At 06:49 PM 3/22/03 +1100, One of the McKays wrote: >Is there a way I can get better playback, or do I really need a more >powerful computer?
If you want to lower your frustration level, you need a more powerful computer, a faster hard drive, or a cleaner system. (Plus, laptops are always a bit problematic because of custom device drivers, slower drives, etc. -- I don't have the earlier message, but I think you said this is a laptop) You might be able to get away with playback at that speed. Or you can get a closeout desktop (very reasonably priced these days) or build your own from parts just for the editing & final production. (They will very much help with noise/impulse reduction and other plugins that otherwise take forever!) Cool Edit 2000 is an economical program compared with other software, so if you're getting dropouts in playback, you definitely need a look at your hardware & software. Success also depends on the operating system. The best version for mid-speed machines is Win98SE or at the very least Win95B. Get rid of all programs running in the background -- FastFind is a culprit. Always-on virus scanners have to go. Dump the task scheduler, and almost everything else on the system tray. Get rid of special cursors. Run MSConfig to remove unneeded programs that run automatically at startup. Then download & install the latest drivers for video. You'd be amazed at how much a badly written video driver can affect throughput. Get new drivers for your sound card as well. Once you've got the driver installed, turn video acceleration down (right-click on my computer, properties, performance, graphics). Defragment your hard drive. This is crucial with the slower drives in laptops. Do it every time. Once you've completed all those steps, you should be able to record and play. I used to do it on my old Pentium 100 laptop (a Compaq Armada), but it was very tricky. Dennis _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://mail.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
