Specifications

Chapter 2: Windows Configuration 11
Other Software and Hardware
Affecting System Performance
Pro Tools can also be affected by other software
and hardware drivers installed on your com-
puter. For best possible performance, it is recom-
mended that you:
•Avoid running other Windows programs at
the same time as Pro Tools.
•Turn off any software utilities that run in the
background, such as calendars and virus pro-
tection programs.
• Disable Windows System sounds. In the
Sound Control Panel, set the Sound Scheme
to No Sounds.
• If your video display card supports it, enable
Bus Mastering in the manufacturer’s Control
Panel.
• Disable any networking cards (other than any
FireWire card that you might use to connect
an external drive to your system).
To disable a network card:
1 Right-click My Computer and choose Man-
age.
2 Under System Tools, select Device Manager.
3 In the Device Manager window, double-click
Network adapters, then double-click the Net-
work Adapter card you want to disable.
4 Under the General tab, choose “Do not use
this device (disable)” from the Device Usage
pop-up menu, and click OK.
5 Close the Computer Management window.
Disabling Virus Protection
Software
If you are using virus protection software, turn it
off or remove it and restart your computer.
Avoid running virus protection software while
using Pro Tools since it adversely affects system
performance.
Disabling System Standby and
Power Management
To configure Windows Power Management:
1 From the Start Menu, choose Control Panel.
2 Double-click the Power Options Control
Panel.
3 Click the Power Schemes tab.
4 Choose Always On from the Power Schemes
pop-up menu.
5 Click the Hibernate tab, and deselect Enable
Hibernation.
6 Click OK.
This sets System Standby, System Hibernate,
and “Turn off hard disks” to Never. These are
the preferred settings for long record passes.
Other Performance Optimizations
The following system optimizations are not re-
quired; however, they may help Pro Tools per-
form better on some systems. It is recommended
that you only try these optimizations if neces-
sary, as they may adversely affect or disable the
functionality of other programs on your system.
To optimize application response:
1 Right-click My Computer and choose Proper-
ties.
2 Click the Advanced tab.