Audio playback freeze followed by Graphics sysc issue

[SamRinaldi]

Since my upgrade to Video Hoster 4.XXX currently 4.09d I have been having audio freeze issues followed by an out of sync Lyrics to the music. I have followed the upgrade and FAQ resolutions as closely as I can and can't seem to resolve this issue. I hope someone can help.

HP nc8000 Laptop 1.6 Ghz Pentium M, 1 Gig of RAM 120 GB Hd with more than 30% free space. I use a Creative Labs Soundblaster USB to RCA external sound device. I send second monitor video to a TV using the svideo port. Current Windows updates to MTU specs, Power settings according to MTU specs "Always On", Video properties set according to MTU specs (16bit Color and widows effects settings), DirectX 9.0c Sound Hardware Acceleration set to Basic, Built in ATI Video Card with 64meg of Video memory. chemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

[ddouglass]

Originally Posted by SamRinaldi

Since my upgrade to Video Hoster 4.XXX currently 4.09d I have been having audio freeze issues followed by an out of sync Lyrics to the music. I have followed the upgrade and FAQ resolutions as closely as I can and can't seem to resolve this issue. I hope someone can help.

HP nc8000 Laptop 1.6 Ghz Pentium M, 1 Gig of RAM 120 GB Hd with more than 30% free space. I use a Creative Labs Soundblaster USB to RCA external sound device. I send second monitor video to a TV using the svideo port. Current Windows updates to MTU specs, Power settings according to MTU specs "Always On", Video properties set according to MTU specs (16bit Color and widows effects settings), DirectX 9.0c Sound Hardware Acceleration set to Basic, Built in ATI Video Card with 64meg of Video memory.

You didn't mention whether you are using Vista or XP.

The unfortunate thing about laptops is that most use shared memory instead of dedicated memory for the on-board video card. This can caause a conflict if there isn't enough memory available for all the functions running.
Do you have any other programs running at the same time such as Anti-virus or a DJ program? These can also eat up memory space.
Have you defragmented your hard drive lately? The more fragmented the files the slower the file is going to run.
Is your USB port for the sound card version 1 or 2? If it is a 1 then the transfer speed is slower and may cause it to freeze.
That is all I am going to mention for now. There are a couple of other tricks that can help, but I'll wait until you check on these items first.

[SamRinaldi]

I am using XPPRO and the USB port for my Soundblaster is 2.0 I also Defrag the hard drive on a regular basis in addition to when I make data changes of add or delete files.

I think you may be on to something with the shared memory on the laptop with my Video card. I have 1 gig and can expand the laptop to 3 gigs max and think I will look into that.

I have used PCDJ Red dj software in the past with Hoster but since this issue I have stopped running that at the same time as Hoster. I was wondering if there are any settings on the ATI Mobility Radeon 9600 video graphics card that could help.

As I mentioned I have gone through the forum threads and FAQs and think I have found all the sugested changes but I would love to know if there are any other tricks I can do with the system. I am hoping that I don't have to invest in a new laptop so whatever you could suggest would be great.

[madjim- with the Lord]

Sam,
Check out this web site:

http://www.blackviper.com/

They give very good advice on tweaking and operating system to get the most out of it.

I hope this helps.

Jim

[bryant]

Originally Posted by SamRinaldi

Since my upgrade to Video Hoster 4.XXX currently 4.09d I have been having audio freeze issues followed by an out of sync Lyrics to the music. I have followed the upgrade and FAQ resolutions as closely as I can and can't seem to resolve this issue. I hope someone can help.

HP nc8000 Laptop 1.6 Ghz Pentium M, 1 Gig of RAM 120 GB Hd with more than 30% free space. I use a Creative Labs Soundblaster USB to RCA external sound device. I send second monitor video to a TV using the svideo port. Current Windows updates to MTU specs, Power settings according to MTU specs "Always On", Video properties set according to MTU specs (16bit Color and widows effects settings), DirectX 9.0c Sound Hardware Acceleration set to Basic, Built in ATI Video Card with 64meg of Video memory. chemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

64 mB (especially if shared, which it most likely is) is considered undersized for most DJ and karaoke programs
nowadays. Especially if you are doing anything with graphics, which karaoke programs do and some DJ programs using videos. I think you'll find most of us use either a 128mB or 256 mB (even better) that is NOT shared with the ram's memory.

[ddouglass]

Originally Posted by SamRinaldi

I think you may be on to something with the shared memory on the laptop with my Video card. I have 1 gig and can expand the laptop to 3 gigs max and think I will look into that.

If it will take the expansion then yes I would highly recommend taking it up to 2GB. For XP anything beyond that won't help as XP is limited.
I would do this before you jump to blackviper and try any of those tips. Their thing is to turn off processes running in the background that may or may not be needed. This is a trial and error process to figure out what you can and can't turn off.
Bryant is right that 64MB is extremely small, but since you are not having any video glitches, I don't think this is the problem, but that the lower amount of memory because of it is causing the audio drop-outs.

