Edit your
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM.INI file. Open it with your favorite text editor and enter
these lines.
----------
[386Enh]
ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1
MinTimeSlice=15
DMABufferSize=64
PageBuffers=32
[vcache]
MaxFileCache=16384
MinFileCache=16384
Chunksize=1024
----------
conservativeswapfileusage=1 This can significantly reduce Virtual memory use - it makes
Windows use RAM before the (slow hard drive) Swapfile. This setting will tell
Windows ME not to use the swap file at all until all of the RAM is used. After
all of the RAM is used up, the computer will push most of the infrequently used
data to the swap file so this is a very good adjustment ("tweak").
This is particularly beneficial for those with 256MB RAM or more.
MinTimeSlice=15 is a weird one, if you set it to 1 it'll smooth
multitasking quite a lot, but performance might go down a bit, default is 20.
Experiment with different values for they might work better for you. The option
has to do with multitasking and lesser values are better for multitasking.
DMABufferSize=64 to tweak DMA performance.
This will conserve at least 64KB of memory to DMA (direct memory access) to
reinsure that your DMA devices always have enough memory allocated. Note
that this tweak should only be used if you have one or more DMA enabled
devices on your system.
PageBuffers=32 This setting tells the computer to dedicate a
certain amount of RAM to buffer the hard drive rather than allowing the
operating system to dynamically handle the buffer. Windows dynamic handling of
most memory issues is very inefficient, due to the large difference Windows
sets between minimum and maximum values. 32 is the highest setting the
operating system allows, so it is recommended that you use this value.
MaxFileCache=16384 and
MinFileCache=16384. This setting, a well known
hotline tip, is performed automatically when installing Cubase. But we do not
agree with the cache size Cubase sets, in many cases it's still too high. The
memory Windows uses to cache the hard disks is much too high, reduces the
usable RAM, and causes an un-predictable behavior of the hard disk for most
audio software. Use the Editor to open the file system.ini in the Windows
directory and add the following lines to the already existing topic 'vcache':
Chunksize=x. Chunksize can effect
performance. Vcache is a single block of memory that is divided into chunks.
If the Chunksize is too small it will occupy to many chunks & when set too
large it will occupy too few chunks. A program can have more than one chunk,
but if it doesn't divide evenly into the size of the chunk, some RAM goes
unused (i.e. is fragmented). On one hand, having a smaller chunk size allows
for less wasted RAM in the vcache. On the other
hand, a larger chunk size increases the access speed for the vcache. Common
values are 128, 256, 512, 1024, and 2048 . The rule of thumb is, if you have
any newer monster multi-GigaByte size hard disk, you may want to set this value
to "high": 2048. The ideal value will lie in between
two extremes. x represents a numeric value that is
a multiple of 512, e.g. 512, 1024 & so on. Depending on your
Min/MaxFileCache settings a good starting value for x would be 512
or 1024. Default in the registry (void of actual entry line in Sys.ini
is 512). If after all tweaks you still find the system sluggish, unstable,
dropped frames and/or poor sync try 1024 up to 2048.
|
Tip |
Instructions |
|
Virtual Memory |
Leave it alone (RME Audio
Recommends this http://www.rme-audio.com/english/techinfo/lola/lola.htm) |
|
enable
DMA for all ATA/ATAPI drives in the Device Manager |
Control
Panel -> System -> Device Manager -> Disk Drives -> |
|
disable
auto-insert notification for all CD-ROMs and other removable media |
Control
Panel -> System -> Device Manager -> CD-ROM -> |
|
change
the file managing system from Desktop PC to Network Server |
Control
Panel -> System -> Performance -> File System -> Hard Disk
(change the typical role of this computer to Network Server) |
|
disable
all window and menu animation effects |
Control
Panel -> Display -> Effects |
|
disable
the Windows Active Desktop "web view" |
Control
Panel -> Display -> Web |
|
Disable
Floppy Check: |
Open Control Panel ---> System ---> Performance Tab ---> File System ---> the Floppy Disk tab ---> uncheck the box so the system doesn't check
for a NEW floppy drive every time it
starts. |
|
TURN
OFF FILE WRITE-BEHIND CACHING (Tascam Recommends this) |
Start / Settings / Control Panel / System Icon /
Performance Tab / File System / Troubleshooting / Check the Disable
Write-Behind Caching For All Drives
checkbox. |
|
Turn off
Automatic Updating (Win ME) |
This will
hog your modem for the first 30 minutes every day the first time you go on
line if not turned off. |
|
Disable
these Start menu settings |
Msconfig and ---> press Enter. Click ---> the Startup tab ---> UNCHECK PcHealth, StateMgr, SchedulingAgent and TaskMon. Finally reboot, so all these
changes can take effect. |
|
Set
Read-ahead optimization to None or 50% |
Control
Panel -> System -> Performance -> File System -> Hard Disk . The slider setting
changes the amount of RAM used for read-ahead optimization. Basically,
Windows stores data temporarily to RAM versus your HD, since access to data
stored in RAM is faster than access to data stored on your HD. Changing the
"Read-Ahead Optimization" setting to "None" will, however,
prevent block-size chunks of data (in the range of 1-2K) from being cached.
