9/2/2005 8:06:41 PM

9/5/2005 11:51:37 AM

Hopefully one of the developers can shake himself free long enough to answer your question.

I know that the current version of SSP has problems with hyperthreaded processors and runs best with hyperthreading turned off.

I don't remember hearing if V7 is addressing that or not.

 

9/7/2005 9:03:31 PM

Athlon 64 processors do not have have hyper threading.  That is an Intel feature.

9/8/2005 7:19:08 AM

Is the "X2" in "Athlon 64 X2 3800+ 2.0Ghz" an AMD badge, or does it mean 2 processors?

9/8/2005 7:09:02 PM

Overall the system you are proposing is way better than what I am using now.  I would think it should keep you happy for a long time.

In the forseeable future you might want to add RAM and you may run out of hard drive space if you store a lot of videos.  It should be a while before those upgrades would be needed.

9/9/2005 4:49:26 PM

We have not tested SSP yet on a 64-bit system running the 64-bit version of Windows.  However, if you are running the 32-bit version of Windows, I wouldn't expect a problem.

9/9/2005 4:56:34 PM

However, we have not tested on a dual core system yet either.  On these systems, there does exists the possibility of problems.  If so, they will be addressed in V7.

9/9/2005 5:00:26 PM

When v5.5 came out, there was a 'system requirements' blurb on the SSP website, it is still there..  Are there any changes to that for SSP7?

Thanks,
Mike

9/9/2005 7:02:24 PM

As far as the case goes, may I recommend more than $45 be spent? Same goes with the power supply. That's a power system you have there, and cases/power supplies are not something to be skimped on.

Here are some cases that you might want to look into:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811133154
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811112078
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811129154

As well as a few power supplies:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817151023
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817103924

I have a computer with much lower specs than yours, and it consistenly ran at very high temperatures in a case with 2 x 80mm fan (it now runs fine in a Sonata II). I have also read many times about an underpowered power supply causing freezes/instability. Athlon 64 x2 + 6800 GT will need alot of power + cooling.

David Migl

9/9/2005 11:06:19 PM

I agree!  I'd recommend a 450W power supply to be safe.  With a video card like that, you risk damaging it if there is insufficient power.

Additionally, I'd recommend ditching the floppy drive and, instead, install one of those flash card readers.  Some models will support up to 9 types of flash media.  You'll find this quite handy when importing graphics files from digital cameras.

Purchase a USB floppy drive for the few times you'll actually need to copy something from a 3 1/2" diskette.

9/9/2005 11:09:24 PM

This is still a matter of discussion here internally.  However, our intent at this point is to not implement any new features in V7 (in the forseeable future anyway) that will require additional hardware to function.  In other words, for high-end graphics features, the requirements for 5.5 will be the same as those for version 7.  At least, that is the intent at this time.

9/10/2005 12:28:23 PM

Thanks for all the input, chances are that until 64-bit applications become closer to the norm, I'll be placing Windows XP Pro (32-bit version) on it.  The AMD Athlon 64 X2 means it has dual-cores, so to my understanding, it allows for a LOT of multi-tasking because it's like dual-processors, but merged into one.  I also hear that you don't need 1e^16 (ten-million-billion) Watts to run that processor too, which is cool when comparing to the alternative Pentium D 820(or maybe 830, don't remember).

Anyway, I'll be glad to test out SSP7 under these conditions after we purchase this computer if you'd like, I'm a beta tester for other softwares as well, so I can add it to the routine.  Hold tight and I'll get you an updated price list, I took into account the case and power supply options.

9/10/2005 2:13:21 PM

9/21/2005 11:26:22 PM

a couple of answers as to the AMD questions

A.)  hyper threading as stated before is a feature only found on Intel processors.  it is not to be confused with Hyper-Transport, a completely different feature.

B.) the X2 notation as a new technology out from both manufacturers called "dual core"  it basically has 2 processors on the same die(block you place in the socket for your processor)  information on this can be found on AMD's website as well as several hardware sites out there. 

C.) finally, and the question everyone's been asking about is of course is: "Is it compatible with songshow 7?"  As mentioned by someone else, i can not speak for the programmers at Fowler, however, i am running an Athlon 64 system with songshow currently, and have had no problems to speak of so far, the better question to ask is will they be supporting the move to 64 bit operating systems. I would like to know if i can install Windows XP 64-bit edition without a hitch, and will that equate to a performance increase?  because the 64 bit proessors are being slowed down by an operating system and applications that only run at 32 bits.  So in answer to your question is yes, for now

9/21/2005 11:30:12 PM

and if you have a SATA drive, youre going to need a internal floppy drive to install windows on.  otherwise you wont be able to install windows on your SATA drive

9/22/2005 6:37:08 AM

???

We have a SATA drive and no internal floppy and we haven't had any problems.

9/22/2005 11:02:28 PM

According to Microsoft (as I understand it), 32-bit applications should run just fine on the 64-bit version of Windows.  However, until we (R-Technics and Fowler Productions) agree to provide support for for that version of Windows, I can only say, "use at your own risk."  There is no timeline established yet when support for this will be provided. 

Without a hitch -- I wouldn't count on it, nor is it going to automatically equate to a performance increase.

It's my understanding that the 64-bit processors have been designed to run 32-bit code without penalty.  I take that to mean that 32-bit applications are not necessarily slow down a 64-bit processor.



Actually (for those who care), the SongShow Plus programmers work at R-Technics, not Fowler.


Another issue not mentioned is the dual-core support.  Even when running in 32-bit XP, dual-core systems could present a problem.

I hope to have more information available regarding 64-bit Windows and dual-core hardware available in the upcomming weeks.

9/23/2005 10:51:17 AM

On top of that, it is my understanding that merely going from 32-bits to 64-bits is not intended to improve performance either. The extra bits allow a much larger address space for certain applications requiring it (video editing? database queries?), or for the OS to keep more applications in memory without swapping (servers?) which isn't likely to benefit many desktop systems.

10/17/2005 12:40:41 AM

as far as I know, 64bit system should run 32bit programs with no problems ..... if not a lil bit faster than the 32bit systems.