Dyers, the name of the program is NTrack - NOT NTracks!!!
Yup, my vote is drivers. I never have had problems with N on any system I have used… whcih is 5 or 6 over the years. It is always baffling when folks just can’t get it to work. I make a big deal out making sure the HW I buy is hardened and has good support, plus I am good at troubleshooting and find N is not the issue 99% of the time. So maybe that is why I have few problems. Screwy VSTs are probably half the crashes that aren’t related to drivers or a screw ball chipset.
NTracks for me… I do more then one track 
| Quote (Willy @ July 11 2005,08:37) |
| Yeah that. I think the proportion of pros using Ntrack is pretty small in comparision to Protools, Cubase and even Samplitude... Not to say pro results cant be gotten with ntrack, but it's looked upon as a bit of a toy. Whenever I rock up to record a gig, people always ask if it's protools they're looking at on the screen because that's all they've ever heard of. |
From what dave says, a lot of engineers DO use N-tracks unless
1. They know someone is gonna look at it and complain
2. They know they are going to be sending it off to a PT system
I think Dave's once said he's out right lied once and told someone N-Tracks is Pro Tools when someone looked at the screen.
n-Tracks == n-Track Studio
Hello All,
I’ve been using n-Track since version 2 and I’ve upgraded each time to the current version. I’ve posted here just a couple of times and after the time when the forum went down I didn’t bother to re-register but I’ve monitored the forum several times each week.
Here are the good things I have to say about the program:
1. Flavio is an incredibly attentive developer and a user will probably never have a closer connection to the originator of a program.
2. I used n-Track to create many songs which I have finally compiled on a CD for distribution. For a long time it has been the kind of program you can turn on and instantly begin recording music.
3. The n-Track’s GUI is absolutely the best. I’ve wasted money on other sequencers and been disappointed and continued to return to n-Track when I really needed to record my musical ideas (but see below).
Here are some not-so-good things:
1. I think n-Track reached its pinnacle of stability with version 3.2 build 1516. But even that build had stability problems with multiple vst’s and when using Rewire.
2. I was initially very excited by version 4 because the cpu usage appeared to be lower and vst’s played more smoothly; however, this initial excitement was tempered by crashes that didn’t just end n-Track, but left my system unstable. I found that when I manually closed n-Track my entire system destablized and a system shutdown could take ten minutes or more unless I manually turned off the computer.
3. The use of .NET troubled me but I went along with it. Now in later builds I’m receiving messages during installation requiring me to update my version of .NET. What I see in the future is reaching a point where I update my version of .NET and get caught by a Microsoft bug and screw up my entire operating system. This won’t be Flavio’s fault, but it will be my fault for allowing myself to get sucked in to a Microsoft problem.
Now, here’s what’s happened to me and this is not a plug, but just a statement of my experience. I got a free version of Tracktion by Mackie and I tried it out and it seemed decent. The interface pales next to n-Track, but I gave it a try. As n-Track became more unstable for me I found myself using Tracktion to make music while I waited for the next build of version 4 of n-Track. Subsequently I purchased Tracktion 2 and I’ve been using it all the time.
1. Tracktion 2 has never crashed.
2. I can use as many vst’s as I like and they work seamlessly.
Rewire interfaces perfectly with Reason 3.
3. I am making larger more complex arrangements and can’t seem to find a stability limit with this software.
4. And here’s the rub, I do not have to fine tune my system by turning off running applications and processes. I can record tracks while I’m downloading files, my virus software is running, my spyware programs are running, I can be checking my email. In short, I don’t have to make any accomodations for the music software.
Finally, I work as a network administrator and although I don’t pretend to be an expert, I do know what I’m doing when I configure computers and trouble shoot them. I’m making the point here that we shouldn’t have to jump through hoops in order to have a stable platform for recording music in midi and/or wav format. Tracktion 2 has proved to me that it can be done.
