before crackling
-click/pops in Giga? … no
-sound quality (1-10) … 9
-midi performance …
-other problems …
-comments/suggestions …http://www.northernsounds.com/ubb/NonCGI/Forum4/HTML/000300.html

[abi]

-processor ... AMD Thunderbird 900Mhz
-chipset ... Via KT7
-motherboard ... Asus K7V
-ram ... 384M PC-100
-hard drive(s) ... Seagate IDE 20gig 7200RPM 2M system, Maxtor IDE 40gig 7200RPM 2M Giga (both Ultra-ATA66)
-sound card(s) ... Soundblaster Live platinum
-standalone use? ... Yes
-video processor/card/settings ... ATI Xpert 98, 1280x1024 16bit @ 75Mhz, full accel
-BIOS settings ... Everything on.
-Midi Input Card ... Yamaha serial port driver, connected to Cubase dedicated computer
-other processors
-recording system ... Athlon 900/Cubase VST/32
-sequencing system ... Athlon 900/Cubase VST/32
-polyphony ... 120 max
-click/pops ... No
-sound quality (1-10) ... 10 - I only use SPDIF out from sblive to feed MOTU 2408. With dithering option turned off, there is no noise. When dithering is on, you can hear the noise easily, even when not playing notes!!
-midi performance (built in/stand alone/win 2k ect.)
-other problems
-comments/suggestions ... NEVER USE the Promise ultra-100 controller on this motherboard for giga disk - you will get pops - the problem is high latency interrupt.


[This message has been edited by abi (edited 02-02-2001).]

[ursatz]

-processor: K6-II 500 mhz
-chipset: dunno
-motherboard: Epox MVP3G5
-ram: 384
-hard drive(s): WD 20 g for programs, Maxtor 30g DiamondMax for gigs
-sound card(s): SBLive!
-standalone use?: Yes
-video processor/card/settings: Matrox Millenium
-BIOS settings (i.e. - turning off USB, memory latency, etc.): Turned off SMART drive; got rid of lots of pops
-Midi Input Card: SBLive!
-other processors
-recording system - Just CoolEdit Pro
-sequencing system - Cakewalk PA8
-polyphony (# voices achieved in Giga) - ok up to 80-100, depending on the gig files; sometimes (rarely) as high as 130
-click/pops in Giga? - None
-sound quality (1-10) Compared to what?
-midi performance (built in/stand alone/win 2k ect.)
-other problems: Crashes whenever I start GSt first, then Cakewalk. It used to be the other way around, and I haven\'t changed anything!
-comments/suggestions: How \'bout a little __try{} and __finally{} in MSG32 and WSTREAM, and/or _set_se_translator() to bridge the C/C++ gap if necessary?? Couldn\'t hurt performance *that* much, could it? I just can\'t believe that the performance requirements mean that you have to let the crashes bring down the OS.

[Saudade]

And here it is:
-----------------------------
-processor: PIII 800EB
-chipset: Intel 815e
-motherboard: Asus CUSL2
-ram: 256 MB
-hard drive(s) 2 x ATA66 7,200rpm(Barracuda II)
-sound card(s) : Wamirack24
-standalone use?: Duh????? With Cubase VST24?
-video processor/card/settings: Matrox G400TV
-BIOS settings (i.e. - turning off USB, memory latency, etc.) No special settings
-Midi Input Card: Wamirack24
-other processors: Duh????? No?
-recording system: software(Cubase VST24)
-sequencing system: software (VST24)
-polyphony (# voices achieved in Giga) Less than normal, maybe around 20?
-click/pops in Giga? sometimes? Lots o\' \'em
-sound quality (1-10): 5
-midi performance (built in/stand alone/win 2k ect.): Duh???
-other problems
-comments/suggestions

It is a great idea to put out this survey so that we all can troubleshoot better based on similar systems. Good work!

[Gunnar]

-processor: PII 350
-chipset: BX,
-motherboard: Fic
-ram: 196
-hard drive(s): 6GB WDC for programs, 20GB IBM for sounds
-sound card: WaMi 24
-standalone use? No
-video processor/card/settings: ATI 8MB
-BIOS settings: nothing special
-Midi Input Card: WaMi 24
-other processors: none
-recording system - hardware/software: Cubase
-sequencing system - hardware/software: Cubase
-polyphony: 80 at best
-click/pops in Giga? No
-sound quality (1-10): 9
-midi performance: very good
-other problems
-comments/suggestions

[Simon Ravn]

-processor: P3 500e@700e
-chipset: Via Apollo Pro
-motherboard: Abit VA6
-ram: 640MB PC133 running at 140mhz CAS2
-hard drive(s): Maxtor DiamondMax 40+ 40GB 7200 rpm IDE, IBM 75GXP 45GB 7200 rpm, 10GB IBM for system files and programs, 9GB IBM SCSI for mixing.
-sound card: Echoaudio Gina
-standalone use: Yep.
-video processor/card/settings: Nothing special.
-BIOS settings: USB on - dunno what more to say.
-Midi Input Card: Midiman 2x2 ISA card + Opcode Translator for parallel port.
-recording system: I use CoolEdit to record back from my Gina through my mixer and outboard equipment.
-sequencing system: Cubase on an AMD Thunderbird 1ghz system.
-polyphony: Differs. Around 100 without any problems, above that I get delays, clicks, pops etc. Can reach the magic 160 but it\'s not without its problems.
-click/pops in Giga: From time to time, even when polyphony is not high at all.
-sound quality (1-10): 8. I want a Wami Rack 24 or Yamaha DS2416!