Retrieving and reading this cached information interferes with high data rate
playback. Selecting to None option causes the disk cache to flush
continually. If you have problems with "realtime" transitions
and/or drop frames in Premiere or av sync in capture. This is usually due to
poor disk burst activity - setting to full will help. If have RAM > 128 MB
try set to Full or 50 %. |
|
UNINSTALL
PCHEALTH (WinME) |
See Below |
|
UNINSTALL
PCHEALTH With Utility from http://defsoft.iwarp.com/ Or
Manually 1. Launch Notepad, and cut & paste this: ---------------------------- Begin cut & paste here ---------------------------- Save this
text file as NOHLP.REG. Double-click on it to merge this
information into your Registry. Reboot. 2. To remove PCHealth from your system, copy the text
below, paste it in the Start Menu ---> Run box, and then ---> click OK: 3. With Regedit open, find and
delete these strings: 4. Finally search Regedit for StateMgr.exe and delete all matching keys.
Done! |
One last tweak that I would
consider is disableing busmastering on all other non-audio cards (Video cards..
etc..) and also disabling 4x AGP mode in the bios. It is my assumption that this will reduce PCI bandwidth taken up
by the AGP video card.
***I use all the tweaks
above with good success and have yet to use any of the Registry tweaks
below.***
These are some registry
tweaks which look interesting but I have not tested:
|
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\VxD\BIOS] |
|
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\VxD\VCOMM] |
Seeing as RAM
is a lot better performing than the Swapfile, it can help a great deal to
optimize your memory settings. Restart your PC & enter the BIOS.
The following settings, generally contained in the Advanced chipset features/Chip
configuration section, can greatly improve memory performance &/or
stability.
Bank 0/1, 2/3,
4/5 DRAM timing. Use this to set the DRAM memory module timing. Most BIOS'
default to 10ns. Other options available may be (depending on BIOS) 8ns,
Normal, Medium, Fast, Turbo. Selecting a different
setting may improve RAM performance, but reduce stability. Turbo is the
fastest setting; 10ns is the slowest (& most stable).
DRAM Clock. With the VIA
Apollo 133 based motherboards you have the option to change SDRAM speed.
Settings available are Host CLK or +/-33. Host CLK allows the SDRAM
to run at the same speed as the Ext. Clock (FSB). You can use the +/-33
if you want to run the RAM slower/faster than the Ext. Clock, e.g. If your Ext.
Clock is 100Mhz you could use +33 to allow your SDRAM to run at 133Mhz.
This is a great option for those of you with PC 133 SDRAM. Or alternatively you
could run at a 133Mhz Ext. Clock while your RAM runs at 100Mhz by using
the -33 setting. Or you could run PC133 RAM at 133Mhz on a 133Mhz Ext.
Clock (aka FSB) by using the Host CLK option. As you can see this option
allows for many possibilities.
Delay DRAM read
latch. The lower the value for this the better the memory
performance, although stability may be affected. Higher values may
improve system stability at the cost of performance.
DRAM
speculative leadoff. Enable this for better performance,
although it could make your system unstable, disable it if it
does.
Memory Hole At
15M-16M. Some old add-in cards need this enabled to work
properly. If you have such a card then enable this, otherwise disable
it.
Memory
parity/ECC check/DRAM Data Integrity Mode. In the unlikely event you
have ECC (Error Correcting Code) memory installed
then you should set this to ECC, otherwise set it to non-ECC.
Most memory is non-ECC & not really recommended for
most users unless the need the added stability (some claim it is slower when
ECC is being used – I use it and do not experience it being lower).
RAS active time. A high
number will increase performance of the system's SDRAM. Decrease if
stability is affected.
RAS to CAS
delay. This should be set to a low number, although it is
affected by the quality of you RAM, so set it higher if you have any
difficulties afterwards.
Read around
write. This is a DRAM optimization feature. If a memory read is
addressed to a location whose latest write is being held in a buffer before
being written to memory, the read is satisfied through the buffer contents,
& the read is not sent to the DRAM. Set this to Enabled for better
memory performance.
SDRAM Bank
Interleave. For best memory performance set this to 4-bank/way,
although lower settings may help improve stability.
SDRAM CAS
Latency Time/SDRAM cycle length. This sets the CAS latency timing of the
DRAM system memory access cycle when SDRAM system memory is installed. Setting
this to 2 will yield better performance, although may be less stable if
your SDRAM is not CAS2 rated. 3 is slower & should be used when
SDRAM isn't CAS2 rated or you want to improve stability. NOTE - CAS2 can
significantly improve performance in many ways.
SDRAM Precharge
control. When Enabled, all CPU cycles to SDRAM result in an All
Banks Precharge Command on the SDRAM interface. Setting this to Enabled
should improve RAM performance. NOTE - When overclocking, particularly when you
have an AGP graphics card that's running at non-spec AGP bus speeds Disabling
this may improve stability.
http://www.digitalnaturalsound.com/logic_dsp/config.shtml
http://www.digitalnaturalsound.com/logic_dsp/msg/186.html
http://www.videoguys.com/WinME_Tweaks.html
http://www.jps.net/sberson/windows_me_mods.htm
http://members.aol.com/axcel216/95.htm#TOP
http://www.kisser.net.au/tontodan/tipsme.html#001
http://kpush.tripod.com/pushy/id5.html
http://www.rme-audio.com/english/techinfo/lola/lola.htm