Windows 7 64-bit ( going offline )

I wrote EVGA, ( main-board manufacturer ) asking them about my RAM and the settings i was running it at....

checking over a few other resources also, trying to figure out if i was running it too hot..

my bus and processor are supposed to be good up to 2133 Mhz, so it's down to the voltage, ( 1.6v ), and the timing, ( 9-11-11-31 ) as to whether or not that would constitute acceptable operating conditions, in context.

i just need to get my Form Synth, and my Vintage Compressors, from NI, and then i am good to go off-line for good......course now i have a new hurtle with just even getting my rig running again....

any RAM experts: please feel free to ring in with your thoughts on any "optimum rules of thumb" concerning any balance between performance and reliability appreciated.

thanks.

 

always double check your numbers before making a RAM purchase, ( no matter how insane your life is or how stressed out you are )

i figured out the problem by doing just that, however post purchase in my case....

my CPU memory controller is rated to 1600 Mhz, i i have been running my RAM bus at 2133....i hope i can just spool it down and get it to run at reduced timing settings and a lower voltage....but if i do opt to purchase two new sticks, you can bet i am not going to screw up this time.

rulg

 

Sorry to interrupt but is this convo about Maschine? Sounds like a technical computer and windows specific post.

 

Yes, it is a technical computer and windows specific post...

for many of us, maschine isn't a maschine with out a machine....and for the rest of us, that don't have a Mac, they are probably just fine with setting their controller units on the coffee table as conversation pieces, ( much easier to dust, and dust around with out any cables also ), but i like to use mine.

don't harass me, or i swear i will get a Mac....i can't afford one, but i can't afford to build another PC either....

the thing i like about PC's is the main-board S/PDIF optical out, ( Macs don't have that )....i have an UltraCurve Pro DEQ 2496, in my rack, that has an optical S/PDIF in.

 

? So windows user don't use their Maschine controllers and just buy them for decoration?

Each platform has it owns pros and cons, the way I got the best of both worlds for my personal taste was by building my own Hackintosh, it functions just like my regular Macs ever did and i have the freedom to chose all my components and upgrade as I wish without being limited by Apple, and it can also dual or triple boot for a multi OS setup, the only disadvantage is it's not a solution for the lazy or technology impaired, since you seem knowledgeable it could be an option to consider.

**Moved to the Computer Technology & Setup forum.

 

Ahhh....i see.

Macs basically have operating systems native to their hardware platform, ( which is why they run so well ), where " PC " denotes the IBM type hardware platform with " the windows hack " < once referred to as Macintosh emulation.

i would rather have a Mac, and a thunderbolt interface, mostly because the latency could be lower than anything i could archive on a PC...but what i already have isn't all that bad, it just needs a fresh system re-load and some re-tweak.

i was locked up for 14 months, and my CMOS battery farted up my whole rig.

 

That was true a long time ago, since Apple moved to intel all their components are just normal PC components with the exception of the motherboard. They do things like make their own NVMe SSD's with a proprietary connector to force people into buying it from them but that doesn't stop people from making adaptors that make any third party NVME work perfectly for example. SSD's are generic, CPU's are Intel, GPU's are AMD (there are official NVIDIA drivers too), so it's all basically normal components.

My next Hackintosh upgrade will cost me around 1600€ with consumer parts (6-core) and will be able to compete with a 5.599€ base model iMac Pro (8-Core), it won't be as fast but will be close at less than half the price.

 

Generally what I do with my Windows PCs is backup the bios using the pre OS BOOT INTO BIOS mode, and I clone my main HDD periodically to freeze the machine but can roll back. Also, with current Microsoft account setting in their store, you can easily reauthorize a system change to hardware by logging into Windows with your Microsoft account, vs local user account. Simple solutions for replacing cmos battery, restore bios or just redo basic settings and save. Bios restore wont kill authorizations. Major hardware changes would, like new motherboard.

 

that whole last reply was very interesting, but i am still wondering if your running an old prized main-board, then, or if you have parts suppliers i have never heard of ?....either way i still think, on the odd circumstance that i do go Mac OS, i would probably start out with the purchase of a Mac....and that's just because the circumstance of a hardware change, for me, would be in an effort to escape down time.

 

great preventative on topic post there...and some info goodies i was not aware of, thanks.

of course i am a day late and a dollar short for preventative measures here, and am basically scrambling to heave my system back up on it's feet; as connecting to the internet becomes an increasingly risky proposition.....

currently; i have finished burning current MS .ISO images of my OS, and the Windows 7 AIK < some tools there for burning my hardware drivers into a new system image....i dropped $40 on " Easy RE Professional Win 7 64-bit" and, aside from other tools there, finally have a pre-boot way to address any registry issues that should ever crop up.

i am now sort of stuck in the driver phase, of a fresh system reload, at the moment....it's a learning curve well beyond inserting the disk that came with the main-board.

and my most immediate unknown is; " can i even run windows setup to a RAID Zero, or do i have to install in AHCI, and then convert to a RAID image in post ?

rulg

 

anyone please feel free to chime in.
------------------
NOTES FROM MS.COM, ( notes for myself )

1) Drivers that are installed on x64-based computers must have a digital signature.