my 2 cents

[superdon]

-processor: Athlon 1000
-chipset: VIA KT 133
-motherboard: MSI K7 Pro
-ram: 512MB
-hard drive: IBM DTLA 20 GB
-sound card: Terratec EWX24/96,SBLive,Audiomedia 3, Delta 66
-standalone use?: yes
-video processor/card/settings: Matrox G400 DH
-BIOS settings : Default
-Midi Input Card: SBlive
-other processors: no
-recording system - hardware/software: div. Soundcards with Cubase
-sequencing system - hardware/software:Cubase
-polyphony (# voices achieved in Giga):100 with SBLive
-click/pops in Giga? sometimes?: with EWX24/96 a lot of clicks, no clicks and pops with Delta 66.
-sound quality: 9 with the Delta, 3 with EWX24/96, 5 with Audiomedia 3
-midi performance: O.K
-other problems: the Terratec doesn\'t support the VIA KT133 !!
-comments/suggestions: **** Terratec!

[clueless]

-----------------------------
-processor PIII 800MHz, no overclocking
-chipset VIA Apollo Pro133A
-motherboard ASUS P3V4X
–ram 512Mb, PC-100
-hard drive(s) (1) Maxtor 6.4Gb; (2) Western Digital 18Gb, 7200, ATA/66
-sound card(s) Echo GINA 20 bit
-standalone use? YES
-video processor/card/settings Jaton 107AGP (2x, 8Mb)
-BIOS settings USB switched off, latency std., accel. Full, set for server operation, Windows handling virtual mem., DMA turned on, had to update BIOS for VIA chip set
-Midi Input Card WINMAN 2X2 (it is an ISA card)
-other processors None
-recording system – (1) SONY DAT; (2) PIII 800 w/ GINA20, Sound Forge 4.5 (this is the same computer I use for the Gigastudio. Note that it is virtually impossible to record while playing the Gigastudio unless only a few instruments are loaded.)
-sequencing system – MAC (Power Computing 100) running Performer 5.5, MOTU MIDI Express
-polyphony 160
-click/pops in Giga? sometimes? YES, when enough instruments are loaded (>40% mem usage). Otherwise there are no extraneous sounds.
-sound quality 10, except for pops
-midi performance great, no problems from Gigastudio computer but the MAC, which is my sequencing computer, can be overloaded with too many after touch, pitch bend, and other MIDI signals.
-other problems Gigastudio computer will often boot up with a msgsrv32, msg32 or other low-level error so that several reboots are necessary. It will get page faults often when running Gigastudo (often related to wstream) and will also require rebooting.
-comments/suggestions Serious stand-alone diagnostic program needs to be written (see forum location http://www.northernsounds.com/ubb/NonCGI/Forum5/HTML/000132.html) (\"http://www.northernsounds.com/ubb/NonCGI/Forum5/HTML/000132.html)\")
--------------------------------------

[daw32965]

processor - P4 @ 1.4gigahertz
chipset - ?
motherboard - ?
ram - 256
hard drive - Maxtor 60gig (7200 rpm)
sound card - Soundblaster Live Platinum 5.1
video processor - 32 Nvida
BIOS settings - default settings
Midi Input Card - Soundblaster 5.1
recording system - hard disk
sequencing system - Cakewalk 9.3
polyphony (# voices achieved in Giga)
click/pops in Giga? sometimes
sound quality - 9
midi performance - great
other problems - none
comments/suggestions
**working great. No problems other than a few clicks now and then. But that\'s has been rare. Loads super fast helping me to create instead of trying to fix.

[Simon Ravn]

OK DAW, but we have still to hear your \'totally convincing\' orchestral work. Want to share it with us? And you forgot to write your poly count too.

[Haydn]

processor (ie PII, PIII, Athalon, etc.): PIII - 733
chipset (ie BX, Via kt-133 ) : Intel 815e
motherboard: Asus CUCSL2
ram: 512 MB
hard drive(s) (use SCSI?): Maxtor 30GB ATA/100
sound card(s) : Echo Darla 24, Midiman DMAN PCI - Darla is used for all music, DMAN is for games and monitoring.
standalone use?: No
video processor/card/settings: GeForce 2/ ASUS V7700 with 32 MB / Full acceleration
BIOS settings (i.e. - turning off USB, memory latency, etc.): Standard settings, no overclocking.
Midi Input Card: MOTU Midi Express - on parallel port
other processors: None
recording system - hardware/software: Cakewalk 9.03
sequencing system - hardware/software: Cakewalk 9.03
overall results (1-10): 9
polyphony (# voices achieved): 96
click/pops? sometimes?: Get clicks and pops only on super complex pieces. Piano and harp hitting high polyphony for extended periods will usually cause problem. I normally mute these tracks until piece is finished and then I mix these down as audio tracks in Cakewalk.
sound quality (1-10): 9
other problems/comments: I have two hardware profiles. One is specifically for music and has USB, SCSI and a couple other items disabled. This fixes IRQ conflicts. GigaStudio always sets itself at 64 voices which I have to change everyday. Get MSGSRV32 error about twice a month when really pushing the system with memory loaded above 80 percent.

