On Sat, 5 Aug 2006 13:58:28 -0400, Hal wrote
(in article ) :
Hi all,
I finally bought in: g4 dual 1.25ghz, ghz ram, digi 001. The guy left on:
Reason,Battery2, Protools 6.4, Digital Performer. One problem, which I knew
about before buying, is that it's running Panther(which, some of these being
older versions of software won't run on Tiger). The problem is, the mac
won't boot with the digi 001 hooked up. You have to disconnect it for each
boot up. ok, that's a fairly large pain. Is there some sort of in/out switch
I could put in line with the digi? I believe it's a 64 pin.
Input appreciated.
Hal
If you can't find it with that URL, here it is. Happy motoring.
Regards,
Ty Ford
Compatibility
First verify you are using a supported Mac and your system meets all of the
minimum requirements. You can find compatibility information (computers, hard
drives, operating systems, requirements, etc.) in the Support section of the
website:
http://www.digidesign.com/support
Choose from the product list for compatibility information, and click on the
links in the compatibility section for each product for additional
information.
- Verify that you have the Minimum or Suggested amount of Ram loaded in your
system
For current Pro Tools systems, that is the following:
512 MB minimum, 1 GB (1024 MB) or more highly recommended
- Verify that your version of the Mac OS is supported with your version of
Pro Tools.
More Information:
Mac OS X 10.4 Requirements with Pro Tools 6 & 7
Mac OS X 10.2 & 10.3 Requirements with Pro Tools 6
- Make sure all drives are formatted Mac OS Extended (Journaled) with OS X¹s
Disk Utility. Pro Tools can not use UFS or HFS volumes. If the drive was
originally formatted in OS 9 or with any other application, backup the drive
and reinitialize it with Disk Utility. More information:
Hard Drive Requirements - Pro Tools LE for Mac OS X
- If you are running a supported ATTO card make sure you install the ATTO
Configuration Tool, this is a different application from Express. It can be
found on the Pro Tools CD installer or in the downloads section. This
application installs necessary extensions for all supported ATTO cards. More
information:
Qualified SCSI HBA Cards ‹ Pro Tools Systems for Mac OS X
General Setup
- In System Preferences Display, set your monitor resolution to a minimum
of 1024 X 768.
- In System Preferences Classic Start/Stop tab, Uncheck Start Classic
when you log in.
- In System Preferences Date & Time, verify that the date is set correctly
and that you are not using 24 hour time.
- If you are using a 2005 or newer Powerbook G4 with Sudden Motion Sensor,
please disable SMS according to the Apple information located he
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=300883
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=300724
Energy Saver
-Open System Prefs (Located in Apple Menu, Dock, or Applications Folder)
-Click on Energy Saver (in the Hardware section)
-Set the "Sleep Sliders" to Never (Computer Sleep) and Never (Display Sleep)
-Make sure the box next to "Put the hard disk(s) to sleep when possible" is
un-checked
-Click on the options tab at the top
-If you have a "Processor Performance" drop down menu select "Highest"
AirPort
-Click on the AirPort Icon in the Menu Bar in the upper right corner of the
screen (Left of the time)
-Select "Turn AirPort Off" from the menu
-If you don't see the AirPort Icon in the Menu Bar then:
-Open System Prefs (Located in Apple Menu, Dock, or Applications Folder)
-Click on "Network"
-Click on the "Show" drop down menu and select "AirPort" (if there is no
AirPort option, then AirPort is not installed on your computer)
-Under the "AirPort" tab, towards the bottom of the window, check the box
next to "Show AirPort status in menu bar"
-Follow the first two steps after that is done
Bluetooth
-Open System Prefs (Located in Apple Menu, Dock, or Applications Folder)
-Click on "Bluetooth" under the Hardware section
-Click on the "Settings" tab at the top of the screen
-Make sure "Bluetooth Power: Off" if not click the "Turn Bluetooth Off"
Button
Pace Drivers
You want to make sure you have the most current version of these drivers.
-Visit the PACE website at:
http://www.paceap.com
-Below where it says "END USERS" on the right side of the page, there is a
'Download Drivers' drop down menu
-Click on the menu and select 'Mac OS X Extensions'
-This should start downloading 'macextsx.dmg'
-Once this file is downloaded, double click on 'macextsx.dmg'
-This should bring up a temporary disk called 'InterLok Extensions Installer'
-Open the 'InterLok Extensions Installer' disk, and double-click 'InterLok
Extensions Install'
-Proceed through the installation
-Restart your computer when installation has finished
Troubleshooting tips
Delete Pro Tools preferences.
