Technical Performance for new PC: RAM

I need a new PC and have a quad core. By now I have 8 RAM but it seems sometime slowwhen working on a series of 300-800 photos
What would be the effect of 16 RAM with the new 4. generation PCs quad core 4x 2,0 GH
Thanks

Hallo,
I have no specific step in mind, but always when you need to render and change format / size (2:1)
14 mio pixel
Thanks
Johannes
Von: dj_paige [email protected]
Gesendet: Donnerstag, 5. Dezember 2013 16:29
An: JoeSchmid
Betreff: Technical Performance for new PC: RAM
Re: Technical Performance for new PC: RAM
created by dj_paige <http://forums.adobe.com/people/dj_paige> in Photoshop Lightroom - View the full discussion <http://forums.adobe.com/message/5903287#5903287

Similar Messages

WAD-Analysis Item-Poor performance for new lines

Hi.
I use WAD7 for entering new records in IP.
According to our business requirements, in analysis item properties I have defined "Number of New Lines in Planning Queries" = 50.
After that I face before extremely poor performance - it takes about 1-2 minutes until the page has loaded (note that it is empty page - only new blank rows).
When I define new lines = 1 performance is very good (2-3 sec).
Does anybody know what could be the problem ?
Thanks.

Hello Andrey,
the number of new lines configured in WAD is completely unknown in the ABAP backend and has no impact on backend performance; in fact, the front end gets information about one 'line' of template cells, this costs nothing.
Checks for characteristic relationships etc. only may have significant costs for cells of the result set, not for new lines.
Whether this problem comes from the ABAP backed or form the Java stack or from the browser rendering can be checked
with an RSTT trace. Is the run time of the trace different between 1 or 50 new lines, were different backend calls recorded?
If not, the problem comes from the Java stack or from the browser rendering. One can check the latter via task manager.
To check (partially) the run time in Java and/or ABAP stack add the parameter &PROFILING=X in the url, cf. note 1048691.
Regards,
Gregor

Best option for better performance? Graphics card, RAM or new machine

Hi,
When running After Effects CS4 and rendering a layered effects scene I've notice the system and rendering time seem a little sluggish so I'm wanting to improve the systems performance and I'm wondering what my best route would be to achieve this.
New Graphics card?
More Ram?
Upgrade Mac for new model?
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
I currently have the following spec:
Hardware Overview:
Model Name: Mac Pro
Model Identifier: MacPro1,1
Processor Name: Dual-Core Intel Xeon
Processor Speed: 2.66 GHz
Number Of Processors: 2
Total Number Of Cores: 4
L2 Cache (per processor): 4 MB
Memory: 5 GB
Bus Speed: 1.33 GHz
Boot ROM Version: MP11.005C.B08
Graphics Card
NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT:
Chipset Model: NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT
Type: GPU
Bus: PCIe
Slot: Slot-1
PCIe Lane Width: x16
VRAM (Total): 512 MB
Vendor: NVIDIA (0x10de)
Device ID: 0x0602
Revision ID: 0x00a2
ROM Revision: 3233
Displays:
Display Connector:
Status: No Display Connected
Cinema HD:
Resolution: 2560 x 1600
Pixel Depth: 32-Bit Color (ARGB8888)
Main Display: Yes
Mirror: Off
Online: Yes
Rotation: Supported
Thanks
Mark

> I found this under After Effects features, So is this a lie?
Native
64-bit operating system support, multiprocessor utilization, and
OpenGL acceleration help you work faster, taking full advantage of your
computer's power. Unmatched integration with other Adobe software
further streamlines your workflow.
Of the three things mentioned (64-bit, multiprocessing, and OpenGL), two are hugely important and one is minor.
> OpenGL—Interactive or OpenGL—Always On
OpenGL
mode provides high-quality previews that require less rendering time
than other playback modes. OpenGL can also be used to speed up rendering
to final output. OpenGL features in After Effects rely on OpenGL
features of your video hardware.
Yep. It can speed things up. Some. And at the expense of fidelity with the CPU renderer. The OpenGL-Interactive mode is the only one that most people use.
> So you'll need to explain the above comment because I'm not clear about
what you're stating, or at least the part about OpenGl not being
relevant to AE at all.
I said that "OpenGL is not very relevant at all to After Effects", not that it isn't relevant at all.
To use a car metaphor: If I wanted a car that went fast, I'd focus on horsepower, low-weight materials, and good tires first. Then, if I'd maxed all of those factors and still had some money left over, I might buy a spoiler for the back. But that wouldn't be my first area of focus.
Graphics cards can be very expensive. I see far too many people spend all of their budget on this less-important item and neglect the less expensive and more important factors like extra RAM and a second fast hard disk. I'm trying to keep you from making the same mistake.
BTW, the graphics card is much, much more important for Premiere Pro CS5. But that's a conversation for the Premiere Pro hardware forum.

Cost of extra RAM for newer MacBook Pro.

I'm considering (checking my budget) buying a new MacBook Pro 15" for my wife. As she also needs to access some Windows programs, I want to bump the 4GB to 8GB. Does anyone know the cost for the extra RAM?
Pete F.

Hi Pete,
4GB RAM modules are still quite expensive.
MacSales sells 8GB (2x 4GB) for USD 277.99 for example with the opportunity to trade-in the 'old' modules.
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/memory/AppleMacBook_MacBookPro/Upgrade/DDR3
Regards
Stefan

How to check the usage of ram and cpu Performance for the particular application like sqlserver ,ms word

how to check the usage of ram and cpu Performance for the particular application like sqlserver ,ms word
ranki

Hi,
You can use Performance Monitor and add the required counters.
Check the below Technet article on Performance Monitor.
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc749249.aspx
Below are the steps to monitor the process in Performance Monitor.
- Go to the Performance Monitor.
- Right-click on the graph and select "Add Counters".
- In the "Available counters" list, open the "Process" section by clicking on the down arrow next to it. Select "% Processor Time" (and any other counter you want).
- In the "Instances of selected object" list, select the process you want to track. Then click on "Add >>" button. Click on OK.
Regards,
Jack
www.jijitechnologies.com

How much RAM should I install for new iMAC ?