I will keeping checking versions of n-Track but eventually I will probably make the final switch to Tracktion. There is a certain sadness to that since I have been a loyal user of n-Track for years.
System info: P4 @ 3.0 ghz with 800 FSB; 80 gig and 160 gig hard drives; Windows XP Home; M-Audio Delta 66 sound card; Alesis Photon x 25 midi controller/sound card; many hardware sound modules, keyboards and softsynths.
RC Johnson
n-Track has been a lifesaver for me (as much as my life depends on recording 
). My system is 200MHz – 200! – and v3.3 runs pretty nicely on it. I tried Pro Tools Free and it was like molasses. Tracktion is better but still so taxing on the CPU that it can’t handle much actual music. n-Track is definitely rough around the edges, but it definitely works for me.
(Still haven’t tried v4 yet, though…)
i’ve had a good run with n-track. i stay away from beta’s unless i have time between projects to contribute to bug testing/reporting. it’s had ups and downs for me, but i have a stable recording system 98% of the time these days.
i feel n-track needs a better beta testing system, something more organized, like a closed beta testing group. i think this way the builds that are posted to the site will be more stable and will have most of the bugs already worked out.
Uh…er…um…
All good things about Ntrack aside. --Too many to list IMHO.
If your having particular problems you would like solved I’ve found it’s best to list your system IE Processor speed, soundcard, OS, ect.
Plenty of people here, as you can see to walk you through, and get this puppy runnin’ on pretty much any system…but we have to know “what” system, first. 
And if we find your particular system is too slow or outdated to run the current version, we will gladly give you links to older versions which run on anything from A MMX to P1 330mhz.
Again without knowing, what your on it’s like shooting monkeys in a barrel on our side. 
keep shinin’
jerm
| Quote (mysticsongs @ July 12 2005,00:04) |
| Now in later builds I’m receiving messages during installation requiring me to update my version of .NET. What I see in the future is reaching a point where I update my version of .NET and get caught by a Microsoft bug and screw up my entire operating system. |
Wow, talk about yer slippery slope!
There’s probably as much chance of .NET screwing up your “entire operating system” as there is with upgrading any other program. It’s not as critical to the OS as something like a Windows Service Pack or drivers. I’m not saying I’m an advocate or fan of .NET, but updating it is not nearly as dangerous or critical as you think.| Quote (mysticsongs @ July 12 2005,00:04) |
| This won’t be Flavio’s fault, but it will be my fault for allowing myself to get sucked in to a Microsoft problem. |
| Quote (mysticsongs @ July 12 2005,00:04) |
| …we shouldn’t have to jump through hoops in order to have a stable platform for recording music in midi and/or wav format. Tracktion 2 has proved to me that it can be done. |
I’m glad that you have found something that works well–even perfectly?–on your system. There are also those here who paid $75 or less for n-Track over a year ago and are running it without problems on their system. So I say, whatever suits your needs and budget, go for it.
Anyway, I downloaded the Tracktion 2 demo out of curiousity and gave it a spin. I loaded my “benchmark” set of wave files–13 stereo tracks at 24/96KHz–into a default Tracktion project, no effects added, started playback, and started getting dropouts after about a minute. Opened up the same waves in n-Track 4.04 (a .sng project, with effects)…no dropouts. Turning off all effects brought the CPU usage down to where Tracktion’s was (11% in n-Track; Tracktion doesn’t seem to have a number displayed, but it looked about the same).
So again, it depends on what works best for you and your system. I’m trying to go with 24/96 as much as possible, and I can’t have dropouts. Others are happy with 24/44.1 or their systems can handle 24/96 better than mine. Anyhow, n-Track is working fine for me thus far, and I truly value Flavio’s responsiveness in fixing the bugs that I do find.
System specs: 1.8GHz AMD Athlon (2500+), 512MB RAM, 80GB and 200GB drives, Windows 2000 Pro, Audiophile 2496.
Tony