2) All boot-critical drivers must contain embedded signatures.

3) If you're adding multiple drivers, you should create separate folders for each driver or driver category.

Qs; what if all i can get is the .exe file for the driver ? is the .inf file in those somewhere ?

4) specify a device-driver path in an answer file

ok, but i don't entirely understand that yet.

5) You can add device drivers to a Windows image at various phases of deployment.

even though i don't know what i am doing yet, i am going to try this one first.
----------------------------------------------------
Offline servicing (before deployment)
Offline servicing occurs when you modify a Windows 7 image entirely offline without booting the operating system. You can add, remove, and enumerate drivers on an offline Windows image by using the DISM command-line tool. DISM is installed with Windows 7 and is also distributed in the Windows OEM Preinstallation Kit (Windows OPK) and the Windows Automated Installation Kit (Windows AIK). For more information about DISM, see the Deployment Image Servicing and Management Technical Reference
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
P.S.
i changed my RAM settings to 7-9-9-24, ( as an incremental proportion ), @ 1600 Mhz, and dropped the voltage to 1.5v......it seems to be fairly stable..

 

that way is not going to work, because all the links i need are dead ends.....help.

 

Old? Never... I’m not really a old hardware kind of person. Right now I’m on a common z97 board + a i7 4790k. You can have a hackintosh with any platform board. X99,x299, coffee lake, skylake etc.... I’ll be upgrading to coffee lake Maschine in the next couple weeks, 6 core i7 8700k, I haven’t chose the board yet but it will be a common one...

 

No Kiddin?!...Hmmm....so i have a Z77 board, i7 3770K , ( 1155 socket ), 240 pin DDR3 DIMMs 8GB x 2, and two SATA3 SSDs....is my hardware good to go then?...( i am having a rough time of the driver load )

as the diver load goes, i have read a few excerpts that suggest i do need to kick over to AHCI to load from the Windows installation disk, so maybe that has been the problem this whole time.....gotta convert to RAID in post.

i did look at the new Mac Pro, ( i shouldn't have done that ), and can't stop thinking about how low my latency could be with a 2x4 thunderbolt interface on one of those....even the 6-core base model would kick the crap out of my rig.

 

Sure.. here is an example of a very similar build:
https://www.tonymacx86.com/threads/success-sabertooth-z77-i7-3770k-gtx-680-el-capitan.64023/
Theres probably a lot more on tonymacs website, full guides start to finish on how to install...
Many users also give away their EFI, which contains the boot loader and all the settings necessary already done ...

Mac Pros are a bit overkill for audio and nowadays their specs don't really justify their price (even for apple standards)

 

yeah, that's why i am looking at the base model....it's mostly the single quiet fan, and lower latency...latency is a big deal when your running audio tracks along with your sequence, if everything i did was only with synths i probably wouldn't care....and i like my synths, but i need my rig to freakin hop to it, when i say jump, being a guitarist.

definitely going to look into it...mostly worried about my old files then not being able to make the transition, but still a topic worthy of study.

 

i decided to price a new build to get my mind of the Mac Pro.....i spent allot of time looking at cases, and settled on a 3U rack case that takes a mATX, and goes for $74...that sort of st the ball rolling, because i like the idea of a rack-mount music computer...

a 2066 socket mATX search brought up only two boards, both X299 chipset, i went with the one for $288.
i9-7920X 12 core, 2666Mhz 4 channel RAM controller $1,110
4x16GB 288 pin DDR4 2666Mhz CL13 RAM $1,030
240mm radiator, 2x120mm fans, and water block $ 103
i wouldn't spend much more than $200 on a graphics card, and wouldn't need to...

little over $ 2K8 there so far, but it would bury the base model Mac Pro that goes for $ 3K....i don't need an interface for the built machine, ( i have my own top secret balanced passive input circuit design + S/PDIF out ), where as i would need a $600 interface with the Mac

and i have my own legit copy of Windows 10, 64-bit, sitting in a cabinet collecting dust....if i get another computer, i will build it again, and do a much cleaner job of it at that....i just know so much more now, than i did then.

 

the whole winter is basically shot for me, in terms of design and music production.....

i am determined to get my computer up and running good, but now am thinking i should tailor this Windows 7 machine for my CAD and engineering work, ( convinced now that does need to be separated from my music ), and so also plans, at least a year out, to build a new music computer...

i need to get to get back to work on Shop Construction and my new Tree House Prototype that is on slate for installation the summer of 2019....

 

Up to you, but an i9 7920X for audio is kind of crazy... You won't get much better latency because you have beastly 12 core CPU. A thunderbolt interface with DSP might be a better investment on a lower CPU.

 

the only reason i would build up like that is Durabillity.....i am more of a "string quartet" sort of guy than the type that goes for a "symphony", so to speak; but if i am running a 75 watt processor full blitz now, then a 140 watt processor will last longer under the same load...

i prefer to work with soft synths vs. sample instruments....call it "3db" of CPU headroom.