Hi,
How much RAM should I install for new iMAC* running Logic Studio? It comes with 4 GB - is that enough? (can you run in 64 bit mode..)
*(The 21.5" 3.06GHz Intel Core 2 Duo)
Also, I was planning to get the stock 1 TB Hard Drive & save projects to an external drive.
Does that sound reasonable?
Any other recommendations?
Thanks,
Wm Heart

Unless you plan on running huge projects with enormous sampled instruments, 4 GB will do (very) fine. And your disk plan is sound. Choose an external Firewire drive, rather than USB. FW is easier on the CPU and can handle more tracks than USB.
What you should get, instead of more memory, is a (24 bit) external audio interface, if you want to do serious recording and playback.
What type of audio interface you'ld need, depends on what you want to do with it and of course your budget. From decent to brilliant costs from roughly 100 to several 1,000's of europounddollars. Avoid the 16 bit ones, they're worse than the inbuilt audio chip of your iMac. You can recognize 16 bit Audio Interfaces (in webshops) by their prize (often under 100€£$) and the lack of mention of their bitrate.
HTH
Regards, Erik.

MOVED: Best choice for new RAM on nForce SLI Platinum

This topic has been moved to Overclockers & Modding Corner.
Best choice for new RAM on nForce SLI Platinum

Quote from: dmostert on 06-April-05, 17:39:39
OK,
So it would then seem that going for the tighter PC3200 RAM is better that going for the more relaxed PC4000 RAM
It would also seem that the Corsair is a slightly better buy than the Kingston In general, which overclocks better Corsair or Kingston?
Thanks,
D.
Kingstone have a reputation for producing faster compatible memory to replace that found in HP, compaq's etc. Corsair do have a reputation for producing memory for overlockers. Note that dosn't mean memory which overlclocks, it means memory which overlockers can use to push the FSB harder and overlock the CPU.
This is really not a problem for AMD64 users. P4 systems have a poor memory peroformance, and hate running asych. You can push an AMD64 by running the memory asynch without noticing from my expericnace testing my system.
My current system is running at 305 FSB, 1/180 devisor for 275mhz. Everest benchmarks my latency at 43ns, read speed 7300mb/s, write speed 2800mb/s.

Video card question for new iMac

Howdy all,
I'm about to order a new BTO iMac, and I'm wondering if somebody could give me feedback on the two different video cards available.
Cost is not really a concern here (I would rather spend more on the video card and cut back on something like RAM for now because RAM can be upgraded later). My main concern is performance and the best image quality.
I understand the NVidia would be faster for 3D gaming than the ATI - which I would use a little bit. So the NVidia would seem to be a no-brainer.
However, I've heard a couple people (on various forums) state that although the NVidia is definitaly faster for gaming - it performs slower than the ATI at some tasks like iMovie and iDVD tasks and text scrolling and motion are not as good.
For me, I would love to have the faster 3D gaming speed of the NVidia for the few times I do game...but the most important thing to me is image quality for things like photo and video editing, working with documents etc. Are any of these thoughts regarding the NVidia vs ATI true?
Does anybody have any advice regarding the performance these two cards? Any help would be really appreciated. Thanks!
Sully

I had the 20" 2.16 (late 2006 model) with the x1600 128MB and now have the 24" 2.8 2600Pro 256MB and 2G stock RAM. It's night and day with Call of Duty 2. I am able to play COD2 in 16:9 mode, all graphic settings max'd out and the fps? Wow! One most maps it ranges between 190-270fps! That smokes the previous version of 40-90fps. One the most complex maps my 24" drops to 90-110 range. Seriosuly, anything above about 60fps is perfectly playable! I'm thrilled with the stock card. However, COD2 is older, I play it native in OS X and do not game in boot camp. That may change a few things.

How do you get your experts with negative stance for new things / innovations to HANA

We have over 50 ABAP developer (senior experts). Primarily we develop in the old core module (SD, MM, FI, CO, HR, PP, CS, IH, PS) on ERP systems / business suite.
We have three groups of developer:
Group 1: They can’t await to work on new architectures – they’re open for all and have fun to work as a pioneer and dig in the deep of the system
Group 2: For this developer it’s all the same – for this people it’s not a problem to go to a other architectures
Group 3: They have no interest
to work in new architectures
to spend time to learn new things
they are very closed for new things
they have for all topics bad statements
I am part of the group 1. In my opinion in the IT it’s normal to spend much time at new topics in free time to keep up to date. New topics / innovative things make the developer job very exciting. For me it’s regular process – and that’s my own passion .
Since two month we have our own HANA system in our data centre as play field :-) (business suite on SAP HANA). I’ve some colleagues who made the HANA certification – and we made the first steps in our system. For group 1 and group 2 everything is okay and they’ve fun .
We have problems with the group 3. They find every hair in the soup – they spend very much time to search arguments against HANA. That’s our “negative group” . We copied our SAP System to a new system and made a technical migration. Now they compare the SAP System, which is based on an oracle datebase, with the new SAP System which is based on a HANA System. They go through the standard ERP process (offer / order / purchase order / goods movements / delivery / MM invoice / SD invoice / material master data / customer master data / vendor master data / conditions / financial bookings / etc.). They main argument is, that they can’t see a grow up of the performance / the added value of the invest / etc. Our other problem is that the group of this people have experience over 20 years in ABAP developing – and their opinion have a high weight. The other arguments: IBM and oracle are working on similar architectures – and we can hold on on the open sqlsyntax / on the present coding.
Have you similar problems to get the acceptance of group 3?
Have you tips / tricks for us?
Have you ideas for catching the group 3?
What standard components are really optimized for HANA?
In which standard components can we see a really performance grow up?
There are standard use cases to see the differences?
Which data volume do we need in the data model to see the differences?
What can we do to take the group 3 with us?
How can we open the group 3 for innovations?

