Updating from 3541, should i be worried?

TiagoTiago · Jun 16, 2010, 05:27 AM

I noticed in the release notes that it says the effects from older versions aren't compatible, how can i make sure i'll not loose the DSP setups i've worked on? Is there a way i can test them before installing the new version if my setups will still work? Any way i can convert the effects that aren't included to work with the current version?

Russ · Jun 16, 2010, 08:10 AM

What kX version are you gonna use?

3541 (or 3539) plugins should be compatible with anything up to (including) 3545.

Dane only plugins are compatible with all versions of kX.

TiagoTiago · Jun 16, 2010, 08:44 AM

is there a way i can dump a list of the plugins i'm using and their properties (things like whether they're .da or .kxl) for example ?

Russ · Jun 16, 2010, 09:09 AM

Not really... All you can really do is search the kX -> plugins registry key for the plugin name you are interested in, and when you find it, the entry right above (with the same GUID) where the name is shown, will show you the actual filename and location.

I suppose you could export that reg key, and then you would have a list of all of your registered plugins (including bundled ones).

Most people (I would guess) place any 3rd party plugins that they download, etc, into some specific folder, so it is not difficult to differentiate them from any bundled plugins (bundled plugins are recompiled with each new kX release and thus are compatible).

TiagoTiago · Jun 16, 2010, 09:15 AM

what about viewing the file i save from the DSP editor with a text editor, is it a plain text file or is it encoded somehow?

edit:hm, it is plain text, but doesn't seem to have any info about whether each of the plugins used is da or kxl :/

Russ · Jun 16, 2010, 09:22 AM

Most of the stuff you would be interested in is plain text (it is a text file).

e.g.

Code:

REGEDIT4

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\kX\Plugins]
"80100001-0ADF-11D6-BFBC-D4F706E10C52"="C:\\WINDOWS\\SYSTEM\\kxfxlib.kxl"
"80100001-0ADF-11D6-BFBC-D4F706E10C52.name"="Reverb Lite"
"995D7333-2CA7-4c92-B636-3CF889C10F50"="C:\\WINDOWS\\SYSTEM\\kxfxlib.kxl"
"995D7333-2CA7-4c92-B636-3CF889C10F50.name"="Chorus"
"80100003-0ADF-11D6-BFBC-D4F706E10C52"="C:\\WINDOWS\\SYSTEM\\kxfxlib.kxl"
"80100003-0ADF-11D6-BFBC-D4F706E10C52.name"="Stereo Chorus"
...

From the above (make sure you match lines with same GUID), you can see that Reverb Lite (actually, all 3 of the above plugins) is part of kxfxlib.kxl (Dll's can contain multiple plugins).

[EDIT]
Oops, I mis-read your post (the above is the info from the registry).

Yes, the saved kX config file is plain text and will include the plugin names, but not the file names (and it also includes all the information about how the plugins are connected, and register values, etc).
[/EDIT]

TiagoTiago · Jun 16, 2010, 09:23 AM

will it be easy to revert to 3541 if things break after i upgrade?

Russ · Jun 16, 2010, 09:36 AM

It shouldn't be a problem. If you export the entire kX registry key, and the files are located in the same place as they were previously, then you can just use the saved reg file (after reinstalling 3541), to get everything back the way you left it (assuming hardware assignments (IRQ, etc) did not change).

BTW: You should do a full uninstall of kX before upgrading (or down-grading) to the new version (backup anything in the kX folder that you want to save).

If you are using Windows XP (32 Bit), then I would suggest upgrading to 3545b. You are not really gonna gain anything using a later version of kX, and with 3545b, you shouldn't have any plugin compatibility issues.

TiagoTiago · Jun 16, 2010, 09:48 AM

Really? All the changes after that version are only for compatibility with more recent windows versions and add no funcitonality nor performance increase nor anything? Hm...

Russ · Jun 16, 2010, 09:55 AM

Yeah, versions above 3545b are mostly to fix compatibility issues with newer versions of Windows (e.g. systems with more than 2 GB RAM (which usually isn't a problem on XP), basic Vista/7 compatibility, 64 bit compatibility, compatibility with more recent cards (some EMU PRO cards) etc).

TiagoTiago · Jun 16, 2010, 09:58 AM

I have about 3 gigs of physical RAM, is that gonna be an issue?

Russ · Jun 16, 2010, 10:02 AM

It usually is not an issue with Windows XP, but I cannot guarantee anything...

TiagoTiago · Jun 16, 2010, 10:04 AM

ah, i see, thanx

Jun 16, 2010, 05:27 AM	#1
TiagoTiago HardwareHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 51 Rep Power: 0	Updating from 3541, should i be worried? I noticed in the release notes that it says the effects from older versions aren't compatible, how can i make sure i'll not loose the DSP setups i've worked on? Is there a way i can test them before installing the new version if my setups will still work? Any way i can convert the effects that aren't included to work with the current version?

Jun 16, 2010, 08:10 AM	#2
Russ HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 5,563 Rep Power: 62	Re: Updating from 3541, should i be worried? What kX version are you gonna use? 3541 (or 3539) plugins should be compatible with anything up to (including) 3545. Dane only plugins are compatible with all versions of kX.