[Haydn]

processor (ie PII, PIII, Athalon, etc.): PIII - 733
chipset (ie BX, Via kt-133 ) : Intel 815e
motherboard: Asus CUCSL2
ram: 512 MB
hard drive(s) (use SCSI?): Maxtor 30GB ATA/100
sound card(s) : Echo Darla 24, Midiman DMAN PCI - Darla is used for all music, DMAN is for games and monitoring.
standalone use?: No
video processor/card/settings: GeForce 2/ ASUS V7700 with 32 MB / Full acceleration
BIOS settings (i.e. - turning off USB, memory latency, etc.): Standard settings, no overclocking.
Midi Input Card: MOTU Midi Express - on parallel port
other processors: None
recording system - hardware/software: Cakewalk 9.03
sequencing system - hardware/software: Cakewalk 9.03
overall results (1-10): 9
polyphony (# voices achieved): 96
click/pops? sometimes?: Get clicks and pops only on super complex pieces. Piano and harp hitting high polyphony for extended periods will usually cause problem. I normally mute these tracks until piece is finished and then I mix these down as audio tracks in Cakewalk.
sound quality (1-10): 9
other problems/comments: I have two hardware profiles. One is specifically for music and has USB, SCSI and a couple other items disabled. This fixes IRQ conflicts. GigaStudio always sets itself at 64 voices which I have to change everyday. Get MSGSRV32 error about twice a month when really pushing the system with memory loaded above 80 percent.

[Jerry Kahn]

Well \"clueless\".. once again, you have proven yourself not very clueless: a 160 in polyphony of course, you get pops...
It seem few get close to that without problems. chilcote.9, who put his survey in another thread, seems to have done well also, although he maxes out at 120. Most it seems are doing fine,if they stay under 100 voices, and are fairly happy with their sound quality. One interesting thing I have noted is that the less aspiring system users (ie PII or Celeron, w/less ram) seem to be quite pleased with what they are getting-- they settle for less voices, but get good sound quality and don\'t seem to be having problems with pops. Regardless of the configuration, it seems that problems start to come into play when the polyphony is pushed over 100.

No Ferrari\'s reported yet though (where the heck is Alan?).

This will certainly help a bunch of folks who are significantly below par figure out what\'s missing and fix it.

KEEP EM COMING!!!

jk

[Conrad Farlow]

I am now happy with Gigastudio 96 and I am considering an upgrade to Gigastudio 160.

-processor Athlon 900
-chipset Via kt-133
-motherboard Asus
-ram 256Mb
-hard drive 45 Gb IBM 75GXP 7200 rpm ATA66
-sound card Wamirack24
-standalone Yes nothing else running
-video processor TNT2 32 MB AGP
-BIOS settings USB off
-Midi Input Card Wamirack24
-other processors -No
-recording system - VST24 on seperate P4 1.4
-sequencing system - software as above
-polyphony 96 as indicated by Gigastudio
-click/pops in Giga No
-sound quality (1-10) 9
-midi performance Can be a problem
-other problems
-comments It would be useful to report midi timing errors due to bottlenecks.

I run Cubase VST 24 on a P4 1.4 G which has a midisport 4 x 4 USB interface on it.I do get timing problems when maxing out but I think it is a problem with the 4 x 4. I am still investigating this.I also have a JV2080 and a SG01V hooked up to this and USB is usually crap.The soundcard on the VST system is a mixtreme with TDIF to a 03D.The audio side is excellent.I can get 60 24 bit stereo tracks glitch free! I am using a SCSI UW 10k IBM drive for audio.If I use the UW SCSI drive on the GS machine I see no performance advantages.So I think that modern ATA100 drives are perfect for GS.

Has anyone any advice about the midi bottleneck? Is it likely to be the 4 x 4? Also does it help if I split the parts up between the 2 midi inputs to GS or does it make little difference.My memory and CPU never get above 65 % even with a few NFX\'s running.

Regards

Conrad Farlow

[apessino]

I use three machines, two dedicated to GigaStudio, for a total of about 400 simultaneous voices! Very cool, indeed. http://www.northernsounds.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/smile.gif
I will list the computers first:

-processor: 1.2 GHz Athlon
-chipset: VIA KT133
-motherboard: Asus A7V
-ram: 768 Mb
-hard drive(s): 45Gb IBM Deskstar 75GXP ATA100 (boot drive), then two 61.4 Gb IBM Deskstar drives used as RAID-0 with a Promise FastTrack ATA100 RAID controller card.
-sound card(s): M-Audio Delta 1010
-standalone use? Yes
-video processor/card/settings: Hercules GeForce2 64Mb, 1600x1200 32bit color
-BIOS settings: not touched
-Midi Input Card: Midiman MidiSport 8x8, using serial
-polyphony: 160
-click/pops in Giga: very rare
-sound quality: 10
-midi performance: fine

-processor: 933 MHz Pentium III
-chipset: Intel 815e
-motherboard: don\'t remember right now
-ram: 512 Mb
-hard drive(s): three 36Gb Seagate Cheetah UltraSCSI 160 drives, Adaptec controller
-sound card(s): M-Audio Delta 1010
-standalone use? No, I run Logic Audio Platinum and GigaStudio concurrently
-video processor/card/settings: GeForce2 GTS 64Mb, 1600x1200 32bit color
-BIOS settings: not touched
-Midi Input Card: emagic Unitor 8 Mk II, using serial
-polyphony: 160
-click/pops in Giga: fairly frequent when loading large performances, otherwise quite rare
-sound quality: 10
-midi performance: fine

