Regarding Windows 7, you should definitely NOT install the old versions of VI, as apparently the way those .ini files are stored is incompatible with Vista/Windows 7, and is what's causing all these issues.  Just download and install the latest VI software, and then use the library installer installed on your hard drive to install the libraries from the DVDs, and then apply any library patches after that.  That's worked well for me.

Hi Andrea,

Believe me, I understand what a nightmare a re-install might be, especially if you're not even sure it will fix the problem.  I was in an easier position, because this was a brand new machine, so wiping the OS and starting over wasn't a big deal.  I would have to spend an entire weekend building my DAW regardless.  Was your machine working until recently?  Did anything significant change (new hardware or software)?

One possible idea: you might try imaging your system drive (essentially, make a backup copy of it, and store it on an alternate drive or on a network location).  Then, you can try formatting and re-installing the OS along with only VI and the eLicenser software to see if that even works.  You'll need some 3rd party software to do this.  Maybe someone here could recommend a brand, as I haven't done this myself.

Another possibility: I have my suspicions that somehow the C++ run-time libraries that are required for either Vienna or the eLicenser software became corrupted somehow.  When I installed Sonar the first time, there was a run-time error during the installation process of these libraries.  Afterwards, no matter how many times I uninstalled and re-installed the VI and eLicenser software, nothing worked.  One thing I didn't try, however, was to uninstall those libraries and re-install the software (which presumably would re-install those if required).  I'm a little hesitant to recommend this course of action, because I haven't tried it myself, and this is just speculation.  Also, I have no idea what else are relying on those runtime libraries. So, I'd recommend imaging the system before doing this as well. 

I'm not sure what else I could recommend.  Vienna folks, it would be nice if VI came with some sort of diagnostic mode, or a separate little diagnostic app.  That way, if something is going wrong, at least there's some sort of error log your programmers could look at.  At the moment, the program just appears to fail silently instead of giving any sort of useful feedback.

I finally got VI recognizing my libraries (well, at least the three instruments I was testing with - I presume the rest will be no problem either).  I ended up completely reformatting my primary disk and reinstalling Windows 7 from scratch (before I had just re-installed on top of the previous installation).  After that, I installed the eLicenser software and VI, and it worked!  I added my audio card drivers and USB keyboard, and it's still doing fine.  As to why only a reformatting and reinstall worked... I can't even begin to guess.  I'm going to begin re-adding components and getting the entire system updated. 

Samuel, I know it's a pretty crappy suggestion, but you may wish to try a complete reformat and reinstall of Windows as well.  I'd recommend installing ONLY what's needed to get the Vienna software working, and then update your system one piece at a time, verifying Vienna is still working after each step - that's exactly what I'm doing right now.  It's worth a shot if nothing else is working.  I wish you the best of luck getting things working again.

 No ideas, huh?  Sigh... dang, I was really looking forward to getting my new DAW all set up this weekend, too.

Samuel, if I figure anything out, I'll let you know.  Maybe you can do the same, huh?  It's certainly frustrating not being able to get your software to work properly.

I'm having a similar problem with installation on a new DAW.  I'm running Windows 7 64-bit, and installed the latest eLicenser software, which seemed to find the keys on my USB device without problem.  I'm also running the latest VI software, I believe (standalone says 4.0, build 5132).  I've installed the first set of instruments (solo strings) and pointed the library manager at those directories, but the Vienna software simply doesn't see any patches.  I've tried the standalone (both 64 and 32 bit) as well as the VST.  I tried moving the libraries from the audio (D:) drive to the primary (C:) drive and updated the directories using the manager.  Nothing seems to be working.

I don't recall any such problem when I installed the libraries on my old DAW, but it's been a while and my memory may be fuzzy.  Any thoughts on what might be going wrong, or what I can do to fix this?

Edit: Sorry, not trying to hijack the thread.  The topic seemed similar, so perhaps the same problem?  Seemed odd starting a new thread.

Mike, I use Sonar myself, and couldn't seem to duplicate your results using a simple test project. Have you upgraded Sonar to 6.2.1, and VI to 1.11 btw?

