8.0.4 Bad RAM management causing 'Serious Program Error'

[defcon1351]

I'm using a PC, as stated above.

A few people have given me some good PC RAM tweaks, but ultimately there is an issue with Live 8 and bad RAM management on PCs, which I'm hoping will get resolved in the next release. One thing that I think we need to strongly suggest is some kind of warning or meter that alerts users when they are running low on RAM and also something that doesn't allow new instances of VSTs when they are going to cause a permanent crash to the session. A simple "cannot add this instrument to session as RAM is running too low" would be fantastic if it is possible.

dude how old is the system, i have the same version your running and im useing a pc, why not reload your system, or before doing that why not update ableton for any hot fixes or patches that might resolve any issues with your personal computer

What do you mean by system (Ableton install, Windows install, PC build?)? And what hofixes are you talking about.... This isn't an issue with my PC unfortunately.

I'm talking about Live crashing regularly, permanently and badly when it starts running low on RAM and I'm saying that it doesn't even need to max out the RAM to do this. I'm also saying it happens when VSTs are first loaded, prior to even playing them, which makes it a critical issue. A lot of people are having this experience and it is a problem with Ableton as I have seen it a lot in this forum and support have told me they're working with it. My system is working well, all my VSTs and srivers are up to date and neither Live 7 or any other program has the same issue.

I know people use the program for different things (the joy of Live) but I use it as my main writing, recording and production tool for music in all sorts of genres. I co-write a lot with artists using it too. I use a lot of RAM heavy VSTs along with my own drum racks as they produce instant, great results that I need in these situations. I have done this for 3 years and I know the program inside out. Live 8 has problems that it hasn't had before for people working in the way I do, due to it crashing way too often when RAM gets used heavily and this has to be resolved. I never even had to visit this forum before to ask for advice and help as I only had great experiences with Ableton Live 5, 6, and 7. This version is the worst yet for people using Live for writing and production, I'm sure of it.

But I know the Ableton guys will fix these issues as they're great and they have made the program what it is.

Let's just all share our experiences of this issue and help them work it out.

several possibilities

1) bad ram/bad cpu
2) bad operating system install
3) bad or conflicting software or hardware with ableton


sorry playing xbox right now

[wildcon]

Hey Wildcon, is there any pattern to what kind of session you are operating when it crashes (i.e. sessions that use a lot of third party VSTs or samples) or is there a certain action that crashes it, such as adding a VST or playing back a certain number of audio tracks

I can't see any pattern at all.

However I'm not big on Live effects and instruments so 'all' of my projects will have 3rd party plugs.

I was working on a project on the weekend that was crashing that only had FM8 and that was not operational just part of my initial default screen. I have got Breverb on the master again on default, so I may try and remove that. I'm reluctant to remove FM8 from the startup as I've always had a problem loading it from the browser!

I have 2 gig, but how do I measure the RAM usuage?

I have used Live since version 6 on this laptop and have hardly ever had a crash. AS I say it is DAW configured so no internet over the top graphics etc.

Cheers

[saintsaviour]

Wildcon, you can use your task manager (ctrl, alt, del) and look at the 'processes' tab to see how much RAM Live is using. One of the root causes of my problems that I have discovered is that it is using 400MB in a resting state, with no plugins at all loaded. I load one Spectrasonics plugin and I'm using nearly 1 GB. This is not good and not right. Let me know what yours is taking up of your memory if can.

Also, if anyone else can let us know what their Live 8 is taking up in terms of memory when you load it without any plugins or returns that would be great.

[defcon1351]

Hey Wildcon, is there any pattern to what kind of session you are operating when it crashes (i.e. sessions that use a lot of third party VSTs or samples) or is there a certain action that crashes it, such as adding a VST or playing back a certain number of audio tracks

I can't see any pattern at all.

However I'm not big on Live effects and instruments so 'all' of my projects will have 3rd party plugs.

I was working on a project on the weekend that was crashing that only had FM8 and that was not operational just part of my initial default screen. I have got Breverb on the master again on default, so I may try and remove that. I'm reluctant to remove FM8 from the startup as I've always had a problem loading it from the browser!

I have 2 gig, but how do I measure the RAM usuage?

I have used Live since version 6 on this laptop and have hardly ever had a crash. AS I say it is DAW configured so no internet over the top graphics etc.

Cheers

just remember i dont remember if this is the same post or not but in that report that you recieved with all those weird hash values, well thats were the problem is, the only problem is deciphering the ciphertext to determine were exactly the error took place. i seriously doubt it is a ram issue, unless you have multiple processes running that are not supported by ableton,

[rjega]

hi all!

got exactly the same problem with my new liveset under live 8.0.2 and 8.0.4, xp home. the set though is runing perfectly under vista!

i dont have spectrasonics working, only artillery2.

happy for any help!!