-processor: 450 MHz Pentium II
-chipset: don\'t remember
-motherboard: don\'t remember
-ram: 256 Mb
-hard drive(s): internal 18Gb ATA 100 Seagate
-sound card(s): SoundBlaster Live
-standalone use? yes
-video processor/card/settings: TNT2 Ultra 32Mb, 1600x1200 32bit color
-BIOS settings: not touched
-Midi Input Card: SoundBlaster Live
-polyphony: about 100
-click/pops in Giga: basically (and surprisingly) none at all!
-sound quality: 7
-midi performance: fine

-other processors: Lexicon PCM91 Reverb, TC Electronic M-One, TC Electronic Finalizer 96K

-recording system: Yamaha AW4416 Digital Recorder/Mixer, with an additional Yamaha 01v, everything stays digital through all processors all the way to CD master

-sequencing system: Logic Audio Platinum 4.6.1 on the PIII 933 drives everything; I\'ve also used Sibelius and Cubase to drive GigaStudio without problems.

That\'s about it! http://www.northernsounds.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/smile.gif

A-

---------
Andrea G. Pessino (not female, just Italian)
Blizzard Entertainment

apessino@blizzard.com
apessino@home.com

[Jamieh]

Andrea, you didn\'t happen to write the music to Warcraft II did you? I remember really enjoying the music in that game.

[apessino]

No, that was a bit before my time.. http://www.northernsounds.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/wink.gif

The great majority of the score for War II was written by Glenn Stafford, who is the director of our music and sound deparment.

I did some co-composing and orchestration work on the cinematic score for Diablo II, and I am currently working with Glenn on the score for WarCraft III.

I am actually a composer-programmer (pro-poser? comp-grammer?), as during the day I write core technology for the game, while at night I work on the music. As far as having a life, well.. http://www.northernsounds.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/wink.gif

Take care..

A-

---------
Andrea G. Pessino (not female, just Italian)
Blizzard Entertainment

apessino@blizzard.com
apessino@home.com

[Jerry Kahn]

Thank you and congratulations Andrea.. sounds like you\'ve got yourself a Ferrari.. at least I now know they really exist.

-jk

[fuztec25]

OK... Resistance is futile -----------------------------
-processor: Athlon TBird 1GHz
-chipset: Via KT133
-motherboard: Abit K7 Raid
-ram: 512Mb
-hard drive(s): 6 (use SCSI?): yes
-sound card(s): SBlive & Terratec EWS88MT
-standalone use?: No
-video processor/card/settings: 3dfx Voodoo 5
-BIOS settings: USB enabled, cas latency 2, all RAM pages set to max. speed.
-Midi Input Card: Terratec built-in MIDI int.
-other processors: None
-recording system: None
-sequencing system: Cakewalk Pro Audio v9
-polyphony: full
-click/pops in Giga? sometimes?: Yes (due to lack of polyphony)
-sound quality (1-10): 9
-midi performance (built in/stand alone/win 2k ect.): Always good w/ win98 and winME. Not good on Win2K.
-other problems: None
-comments/suggestions: I own a modest Gigasampler LE!

------------------

[Jerry Kahn]

alright fuz..

VAS IST \"FULL\"? does that mean 160?!!! and also: Im not sure what you mean by \"yes due to lack of polyphony\".. does that translate to: \"yes, it pops when I am using using full polyphony\".

Here\'s the deal everybody: granted, it sounds like some of you have nice systems.. but I am getting the distinct impression that 160 w/o pops (and, in my mind, a pop is a pretty nasty thing ) doesn\'t really exist, and therefore it\'s a FALSE CLAIM!!!

don\'t set people up for expectations that won\'t ever be met. If I manufactured a great car that starts breaking apart when driven past a certain speed, I don\'t then use that number as the upper limit when advertising the car\'s performance-- I use a number significantly below that, R-I-G-H-T ?!?!?

Unless, of course, there\'s something I am missing here...

-jk

[apessino]

Fact is, at least in my experience, pops/clicks seem to have little to do with polyphony settings and a lot to do with memory consumption.

I get as many clicks using 4 voice polyphony as I get hitting 160.. it just does not seem to matter. I am sure there are systems where polyphony is indeed the cause of glitches, but for higher end systems that is not the case.

Either way, the number of glitches remains pretty small; I\'d love to get rid of them completely, but so far the benefits that GigaStudio offers more than outweigh the occasional frustrations.. http://www.northernsounds.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/smile.gif

Ciao,

Take care..

A-

---------
Andrea G. Pessino (not female, just Italian)
Blizzard Entertainment

apessino@blizzard.com
apessino@home.com

[james vb]

160 voices, no pops, no problem on affordable system!!