[SamRinaldi]

Thank you to all for the help. This is truly and great support community and I will intend to participate more often.


Because the Video Graphics card is built into the Laptop I have been told that I can not increase that RAM without replacing the laptop.



I will look to increase the RAM to 2 gigs and see if that helps solve the issue and provide feedback after I have tested.

[RIKKI TIKKI]

Originally Posted by SamRinaldi

Since my upgrade to Video Hoster 4.XXX currently 4.09d I have been having audio freeze issues followed by an out of sync Lyrics to the music. I have followed the upgrade and FAQ resolutions as closely as I can and can't seem to resolve this issue. I hope someone can help.

HP nc8000 Laptop 1.6 Ghz Pentium M, 1 Gig of RAM 120 GB Hd with more than 30% free space. I use a Creative Labs Soundblaster USB to RCA external sound device. I send second monitor video to a TV using the svideo port. Current Windows updates to MTU specs, Power settings according to MTU specs "Always On", Video properties set according to MTU specs (16bit Color and widows effects settings), DirectX 9.0c Sound Hardware Acceleration set to Basic, Built in ATI Video Card with 64meg of Video memory. chemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

Sam,

My show laptop is also 64mb dedicated video ram, and can't run anything (Hoster) past 4.06 without a lyric sync issue! I have tried each upgrade since... and no luck! I also start and restart the first song in my playlist, prior to starting my shows, since this seems to cure any sync issues that my laptop has while running 4.06...
My test laptop, that I use at home, is newer, and has enough power and memory, to run all the Hoster programs so far, up to, and including what we are running as beta testing proceeds on 4.10...

I will be replacing my show laptop soon ( I've been dragging my feet, because of the Vista Issues), in order to take advantage of all the new features that 4.10 has to offer... the dedicated video memory, and ram would be my first two priorities... Staying with XP (downgrading) is also a major consideration, until MTU says that Windows 7 is a stable platform... and that may be well into 2010... so it depends on how you want to treat the Vista dilemma, as to when and what OS you ( and I ) would wish to buy.

Good luck! And please let me know if you find a solution... it may work for my tired, old, show laptop also...

[ddouglass]

Rick, you need to check Dell in their Small Business section. They have Laptops that have the downgrade (upgrade?) to XP. You might want to hurry though before Windows 7 actually releases. They may not sell them after that.

[SamRinaldi]

I checked HP.com for Laptop memory instructions. This is actually installed under the keyboard but is not difficult to do. The laptop will only take two slots so ordered two 1 gig modules from Memory-up.com after confirming I had two 512megs installed that I will have to replace.

Thank you ddouglas for pointing our that XPPro will only use up to 2 gigs. I had heard that before but forgot it until your post.

I will let you all know how this works out after I complete the install and test.

[RIKKI TIKKI]

Originally Posted by ddouglass

Rick, you need to check Dell in their Small Business section. They have Laptops that have the downgrade (upgrade?) to XP. You might want to hurry though before Windows 7 actually releases. They may not sell them after that.

Yea I Know, just waiting to get the best bang for the buck... You know - The Lightest - Fastest - Cheapest Laptop, that will handle all the upcoming features that Hoster will be unveiling...

Been developing a wish list, that would be compatable with the MTU recommendations, and my wants and needs... right now it's the finances, that don't allow the switching to a newer computer... but if I had problems with either of my two laptops tonight, I would be a little more decisive.

Dale, I'm curious what you think of refurbished computers, such as the ones offered by Tiger Direct sometimes... or those that are even a little cheaper yet, that are offered by outlets such as PacificGeek.com ? I realize that with Pacific Geek, that the condition usually dictates the price, and some of the trade-ins they receive were probably taken care of better than others, so it's potluck whether you get the good, the bad, or the ugly... Just wanted to hear your thoughts on refurbs... Or anybody else's that have been through the Refurbs as opposed to buying New!

Thanks!

[billyo]

some refurb. items doesn't carry the same warranty as the new ones, i will only buy refurb. ( havent bought refurb items yet ) from a reputable store and i would check on the return policy, but in my opinion i would rather buy a new one specially high priced items such as laptop/pc etc...Tiger Direct / Compusa is a good co. i've been buying small items from them ( hhd. memory, etc. ) for a long period of time and never had problems returning it .My suggestion is to buy your laptop directly from the company, rather than an authorized dealer that carries diff.products less hassle when returning stuff..

[ddouglass]

I agree with what Billy said and I will add that you get what you pay for. The big question with refurb units is you don't know what broke or what caused , so there is no guarantee that the problem won't come back. As Admin says (with a slight twist) Lightest - Fastest- Cheapest...you can only pick two. In the long run it is better to get the best you can for what you can afford. If I remember right Dell does have a payment plan (FYI).