Jun 16, 2010, 08:44 AM	Thread Starter #3
TiagoTiago HardwareHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 51 Rep Power: 0	Re: Updating from 3541, should i be worried? is there a way i can dump a list of the plugins i'm using and their properties (things like whether they're .da or .kxl) for example ? Last edited by TiagoTiago; Jun 16, 2010 at 09:07 AM.

Jun 16, 2010, 09:09 AM	#4
Russ HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 5,563 Rep Power: 62	Re: Updating from 3541, should i be worried? Not really... All you can really do is search the kX -> plugins registry key for the plugin name you are interested in, and when you find it, the entry right above (with the same GUID) where the name is shown, will show you the actual filename and location. I suppose you could export that reg key, and then you would have a list of all of your registered plugins (including bundled ones). Most people (I would guess) place any 3rd party plugins that they download, etc, into some specific folder, so it is not difficult to differentiate them from any bundled plugins (bundled plugins are recompiled with each new kX release and thus are compatible).

Jun 16, 2010, 09:15 AM	Thread Starter #5
TiagoTiago HardwareHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 51 Rep Power: 0	Re: Updating from 3541, should i be worried? what about viewing the file i save from the DSP editor with a text editor, is it a plain text file or is it encoded somehow? edit:hm, it is plain text, but doesn't seem to have any info about whether each of the plugins used is da or kxl :/ Last edited by TiagoTiago; Jun 16, 2010 at 09:20 AM.

Jun 16, 2010, 09:22 AM	#6
Russ HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 5,563 Rep Power: 62	Re: Updating from 3541, should i be worried? Most of the stuff you would be interested in is plain text (it is a text file). e.g. Code: REGEDIT4 [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\kX\Plugins] "80100001-0ADF-11D6-BFBC-D4F706E10C52"="C:\\WINDOWS\\SYSTEM\\kxfxlib.kxl" "80100001-0ADF-11D6-BFBC-D4F706E10C52.name"="Reverb Lite" "995D7333-2CA7-4c92-B636-3CF889C10F50"="C:\\WINDOWS\\SYSTEM\\kxfxlib.kxl" "995D7333-2CA7-4c92-B636-3CF889C10F50.name"="Chorus" "80100003-0ADF-11D6-BFBC-D4F706E10C52"="C:\\WINDOWS\\SYSTEM\\kxfxlib.kxl" "80100003-0ADF-11D6-BFBC-D4F706E10C52.name"="Stereo Chorus" ... From the above (make sure you match lines with same GUID), you can see that Reverb Lite (actually, all 3 of the above plugins) is part of kxfxlib.kxl (Dll's can contain multiple plugins). [EDIT] Oops, I mis-read your post (the above is the info from the registry). Yes, the saved kX config file is plain text and will include the plugin names, but not the file names (and it also includes all the information about how the plugins are connected, and register values, etc). [/EDIT] Last edited by Russ; Jun 16, 2010 at 09:46 AM.

Jun 16, 2010, 09:23 AM	Thread Starter #7
TiagoTiago HardwareHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 51 Rep Power: 0	Re: Updating from 3541, should i be worried? will it be easy to revert to 3541 if things break after i upgrade?

Jun 16, 2010, 09:36 AM	#8
Russ HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 5,563 Rep Power: 62	Re: Updating from 3541, should i be worried? It shouldn't be a problem. If you export the entire kX registry key, and the files are located in the same place as they were previously, then you can just use the saved reg file (after reinstalling 3541), to get everything back the way you left it (assuming hardware assignments (IRQ, etc) did not change). BTW: You should do a full uninstall of kX before upgrading (or down-grading) to the new version (backup anything in the kX folder that you want to save). If you are using Windows XP (32 Bit), then I would suggest upgrading to 3545b. You are not really gonna gain anything using a later version of kX, and with 3545b, you shouldn't have any plugin compatibility issues. Last edited by Russ; Jun 16, 2010 at 09:47 AM.

Jun 16, 2010, 09:48 AM	Thread Starter #9
TiagoTiago HardwareHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 51 Rep Power: 0	Re: Updating from 3541, should i be worried? Really? All the changes after that version are only for compatibility with more recent windows versions and add no funcitonality nor performance increase nor anything? Hm...

Jun 16, 2010, 09:55 AM	#10
Russ HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 5,563 Rep Power: 62	Re: Updating from 3541, should i be worried? Yeah, versions above 3545b are mostly to fix compatibility issues with newer versions of Windows (e.g. systems with more than 2 GB RAM (which usually isn't a problem on XP), basic Vista/7 compatibility, 64 bit compatibility, compatibility with more recent cards (some EMU PRO cards) etc).

Jun 16, 2010, 09:58 AM	Thread Starter #11
TiagoTiago HardwareHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 51 Rep Power: 0	Re: Updating from 3541, should i be worried? I have about 3 gigs of physical RAM, is that gonna be an issue?

Jun 16, 2010, 10:02 AM	#12
Russ HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 5,563 Rep Power: 62	Re: Updating from 3541, should i be worried? It usually is not an issue with Windows XP, but I cannot guarantee anything...

Jun 16, 2010, 10:04 AM	Thread Starter #13
TiagoTiago HardwareHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 51 Rep Power: 0	Re: Updating from 3541, should i be worried? ah, i see, thanx