32 or 64bit - That is the question...

jchas · 17th May 2008

We're building a new machine and finally upgrading from Cakewalk PA9 and 2-Echo Audio Gina's, to Sonar-7 and 2 Audiofire-12's. Software and hardware are ordered and assembly is underway. The question is - Should we go XP-32bit or 64-bit?
All the hardware we are buying is fully 64-bit compatable, as is Sonar. 64-bit would render our versions of Autotune and Waves useless, but from what i've seen of the Sonar plugins that might not be an issue. Other than the usual suspects - future hardware/software conflicts and larger file sizes - what are some of the issues you've come up against, either positive or negative, that would help us make the best move forward?

Brenz · 17th May 2008

XP 32-bit is safe(r) and has been proven to function well everytime (or most of the time).

21doors · 17th May 2008

Check the Sonar Forum and you will find many reasons to avoid Vista. Xp seems to be great always.

Bob Olhsson · 17th May 2008

It's important to not confuse 64 bit floating point math with 64 bit RAM addressing.

My understanding is that the only advantage of a 64 bit OS for a DAW is if you want to be able to play lots of samples out of more than 4 gigs of RAM. For ordinary recording editing and mixing a 32 bit system is every bit as good and probably lots more stable thanks to years of bug fixes.

At the moment Vista SP1 is actually outperforming XP pro SP3 on my machine since I upgraded the video drivers. Some software incompatabilities keep me from using it but I wouldn't put much stock in all of the ranting about Vista.

theother · 18th May 2008

I'm happy on Vista 64. No issues at all. (Finally! Since Waves upgraded their installer and Ivory came with the update)

I use lots of samples and need the extra RAM. Use Nuendo 4 32-bit though.

jchas · 19th May 2008

Thanks for the input. We've considered the RAM issue, but using OB effects and having high quality hardware keyboards I don't think that would be an issue under 32-bit, but of course that could change. And XP being a dead end doesn't concern me much. I mean, the current machine is still running flawlessly under Windows '98 with over 24 tracks of audio.

I appreciate the input i've gotten from a few different forums. For what it's worth, I tallied your input below. I won't buy based on the vote - but the actual answers will help to make the right decision (for me anyway).

32-bit = 11
64-bit = 4
XP = 5
Vista = 2
Screw it and buy a MAC = 2

17th May 2008	#1
jchas Lives for gear Joined: Mar 2005 Location: Minnesota Posts: 935 Thread Starter	32 or 64bit - That is the question... We're building a new machine and finally upgrading from Cakewalk PA9 and 2-Echo Audio Gina's, to Sonar-7 and 2 Audiofire-12's. Software and hardware are ordered and assembly is underway. The question is - Should we go XP-32bit or 64-bit? All the hardware we are buying is fully 64-bit compatable, as is Sonar. 64-bit would render our versions of Autotune and Waves useless, but from what i've seen of the Sonar plugins that might not be an issue. Other than the usual suspects - future hardware/software conflicts and larger file sizes - what are some of the issues you've come up against, either positive or negative, that would help us make the best move forward?

17th May 2008	#4
Bob Olhsson Motown legend Joined: Jun 2002 Location: Songwriter Gulch, Nashville TN Posts: 10,878	It's important to not confuse 64 bit floating point math with 64 bit RAM addressing. My understanding is that the only advantage of a 64 bit OS for a DAW is if you want to be able to play lots of samples out of more than 4 gigs of RAM. For ordinary recording editing and mixing a 32 bit system is every bit as good and probably lots more stable thanks to years of bug fixes. At the moment Vista SP1 is actually outperforming XP pro SP3 on my machine since I upgraded the video drivers. Some software incompatabilities keep me from using it but I wouldn't put much stock in all of the ranting about Vista. __________________ Bob's room 615 562-4346 Georgetown Masters 615 254-3233 Music Industry 2.0 Interview

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17th May 2008	#2
Brenz Gear Head Joined: Mar 2008 Posts: 40	XP 32-bit is safe(r) and has been proven to function well everytime (or most of the time).

17th May 2008	#3
21doors Gear nut Joined: Mar 2007 Posts: 104 4 Reviews written	Check the Sonar Forum and you will find many reasons to avoid Vista. Xp seems to be great always.

18th May 2008	#5
theother Lives for gear Joined: Dec 2004 Location: London, UK Posts: 2,089	I'm happy on Vista 64. No issues at all. (Finally! Since Waves upgraded their installer and Ivory came with the update) I use lots of samples and need the extra RAM. Use Nuendo 4 32-bit though.

19th May 2008	#6
jchas Lives for gear Joined: Mar 2005 Location: Minnesota Posts: 935 Thread Starter	Thanks for the input. We've considered the RAM issue, but using OB effects and having high quality hardware keyboards I don't think that would be an issue under 32-bit, but of course that could change. And XP being a dead end doesn't concern me much. I mean, the current machine is still running flawlessly under Windows '98 with over 24 tracks of audio. I appreciate the input i've gotten from a few different forums. For what it's worth, I tallied your input below. I won't buy based on the vote - but the actual answers will help to make the right decision (for me anyway). 32-bit = 11 64-bit = 4 XP = 5 Vista = 2 Screw it and buy a MAC = 2