Both Finale and Sibelius have free demos available. It seems like the vast majority of non-music-publisher types use one of these two products (I'm more familiar with Finale myself), and as far as I can see, both are fine products. Give them a try and see which one works best for you.

Yes, I do. But it's fairly time-consuming...

Essentially, I have to continuously load/unload VI instances (Cakewalk makes this fairly easy, fortunately). Additionally, I repeatedly use the RAM Optimze function to dump unused samples after I finish recording a part. So far it's worked ok for me, but I haven't worked on any really huge orchestral pieces yet.

I guess I'll chime in here as well. This is something that is a definite priority for *this* VI user.

Cakewalk SONAR v6 64-bit edition sits there on my install CD... unused... mocking me...

A number of Sonar users, including myself, have noticed noise artifacts in a specific situation. Namely, when:

a) A mod wheel is being used for velocity cross-fades, etc. and...
b) The VI's window is being displayed.

Is this the same situation you're hearing, or do you hear scratches and pops at other times?

Astro, you have to make sure Sonar is scanning the correct directories. After opening the Plug-in Manager dialog (Tools | Cakewalk Plugin Manager), click on the Options button in the VST Configuration section. Look for the file "Vienna Instruments.dll" on your hard drive (not sure what the default location is). Add this path to this list, then try scanning again. Sonar should be able to find it then.

Ah, I see... Honestly, this is not something I'm going to lose much sleep over. My guess is that a 64-bit pipeline is going to pretty much sound identical to a 32-bit pipeline (quite pristine). It gives some extra headroom to a pretty wide pipe to begin with, so it's not necessarily a bad thing, but I'd be surprised if there were an actual audible difference. My feeling is that the real value of 64-bits is in the addressable memory - everything else is a sideshow.

I don't quite follow how you think it could be worse sounding... ???


The way it was described made it sound as though each plugin had access to it's own virtual address space of 2GB. I'd have to double-check to be certain of that though.

Heh, I wouldn't think to challenge your ear on the industry. I was just pointing out some facts about a particular piece of software that I happen to know a bit about. Beyond that, I wouldn't presume to know anything.

Just fyi, Sonar is using some sort of 32-bit thunking layer (they call it BitBridge) to allow 32-bit plugins to work in their 64-bit environment. This is certainly going to be a requirement for 64-bit computing to take off, as many musicians have obviously invested an enormous amount of money in 32-bit plug-ins, and it's likely that, for whatever reason, many of those will never be converted. If Cakewalk could figure out how to do this, I don't see any reason other vendors can't do the same.

I do agree with your assertion that widespread adoption is likely still a ways off for the bulk of the industry. And, notwithstanding those who will make the jump immediately when it's available, there are many with a fairly significant investment in 32-bit hardware that will probably wait for a more normal obsolescences cycle before buying new systems, and that means a few years past the initial hardware/software offerings even.

Naturally, it's all pure speculation. But, that's half the fun, no?

64-bit versions have been available to all Sonar customers for two versions now, so... I'm not certain how that qualifies as not "hawking 64". I think for many PC users (at least this one) it's just taken as a given that it's available now (you don't see many headlines about features that have shipped a year ago). At least for me, it's just about the cost of upgrading to a new platform that's holding me back, but I'm saving my pennies...

There's a few links here about the state of 64-bit computing that are interesting, as well as the obligatory promotional stuff from Cakewalk and MS.
http://www.cakewalk.com/x64/

Well, I just got Sonar 6 installed tonight, and it made no difference. I'm still hearing the exact same problem.

I don't suppose anyone at VSL can let me know if they can reproduce this issue?

Actually, it would be the first time for me. I have a couple other commercial VST plugins, and this is the first time I've seen any sort of compatibility problem.

It definitely looks like some sort of Sonar compatibility issue, because I can't reproduce this in standalone mode, and we have fairly different hardware configurations (I have dual Intel Xeons). I'll make some work of reporting this over on the Sonar forums.

On a somewhat related topic, I actually have Sonar 6 Producer ordered and on the way, which has native VST support instead of a DXi wrapper. That gives me some hope that this issue might go away.

