tfbattag
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Best Version of Windows for X1
Hi Everyone-
I finally made the leap to upgrade my system for the winter season and purchased X1. I've been using Producer 5, 6 and 8 on XP for years with pretty good results. Anyway, I thought I should start from a clean slate and build up using Windows 7 to leverage the quad-core, memory, etc. (specs in sig)
So, can some of you please recommend the best version of Windows 7 to use? I keep my DAW off of the network completely, and I like stability and performance over anything.
Thanks in advance for any direction!
Thomas Battaglia :wq! ----------------------------------------------------------- Intel DP35DP, Q6600, 6GB RAM, Win7Pro x64; RME HDSPe RayDAT; RME ADI8-DS x2, RME ADI-2.
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Splat 
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/07 16:29:36
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Windows 7 64 bit by a mile. Choose the edition that suits you (I recommend Professional and above): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_7_editions Generally it's a better idea to purchase a new version of Windows with new hardware (i.e. bundled OEM version), otherwise you end up buying it twice (when you buy a new PC one day).
Sell by date at 9000 posts. Do not feed. @48/24 & 128 buffers latency is 367 with offset of 38. Sonar Platinum(64 bit),Win 8.1(64 bit),Saffire Pro 40(Firewire),Mix Control = 3.4,Firewire=VIA,Dell Studio XPS 8100(Intel Core i7 CPU 2.93 Ghz/16 Gb),4 x Seagate ST31500341AS (mirrored),GeForce GTX 460,Yamaha DGX-505 keyboard,Roland A-300PRO,Roland SPD-30 V2,FD-8,Triggera Krigg,Shure SM7B,Yamaha HS5.Maschine Studio+Komplete 9 Ultimate+Kontrol Z1.Addictive Keys,Izotope Nectar elements,Overloud Bundle,Geist.Acronis True Image 2014.
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tfbattag
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/07 16:33:42
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Thanks Alex. I generally build my systems, so I don't ever benefit getting the OEM version. Although, I work for a university, so I get MS, Adobe, and others for dirt and ashes!
Thanks for the response!
Thomas Battaglia :wq! ----------------------------------------------------------- Intel DP35DP, Q6600, 6GB RAM, Win7Pro x64; RME HDSPe RayDAT; RME ADI8-DS x2, RME ADI-2.
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DigitalArchivist
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/07 16:34:09
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I'm running Sonar X1c Producer Expanded on Windows 7 Premium Home Ed. 64-bit with a Cakewalk UA-25EX soundcard. I think this version is one step below the lowest version of Windows 7 Professional. My computer has an Intel i5 processor, 8GB of RAM and plenty of hard drive space. I've had very few issues with the various versions of X1, but then I'm likely not as demanding on it since I'm a hobbyist musician. One thing I do to minimize CPU overload is to freeze a MIDI track once I'm happy with it and then if I'm not using the soft synth the MIDI produced, to mute the soft synth. I had an unexplained X1 crash a couple of days ago, not sure why. Usually this means a restart as the Cakewalk soundcard's ASIO driver gets trashed and there doesn't seem to be any way to resurrect the ASIO driver without restarting. This is a "feature" of course of Windows.  In general, Windows 7 is worth the upgrade as it's extremely stable. A 64-bit version of Windows 7 gives Sonar access to all available RAM. Most plugin developers are also converting their plugins to 64-bit. KVR Audio (www.kvraudio.com) is a good place to keep up with news about new and revised plugins. One tip if you have a lot of plugins and go for 64-bit Windows 7 is to separate your 32-bit and 64-bit plugins.