Hi,
Please find my reply below.
1. Have you similar problems to get the acceptance of group 3?
In IT world we have similar groups. Only results help this group3. I would suggest showcasing on results.
2. Have you tips / tricks for us?
As you mentioned in your email, you already have HANA System to play with. So I would suggest looking at high performance transactions like MRP run and FICO Month-end Close.
3. Have you ideas for catching the group 3?
SAP has few use cases. Take-up these use cases build data models and use in ERP.
4. What standard components are really optimized for HANA?
Recently in our organization we replaced database from DB2 with HANA. Now our SAP ECC is running on HANA. Straight away we have seen 30% of performance improvement in all the transactions. SAP is providing optimized SAP Transactions and there is significant performance improvement and SAP Road Map clearly talks about providing more optimized SAP Transactions on top of HANA to its customers.
We tried to push some of our high performance code to DB layer by creating the Data Models and using those views in SAP ABAP Programs or Transactions. This gave us significant performance improvement.
Please refer to below document. This has list of standard optimized transactions.
Link
5. In which standard components can we see a really performance grow up?
This blog throws light on following high performance transactions.
Link
6. There are standard use cases to see the differences?
Use Case
7. Which data volume do we need in the data model to see the differences?
MRP run transaction has huge performance issue you can work on MRP Run data model.
8. What can we do to take the group 3 with us?
Only Proof of Concepts (POC) results will help to take this group.
9. How can we open the group 3 for innovations?
As per your email, I feel group 3 is most demotivated group. I would suggest to talk to each individual and understand there areas of interest and try to put them in their areas of interest. As per my experience this will give good results.
-VJ.

Looking for new laptop what are the differences between pro and air? Besides size. Does the air preform like the pro?

Looking for new laptop what are the differences between pro and air? Besides size. Does the air preform like the pro?

The NEW macbook Pro and Air are EXTREMELY close in form factor
The newest macbook Pro is essentially a larger macbook Air with Retina display and options for speed in increasing prices up to an independent graphics and quad core processor.
both Air and new Pro now have PCIe SSD and permanent RAM.
The Air is the lightweight portable form factor, fast to boot and shut down, but with longer battery life than any of the macbook pro in 13"
Now the new macbook Pro and macbook Air are extremely close in form factor and nature.
both have 802ac wifi
both have permanent RAM, no superdrive
both are slim profiles and SSD
The only real differences now are (in the most expensive Pros) faster processors and quadcore processors and top end model autonomous graphics.
....and of course the retina display
both are now "very good for travel"
Other than features the form factor of the Air and Pro are VERY close now,....so now its merely a matter of features and price more than anything.
You need an external HD regardless of what you get for backups etc. Drop into an Apple store and handle both and make your choice based on features, such as Retina or non-retina, .... both at a distance now look like the same computer.
The Pro weighs more, ....but nowhere near what it used to just a month ago on the older macbook Pros
The NEW macbook Pro is a different creature entirely than the older macbook Pro, .....the new Pro is thicker than the Air, but id frankly call the NEWEST Pro a "macbook Air with Retina display" , or
Maybe a “macbook Air PRO with Retina display”
Instead of Air VS Pro now,.....its really a smooth transition from Air to pro without comparing say, 2 different creatures, now its like contrasting a horse from a race horse.
Either one in 8gig of RAM (preferably)... the 4gig upgrade costs very little, the I7 you will notice only 15% faster on heavy applications over the I5, and NOTHING on most APPS.....I5 has longer battery life.
As you see below, the non-Retina 13" AIR is 82% of the Macbook with Retina display in resolution
there is no magical number of pixels per inch that automatically equates to Retina quality.
http://www.cultofmac.com/168509/why-you-might-be-disappointed-by-the-resolution- of-those-new-retina-display-macs-feature/
A huge internal SSD isnt a game changer for anything, you need an external HD anyway
what you WONT READ on Apple.com etc. is that the larger SSD are MUCH FASTER due to SSD density
"The 512GB Samsung SSD found in our 13-inch model offers roughly a 400MB/s increase in write speeds over the 128GB SanDisk/Marvell SSD"
http://blog.macsales.com/19008-performance-testing-not-all-2013-macbook-air-ssds -are-the-same
Here is an excellent video comparison between the 11” I5 vs. I7 2013 Macbook Air.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDqJ-on03z4
http://www.anandtech.com/show/7113/2013-macbook-air-core-i5-4250u-vs-core-i7-465 0u/2
I5 vs. I7 performance 13” Macbook Air 2013
Boot performance
11.7 I5 ……11.4 I7
Cinebench
1.1 I5….1.41 I7
IMovie Import and Opt.
6.69 I5….5.35 I7
IMovie Export
10.33 I5…8.20 I7
Final Cut Pro X
21.47 I5…17.71 I7
Adobe Lightroom 3 Export
25.8 I5….31.8 I7
Adobe Photoshop CS5 Performance
27.3 I5…22.6 I7
Reviews of the newest Retina 2013 Macbook Pro
13”
Digital Trends (13") - http://www.digitaltrends.com/laptop-...h-2013-review/
LaptopMag (13") - http://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/lap...play-2013.aspx
Engadget (13") - http://www.engadget.com/2013/10/29/m...-13-inch-2013/
The Verge (13") - http://www.theverge.com/2013/10/30/5...ay-review-2013
CNet (13") - http://www.cnet.com/laptops/apple-ma...-35831098.html
15”
The Verge (15") - http://www.theverge.com/2013/10/24/5...w-15-inch-2013
LaptopMag (15") - http://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/lap...inch-2013.aspx
TechCrunch (15") - http://techcrunch.com/2013/10/25/lat...ok-pro-review/
CNet (15") - http://www.cnet.com/apple-macbook-pro-with-retina-2013/
PC Mag (15") - http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2426359,00.asp
Arstechnica (15") - http://arstechnica.com/apple/2013/10...-pro-reviewed/
Slashgear (15") - http://www.slashgear.com/macbook-pro...2013-26303163/

Important hardware items for new pc

I want to buy a new PC.
Which PC components are especially important for a fast PC. I use PS CS6 + ACR 7 * for photo editing.
It is about an affordable PC (about € 800, -) .... not an expensive SUPER-HIGH-END
I think of eg:
Intel i5 or i7 .... what type
What video card? ....
Which memory + how many 8 ... 12 MB
Other important things ......
windows 7 of 8

