Disk is too slow or System Overload

Question

Level 1

8 points

Disk is too slow or System Overload

In one of my projects, every time it gets to bar 9 it always gives me the "Disk is too slow or System Overload" warning. I have 24gb of RAM, 6 core 3.33ghz processor, running my project from an external hard drive, and I have frozen all of my tracks except for a few. I have even bounced all of my vst tracks to basic audio tracks as well. This message comes up every single time at the exact same spot of the song, which isn't even the most complicated part of the song. It doesn't have any problems at any other part of the song. I am doing everything at 96khz sample rate which I regret now, and is probably most of the problem, but does anyone know what else I can do to fix this? I also increased my buffer size, made sure know other programs were running, and still nothing.

Logic Pro X, OS X El Capitan (10.11.4)

Posted on Apr 26, 2016 11:33 AM

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Answer 1

Eriksimon

Level 6

15,416 points

Apr 26, 2016 12:47 PM in response to carryonsteve

Is there any recorded audio in your song? If not, you can set the sample frequency back to 44.1 kHz. The question as far as your issue is concerned, is: what happens at bar 9? Try to mute tracks one by one until the issue clears up. A screenshot of your project might also help determining the problem.

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Answer 2

carryonsteve Author

Level 1

8 points

Apr 26, 2016 1:41 PM in response to Eriksimon

Yes there is a good amount of recorded audio. I'm not by my computer right now, but I can already tell you that I have checked all my tracks and at bar 9 and there is no apparent reason for any issues to be happening at that point. No new regions start at that point and I have made sure nothing is happening on any hidden tracks. I'll double check and send a screenshot later but I just don't understand why it's happening there rather than in the more complicated chorus sections. And it only lasts for one bar. Right at bar 10 it's totally fine, and anything before bar 9, maybe it's 8.5, it's fine as well.

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Answer 3

Pancenter

Level 6

14,644 points

Apr 26, 2016 1:43 PM in response to carryonsteve

Are you sure there's no automation at this point or a little ways before or after?

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Answer 4

carryonsteve Author

Level 1

8 points

Apr 26, 2016 1:56 PM in response to Pancenter

I haven't checked the automation, I will a little later, but I don't believe there's any at that point.

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Answer 5

carryonsteve Author

Level 1

8 points

Apr 26, 2016 7:20 PM in response to Eriksimon

Here is a screenshot of the project. As you can see practically every track has been frozen and all of the vst tracks except for two have been bounced. The ones at the top that are not have all of their vst instruments and effects bypassed. There are a couple tracks that have automation turned on but the automation isn't changing anywhere near the spot where it overloads. Where the playhead is at is exactly where it overloads every time.

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Answer 6

Eriksimon

Level 6

15,416 points

Apr 27, 2016 1:43 AM in response to carryonsteve

I can't see any obvious issue, though you do have 33 frozen tracks, meaning that during the entire song Logic is reading 33 different heavy 32 bit files, even at the points where most of the tracks are silent. Silence is also frozen as audio and it takes as much CPU and disk cycles to "play" this silence. So that is overkill - I think that is the problem. You should unfreeze those tracks that have only short pieces of them, and you should perhaps also unfreeze any audio tracks. A better approach for those short pieces is to bounce them in place (BIP), then Logic will only play them where they actually are happening.

To get a more detailed overview of your project, one or two screenshots (whatever fits) of the mixer might help.

But right now, I think it is the 33 freeze files (on the startupo disk?) that is the main issue.

Where is the project stored? Because that is where the freeze files are stored, so that is where they are read from. If that is your startup disk, then that's an extra issue: generally it works better to have a seperate disk just to record audio and freeze files unto, aka where you save your Logic Projects to.

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Answer 7

carryonsteve Author

Level 1

8 points

Apr 27, 2016 2:43 PM in response to Eriksimon

You were right! I simply unfroze some of the tracks and that fixed it. Thanks for the helpful information and tips.

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Answer 8

Eriksimon

Level 6

15,416 points

Apr 27, 2016 11:38 PM in response to carryonsteve

You're welcome Steve! 🙂

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