-Go to Users ³your user name² Library Preferences
-Delete 'com.digidesign.protoolsLE.plist', 'DAE Prefs' (folder),
'DigiSetup.OSX' and 'Pro Tools preferences'.
-Empty trash, then restart the computer.
Repair Permissions
-Quit Pro Tools and launch Apple's "Disk Utility" application, located in:
MacHDApplicationsUtilities.
-Select your boot drive (the whole drive, not the volume underneath the
drive)
-Go to the 'First Aid' tab and select "Repair Disk Permissions"
Apple recommends doing this any time you install new software, update your OS
or reinstall any software.
Databases and Volumes
-Delete the Digidesign Databases folders on the first level of all mounted
hard drives, then delete the "Volumes" folder in MacHD Library
Application Support Digidesign Databases.
-Empty trash, then restart the computer.
Uninstall and reinstall Pro Tools
-Run the Pro Tools installer from your CD-ROM or web download.
-Click on the Custom Install menu and choose "Uninstall".
-Click continue and then choose the option for "Clean" uninstall
-Click OK when it reports that the uninstall was successfull and then
reinstall Pro Tools.
New User Account
Try creating a new user with admin privileges in System Preferences
Accounts.
-Click the Lock to authenticate
-Enter password
-Click the "+" (plus sign) under the list of users
-Type In Pro Tools for the Name
-Enter a password and verify (optional)
-Check the box 'Allow user to administer this computer'
-Click 'Create Account'
Then login to this new account and run Pro Tools
-Go to the Apple menu and go to 'Log Out (Username)'
-Login in to Pro Tools
-If there is no icon in the Dock, navigate to
MacHDApplicationsDigidesignPro Tools
-Double-click on 'Pro Tools LE'
Disable Virus Protection
Disable any Virus Protection Software. Check for evidence of anti-virus
software in Library Startup items. Move these items out of this folder and
restart the CPU (do NOT remove the DigidesignLoader or PACESupport folders).
Other Troubleshooting
- Remove any unnecessary USB or Firewire devices or any other extraneous
hardware and then restart the computer.
- In the case of possible hardware issues with your Mac the next step is to
test the Mac hardware. To do this, boot off of the Apple Hardware Test CD or
Software Restore DVD (depending on Mac model) that shipped with your Mac. If
you are booting off of the Software Restore DVD, hold the option key while
the Mac starts up, then choose Apple Hardware Test. Once Apple Hardware Test
loads, press Control+L. This puts Apple Hardware Test in loop mode. Click
Extended Test, and let it go (preferrably overnight). When you return, the
hardware test will have found an error or it will be continuing. If it finds
an error, it will give you an error code and you will be able to see which
iteration of the loop it found the error on. If it has not found an error, it
will still be looping and it will indicate which iteration of the loop is
currently in progress. Either way, the only way to restart your Mac is to
hold in the power key to shut it down first.
Login Items
Certain items that always start up when you log in to your computer can
conflict with Pro Tools operations. The way to check what is starting up
every time you log in is:
-Open System Prefs (Located in Apple Menu, Dock, or Applications Folder)
-Click "Accounts"
-Select your account from the list on the left hand side of the window
-Click on the "Login Items" tab on the right hand side of the window
-Go through the list and select each item and click the "-" (minus) button
below the list to remove the item
StartupItems
Certain items that always start up when turn on your computer can conflict
with Pro Tools operations. The way to check what is starting up every time
you start your computer is to navigate to:
MacHDLibraryStartupItems
Any Digidesign Files/Folders located in this folder should be okay for use
with Pro Tools. Common files/folders to have a
Digidesign Loader
Digidesign Mbox2
PACE Support
Any other files/folders should be backed up and removed for optimal Pro Tools
operation
FileVault
FileVault is an Apple utility to help protect your files. When FileVault is
turned "ON" this can conflict with Pro Tools and the installation of Pro
Tools. Make sure FileVault is disabled following these steps:
-Open System Prefs (Located in Apple Menu, Dock, or Applications Folder)
-Click "Security"
-In this window look where is says:
FileVault protection is (on/off) for this account
-If FileVault is on click the button to turn Off FileVault
Spotlight Indexing
If Spotlight Indexing is running in the background, this can cause errors in
Pro Tools. To disable Spotlight Indexing follow these steps:
To turn this off there are two methods, both require administrator
permissions:
Manually:
Start up the Terminal (/Applications/Utilities/)
Type the following:
cd /etc
sudo pico hostconfig (enter your password or press return)
An editor will open with the following entry: SPOTLIGHT=-YES- Replace 'YES'
with 'NO'
press ctrl-x, then 'Y' and then press return Close the Terminal and restart
the computer.
