Is W8.1 right for me?

[dkm777]

I see that there are many threads like this, but i have very specific uses that I can't find any info about. Is W8.1 suitable for audio production? I have a FireWire audio interface and use mainly Ableton Live. I'm on W7 Pro currently and everything works just dandy, but many people including my old man are raving about near-instantaneous boot of W8.1, much reduced application startup times, how it uses less memory and so on and so forth. I could surely use some of that, but I can't find solid info on FireWire support and how audio programs that use ASIO perform. The manufacturer of my audio interface - RME - has posted W8.1 compatible drivers already, but they are combo drivers for many interfaces, not just FireWire ones. So far I found hints that FW is no longer supported in W8.1. Is this true? Or if nothing is known at this time maybe I could test drive and see for myself? I remember W7 having an option of not entering a license key during installation and running in demo mode for 30 days or so and even our local Microsoft guys assuring everybody that it was 100% legal. Is this still possible with 8.1?

 

[glugglug]

Most of the differences in performance people are seeing is because their new laptops bundled with 8.1 finally have SSDs and a reasonable amount of RAM.

Put 7 on the same hardware and the difference is really not that big. Also, if anything relies on built in Windows 7 codecs, in 8(.1) the DVD audio codecs & some others are only included with the media center pack.

 

[Patre]

My machine is also a DAW (+ gaming) and the main thing to consider here is if all your hardware has driver support for 8.1. If they do, you should be good to go. I've also read that Firewire isn't working out as well as they originally planned and is possibly in a dying out phase.....IDK???? That said, RME is a fantastic audio interface and I've heard their support is quite good. Possibly contacting them on this might be benficial for your long term needs.

A good option might be to have a dual boot system where you can test out 8.1 and see if everything is stable with your audio hardware/software. If things are unstable, you always will have Win7 already running smoothly.

 

[Imaginer]

A good option might be to have a dual boot system where you can test out 8.1 and see if everything is stable with your audio hardware/software. If things are unstable, you always will have Win7 already running smoothly.

This. Don't use the UEFI boot features of 8 upon installing and see if you can keep it with the MBR method (saving some headache with compatibility). You will lose secure boot, but on older motherboards - it isn't there anyways.