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Pam

I've been missing for a while whilst trying to slog through at 386,000 word book by Jean Paul Sartre called Being and Nothingness. Dear gawd I want to shoot myself for all the circular french navel gazing. Anywho, I've got multiple chapters that exceed the 2 hour mark and I was noticing that as I got to the 2 hours mark, I was getting a slower and slower response to my markers and such. Is there a limit to the length of a file - timewise - that would inhibit the functionality of AA 5.5? I'm breaking the chapter into 2 files but it just didn't occur to me that I would run out of room. Maybe the 684 MB size was the problem?

Shoot me please!
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Now what did I come in here for?

Jason Huggins · Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2012 10:31 pm Post subject:

Sounds like a file size slowdown issue. How much RAM does your computer have? Anything else running while you are recording? Any plugins on the track? If AA had a limit for file size it would just stop recording, and not let you record longer than that. You may have hit a hardware limitation.

Pam · Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2012 11:28 pm Post subject:

I'm using a Mac Mini with 2 500 GB hard Drives and 4 GB RAM. The only things open are AA 5.5 and preview. No Plug ins, just my dulcet tones.
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Now what did I come in here for?

Jason Huggins · Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2012 11:46 pm Post subject:

Doesn't seem like there should be an issue. Maybe the length is just too much for the computer to handle effectively. That or it can't handle the magnitude of dulcet goodness!

todd ellis · Posted: Fri Dec 14, 2012 6:37 am Post subject:

i'm with jason - likely a hardware limitation. if it's working to split the file in half - i'd stick with that.
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heyguido · Posted: Fri Dec 14, 2012 7:27 am Post subject:

Ram is cheap. If your mac will support more, I'd add all it can handle. 4gb is not a lot these days.
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Mike · Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 6:54 am Post subject:

It's not technical.. After two hours of that book (even when read by the ever lovely Pam) the Mac just wants to go and lie down somewhere dark for while. You probably just need a bigger, better educated computer.

Maiku.
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todd ellis · Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 8:07 am Post subject:

it probably went to a STATE school ... sheesh.
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Bish · Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 8:54 am Post subject:

If your file is hitting problems at <700MB, and you're packing 4GB of RAM, it is NOT a RAM problem (imho)... please don't waste money throwing more more at it. The problem is elsewhere... most likely with the software and how it allocates resources.

I'm using an older MacPro... the first Intel from 2006. It sports 4GB of RAM and I regularly record multiple hours of audio in raw aiff format. I always leave it running as a backup for ISDN sessions, and the other day had a couple of hours+ of directed Skype session which it recorded without any problem.

I am wondering if it's not coincidental that you're crapping out at "a CD full" (roughly one hour stereo or two hours mono). My money is on a software (AA) issue. Just as an experiment, leave it running in the background while you're doing other stuff (overnight?) and see if it craps out at different file lengths if you use different bit rates for recording (16 or 24 bit). If the file length remains the same, you know it's an arbitrary time restriction by the software, if the files are the same size (but different lengths) you'll know that the software is only accessing a finite block of memory.

Again, your Mac is actually more powerful than mine and I'm not seeing any issues like this. The only difference is the software, hence my suspicion of it. We've got in the habit of thinking 4GB is not a lot, when in fact it is "quite a lot"... especially when you're single tasking.
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cyclometh · Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 12:35 pm Post subject:

Is it potentially a disk space issue? On a PC, that's where I'd look, but I'm not sure how that system is organized.
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Bruce · Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 1:35 pm Post subject:

I use MOTU's Audio Desk software on a brand new Mac with 4 GB of RAM, and it starts to get a little testy when a folder gets to 2 GB of audiobook (4 hours or so) and downright sluggish and grumpy if I go to 4 GB. So, I usually limit myself to 5 hours of finished material and move on to a second folder for the rest of the book.

B
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Jeffrey Kafer · Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 3:20 pm Post subject:

I find Audition (on windows) gets sluggish, and therefore doesn't punch n roll correctly anymore after an hour+ of audio.

Believe it or not, the way I solved this is by shrinking the window so that less data is being drawn to the screen at one time. Seems to work better for me. YMMV
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cyclometh · Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 3:26 pm Post subject:

I wonder if it's trying to draw the entire waveform and running into problems... what happens if you keep the viewport zoomed in on a smaller portion of the audio?
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Jason Huggins · Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 4:08 pm Post subject:

I'd be willing to bet that is it. Maybe you could just minimize the AA window after you hit record, since you aren't doing punch'n'roll.

georgethetech · Posted: Sun Dec 16, 2012 2:05 pm Post subject:

Try what they said, then if not any better, track in TwistedWave, edit in AA.
My 2 cents. AA is the opposite of efficient and light-weight.
You computer is JUST FINE.

I recorded live bands with a Pentium 90 Thinkbook 12 years ago in stereo 24bit using Wavelab. No problems at all.
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