This is a vanilla \"stock\" Dell 4100 series w/ Win Me right off the web, and with no system tweaking whatsoever. Dell has already done optimizations to meet their competitive system benchmarks. All I did was install the Delta 1010 and yank (disable)the cheepo multimedia sound card that came with the system. I bought the 866Mhz at Christmas, but a 933MhZ is the same price as the 866Mhz that I bought then. Price without monitor, as configured below is $1179. The Delta 1010 is seperate, of course.
http://commerce.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.asp?customer_id=19&keycode=6V934&order_code=4100RL&view=2 (\"http://commerce.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.asp?customer_id=19&keycode=6V934&order_code=4100RL&view=2\")

-processor : PIII 866Mhz
-chipset, mbd : stock Dell ??
-ram : 256MB
-hard drive(s) 40GB, 7200 (WD400, stock Dell)
-sound card : Delta 1010
-standalone use : no
-video processor NVIDIA TNT2 M64 (stock Dell)
-BIOS settings : no tweaks
-Midi Input Card Delta 1010
-other processors
-recording system : PA9
-sequencing system : PA9
-polyphony : 160, no problem at all
-click/pops in Giga? none
-sound quality 10
-midi performance
-other problems :
Windows Me, occasional crash with PC applications like Word 2000, but not with GS160. Solution is to not run these applications and just \"clean boot\" into GStudio160
-comments/suggestions

160 voices achievable very easily with no pops, by having sustain pedal down and doing a glissando across every key on a 88 note kbd, using the GigaPiano supplied with GS160.
I can pound brutally with both arms and no crashes or \"spreading\" of the midi notes.

[fuztec25]

Sorry for not being clearer at first...
Straight to the point:
I was wrong while saying I randomly advert \"clicks\" on sound... In fact is due to polyphony stealing rather than an overload of the system: as I told You I\'m a Gigasampler LE owner and when I sequence on many tracks, polyphony stealing occurs. Again, no clicks due to system overload.
When polyphony stealing algorithm begins to work, it cuts notes abruptly giving the impression to the listener that occasional clicks are coming in. But it\'s NOT due to the software neither the hardware.
Sorry for misleading Jerry...

CIAO!

Fuztec25,
from Italy

[Jerry Kahn]

fuz: fret not, my fuzzy Italian friend. It is I who must apologize: for rudeness and ineptitude.. I didn\'t see the \"LE\" part of your post!

I was mostly just hollering at no one in particular. My goal to \"spice up\" interest in this thread (like a good pepperoni). If enough people post then I can obtain a reasonably accurate sample size and make some sort of intelligent assessment of winning hardware platforms.. don\'t feel like monkeying around with crappola and wasting my precious $. This hardware arena is CLEARLY A MINEFIELD!!!

JUST LOOK at james vb\'s post-- a VANILLA DELL, for God\'s sake, and he\'s claiming the best performance of all on this thread!!!!
WHATS UP WITH THAT!!!!!!! (there I go again)

peace,
jk

[Jerry Kahn]

***HELLO ALL SURVEY SUBMITTERS***

First of all, thank you all!!!!

It was wonderful, exciting. I laughed, I cried. It was better than \"Cats\"... seriously, thank you.

..but looks like this thread\'s wad\'s been \"officially\" shot... time to look for a new way to stay off the streets.

It will still be a few weeks till I can afford my system, probably based upon apessino\'s (just Andrea) format, though that vanilla Dell idea looks interesting (but I don\'t think it was put through the paces with other instruments loaded, etc.).

I think a lot of good information was disceminated here-- I learned bigtime.Maybe a few o thers have learned as well.

I am not sure what to do next with this survey idea. But I hate to see it die.

Ideally it would be incorporated into user profiles, with maybe, a \"last modified\" date. The only trouble is, no-one would bother filling it out. Unless of course, someone from this forum took the time to go out an elicit submissions!! (hint hint wink wink nudge nudge ) The benifit: I still think the prospect of configuring hardware for Giga is a dangerous minefield for the unwary &/or the economically challenged. This will help them all.

Here\'s another brainstorm on a simpler scale: every month or so, have a \"Setup of the Month\" award, and a \"Bogus Setup of the Month\" award (we all want to know what to avoid as well).

Any other suggestionsat this point? Just let it die? Find another pre-occupation for myself? How bout the survey itself? Could it stand an overhall?

Maybe just wait a few months and repost it?

Any/All suggestions will be very welcome.

REGARDS,
jk

[gigaDiga]

-processor: 933 MHz Pentium III
-chipset: Intel 815e
-motherboard: Asustek CSUL-2M
-ram: 512 Mb 133mhz
-hard drive(s): two 45Gb IBM Deskstar 7200rpm ATA100 IDE Drives
-sound card(s): Pulsar2 + Motherboards built-in sound card
-standalone use? No, I run Cakewalk Pro Audio and GigaStudio concurrently
-video processor/card/settings: Motherboard built-in AGP chip, 1024x756 32bit color
-BIOS settings: Not Touched (USB disabled in win98)
-OS: 98lite
-Midi Input Card: Pulsar2
-polyphony: <80 without clicks when playing keyboard&sustain,
<135 without clicks when Cakewalk plays this back. (all 44khz)
-click/pops in Giga: fairly frequent when playing 80+ notes with sustain pedal.
-sound quality: 10
-midi performance: fine

Interestingly DirectX v7 seemed to make a huge difference to the polyphony I got from Cakewalk.
Also when setting Pulsar2 to 33khz I was able to get rid of any cliking whatsoever.
With a setting of 33khz, though, my Gigastudio maxed out (without cliking) at 100.
However, I set this back to 44khz when I realised that Cakewalk could play my click-riddled
performances back click-free up to about 140 polyphony.

I think the Pulsar\'s GSIF drivers possibly need improving.

-other problems: very concerned about the high probability of win98 shutdowns
corrupting these DeskStar drives. Need bug fix from Microsoft but can\'t find
it anywhere on the internet..... can anyone help?

