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This is the first thing one should do...

Posted by Presto (A) on April 21, 2007 at 13:52:21

In Reply to: Computer Audio Tweak...... posted by Todd Krieger on April 21, 2007 at 02:31:21:

...when building a HTPC or audio server PC.

You're bang on here Todd.

Here's another good one:

http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/servicecfg.htm

I've never had any problems following his "services map", and the reference you provided - I've used that one too.

The trick to minimizing services is to minimize FUNCTIONS. The closer you can come to the audio app being your only function, the fewer services you're going to need. Of course, you'll always need a certain number of essential system (OS) services. Here are some no-brainers for an audio-only PC:

1) No internet connection
2) No networking connections
3) No wireless card
4) No network card enabled
5) No Auto-Protection products
6) No software firewall products
7) No bloatware or un-needed programs that autostart.
8) No needless "system tray" apps

Some argue that modern PC power does not require this level of tweakery, and that it's just a potential source of trouble. They're right. It can be trouble. But an IRQ on a super fast machine is still an IRQ!

Now, if you don't have any of THIS stuff on your PC, you can run with about 15 or so essential services - and 99% of the time these services just sit there.

Another neat concept is "mapping" processes to different processors in dual processor machines (affinity settings). This way, when an essential OS service "kicks in" in kicks in on "processor 0" while the audio app is running happily on "processor 1".

Christime Tham has some cool ideas about how to set up PC's so that they don't rely on frequenct hard-disk page-file operations. Although getting the PC out of the room is a good way to go, the technology to build machines that are not only audibly quieter, but have less "logic noise" from unnecessary processes is coming fast.

If you *are* going to mess with services, you have to know (quite intimately) about what each service does and what all the dependencies are. If you don't, you can always try one or two services at a time (based on recommendataion of Service Tweak sites of course) and see if your computer still works! ;^D.

I prefer the former as to the latter approach! ;)

I've used both your reference as well as black viper with great success. I prefer BV - because he seems to test his stuff pretty thoroughly, and provides the different "levels". The first time I used this tweak, I almost crapped my drawers when I saw how much faster my PC simply booted up, and how much smoother the entire PC ran in general.

Thanks for bringing this subject up Todd.

I think folks who "poo poo" PC audio are trying to use PC's that are simply OT optimized for A/V applications. If you didn't post this in Computer Audio Asylum, perhaps you should...

Cheers,
Presto

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