Sunday Frustration

[bitflipper]

Our bass player's out of town this weekend, so no gig and no rehearsal. That means a weekend to revive stalled months-old recording projects and maybe start a couple new ones. Which is how I spent Saturday. But you know how it goes, as soon as the stars seem to have aligned for happiness, something's gotta blow up.

Yesterday the weather was nice so I sat outside with a coffee and read the user manual for my new synth. The sun was shining and my puppy was quietly - for a change - lying at my feet, as content with the day as I was. But my coffee was getting cold so I went into the garage/office/studio to nuke it in the microwave. When I came out the manual was gone. Took me a while to find it - shredded into a thousand scraps by the pup, who was apparently angry with me for leaving him without permission. I'd been putting off reading that manual. Hopefully, it's available for download.

Minor inconvenience, I said. Back to a project I'd composed ages ago but had never started mixing. Have a little cannabis for perspective. It's a warm Saturday night, I've got a buzz on and I think this new piece is gonna be pretty all right. Should try out this new sample library, add some interesting percussion. Life can be good at times, at least briefly.

Then my computer froze. A hard hang. The kind of hang where you have to unplug the computer. Then, nothing. Power supply seems OK, measured some voltages to verify, USB ports are powered, keyboard lights up, My fancy video card's cute RGB lights come on. I can hear my conventional drives spinning up. Displays are both working.

But all I get is the initial BIOS screen and it's unresponsive. I note that I've been lax with preventative maintenance:  the inside of the case is pretty dusty, the CPU heatsink is stuffed with dust bunnies, and one of the case fans is barely moving. At this point it looks like I may have fried the CPU. But without a spare motherboard to test - recently did a thorough housecleaning and tossed all my old computers -  I can't be sure. Best to take it in to a repair shop, I guess. But I haven't ever done that before and have no idea who's a reputable fixit guy in the area.

Regardless, nothing's open today, being Sunday. Maybe there are other things to do on a pleasant Sunday, or so I've heard. Take my puppy to the beach, perhaps. No, f*ck him. He shredded the manual I wanted to read. 

[Bapu]

Oh man, I guess I'll not send along any new projects today, you might just quit the band like Ringo or George.

[craigb]

38 minutes ago, Bapu said:

Oh man, I guess I'll not send along any new projects today, you might just quit the band like Ringo or George.

Which is still much better than quitting like John! ?

[bitflipper]

This is the first time in my life I've taken a computer to someone for repair. But given that the problem is likely the CPU, I don't want to buy a new MB/CPU just to find out. At the same time, anecdotes abound about inexperienced and/or unscrupulous techs screwing up systems or convincing customers their only option was a new system. So it was with some trepidation that I asked around and found a repair shop.

As soon as I walked in, though, my reluctance was assuaged when I saw the place was populated, not with tatooed children named Jason, but with long-haired, bearded geezers. My tribe. In the end I'd arranged a CPU and RAM upgrade and a new case fan, at what seemed a reasonable price. Of course, everything seems like a bargain when you only upgrade every 7 years.

But I'm going a little stir-crazy without a DAW. It's like being in a power outage, where you pace the floor trying to think of any activity that doesn't require electricity, and realize you have none. But I do have juice, just no DAW. I'm trying to entertain myself by programming synths. Today I figured out how to use one sustain pedal with two synths, a breakthrough. That epiphany was thanks to a page from the Nord manual, R.I.P.

 

[Bapu]

Ah, the case (pun intended) for a backup DAW machine?

I have two. It's a pain keeping them up to date, but doable. And one is a Mac so as long as I don't have to run CbB in the event my PC craps out I'm golden (myGoTo is Studio One). All my projects are backed up to the cloud from the PC so it's easy to get the last version as the last time I shut down a project. I typically pause Carbonite for two hours at a time while I'm working on projects and try to remember to unpause once I'm done, to get automatic backups. 

My two computer OS drives are backed up nightly.

[craigb]

1 hour ago, Bapu said:

Ah, the case (pun intended) for a backup DAW machine?

I have two. It's a pain keeping them up to date, but doable. And one is a Mac so as long as I don't have to run CbB in the event my PC craps out I'm golden (myGoTo is Studio One). All my projects are backed up to the cloud from the PC so it's easy to get the last version as the last time I shut down a project. I typically pause Carbonite for two hours at a time while I'm working on projects and try to remember to unpause once I'm done, to get automatic backups. 

My two computer OS drives are backed up nightly.

Do yourself a MAJOR favor Ed and confirm that all of your backups truly exist!  I used Carbonite since they started and only recently found that many of my very desired files are gone forever.  Carbonite caps the up and down speeds tremendously so it never caught up!  All it did was create the folders and put one of the smaller files in it (like a text file).  I lost terabytes of irreplaceable important files...