Balance is important if you want to make the most of your $800. Perhaps the Tom's Hardware builds would be a good place to start.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/build-your-own-gaming-pc-core-i5,3708.html
Except I just looked at the specs and was not altogether convinced, but they did qualify the build as being for Gaming.     Although I actually like 'gaming' focused systems for Photoshop type usage, so long as they use a single GPU. Something to do with economy of scale, I suspect, but they seem to offer a lot of bang for your buck.
The $800 system in this list looks a lot better to me
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/build-your-own-pc-overclocking-hardware,3713.html
Don't worry too much about the thought of over clocking. So long as your temperatures are kept under control, a sensibly pushed CPU is not going to lose significant lifespan. And a lot of boards come with software that automatically ups clock speed only when needed.   There are free apps like Speccy that keep an eye on things for you, and MSI Afterburner that will keep the GPU fan ticking over until it is needed. That last one is a biggy - my computer goes from a bearable hum, to "is there a hovercraft landing outside?" when GPU intensive tasks are performed.
The great thing about computers is that, being modular, they are so easy to upgrade as and when you can afford it. So try not to fill all your RAM slots. 8Gb should be considered a minimum, and 12 or 16Gb would be better. I used to be unconvinced by the need for so much RAM, but having to use my laptop for the last couple of weeks, demonstrated that 16Gb was most definitely OTT.
Think about adding a spare drive just for Photoshop Scratch, down the road. Heck I'd give you one of you were local to me.
Windows 7 or 8???? Hmmmm....    Call me shallow, but I did quite like using Windows 8 on the laptop. although the upgrade to 8.1 caused me some hassle. Then again, I think I am happier being back on my main system with Windows 7. It feels cleaner and I don't have to keep flicking between the desktop and Start screens.
Perhaps the laspt word could be for you to run your short list by us before committing. I found our NZ equivalent of eBay useful when researching my laptop as you can filter by spec, and shortlist by adding to your Watch list. Whatever you get, you are going t love it with knobs on. It's going to feel fresh, snappy, and a pleasure to use.

Choose upgrade processor for new Mini?

I'm considering the purchase of a new Mac MIni 2.3 GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7. I see I can also get it with the 2.6GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7 for $100. additional. What would that mean in performance and is it worth the extra hundred?

I agree. For everyday use, you'll see much better performance for your money with an SSD and the full 16Gb RAM you can add to a Mini. 300mHz will be negligible unless you're doing video editing and authoring, since they're both quad core.

Flashing question mark folder when start iMac after Time Capsule performed a new back up

I switched my iMac on after a few days away and I was asked to start a new back up for Time Capsule to enhance the performance of the device (or something along those lines). Clicked the back up now and carried on, having read the process could take a few hours (not surprising because of the amount of data on my computer).
Left it running overnight and when I came back this morning the computer was off. Switched it on, saw the apple logo and the progress bar but it didn't move past 25% before I had a message in several languages to turn the computer off (and some script in the top left corner. From memory I think I saw <panic> in that script but not 100% sure).
When I switched it back on I had the dreadful flashing question mark so performed steps described in support.apple.com/kb/ts1440 several times and performed a safe Boot. No results.
I haven't reinstalled Mac OS X (step 11 in ts1440) as I don't want to erase the hard drive.
I have plugged the Time Capsule in a MacBook and it seems empty bar 2 very small files so I'm now very worried. I have some questions:
1- I'm not a technical person so is this now a case of bringing the iMac and Time Capsule to an Apple shop or call Apple support when they reopen tomorrow Monday?
2 - Is my data wiped out in the iMac and Time Capsule? If yes is it recoverable - obviously not by me but by an expert?
3 - what created the problem? My Lightroom 3 catalog was corrupted 3-4 times over the last few weeks and was surprised that Time Capsule wanted to perform a new back up but everything otherwise was working fine.
I'm very much looking forward to your help and suggestions.

You have a couple of options and I also have a suggestion for the future. First is you can try Data Rescue software. You can find it at:
http://www.prosofteng.com/products/data_rescue.php
The other is sending the HD out to a professional data recovery service.
My suggestion though is using a redundant backup system. Many on this forum do just that because a backup (as you have found out) can fail too. What I use is TM and on a separate EHD I created a bootable clone using SuperDuper. You can use SuperDuper or Carbon Copy Cloner for this. I'd recommend reading the following MacWorld articles for backup strategies. I think you'll see a recurring them in them and that is redundancy is wise.
Backup Plan
Backup Plan II
Backup Plan III
Also it wasn't a virus, you are correct there are none for OS X.
Good luck on the recovery.

System PSU requirements for new Video Card

I need to know if my system can support a new video card (fx5600 or radeon 9600 up) considering that I only have 300 watts psu. What voltage railing and how much current does these cards use? I cannot find any technical specs for these cards so I cannot compute for the power requirements my system will need if I change video cards.

Given a 300watts PSU, I would not placed my bets on either cards as the Fans don't really eats up the powers, it's the CPU + RAM + Mobo + VGA that are the main power consumers!!!
Considering a recommendation for you to go with the current PSU you have, most probably a GF4 MX440 will max out every supplement there.