[RodMcqueen]

This is a most useful facility and provides the kind of information Nemesys should be able to use in order to assist users.
With regard to the failure of Nemesys to respond to our complaints and problems. I was one of the first to purchase the Fairlight Series 111 many years ago and like myself, the few who believed in the machine acted as unpaid Beta testers for the company. It was very difficult for those of us who recognized the potential of the machine but we stuck with it and eventually a world beater appeared. The latest Fairlight is still at the forefront and used in many top Hollywood Post Studios.
Keep mailing Nemesys with problems and solutions and keep this forum active.

------------------
RodM

[LHong]

Here is my setup (new), just have About 2~3 weeks and just have them (clean setup) all working together about three days.
-processor: PIII-933Mhz
-chipset: Intel 815e
-motherboard: Asus CUSL2-C
-ram: 512MB@133
-Platform: Win98SE
-hard drive(s) 2 x ATA100-IBM + SCSI-IBM
-sound card(s) : SCOPE-SP + PulsarII
-standalone use?: No
-video processor/card/settings: Matrox G450-32M-AGP
-BIOS settings: Off all USB, Par/Ser-ports, PCI-latency=64ms, PCI/AGP palette Snope = OFF; PCI-IRQ = manual-assigned.
-Midi Input Card: SCOPE + PULSARII
-other processors: No
-recording system: Cakewalk9.03/LAP4.0 + SCOPE-SP + TASCAM-DM
-sequencing system: Cakewalk + Roland
-polyphony: 159 (48khz-32B) 33~45%RAM-Giga-loaded.
-click/pops in Giga? Not at all
-sound quality (1-10): 10
-midi performance: Fine
-Audio performance: good @ 48khz/44.1khz-16B
-other problems: system crashed once in three days or more, some buggy Scope software, wait for new upgraded V2.05-CD on the way.
-comments/suggestions
This is a single PC, Along with GigaStudio160: Cakewalk and SCOPE-SP, about 2~4 audio-tracks, no NFXs/soft-FXs, no VST/soft-synths, 32-Mono-Giga-output-CH, 26-MIDI-CH, with SCOPE DSP-eff-mixing and Ext digital-mixing-board + effs; Ext-sound-modules/Drum-Mach.
Regards,
Long

[Jerry Kahn]

guess it\'s still alive.

[Jodac]

-processor -athlon thunderbird 1ghz
-chipset Via kt 133
-motherboard gigabyte
-ram 512
-hard drive(s)1-12gig 1-45 gig ida ata/66
-sound card(s) frontier design wavecenter pci digitally routed to 2408 for playback, and appears at my adat input on digital performer
-standalone use?
-video processor/card/settings
-BIOS settings (i.e. - turning off USB, memory latency, etc.)
-Midi Input Card frontier design
-other processors
-recording system - digital performer
-sequencing system - digital performer
-polyphony 160 no problem
-click/pops in Giga? sometimes? sometimes... did the nemesys test, it\'s the audio card, no clicks in captured audio
-sound quality (1-10) 10
-midi performance (built in/stand alone/win 2k ect.)
-other problems
-comments/suggestions

[EBrown4]

If its not too late, here\'s my reply to the GS survey;

-processor: PIII-866
-chipset: Via Apollo Pro 133
-motherboard: ABIT VL6
-ram: 384MB
-hard drive(s): 2 IBM 30 GB, 5400 rpm
-sound card(s): Aark 24
-standalone use?: no
-video processor/card/settings: ATI Expert 98
-BIOS settings: No changes that I know of
-Midi Input Card: Aark 24
-other processors: NONE
-recording system: Aark 24 w/Cakewalk Pro Audio
-sequencing system: same
-polyphony (# voices achieved in Giga): Have only tried approximately 80, and it worked
-click/pops in Giga?: Yes, sometimes, but it can be controlled by not holding down the sustain pedal for unreasonably long time
-sound quality (1-10): 9
-midi performance (built in/stand alone/win 2k ect.): ??? don\'t know what this one means

-other problems: With the Aark 24, you must select \"Aark 24 multichannel\" and NOT \"Aark 24 by Aardvark\" in the GS settings menu. If you select \"... by Aardvark\" you will experience unacceptable latency (> 50 ms). At least, that\'s what happened to me.

-comments/suggestions

Dennis Brown, new GS 96 user

[Jerry Kahn]

doh!

[Kenn159]

After years on this site , The only 2 people that I have found that could get 160 voices without pops and clicks , later changed there minds when they pushed there systems a little harder.
A pop and click free sysstem seems to be the Holy Grail to giga users.
I have a pen 3 450 and have been waiting to upgrade to a faster computer as soon as I can find one with out pops and clicks .
Im beginning to wonder if we will have to wait until the 64 bit systems come out with 64 bit card slots [2 pci\'s end to end]until we can achieve pop and click free performance.

[catthedd]

-----------------------------
-processor: Althlon 800
-chipset: VIA
-motherboard: KA7-100
-ram: 384
-hard drive(s): 20gb Maxtor, 80gb Maxtor 133
-sound card(s): Midiman 2496
-standalone use: yes
-video processor/card/settings: Voodoo3, 16m colors
-BIOS settings: Default
-Midi Input Card: Midiman 2496
-other processors: none
-recording system - none, I just play KB from gigasampler
-sequencing system - none
-polyphony: 32
-click/pops in Giga? constantly, esp with bigger samples
-sound quality: 10! no problems
-midi performance: I get about 15ms latency with the midi in on the 2496
-other problems: none, really
-comments/suggestions: Would be in heaven except for the pops every 2 seconds.