Use Spotless:
Download Spotless
(
http://www.apple.com/downloads/macos.../spotless.html)
Start up Spotless, wait the 15 seconds and press 'not yet' Indexing can now
be turned off for each drive individually or you can press the 'Disable
Spotlight Indexing' under 'Master Indexing Control' It's possibly best to
disable indexing for each separate drive as well. Restart the computer When
the computer restarted you will notice the Spotlight icon at the top right of
your screen
turned into a red sign with a white cross.
After this only the indexing will be disabled, you will still be able to
search with Spotlight.
Dashboard
If you are having performance issues with Pro Tools, you might also try
disabling the Dashboard for Tiger.
How to disable Dashboard
1) Open Terminal and type:
defaults write com.apple.dashboard mcx-disabled -boolean YES
2) once that is done you need to "restart" the dock by typing:
killall Dock
(make sure you get the capital 'D')
How to enable Dashboard
1)Open terminal and type:
defaults write com.apple.dashboard mcx-disabled -boolean NO
2)once that is done you need to "restart" the dock by typing:
killall Dock
(make sure you get the capital 'D')
Plug-In Compatibility
Make sure that all Plug-Ins are compatible with Pro Tools 7.
-Open MacHDLibraryApplication SupportDigidesignPlug-Ins
-Check the Version of each Plug-In
You can check the version by selecting the plug-in and go to the "File" menu
and choose 'Get Info', or hit Command-I and look at the version information
under the 'General' Section
-Digidesign Plug-Ins should be version 7.0 (Dynamics III version 6.9) or
higher
-Check with third party plug-in manufacturer's to confirm that the plug-in
version you have is compatible with Pro Tools 7, and he
Pro Tools 7 Plug-In Compatibility
Linked from the Pro Tools Plug-Ins section of the website:
Pro Tools Plug-Ins
Disabling Processor NAP
-Download Apple CHUD Tools. To do this go to:
http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/8506
-Click on the "Download Now" link (this downloads CHUD_4.3.2.dmg)
-Double click on CHUD_4.3.2.dmg
-Double click on the temporary disk image on the desktop labeled "CHUD"
-When that opens double click on "CHUD.pkg" to launch the CHUD installer
-Continue to install CHUD to the system drive.
-Once this is installed, restart the computer
-Once the computer is restarted, go to the Apple Menu (upper left hand
corner) and select System Preferences
In System Preferences under the Hardware category there should be a
"Processor" System Preference
-Click on "Processor"
There should be a check box that says "Allow NAP"
-Uncheck the box next to "Allow NAP"
-Restart the computer with the "Allow NAP" unchecked
You should download and install the following script in your Login items in
System PreferencesAccounts so that NAP is disabled upon every startup,
otherwise it will default to being checked again:
napsetting.app
How to Remove Expired (Demo) Plug-Ins & Softwa
- See Answerbase 19348
If you're experiencing noise from the Mbox II, there are several things to
try:
- Make sure you're using balanced cables on all balanced inputs and outputs.
Remember that the Mbox 2 outputs are unbalanced, and should use unbalanced
connections.
- Try using a power conditioner for all your electronic gear (Furman,
Monster).
- Run your outputs directly to shielded monitors and not through a mixer to
see if the noise goes away.
- Some noise complaints arise from noisey power supply units inside computers
- try installing and running on another computer (or if you're using a
laptop, unplug the power supply and run off of batteries to see if noise goes
away).
- Unplug and turn off all unnecessary gear and run only the computer, the
Mbox II, and monitors.
- Listen through headphones.
- Make sure you're not running through a USB hub or other device - the Mbox
II always needs to be plugged directly into the computer.
- Try all USB ports on the computer to see if the noise lessens.
- Trace your cable path for long cable runs, and isolate your cables from
possible interference (other gear, flourescent lighting, CRT monitors, etc).
Lastly, if you feel a repair is necessary, please contact Digidesign Tech
Support to set up an RA.
=====
Note: To enable other users to help you, please include all of your system
details when posting an issue to the DUC; Pro Tools hardware, Pro Tools
software version, computer model/processor speed, OS version, amount of RAM
installed, type of hard drives used, etc.
-- Ty Ford's equipment reviews, audio samples, rates and other audiocentric
stuff are at
www.tyford.com