Helpful hints for new Creative Zen MP3 2/4/8/16/32 GB (flash) Users On

Summary of helpful hints (from this forum and me) for new Creative Zen MP3 2/4/8/6/32 GB (flash) Users Only!
Rev..
Date: 4/28/2008
Author: ZenAndy
Creative terminology:
MP3 Player Recovery Tool - A program that resolves the majority of player problems quickly.
One click is all it takes to update your player to the latest available firmware, and to give your player a clean bill of health.
Link: http://www.creative.com/products/mp3...me.asp region=
Note: You can also go to "Creative" "Support" "downloads" choose your MP3 Player type to obtain the latest firmware and software releases.
Note: On your Zen you can look under "System" & "Information" and then compare the firmware download
releases OR you can have the "MP3 Player Recovery Tool" (above) do it for you automatically.
Note: Creative Zen 4/8/6 GB "MP3 Recovery Tool" DOES NOT stop on a firmware comparison match.
Note: All firmware releases/revisons for the 4/8/6 GB Zen also works (is the same as) for the 2 GB & 32 GB Zen.
Recovery Mode - If you experience one or more of the following symptoms, it is recommended that you boot the player into its unique Recovery Mode, and then clean up, format or reload the firmware.
. The player is not detected in Creative MediaSource or Windows Media Player
2. The battery does not last as expected
3. Your computer stops responding during file transfers
4. There is a power outage during file transfers
5. There is an error about firmware
6. LCD displays a "Firmware Problem" message
7. Your player is not responding.
8. The player is performing erratically.
Getting Started
. Load your Creative Zen software from CD FIRST and BEFORE plugging the Zen MP3 player, using the short cable, into the PC USB port to charge it.
2. Try charging the Zen MP3 player directly from the USB port on the PC. If not, make sure the USB Hub you are using is adequately powered to provide full charging current to the Zen player. Also, try to have the Zen MP3 player as the only USB device, if possible, on the USB hub.
Some/most Creative Zen flash MP3 Music players come "fully discharged" so, in the mean time, just read the manuals.
FULLY charge the Zen MP3 player for several hours (~4.0 hrs max) until the battery symbol is NOT flashing AND the battery symbol/icon has a small plug/key symbol in the middle.
After the first full charge - additional charging is much quicker about 2 /4 hours. (From 0% empty to full)
3. Go to Creative/Support/Downloads and check for the latest software releases for the Creative Zen. Then check on your Zen MP3 player under System/Information for your firmware revision. Make sure you have the latest software downloaded on your PC and firmware on your Zen MP3 player. < Latest revision [.2.0] 28Feb08>
OR
You can run MP3 Player Recovery Tool - see above.
4. In some cases you might have to do the Recovery Mode "paper clip reset" to get the Zen MP3 flash player started.
See the Zen User's Guide FAQ. The paper clip reset hole is on the bottom edge below the music pause/run switch.
(Not the slotted mic hole on the top edge of the player near the earphone jack and SD card slot!!!)
5. My preference is to have the player shutdown/off before inserting and removing the earphone/headphone plug.
Recovery Mode Using The Paper Clip OR
Alternati've Method For Recovery Mode Without The Paper Clip.
Why use it's
If you experience one or more of the following symptoms:
. The player is not detected in Creative MediaSource or Windows Media Player
2. The battery does not last as expected
3. Your computer stops responding during file transfers
4. There is a power outage during file transfers
5. There is an error about firmware
6. LCD displays a "Firmware Problem" message
7. Your player is not responding.
8. The player is performing erratically.
Save a copy of your player's content, if possible, before cleaning up the memory!
Recovery Mode Using The Paper Clip Reset Method
#. Turn off player if not already turned off
#2. Press/hold play/pause button. If you accidentally release
the button, start this reset procedure over again.
#3. Gently push the end of a metal paper clip into the reset hole on
the botton edge below the play/pause switch.
(Do not use the slotted mic hole at the top edge near the earphone jack)
#4. Slide the on/off/lock switch towards the on position - slide it to the botton hold
until the display lights up and then release.
#5. The recovery mode screen appears and four menu items are shown - see below
<Alternati've Method For Recovery Mode Without The Paper Clip>
#. Turn off player if not already turned off
#2. Press/hold play/pause button. If you accidentally release
the button, start this reset procedure over again.
#3. Slide the on/off/lock switch towards the on position - slide it to the botton hold
until the display lights up and then release. Be patient and wait!
#4. The recovery mode screen appears and four menu items are shown:
< Clean Up> - cleans, rebuilds and reorganizes your player's memory and restores it to optimal efficiency.
When the cleanup is complete, select Reboot. Your player restarts and starts rebuilding its music library.
Note: Your player's firmware is reset to default settings after your player's memory is cleaned up.
Note: This procedure the hide/show password is reset.
<2 Format All>- Warning - Formatting your player erases all content on your player's memory and resets your player's firmware to default settings. If possible, back up all data on your player before proceeding.
Also, you can do this from the PC see Zen User's Guide. FAQ
<3 Reload Firmware> - Caution !!!! Selecting Reload Firmware erases your player's firmware.
DO NOT select Reload Firmware unless you have downloaded a newer firmware version for your player, or have been advised to do so by Creative Customer Support.
Note: My advice when loading/replacing firmware is to connect directly
to the PC USB port without using a USB hub.
<4 Reboot> Restarts the player just like the "on/off/lock switch" when switched ON.
Note: Having NO battery energy/charge/juice this procedure will not work.
Lithium-Ion Polymer Battery Hints
Ref:
http://www.omnica.com/omniview_electronics2.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium_ion_battery
. Allow the battery to completely discharge from time-to-time then recharge it fully.
2. Lithium-Ion batteries loses about 5%- 0% capacity per month.
3. Lithium-Ion polymer batteries have about 300-500 discharge/charge cycles.
4. A half full battery indication (50% @ /2 the battery color) used up about 24 hrs worth of battery. Below 50% the indication goes fairly fast to the max of 30 hrs. Note: The battery level indication seems non-linear through out its range.
5. Battery is Empty~0% - warning screen will appear on LCD and player might shutdown.
6. Battery is Full- 00% with battery symbol NOT flashing AND plug/key symbol in the center of the battery.
7. It takes about 2 /4 hours to charge the battery from empty to full.
