hockeyjx
... I highly doubt that if you have a high level i7 with 64GB of ram, that it truly matters if you have 7 or 8.1. So, I'll stand pat on what I have until the next offering.

I'm not so sure, but I can't make a test because I have no Windows 7 system to compare with, only my past experience with 7.
 
I do a great deal of stuff with extremely high CPU usage. Not lots of tracks, just lots of Reaktor stuff that I made which use huge CPU amounts. Four or 5 tracks of these will such up all my CPU.
 
It seems to me that I can do a lot more with Windows 8 than I could with Windows 7. I had this same system on Windows 7  before I upgraded and there were no hardware changes that matter since then (same CPU/memory and system drive).
 
CPU Core #1 would always max out in 7 while the others were cruising at low levels. This does not seem to happen in Windows 8 as much. I believe that the kernel thread scheduler/CPU distributor is much better in 8 and 8.1.
 
When I say 8 I really mean 8.1 upgrade (kernel 6.3.9600) - no one uses 8 any more, or shouldn't). I think we should just call it Win 9.
 
Here's an example of 8 Reaktor tracks using much more that half of my CPU power (at 4.25 GHz). Notice that each core is used evenly. Can you see this behavior in Windows 7? I don't recall ever seeing that - CPU 1 would be maxed out and the others would be jumping all over the place.
 

 
 

I found Win8 to be fat more efficient managing multiple cores. Win7 could be dodgy. Then again they may have patched it now via windows update.

The core parking helped with the distribution over cores, but I still don't think it is as even as 8.1 is. If you have newer hardware with newer chipsets, it may also skew the results in terms of overall performance. I would gather the best method to test was to have a box where you swap out identical drives with 7 and 8.1 installed to test (or a dual boot) - that way it is apples to apples. I'm sure 8.1 is more streamlined, but in terms of if you put it on the same box, would the increase justify the upgrade? It would be fun to test.
 
I have not ONCE used Reaktor and have had Komplete for YEARS. May be time now :)
 
 

hockeyjx
I thought it was incredibly stupid for Microsoft to create an operating system interface for all that really was meant to be used for touchscreens (perhaps they were starting their own revolution) - especially that only a small percentage of pc/laptop users HAVE a touchscreen. It was also sad that they needed a big service release to get some of the functionality back that should have been standard on it.
 
When I bury my FW-1884, and the next MS OS proves to be useful to me, then I will upgrade. I highly doubt that if you have a high level i7 with 64GB of ram, that it truly matters if you have 7 or 8.1. So, I'll stand pat on what I have until the next offering.

 The actions by Microsoft reflects that much of the consumer market feels that way.  There is nothing wrong with the OS except the GUI.
 
 You can still get W7 as an OEM. There's a problem with that. If you change your motherboard or processor, you will be on the phone to MS for a long time to get reactivation.  This is where W8 OEM has the advantage. 
 
 I am also in the boat of having M-Audio gear that will be legacy because of no drivers available past W7. I'm done buying anything from M-Audio.
 

hockeyjx
...
 I have not ONCE used Reaktor and have had Komplete for YEARS. May be time now :)

 
The 8 Reaktor ensembles I used above were from this entry I made in the Reaktor U/L:
 
http://www.native-instruments.com/en/community/reaktor-user-library/entry/show/7701/
 
It is a self-generating audio installation/soundscape.
 
Edit: correction.

 



 The actions by Microsoft reflects that much of the consumer market feels that way.  There is nothing wrong with the OS except the GUI.
 



Yea, that pesky GUI. Not that important  The licensing part doesn't affect me ...I forgot that can be a pain point for some.

arachnaut

hockeyjx
...
 I have not ONCE used Reaktor and have had Komplete for YEARS. May be time now :)

 
The 8 Reaktor ensembles I used above were from this entry I made in the Reaktor U/L:
 
http://www.native-instruments.com/en/community/reaktor-user-library/entry/show/7701/
 
It is a self-generating audio installation/soundscape.
 
Edit: correction.

Thanks!   Downloading now.   I'm getting more into Reaktor each month since getting Komplete early in the year.
 
My DAW is still on Win7 myself, running on an older Q9300.  But your difference with Reaktor has me wondering about 8.1.1 - I purchased the upgrade during the initial $49 sale but never installed it.   I did upgrade my general internet PC though, as an introduction to Win8.x    What to do...
 

8.1 with Classic Start Menu.

stevec
[...  But your difference with Reaktor has me wondering about 8.1.1 - I purchased the upgrade during the initial $49 sale but never installed it.   I did upgrade my general internet PC though, as an introduction to Win8.x    What to do...
 

If that was the update from 7 to 8 you should be aware that it is fairly lengthy process to upgrade to 8.1.1.
 
The download of 8.0 is about 3 GB. Then you need to apply quite a lot of updates for 8.0 to get to the ability to update to 8.1 from the Windows Store. The 8.1 update is also about 3 GB. Then there are about 100 updates to 8.1 before you get to the 8.1.1 update.
 
I've done this a few times for friends - it's very lengthy and tedious.
 
There is a new Media Installer that you can download once you get to 8.1.1:
 
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/create-reset-refresh-media
 
that will allow you to install 8.1 directly in case you need to do that again.
 
Frankly, I just image my OS drive.
 

What is this 8.1.1? There is no reference to it at MS. There is only 8.1.