This is why I use Backblaze now.

[Gswitz]

I can record with a laptop or my desktop. It's not the same as the daw, but kinda a fun challenge.

I'm sorry for your troubs, btw. Buying parts that may or may not do the job is a gamble I don't love taking.

I also hate reinstalling everything. I'm surprised sometimes at how little I've come to care about many of the things that are part of my install routine.

But it is nice to have a computer that has everything you might want... including that cool 32 bit plugin from way back when.

[kennywtelejazz]

From what I have read so far it sounds like you are getting good help for your computer . ?The pooch may be another story . ?

My dog Milo happens to be a chewer and after watching him chew fallen tree branches  and golf ball sized rocks he likes to dig up I have gotten into the habit of bringing (those hard plastic ?)  chew toys that look like phony bones with us when we go out ..

We like to be outdoors and I have found when I bring something for him to chew on he seems much happier having something to occupy and focus his energy on ...

I also bring water because now that it's getting hot out I want him to be comfortable and its a good way to get his attention ...

At home when I feed him he will get his food, some treats , and a chew toy all in his doggie crate . I never ever let him chew toys in my apt unsupervised ever so the chew toy in his crate or outdoors becomes a reward of sorts .

Not even a year ago I couldn't even leave my apt with out him acting out on his full range of separation anxiety issues . Getting him used to spending quality time in his crate helped the most with that ...For the record I still don't fully trust him to have full run of the apt outside of his crate when I'm not home ....

I have gotten to the point where meeting my dogs needs has become a form of service for me  . My goal is I want him to feel as if he' s being rewarded for just being a good boy . He still has a long ways to go but he has gotten a lot better since I got him .

You may have to experiment around and find out what works best for you and your dog .

Next time you leave the room to heat up your coffee Offer him a choice . Offer him a synth manual and a KONG with peanut butter in it ...Lets find out and see what he likes better .

Best of luck  finding what works for you guys . I'm absolutely sure it will get better over time .

Kenny

Edited July 12, 2022 by kennywtelejazz

[bitflipper]

5 hours ago, kennywtelejazz said:

...watching him chew fallen tree branches  and golf ball sized rocks he likes to dig up...

I can pull a rock out of his mouth and throw it as far as I can into the blackberry bushes. It might take him an hour, but eventually he will return with the very same rock.

Kenny, you're not giving me any hope here. Your Milo is older than my Sirius, and I've been assuming the pup will grow out of his destructive phase. Two weeks ago the band was setting up for a gig when the drummer held up an unrecognizable piece of plastic and cursed. It was a crucial piece of drum hardware that my dog had somehow gotten hold of. After a moment of panic, he found a spare one in his tackle box of odds and ends and a crisis was averted. But he'll probably be packing up most of his kit now instead of leaving it in my garage between rehearsals and gigs. At least he (the dog, not the drummer) seems to have lost his taste for microphone cables. 

Fortunately the drummer is a dog lover too, living with five of them himself.

 

[Sheens]

this all could have been avoided by getting your dog the cheapest Behringer Synth / Monoprice Tele to chew on.

 

[bitflipper]

Not a bad idea. Unfortunately, he'd destroy them in a day, and even the cheapest musical instruments would add up over time. That's why I don't scold him when he drags in a tree branch. Got lots of those. Found items are generally fine by me. I only intercede when he's eating glass or ceramic garden gnomes. Lately it's been roofing tiles. I haven't figured out where he's getting them, but I may have to start locking up the ladders.

[Sheens]

roofing tiles ?  awesome dog !

someone in your street will be swearing 

[craigb]

My friend discovered that antlers (which can be found at many pet stores) last FAR longer than bones or toys.  Just a thought!  ?

[kennywtelejazz]

12 hours ago, bitflipper said:

I can pull a rock out of his mouth and throw it as far as I can into the blackberry bushes. It might take him an hour, but eventually he will return with the very same rock.

 

Woah ! Blackberry bushes . Don't they have thick thorns ?  Wow ,,,, he is OK with that ? Tuff little fella you got there .

12 hours ago, bitflipper said:

Kenny, you're not giving me any hope here.

?? Sorry Dave ! , I'm just sharing the ups and downs my pooch has been putting me through .

12 hours ago, bitflipper said:

 Your Milo is older than my Sirius, and I've been assuming the pup will grow out of his destructive phase.

It's true Milo is older by about a year and a half . Milo was on his way to the shelter if I didn't take him in and make a home for him .By the time he got to me he already has been on the outs with the two other families that couldn't deal with him anymore .