8. It takes about 4 hours max to charge a "New" Zen player shipped from the factory.
9. There is a battery manufactuer's failure rate, which is normal ~ % or less, in which the Lithium-Ion Polymer battery refuses to charge. Creative, ships the Zen MP3 players with some or no charge so there is very small probability that you could have one. I call it the "Deep Six Discharge Battery" Contact/call Creative for replacement.
Documentation
There are several pieces of documentation you might need to read to fully understand and use your Creative Zen MP3 flash player to its fullest capabilities.
#. Zen Users Guide "English" - For Zen MP3 Player - download from Creative/Support/Product documentation
#2. Zen Quick Users Guide /Front/Back - download from Creative/Support/Product documentation
#3. Sync Manager (Creative Zen) Click on sync symbol on PC task bar then help
#4. Creative Zen Media Explorer - Just look under the main help menu
#5. Windows Media Player <if used>(Microsoft)Use the help files with this program.
General Tips to increase/decrease the playing time on your Creative Zen flash player.
<Creative Battery Spec: 5 Hrs. Video & "UP TO" 30 Hrs. Audio/Songs>
Please do the following:
. Volume control lower/higher - higher volume settings will decrease playing times. This is logical. More output "volume power" decreases the battery juice.
2. Audio Settings: EQ, Smart Vol, & Bass Boost will effect your playing time but I believe they are not critical as the Volume & Bit Rates(28 kbsp and others) / File Format (MP3,WMA) & Lock Switch.
3. Bit Rates & File Formats Do Matter. Bit Rates and File formats will increase/decrease your playing time.
Per Catherina-CL
"WMA files will use up more power than MP3 files, and higher bitrates more so than standard ones (like 28kbps MP3). Best thing to do is rip an album in 28kbps MP3 and leave it playing in a loop on a normal volume level. See how long the battery lasts then."
Please Note: The main difference between MP3 and WMA is the compression. According to Microsoft a 64KBPS WMA file is the same quality 28KBPS MP3. This is of course up to a person's preference but you may find you can get better compression out of WMA.
4. FULLY CHARGE your Zen. This means the battery symbol is NOT flashing AND there is a plug/key symbol embedded within the battery symbol. The battery is 00% FULL under BOTH conditions. Having just the battery symbol all green will not do it.
From the link:
http://www.omnica.com/omniview_electronics2.htm
Regarding lithium-ion shelf life, one of our engineers recently met with a battery-house representati've. It has come to their attention that repeated charging and re-charging of a less than fully discharged Li-ion cell affects the battery "gas gauge" included with many devices. Over a number of cycles there is a resultant loss in accuracy. Frequently, the indicated remaining charge has little relationship to the actual amount of life left in the cell! Fortunately, according to the battery expert, the gauge will reset itself if the battery is allowed to completely discharge from time-to-time.
5. Having different types of earphones/headphones will increase or decrease the playing time by how much "electronic load" the earphones/headphones create on the Zen player. There are some power hungry earphones/headphones out there.
The 6 ohm earbuds conserves battery power more than the 32 ohm earbuds supplied by Creative. (About 0% more)
6. Always, always lock your Zen player while playing music. This cuts off the power drain from the color 2.5" LCD and blank the LCD screen. After all, you can't read the LCD screen if it is in your shirt pocket and playing music!
7. Make sure you have the latest firmware upgrades in order to get the best of your Creative Zen Flash MP3 Player.
Troubleshooting
Your Creative Zen is extremely complex.
Check this link to peek inside player http://www.anythingbutipod.com/archi...isassembly.php
Also, this link:
http://arstechnica.com/journals/hard...ssor-behind-it
There could be a million things that could go wrong with your player so you will not be the FIRST or LAST to have a problem. Keep in mind, there are many, many others that have the Zen with no problems whatsoever. Things happen, but Creative is there to help.
Dropping a Zen or any other player might/will/possibly ruin the player for good!!!
Since this player is solid-state (no moving parts e.g. mini-disk dri've) then the only thing that will keep it from running for years is the non-user replaceable Lithium-Ion battery. I will concentrate on some troubleshooting tips which are battery related but I hope you have already the latest firmware downloaded and installed on your player
Battery - Lithium-Ion Polymer
#. Battery won't charge "out of the box" new player.
A. First, read above "Getting Started"
B. Next, try a different USB mini cable.
C. Next, there is a battery manufactuer's failure rate < %, in which the Lithium-Ion Polymer battery refuses to charge.
Creative, ships the Zen MP3 players with no charge so there is very small probability thatyou could have one.
I call it the "Deep Six Discharge Battery" Call / Contact Creative.
#2. Battery won't charge properly after using the player for some time.
A. When you plug in your player into the USB port via mini USB patch cable, the connection resets the player to the "docked screen" with the battery level gas guage , in the right hand corner.
Sometimes this action does not reset the player properly but there is no indication to you that the player is charging.
Just disconnect/connect the USB cable again.
B. Sometimes, the Zen player gets confused and you have to do a Recovery Mode "paper clip reset" which forces the player into a "special menu screen" to clean-up the player and to reset the player which allows showing the "docked screen" while charging the unit. See Zen User's Guide for explicit instruction und FAQ.
C. Since the Zens came out late in 2007, the maximum of 300-500 charge/discharge should not apply YETbut users beware, as with any other Lithium-Ion Polymer battery it will not charge fully "like new"because of a " fixed shelf life" (2-3 yrs) OR too many charge/discharge cycles. A battery replacement is in order.
Methods of charging the Creative Zen MP3
. The short mini-standard USB cable provided by Creative from the factory. Plugs into a PC USB port.
2. Uni'versal Power Adapter (Creative) plugs into the wall. Works "anywhere in the world"
Note: Different countries have different wall AC voltages and hertz requirements. This has adapters for different countries/locations wall outlets and a uni'versal power supply for all voltage and hertz requirements.
Note: This is a heavy duty high/fast charging wall outlet charging adapter. (2400 ma)
3. Auto/Vehicle 2 VDC charger (Creative) or other compatible vehicle 2 VDC to USB charger.
4. EARHUGGER IPOD POWER POD - MP3-8370 (White compact module)
http://www.earhugger.com/powerPod.html
http://www.amazon.com/Earhugger-MP3-.../dp/B000QTTKSS
This compact module will solve all the following travel modes and conditions:
. Camping, hiking or outdoor travel - no PC or noAC or maybe no auto/car.
2. Airplane travel - no PC or no AC or no auto/car.
3. Train/subway travel - no PC or no auto/car
4. Car travel - no PC or no AC
5. Foot travel - no PC or no AC or no auto/car
It uses 4 ways to charge the Zen:
. Retractable mini-standard USB cord for PC charging. <--- does not communicate with PC! - only for charging
2. Retractable mini USB cord for auto/vehicle charging (Fused)
3. Retractable mini USB cord for wall 0-20 VAC 50/60Hz charging. (non-international use plug style)
4. 9 VDC battery terminal for using standard alkaline 9 VDC or high ma Lithium 9 VDC to charge the Zen via
mini USB cable. Note:You might need several alkaline batteries to charge the internal 550 ma hr Zen battery!
Great for remote destinations.
5. Rechargeable portable battery packs.
Black & Decker has several "Power To Go"models CPI0B-C & CPI20XB (not for international use because of 20 AC 60Hz only charging wall wart)
Note: There are other brands that also do this method of charging.
http://www.blackanddecker.com/Produc...Path=4033.4040
You charge this portable NiMH battery pack from the AC wall outlet so you can carry with you on trips to charge the Zen.
6. Mobile phone chargers. Some have a mini-USB plug for charging the phone but it could be used to charge the Zen BUT BEWARE IT COULD RUIN THE ZEN IF IT IS NOT COMPATIBLE! The output should have a voltage of 5 VDC +- 5% (4.75-5.25 VDC) ON THE PROPER MINI-USB PINS and a charging current at least 200 ma to 2400 ma. See this forum for the recommend phone phone chargers to use with the Zen.
Note: You are charging an internal Lithium-ion polymer 550 mahr battery in the Zen so the lower the charging current the longer it takes to charge.
Note: You will find that charging the Zen from the wall charger is much faster than the "current limited" charging on the standard PC USB port.
Note: For diagnostic purposes and emergency charging of the Zen it is wise to have an external (non-PC) charging device for your Zen.
Note: Only the battery charging symbol shows up on the Zen when using an external charger.
Scratches
All plastic screens will scratch, doesn't matter which type you have.
For minor scratches you could use the Novus three part cleaner, polish and scratch remover system. Do not use the #3 coarse abrasi've in this system! Be extremely careful in using this product !!!! Please check the web.
OR
Low abrasi've toothpase <--- some say this works
OR
CD scratch remover/repair kit <---- have not tried this.
The Zen (Flash) MP3 glass LCD screen is covered by the overlay plastic you see on the front. Worst case, you can have only the outer shell repaired and replaced by Creative.
To prevent scratches in the first place:
Use the Zen cloth bag which comes with the unit (sometimes ) to prevent scratches.
OR
Buy the Zen clear plastic case (Clear Case #70AB2600002). Sold by Creative.< I use this>
OR
Buy an clear plastic overlay. (Screen protector #70AB2600003) which goes over the LCD protector screen for protection. Sold by Creative.
OR
Also, you can cut up a "generic" PDA screen protector to fit the Zen.
OR
Obtain a "digital camera lcd screen protector" from a camera store or internet
OR
"Invisible shield" -The best protection money can buy
http://www.zagg.com/invisibleshield/...ns-shields.php
How to destroy your Zen - WHAT NOT TO DO
. Leave it in the auto/car/vehicle - the vehicle inside heats up 20-35 F higher than the outside temperature.
2. Leave it outside in freezing temperature 0C 32F. The LCD will freeze/discolor/absorb water.
Note: It is remotely possible it could recover when warm-up at room temperature.
Note: Just keep the Zen near your body heat when outside in freezing temperatures.
3. Dropping it might cause the LCD screen to crack or loosen up the internal connections to the electronics or short out the internal electronics.
Note: Use a protecti've case to cushion the blow from dropping the Zen.
4. Dropping or submerging or getting the Zen wet in water might short out the electronics and battery.
You could prevent destruction by immediately shaking the Zen vigorously in open air to dry it out.
5. Sitting on it could flex the electronics and short or open circuits which would cause a defecti've/faulty Zen.
<A bit of humor ... There is No Santa Claus, Easter Bunny or Tooth fairy and Creative does NOT give away money. If you destroy or damage your Zen you will pay not Creative>
How can you tell if your Zen is defecti've/faulty
. A "white screen" or a "totally blank black screen" shows up on the Zen LCD.
2. You cannot force the Zen into the special "Recovery Mode" menu screen.
3. The Zen refuses to "take a charge"(To charge up the internal Lithium-Ion Polymer battery)
4. The Zen LCD is cracked or distorted due to dropping or handling abuse.
5. The Zen clock does not keep accurate time (within 2 mins max per month)
Contact Creative if any of the above faults occur - the Zen is bad and nothing you can do will fix it!
WSOD "White Screen of Death"
The "White Screen of Death" is really caused by a hardware problem. You see, the internal Freescale/SigmaTel STMP3700 MP3 processor has to write to the LCD. If this operation is prevented by internal electronic opens or shorts, bad STMP3700, locked-up firmware, bad LCD or any other electronic component failure then the CPU might/will halt and refuse to write to the LCD which will be reflected in a "white screen of death" I cannot cover all the causes of the "white screen of death" but rest assured Creative should pick these problems up in their quality control manufacturing process with a 99% success rate. Problems do show up after the manufacturing process but Creative has warranty protection for this other % fault rate. (Which is normal in electronics manufacturing)
Media Content
Listening to the built-in music on the Zen is OK but after a while your question now becomes "What else can I do with my Zen "
Note: The "How to" instructions for adding Media content can be found in the Zen documentation.
Terminology:
Album: Collection of tracks or songs under one "album" title.
Artist: Track or song artist
DRM: Digital rights management - copy protection scheme - Zen cannot use music with this music protection scheme. (itunes) (But "itunes plus" will work)
Genres: Type or kind of music
<The following genres are defined in ID3v>
Blues,Classic Rock,Country,Dance,Disco,Funk,Grunge,Hip-Hop,Jazz,Metal,New Age,Oldies,Other,Pop,
R&B,Rap,Reggae,Rock,Techno,Industrial,Alternati've ,Ska,Death Metal,Pranks,Soundtrack,Euro-Techno,
Ambient,Trip-Hop,Vocal,Jazz+Funk,Fusion,Trance,Classical,Instru mental,Acid,House,Game,Sound Clip,
Gospel,Noise,AlternRock,Bass,Soul,Punk,Space,Medit ati've,Instrumental Pop,Instrumental Rock,
Ethnic,Gothic,Darkwave,Techno-Industrial,Electronic,Pop-Folk,Eurodance,Dream,Southern Rock,
Comedy,Cult,Gangsta,Top 40,Christian Rap,Pop/Funk,Jungle,Nati've American,Cabaret,New Wave,
Psychadelic,Rave,Showtunes,Trailer,Lo-Fi,Tribal,Acid Punk,Acid Jazz,Polka,Retro,Musical,Rock & Roll,