[Simon Ravn]

-processor: Athlon XP 1600+ running 1500+ only
-chipset: SIS 735
-motherboard: ECS K7S5A
–ram: 768MB SD-RAM
-hard drive(s): IBM 60GXP 40GB, Seagate Barracuda IV 60GB, Seagate Barracuda IV 80GB
-Network: Built-in LAN activated
-sound card: RME DSP+Multiface
-Standalone use: Yes
-video processor/card/settings: ASUS V6600, 16-bit, full acceleration…
-BIOS settings: USB on, CAS decided by SPD, 124mhz SD-RAM speed, 124mhz FSB. Built-in audio off, serial+parallel ports disabled.
-Midi Input Card: MIDISport 8x8 USB
-other processors: No
-recording system: No. Other PC
-sequencing system: No. Other PC
-polyphony: 160
-click/pops in Giga: No.
-sound quality (1-10): 10
-midi performance: Seems to be as good as it gets.
-other problems …
-comments/suggestions …

[Jerry Kahn]

hey Simon -- just curious... what OS you gotz? those SCSI drives? what made you decide on that motherboard/chipset?

(from curious Georgey)

[Simon Ravn]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size=\"1\" face=\"Verdana, Arial\">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Jerry Kahn:
hey Simon -- just curious... what OS you gotz? those SCSI drives? what made you decide on that motherboard/chipset?

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I use Win98se. I can\'t get very good performance under XP - don\'t know if its RME\'s drivers or what. Anyway... I had been getting \'hickups\', note-\'cluttering\' and such when I was reaching 100+ voices on my MSI K7T Pro 2a mobo (VIA KT133 chipset). Then I heard about this motherboard by coincidence - I heard it was cheap and gave good performance. I then did a bit of research and found out it might also be a solution to clicks/pops etc., because it had better PCI bandwidth. So I bought it and it really worked. I think it costs $60 - be aware though, that quite a few people get faulty boards and that it is very picky with PSU\'s. I can\'t run 133mhz FSB on mine - the CPU gets too hot and I get crashes after maybe 10-20 minutes. At 124mhz though it has been totally stable until now.

[ninriggs]

-processor Duron 1000
-chipset ALI
-motherboard ASUS A7A133
-ram 512mb Cas2
-hard drive(s) 40 Gig udma 100 ibm deskstar and a 20 gig ibm udma 66 drive
-sound card(s)SBlive Plat and a Yamaha SW1000XG
-standalone Not standalone...all sequencing and production on one machine

-video processor/card/settings Geforce2 GTS Pro running standard drivers.
-BIOS settings Standard settings nothing over set or using and \"speed\" settings
-Midi Input Card: None - using midiman USB
-other processors N/A
-recording system - Cakewalk Sonar
-sequencing system - Cakewalk Sonar
-polyphony highest had is 110
-click/pops in Giga? sometimes if layering a lot of samples
-sound quality (8)
-midi performance Fine no latency or slowdown errors
-other problems None really..i keep windows ME runining optimaly to stop errors

-comments/suggestions Cant think of any at the moment.. except nice forum... great music...
--------------------------------------


------------------
-=Riggs=-

[lifeforce]

processor: P3-550 (Win98se)
chipset: CC880
motherboard: Intel
ram: 256
hard drive: 20g IDE & 60g IDE both @ 7200rpm
sound card: TerraTec EWX 24/96
standalone use: yes
video processor/card/settings: AGP 8mb
BIOS settings (i.e. - turning off USB, memory latency, etc.): no tweaking (yet)
Midi Input Card: cable adapter attached to Terratec soundcard\'s MIDI adapter
other processors: none
recording system - hardware/software: External Philips CDR 600
sequencing system - hardware/software: PowerTracks7
polyphony (# voices achieved in Giga): too soon to say
click/pops in Giga?: too soon to say
sound quality (1-10): 9
midi performance (built in/stand alone/win 2k ect.): stand alone
other problems: just getting started I\'m a GS96 newbie
comments/suggestions: Ready for that Tascam tutorial. I\'ve only done midi/synth work in the past. Have had GS96 for about three weeks and actually have the basic functions going pretty well so far.

[Joel Olives]

I\'m new to the GS game and I\'m still tweaking, but my config seems pretty solid right now.

-processor Athlon 1333
-chipset Via kt-133
-motherboard Asus
-ram 1024Mb - pc133
-hard drive 15Gb Western Digital 7200 rpm ATA66 (system) 60GB Maxtor (ATA133 working at ata100) 7200 rpm (gig)
-sound card - Motu 828
-standalone - nope, sequencer too.
-video processor - s3 Savage 32 MB AGP
-BIOS settings - Nothing special.
-Midi Input Card - Motu Fastlane
-other processors - nope
-recording system - Sonar 1.3 on same PC
-sequencing system - See above
-polyphony - 160
-click/pops in Giga - No
-sound quality (1-10) - 9.5
-midi performance - Great so far
-other problems - none
-comments -

I\'m new to the whole giga thing. I probably only have 12 hours invested in it so far, but my machine is rock solid. I didn\'t expect as much perfomance as I\'m getting, especially with the firewire 828, Win2k, and the Athlon processor. I can\'t complain at all. I\'ve pushed the polyphony all the way up to the ceiling and had the sequencer working at the same time without a hitch even with a load of direct x plugins. Major props to Tascam/Nemesys for an AWESOME product.