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tfbattag
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/07 16:38:40
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Thanks for the info! DigitalArchivist
I'm running Sonar X1c Producer Expanded on Windows 7 Premium Home Ed. 64-bit with a Cakewalk UA-25EX soundcard. I think this version is one step below the lowest version of Windows 7 Professional. My computer has an Intel i5 processor, 8GB of RAM and plenty of hard drive space. I've had very few issues with the various versions of X1, but then I'm likely not as demanding on it since I'm a hobbyist musician. One thing I do to minimize CPU overload is to freeze a MIDI track once I'm happy with it and then if I'm not using the soft synth the MIDI produced, to mute the soft synth. I had an unexplained X1 crash a couple of days ago, not sure why. Usually this means a restart as the Cakewalk soundcard's ASIO driver gets trashed and there doesn't seem to be any way to resurrect the ASIO driver without restarting. This is a "feature" of course of Windows.
In general, Windows 7 is worth the upgrade as it's extremely stable. A 64-bit version of Windows 7 gives Sonar access to all available RAM. Most plugin developers are also converting their plugins to 64-bit. KVR Audio (www.kvraudio.com) is a good place to keep up with news about new and revised plugins. One tip if you have a lot of plugins and go for 64-bit Windows 7 is to separate your 32-bit and 64-bit plugins.
Thomas Battaglia :wq! ----------------------------------------------------------- Intel DP35DP, Q6600, 6GB RAM, Win7Pro x64; RME HDSPe RayDAT; RME ADI8-DS x2, RME ADI-2.
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Splat
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/07 16:42:15
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Bare in mind the CPU and memory limitation with Home Premium. Might not worry you now... but one day....
And whilst you don't use networking now.... one day you might.... you might decide to dual boot for instance.
Thats why I recommend Pro and above (all in the WIKI anyway, so you can make your own mind up).
Sell by date at 9000 posts. Do not feed. @48/24 & 128 buffers latency is 367 with offset of 38. Sonar Platinum(64 bit),Win 8.1(64 bit),Saffire Pro 40(Firewire),Mix Control = 3.4,Firewire=VIA,Dell Studio XPS 8100(Intel Core i7 CPU 2.93 Ghz/16 Gb),4 x Seagate ST31500341AS (mirrored),GeForce GTX 460,Yamaha DGX-505 keyboard,Roland A-300PRO,Roland SPD-30 V2,FD-8,Triggera Krigg,Shure SM7B,Yamaha HS5.Maschine Studio+Komplete 9 Ultimate+Kontrol Z1.Addictive Keys,Izotope Nectar elements,Overloud Bundle,Geist.Acronis True Image 2014.
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tfbattag
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/07 23:13:48
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DOH!!!!
Got too excited to upgrade that I didn't notice that my hardware doesn't have drivers for Win 7!!! Ouch!
Update to my sig coming soon...RayDAT on the way.
Thomas Battaglia :wq! ----------------------------------------------------------- Intel DP35DP, Q6600, 6GB RAM, Win7Pro x64; RME HDSPe RayDAT; RME ADI8-DS x2, RME ADI-2.
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vintagevibe
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/07 23:34:44
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CakeAlexS
Bare in mind the CPU and memory limitation with Home Premium. Might not worry you now... but one day....
And whilst you don't use networking now.... one day you might.... you might decide to dual boot for instance.
Thats why I recommend Pro and above (all in the WIKI anyway, so you can make your own mind up).
What's the problem with networking and dual bootin in Home Premium? I network and dual boot with it.
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inaheartbeat
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/08 00:16:42
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Absolutely Windows 7 64 bit. I am running the Pro version on my DAW. You want to be able to use larger amounts of memory than are allowed with 32 bit Windows systems so 64 bit should be a no brainer if you want to have a useable system for now and the future.
PC Audio Labs mobile i7 MC, 3.46 Ghz i7 990X, 12 Gb RAM, 3 750 Gb 7200 RPM drives, 3 USB2, 2 USB 3 ports, firewire, Windows 7 64 bit Pro, Sonar X3e Producer 64 bit,
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offnote
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/08 00:38:38
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JClosed
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/08 02:14:04
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No - According to the latest information Windows 8 is demanding hardware-keyed booting (everybody remembers Palledium?) on the hardware, so NO OTHER OS can be booted, I definitely skip Windows 8 if that's true. I want to be able to double- or even multi-boot for test purposes, and the hardware demands of W8 are preventing this. Also - my main working OS is Linux, and the hardware demands of W8 is preventing me to use that Linux! So - no $%#@ way Windows 8 is going to be installed on my system if the demands turn out to be that stringent...