The first owner was an elderly woman in a wheel chair and there is no way she could have controlled him . His second home was with a family . The husband worked a lot and his wife was 2 months away from having a child ...They had concerns about the safety of the newborn child  to put it mildly ...

For me I was hurting real bad . I had put Duke down and my life had no fun flavors left in it ....it was all just one big ball of loneliness and pain at that time for me  ...

I bring this up because the relationship between a dog owner and dog is a very special unique thing .

It is totally possible  Sirius can and will grow out of his destructive phase . Things are still new to the both of you 

When it comes to dogs , on the surface many dynamics of the relationship may look the same .You know feeding , housing ,walking , picking up after them , training them , socializing them ,,ect

When it comes to the deeper level it is not much different that dealing with a person . It's just like dealing with a stubborn person who won't follow any of your directions , they might not even care enough to pretend to listen to you and when all is said and done they will parade and mock you when they wont do the very thing you hope they will do ...?  hey I dated girls just like that when I was younger ?‍?

I guess if I had a point to make it would be  as dog owners we are all doing the best we can . Sure there are things our furry friends do that may try our ability to cope with things calmly when the S hit hits the fan ... I have come close to loosing it a few years back .It brought me to the point where  I have learned to step back take a deep breath and try again and again and again ....

Sirius sounds like a really cool dog and companion . Most of what I have heard you post on him has been typical things puppy's do and get away with .

Sometimes time will smooth a lot of those things out ... Until Sirius gets the lets stop chewing and behave memo , you may have to line up a Sweetwater sales Rep and put him on speed dial .

Even better,  lets chip in and get Cesar Millan up here ....Lets find out if he is really as good as every one says he is ...That could be one way to deal with both Milo and Sirius

I'm gonna put a lid on the  Furrstration  and invoke the power of herbal . It has been nice chatting with you .

all the best ,

Kenny

 

Edited July 13, 2022 by kennywtelejazz

[Tim Smith]

I am probably similar in some ways on the DAW recording and goals.  I sit out back with a cup of tea in the evening after work, chores, and home projects wondering if I'll have the interest or energy to go into the studio. At that point I've been up since 5am or before and it's 8-9:30. and I'm supposed to put in time on the violin every day unless I want to throw good lesson money away. This old man is beginning to wear thin by then.

One part of me thinks the studio sounds like a great idea. The other part thinks it might be more fun to go lay down somewhere and catch a movie or read. Both of those end up being pre sleep. I haven't been in my studio in at least three days. 

On the computer end I just added a new drive and enlarged my C. Moved a bunch of my sample libraries around to more logical places. With 6 SSDs that computer is faster now than it has ever been. I spent the good part of a Saturday afternoon setting it all up last week. I have most of my stuff backed up  using Macrium to an outboard drive.

My computer is getting kind of dusty inside but I'm afraid to try and clean it because the last time I did that on another computer it had a failure. I might try using the Dyson with a brush all power off to computer.

Mostly all my dogs do is sometimes poop in the wrong places and for awhile there they liked my studio. I would walk in there and feel something hard under my foot. Thank goodness the turd had dried.

[bitflipper]

Yeh, it is possible to do damage with a vacuum. But my CPU's heatsink was so clogged that I had to apply my big shop vac to it. Man, that fan was spinning fast!

But dust is a computer killer. Well, not so much dust as heat. Dust doesn't conduct or radiate heat well, so everything runs hotter, not just components with heatsinks. Clogged filters impede airflow. Fans can stop working altogether. This applies to laptops, too, but hardly anybody looks inside there unless there's smoke coming out. But laptops have tiny intake and exhaust ports that take very little to clog, and laptops are more likely to be set somewhere with poor ventilation, such as on a bed. Or even a lap.

In my case I think a contributing factor was a GPU upgrade. Fancy video cards are great for games, and it's the main reason people prefer the desktop experience over a low-fps console for gaming. But high-end video adapters generate a lot of heat, as indicated by the 2 or 3 fans built into them. The layout of my motherboard is such that the graphics card sat right below the CPU. That, and a sluggish fan and a dust-filled CPU heatsink probably led to the CPU having a meltdown.

[Tim Smith]

I'm guessing probably one of the biggest questions DAW users asks themselves with computer upgrades and builds is , "How much GPU do I as a DAW user need"?

At least this is a question I ask myself every time I build a computer.  I'm not spending 1K on a graphics card when all I'm mostly doing is audio. There is the occasional movie I make though. 

It sounds lime you went whole hog on a nice GPU card.  Better too much than not enough. I wonder if they are water cooling those now? MY guess is someone has done it.

[57Gregy]

Cool name.