Hard Rock
<The following genres are Winamp extensions>
Folk,Folk-Rock,National Folk,Swing,Fast Fusion,Bebob,Latin,Revival,Celtic,Bluegrass,Avantg arde,
Gothic Rock,Progressi've Rock,Psychedelic Rock,Symphonic Rock,Slow Rock,Big Band,Chorus,
Easy Listening,Acoustic,Humour,Speech,Chanson,Opera,Cha mber Music,Sonata,Symphony,
Booty Bass,Primus,Porn Groove,Satire,Slow Jam,Club,Tango,Samba,Folklore,Ballad,Power Ballad,
Rhythmic Soul,Freestyle,Duet,Punk Rock,Drum Solo,A capella,Euro-House,Dance Hall
<A bit of humor: I think the above Genres lists are missing two - "elevator music" & Crying and Whining e.g. Country Western>
ID3 Tags: Internal file information associated with an Mp3 or wav audio file. This format contains
Track number, Album name/title, Genre, Artist and Song Title which can be sorted and indexed by
the Zen device.
IPTV: Is a system where a digital television service is deli'vered using Internet Protocol over a network infrastructure, which may include deli'very by a broadband connection. http://zencast.com/
JPEG: Is a commonly used method of compression for photographic images.
This is the only photo format used by the Zen.
MP3 and WMA music tracks: Music format used by the Zen.
Note: Having the wrong bit rates will drain the Zen battery faster. (See above)
MP3: Is a digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression.
Non-protected AAC: Files are regular AAC files without any DRM: they can be converted to other formats (like MP3) and can be played on an unlimited amount of devices and burned an unlimitd amount of times. They have no restrictions.
Podcast: Is a series of digital-media files which are distributed over the Internet using syndication feeds for playback on portable media players and computers. http://zencast.com/
Protected AAC: Files are AAC audio files that contain DRM (Digital Rights Management), most often music purchased from the iTunes store. The Creative Zen cannot use these files.
Note: "Itunes Plus Store" have songs without DRM which the Zen can use.
Ripping CDs: Copying tracks from an audio CD on a PC and downloading tracks to the Zen.
Note: Use the Creative Zen Media Explorer for ripping audio CD is one method.
Song Title: Name of song or track
Track Number: Numerical number of track of CD album.
Track: General name for song or song title.
Unprotected AAC format: Music format used by the Zen
WMA:Is an audio data compression technology developed by Microsoft. The name can be used to refer to its audio file format or its audio codecs.
WAV: (or WAVE), short for Waveform audio format, is a Microsoft and IBM audio file format standard for storing an audio bitstream on PCs.
Note: The Zen's built-in microphone produces this audio file format.
Zen Audio Format:MP3, WMA, WAV, non-protected AAC (.m4a), Audible (2, 3, 4)
Zen Media Content: Video, Music, Audio, Photos/Images transferred/dowloaded into the Zen
Zen Photo Format:JPEG
Note: You can copy/drag/paste JPEG photos from your PC to your Zen for viewing.
Note: You can import photos & view photos from the SD card.
Zencast Organizer: Seamlessly integrates ZENcast media files with Creative portable media players and/or your computer
Zen Video Format:MJPEG, WMV9 and (with transcoding - MPED4-SP, DivX 4/5 and XviD)
Warning - In some countries (including the US) its illegal to do:
Copying audio DVD & DVDs
Defeating DRM MP3 Music (Digital Rights Management)
Intercepting/copying (non purchased) music.
Downloading music/songs from an illegal or "free" rouge website.
General Media Content links:
http://pro-music.org/Content/GetMusi...lineStores.php
Note: Check to see if your music files/tracks contains ID3 tags.
Note: ZEN also supports iTunes Plus tracks from the iTunes store,
Note: The following media content is only a small fraction of means and ways
of collecting/dowloading media content to the Zen.
Media Content from Creative Website(s)
Note: The Media Content can be found under "Fill your Zen" on the bottom of the Creative Zen product page.
http://zencast.com/
ZENcast is the ultimate source for free IPTV channels, video blogs and podcasts on the Internet. It provides quick and easy access to a wide range of interesting and entertaining video and audio content online.
http://www.audible.com/adbl/site/cre...seBVCookie=Yes
Audible.com - Audible.comis the Internet s leading audio provider of bestselling audio books, comedy programs and today s most relevant magazines and newspapers
http://creative.vongo.com/
VONGO is the video download service that gives you instant access to over 2500 hit movie and video selections from Starz .
Watch movies whenever, wherever on your ZEN. A great entertainment venue for watching movies while on the road or on the go.
http://www.napster.com/creative/
Transfer unlimited music to your ZEN without paying per song.
With Napster To Go you can:
Choose from over 5 million songs, plus new releases every week
Play music instantly from any internet-connected computer
Find old favorites and discover new music by exploring playlists, radio, Billboard charts and more
Create a library of your favorite music and build custom playlists.
http://www.emusic.com/ZEN
Choose from over ,500,000 songs
Burn unlimited CDs
Compatible with every MP3 player
No confusing restrictions-Own your music!
http://www.lala.com/frontend/action/...=user:2672@223
Why pay 99per song when you can get the whole album for $At lala.com, you can trade your used CDs for new music.
.8 million titles available for trade. CD quality guaranteed.
Every CD you receive is yours to keep - no restrictions.
Pay only $ per CD received. No monthly fees or commitments. Sign up is FREE.
http://www.amazon.com/b/ &node=62663
Buy or Rent Movies Online
Watch DVD-quality video downloads on your PC or ZEN
Conveniently download from your PC at work to your PC at home
Discover thousands of TV shows & movies available for download
I started this thread in April 08 to help other new Creative Zen MP3 (Flash) users. If there are common threads that are posted from new users then I try to make a section to inform other new users in solving their similar problems. I cannot believe that this thread was viewed over 0,000 times! Thank you for your "viewing" support.
Please note: This thread is constantly changing so check back for any new helpful hints, problem solving, troubleshooting and practical solutions for the Creative Zen.
"The Creative ZenR O C K S"
Zenandy
Message Edited by Zenandy on 08--2008 08:26 AM

Hi,
I'm from germany so no 'best buy' but I think I will lock around sleeve/bag for a different product with same measures. Any tip?
The clear plastic case is not what I want. I would like to use the player without such protections. I just want a sleeve to protect the player while its in my jacket/pants.
Btw, i have bought this version: Creative Zen (maybe european version?). I also doesn't seem to have your mentioned sleeve. I also couldn't find it on the website.
Anyway, thank you,
Chris

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