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Paul Russell
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/08 02:21:18
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nothing wrong with having your DAW on the internet. I've been doing it for over ten years without issue, in fact it makes it easier for updates and authorisations.
Hardware keyed operating system? Get a removable Sata drive bay to use as your boot disc enclosure.
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thomasabarnes
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/08 02:38:32
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I agree with those recommending Windows 7 Professional x64 or above. The RAM limit for Home Premium x64 is 16GB Max, Windows 7 Basic x64 is 8GB, Windows 7 Professional x64 and above 192GB. Reference article: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/aa366778(v=vs.85).aspx#physical_memory_limits_windows_7 I, also, have my system connected to the Internet, and have been doing it for years. Just get a good anti-virus software, such as Avast, and get Acronis True Image for system backup/restore. I also recommend keeping Windows updated with Critical and important updates, and it's easy to do that being Online. :)
 "It's not a song till it touches your heart. It's not a song till it tears you apart!" Lyrics of Amy Grant. SONAR Platinum X64 (jBridge), Windows 10 Pro 64-Bit, Core i7 990X Extreme Edition Processor 3.46 GHz 6 Cores, Gigabyte EX58-UD5, Crucial Ballistix 24GB 1333MHz DDR3 @1333 MHz, TASCAM UH-7000, Behringer X-Touch, EVGA GTX 980TI Superclocked 6GB, 1TB Samsung EVO 850 SSD, 150GB, 320GB, 1TB 7200rpm HDDs
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JClosed
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/08 02:39:07
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@ Paul Rusell: No - nothing wrong with that, but my main system happens to be Linux. The only reason Windows is installed on my system in multi-boot is to run X1 and other music software (I have a dedicated music-only system too).
And a removable drive wont work. The demands of Windows 8 are that the key is hardware coded in the (EFI) BIOS, so booting anything else from the hardware (motherboard) is prevented.
I short - the hardware has to be designed to boot Windows only and nothing else, otherwise you cannot install Windows 8.
So - no multiboot, dualboot or other operatying systems like Linux...
Anyway - back to topic. Windows 7 64 bit is good to use, even if you are using X1 32 bit...
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Brandon Ryan [Roland]
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/08 02:48:41
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We use Windows 7 x64 Professional on all of our demo systems. It's also what I use on my personal DAW. So I guess I'd recommend that.
"The sky above the port was the color of television, tuned to a dead channel." WG SONAR Platinum | VS-700 | A-800 PRO | PCAL i7 with SSD running Windows 8 x64 | Samsung 27" LCD @ 1920x1080 | Blue Sky monitors with BMC | All kinds of other stuff
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riojazz
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/08 12:46:05
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What JClosed has mentioned about Windows 8 keying to the hardware is not only a disaster for many of us, but seems like a counter-productive move for sales (assuming this info is true). Many people use swappable drives and I would be lost without mine. So, this bears watching. Windows 7 Pro 64-bit here. Only one BSOD in over 18 months, and that was caused by the Tascam firewire driver.
Software: Cakewalk by Bandlab; Adobe Audition; Band-in-A-Box audiophile; Izotope Ozone; Encore; Melodyne; Win 10 Pro, 64-bit. Hardware: Focusrite Scarlett 18i20 2nd; Roland Integra-7; TCE Finalizer; Presonus Central Station, Behringer X-Touch. Home built i7 with 16 GB RAM, SSDs.
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tfbattag
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Re:Best Version of Windows for X1
2011/10/08 12:47:36
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Thanks to all for your advice! Just ordered a RayDAT for the system, so I'll be upgrading in a couple of days.
Thomas Battaglia :wq! ----------------------------------------------------------- Intel DP35DP, Q6600, 6GB RAM, Win7Pro x64; RME HDSPe RayDAT; RME ADI8-DS x2, RME ADI-2.
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