[This message has been edited by Joel Olives (edited 03-28-2002).]

[jw]

-processor AMD 1600+ 1.4 GHz
-chipset SiS 735
-motherboard ECS K7S5A
-ram 256M Mushkin 2100 Basic DDR
-hard drive(s) Maxtor 20G (System) Maxtor 60G (AUdio)
-use SCSI? no
-sound card(s) Wavecenter PCI
-standalone use? Pretty much
-video processor/card/settings As basic as possible
-BIOS settings Only LAN (for internet) activated, MIDI, USB, Game etc all inactive
-Midi Input Card WaveCenter PCI
-other processors
-recording system - hardware/software ProTools, Mac 9600/G3
-sequencing system - hardware/software Dig. Performer, same as above
-polyphony (# voices achieved in Giga) 96
-click/pops in Giga? sometimes? Not yet
-sound quality (1-10) 10
-midi performance (built in/stand alone/win 2k ect.) Excellent, with XP and newest Frontier drivers
-other problems Install of 2.5 didn\'t work until I rebuilt the system from scratch. Which was fine because I had built it new a few days before anyway...
-comments/suggestions Pretty good little sampler system for < $1300. Great latency, stable and happy. Sits nicely with my PT rig, which has an ADAT bridge attached. My whole system is running Litepipe, and it\'s pretty damn convenient.

I\'m using GS96, but I figure if I upgrade to 160 I\'ll get the full monty no problem.

[This message has been edited by jw (edited 03-29-2002).]

[mattsteuart]

And here it is:
-----------------------------
-processor: AMD Athlon XP 1600+
-chipset : VIA KT266a
-motherboard : Abit KR7A -Raid
-ram; 768MB PC 2100
-hard drive(s) 20gig 7200rpm IBM (system) 80gig 7200 Rpm IBM (giga)
-sound card: Echo Audio Gina 24
-standalone use? Yep
-video processor/card/settings: ATI Xpert 98 AGP 8 meg.. 1024*768 @ 85Hz 32bit colour
-BIOS settings : USB and Serial Ports turned off
-Midi Input Card: Egosys MIDI terminal 4140
-other processors
-recording system - Logic Audio Platinum
-sequencing system - Logic Audio Platinum
-polyphony : 160
-click/pops in Giga? pretty rare...
-sound quality (1-10) : better than the S5000\'s .. I\'d say 9

-other problems: S converter hangs sometimes.. database refresh hangs as well

This machine does great. I\'ve built 3 exactly like it for other composers and they love it as well.

[This message has been edited by mattsteuart (edited 04-17-2002).]

[mschiff]

-processor Athlon 950
-chipset Via
-motherboard Asus K7V
-ram 768megs
-hard drive(s) 3 Maxtor 30 gig ultra DMA
-sound card(s) M-audio Delta 1010
-standalone use? No, I use it with Sonar on same machine
-video processor/card/settings Matrox G400 busmaster off
-BIOS settings (i.e. - turning off USB, memory latency, etc.) USB off
-Midi Input Card Delta 1010 & Midisport 2x4
-other processors
-recording system - same machine/Sonar
-sequencing system - same machine/Sonar
-polyphony (# voices achieved in Giga)
-click/pops in Giga? no
-sound quality (1-10) 10
-midi performance (built in/stand alone/win 2k ect.) Excellent
-other problems
-comments/suggestions Increase latency in Sonar for smoother performance

[Flames]

-processor Pentium 4 1,5GHz
-chipset Intel 850
-motherboard Asus P4T-E
-ram 256 RDRAM
-hard drive 30GB ATA-100 for applications, 20GB ATA-133 for gigs and 20GB ATA-133 for audio, all drives are Maxtor\'s
-sound card WaMi 24
-standalone use? NO
-video processor/card/settings
-BIOS settings (i.e. - turning off USB, memory latency, etc.) Turned of onboard audio, USB, Paralell and Com ports.
-Midi Input Card the WaMi
-other processors NO
-recording system - hardware/software Samplitude 2496
-sequencing system - hardware/software Any suggestion Samplitude dose\'nt support Midi very well
-polyphony 48, maximum because of GS LE
-click/pops in Giga? Never
-sound quality (1-10) in my opinon a 10
-midi performance no problem
-other problems no
-comments/suggestions Thought about upgrading to GS 96 to benefit the full potential of my system.

\"Live Module\"
-processor Pentium 2 233MHz
-chipset Intel 440
-motherboard Asus P2L97 something
-ram 128 SDRAM
-hard drive only one 10GB of unknown origin
-sound card Sound Blaster AWE64 an ISA-card
-standalone use? YES, Live purpose
-video processor/card/settings
-BIOS settings (i.e. - turning off USB, memory latency, etc.)
-Midi Input Card Sound Blaster AWE64 (the same card)
-other processors no
-recording system - hardware/software
-sequencing system - hardware/software
-polyphony 48 maximum of the installed GS LE
-click/pops in Giga? Never
-sound quality (1-10) 10
-midi performance It depense on how good I am images/icons/smile.gif
-other problems no
-comments/suggestions a used \"secondhand\" computor