No, I only use a single monitor, so I'm afraid that's not it. I tried disabling hardware acceleration, lowering resolution and bit depth, to no avail. Short of buying a new video card (which I'm not going to do until I'm sure it would solve the issue), I'm not sure what else I can do on my end. Fortunately, it's not a showstopping problem, as I don't typically leave the VI windows open for long (with my limited screen real estate). Still, I'll provide what info I can think of to help the devs solve the problem.

I don't think I'm experiencing the same thing you are David. It's more like Sapkiller described. Easiest way to reproduce this: Play a note with Orchestra Violins Universal Matrix with mod wheel all the way down. If I fiddle with the mod wheel while the VI window is up, then I get breakups of the audio stream when I cross control boundaries. If the VI window is closed, then no such distortion occurs. Based on what sk said, I also tried different crossing speeds, and can confirm that it only clicks when you move the mod wheel somewhat quickly across boundaries. Moving very slowly seems to eliminate the pops.

My money is on the Audigy drivers causing this - they're notoriously buggy. I'm really curious why you're using an Audigy, considering the amount of money you've obviously spent on other hardware and software.

There are lots of great professional-quality cards to be had for a reasonable price. Personally, I've had great luck with my M-Audio Delta44 for quite a few years now (I'm sure others could recommend different cards, but this is what I've used). I can't guarantee this will solve your problem of course, but this would be the first component I'd replace. Just FYI, my system is very similar to yours. I have dual Xeon 2.4GHz processors, and GS is quite stable.

I wish you the best - I know it's frustrating when things aren't working well.

Ok, that worked but... wow, that's really inconvenient. Do I have my directory structure set up badly? I have my instruments split across two drives, and each is in their own folder (e.g. g:/Orchestral Strings I/, f:/Brass II/). When installing, I wasn't aware that each instrument would make it's own subdirectory.

So, in the directory listing, the installer made lists like this:

g:/Orchestral Strings I/
g:/Orchestral Strings I/20 Strings Orchestra/
g:/Orchestral Strings I/21 Violins Orchestra/
... etc...

Could this perhaps be causing issues? I've also noticed that any project with VI instruments takes several minutes to load, no matter how small the sample set. I'm reorganizing the files into a flat directory structure on a single drive as an experiment to see if this helps.

Also, a minor bug - if you delete files and reinstall a library, it creates duplicate directory listings (at least it did for me).

Just to follow up... My install disks say v1.05, so I presume that's what I had before I upgraded to 1.06. Updating VI and my video drivers made no difference - I'm still hearing the crackling in Universal mode when playing a sustained note and moving the mod wheel, but only when the VI window is open.

I'm also getting this Error: 198. The first time I tried to update, my string library was corrupted. I reinstalled from disks, and second time it just would not update either.

I will also try the steps you mentioned to see if this works.

Just to chime in - I'm experiencing the same thing. And, I've noticed that closing the instrument window helps. I can't tell you if it happens in standalone as VI doesn't recognize my Midiman USB Midisport 8x8/s

My system = Intel dual 2.4 Xeon processors, Windows XP SP 2, 4GB RAM, Sonar Producer 5.2, M-Audio Delta 44 audio card (latest drivers).

For what it's worth, I'm also using an nvidia GeForce3 with driver versions 4.3.4.5 (3/20/3002). I'm downloading new video drivers right now to see if that improves things.

Edit: I missed the fact that there appears to be a VI update. It's not immediately obvious to me how to check what version you have. Anyone know? I'm downloading regardless, and will try updating to see if it helps.

I'm using Sonar 5 producer as well. I haven't experienced these same issues, but I've found a few oddities of my own.

First obvious question - are you patched to 5.2?

Another question - does VI play normally if you close the instrument window? I've experienced glitching and/or dropped samples while the window is open, but as soon as I close it, everything plays fine. Not sure how to explain that - none of my other VST plug-ins have exhibited this behavior. However, I am using a new SATA II HD controller with two new drives for the samples, so it's possible there's an issue there.

Yes, please add a single key to my order.

Just fyi, I saw no information explaining this on your site. There's a Vienna Key product, but no text accompanying it. Seems like a reasonable place to describe how the key works, and under what circumstances you might have to buy one.

[]

Thanks, I'm really looking forward to trying these out. I have no doubt that future orders will be forthcoming.