Ableton Forum

So it seems that a few people with these machines are experiencing particularly bad problems with Live considering their spec. I have started this thread so those of us affected can collate some test information…. Can i suggest we all submit our results for the following:



1. Live Performance Test, Live's CPU reading AND Activity Monitor's while running the test.

2. Xbench - overall system test result and CPU test result only

3. Core Duo Temp - Current processor Frequency with Live Performance Test....both idle and running

Ok here's mine:

1. Live 135%
Activity Monitor 126%

2. Xbench Overall 52 (Higher scores are better here)
CPU 41.2

3. Core Duo Temp.

Processor Freq. Idle: 1.33ghz
Processor Freq. Test: 1.33ghz


If anyone has any better ideas for a test….please be my guest

Installed Coolbook

Now my test is down to 48% (previously 135%) Live's CPU and 105% Activity Monitor.(Previously 126%) No audio glitches on 8 tracks.

It would seem, as i suspected, that the stepping on the Santa Rosa chip was just not working at all. Previously, under load, there was no evident change to the CPU frequency. Now it reacts properly when the Live Performance Test is running.

Mammalux wrote:Installed Coolbook

Now my test is down to 48% (previously 135%) Live's CPU and 105% Activity Monitor.(Previously 126%) No audio glitches on 8 tracks.

It would seem, as i suspected, that the stepping on the Santa Rosa chip was just not working at all. Previously, under load, there was no evident change to the CPU frequency. Now it reacts properly when the Live Performance Test is running.

Very good information - thanks! So it would seem that Coolbook DOES work (at least somewhat) on Santa Rosa chips? You should (if not already) officially report this to Apple and Ableton. The more details they have the better!

Thanks Mammalux!

mammalux.you really made my day today.havent installed cookbook yet,but i am about to.

earsmack wrote:

Mammalux wrote:Installed Coolbook

Now my test is down to 48% (previously 135%) Live's CPU and 105% Activity Monitor.(Previously 126%) No audio glitches on 8 tracks.

It would seem, as i suspected, that the stepping on the Santa Rosa chip was just not working at all. Previously, under load, there was no evident change to the CPU frequency. Now it reacts properly when the Live Performance Test is running.

Very good information - thanks! So it would seem that Coolbook DOES work (at least somewhat) on Santa Rosa chips? You should (if not already) officially report this to Apple and Ableton. The more details they have the better!

Thanks Mammalux!

Reported to Ableton.....will get onto Apple

Just ran a test with Reason 4 too.....cpu activity in Activity Monitor halved.....this is more like it.....

Mammalux wrote:Installed Coolbook

Now my test is down to 48% (previously 135%) Live's CPU and 105% Activity Monitor.(Previously 126%) No audio glitches on 8 tracks.

It would seem, as i suspected, that the stepping on the Santa Rosa chip was just not working at all. Previously, under load, there was no evident change to the CPU frequency. Now it reacts properly when the Live Performance Test is running.

Questions about coolbook:

What settings are you using?

Didi you buy it? or were you able to determine that it would work with your Santa Rosa chip even before buying?

...and lastly, you should probably still call Apple Care and have them look at your laptop, your results were significantly worse than the others. At the least get the 3 year warrantee.

are there any bad long term side effects coolbook can have on your mac? i don't get how there can be such a harmless and expensive 3rd party solution to this problem; i mean, why wouldn't apple just implement something like this into the computer?

dango wrote:i don't get how there can be such a harmless and expensive 3rd party solution to this problem; i mean, why wouldn't apple just implement something like this into the computer?

I'm afraid that's kind of the "Apple Way", as I see it - I'm a cross-platform guy, my next laptop will very likely be a mac, but a lot of stuff is kept away for us not to tinker with. Today my wife wanted to change the icon of iCal in Leopard... can't be done without a bunch of hacking, either. Stuff like that.

Does any of you know if the speed stepping sets in with the Mac Mini as well? I tried Coolbook last night and the CPU freq jumped between 2004 & 1002 mhz.

Didn't do the new performance test yet, though.

-M

Machinesworking wrote:

Mammalux wrote:Installed Coolbook

Now my test is down to 48% (previously 135%) Live's CPU and 105% Activity Monitor.(Previously 126%) No audio glitches on 8 tracks.

It would seem, as i suspected, that the stepping on the Santa Rosa chip was just not working at all. Previously, under load, there was no evident change to the CPU frequency. Now it reacts properly when the Live Performance Test is running.

Questions about coolbook:

What settings are you using?

Didi you buy it? or were you able to determine that it would work with your Santa Rosa chip even before buying?

...and lastly, you should probably still call Apple Care and have them look at your laptop, your results were significantly worse than the others. At the least get the 3 year warrantee.

Settings are 2400Mhz at 1.1500v, Medium Throttling and temp limit of
75 degrees C.

Yes I bought it. I read about the partial Santa Rosa support before purcahse but as far as I understand this relates to changing the settings for battery performance. I have left those as they are.

I have a 3 year warranty with apple care and I will get it looked at. I am interested to see how many others on the santa rosa chip are experiencing the same problems before I approach them though as I feel this will give me some leverage. I would prefer not to be using coolbook but actually installing it was the final step in confirming my suspicions as to what exactly was going on.....especially having read how the ATI radeon cards in the pre santa rosa MBPs had had their GPU clocks seriously capped by Apple. I understand the heat concerns but as you can set a temperature limit in coolbook that allays my fears

Oh and despite my results being worse than the others as far as Live's CPU meter was concerned, actually in the activity monitor they appeared to be the same. I don't understand how that could be the case but there you go.

Ok here's mine:

1. Live 47% with 8 tracks
Activity Monitor 104%

2. Xbench Overall 122.15
CPU 144.36

3. Core Duo Temp.

not sure where to get the reading for this one?

Mammalux wrote:It would seem, as i suspected, that the stepping on the Santa Rosa chip was just not working at all. Previously, under load, there was no evident change to the CPU frequency. Now it reacts properly when the Live Performance Test is running.

Wow, that is a horrible bug. So someone buying one of these right now is effectively buying a 1.3ghz dual core, at least if they are not tech-savvy?

Nice,

Good to know all this testing was good for something!

Happy, happy, joy, joy.

Lo-Fi Massahkah wrote:Does any of you know if the speed stepping sets in with the Mac Mini as well? I tried Coolbook last night and the CPU freq jumped between 2004 & 1002 mhz.

Didn't do the new performance test yet, though.

-M

Try coolbook. It will answer all your questions. Just download the demo. Once you have it running it should show you whether or not your processor is steppin'.