HELP ME SOLVE The Perplexing Freeze

audeophilic 5:53 AM - 8 July, 2018

Hello all, name's Audrey. I'm new to the forums but have been using Serato since I got my archaic sl1 from Craigslist back in high school. I come to you today with a rather strange problem that I have been unable to solve thus far, so I'm hoping you all can help.

First off, my specs are as follows:
Computer: Microsoft Surface Book
Operating System: Windows 10 Pro
Onboard SSD: 128gb
Onboard RAM: 8gb
CPU: Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-6300U @2.40GHz
Library Storage: 1TB MyPassport by Western Digital
Library size: ~200gb
Interface: Rane SL2
Peripherals: Novation Dicers and Akai LPD8

My story begins with my first surface. It was perfect in every way, incredibly crisp and clean, working like a dream. I would take it to parties at my community college, and for the lowest end surface it did a fantastic job. But alas, all good things must come to an end. I removed my computer from my bag one day to find that the power switch had been blasted in and was jammed. In an effort to recover my lost data I was forced to shove a paper clip into the busted switch in an attempt to turn it on. After having success with this I returned my still under warranty laptop to Best Buy, and within a few days received a new surface book by mail.

I reinstalled Serato onto my new computer - Version 1.9.10 to be exact. I'm not sure whether or not this is the same version that I had before, but it was the newest at the time I got the new computer. As Valentines day rolled around I was asked to DJ a party for the occasion. Naturally I jumped at the occasion, and silly me... I forgot to test Serato on my new laptop.

The 4 hours of the V-day party were awfully frustrating. About every 15 minutes to an hour I would run into this freeze. The mouse was still active, the songs cued would still play, but it was as if a screenshot was overlaid of where Serato was at the exact time of the crash. The proper animations for dragging songs would not work, and even if they did I would be unable to cue songs anyway. The most annoying thing though was that during these freezes I was COMPLETELY UNABLE TO EXIT THE PROGRAM. I assume that this is because it prompts you if you want to quit or not, but when hitting the X it would stay in the same frozen state. During this state the program seemed even LESS responsive, which seems impossible but trust me. Needless to say, I had to hard reset my computer 6 times throughout the 4 hours I was supposed to be entertaining.

So I opened up aux cord for an hour while I figured out how to remedy my problem. During the remaining 3 hours of the party, I switched power modes, restarted, uninstalled and reinstalled, logged out and back in, tried to run without my accessories, but to no avail. I gave up and the rest of the party was ran from my phone. How professional.

So I came back to it a few months later, updated to Serato DJ Pro 2.0.3, played for a few and the same thing happened. I got frustrated and started googling. People having similar freeze issues stated that theirs were RAM related. I thought this may be the case... SO. I had task manager's RAM performance tab open in the background.

With everything idling on my computer running normally and Serato performing all sorts of effects at once, I had no issues for about 15 minutes. During those 15 minutes Serato's RAM usage maxed out at 1250MB, which made the computer's total RAM usage just over 50%. It stayed there for a few, then froze. After Serato's freeze, the Task manager (though 100% responsive) was not logging graphs. You could see everything up to the crash, but then nothing after was being logged after... Also CTRL-ALT-DEL doesn't work. And I can't use Task Manager to close Serato.

So I tried again, after reading some things about disabling antivirus and turning off internet. This time, it took even less time to freeze but with LESS RAM USAGE by Serato, maxing out at 1085MB leaving my computer's RAM usage at about 48%. Same thing from task manager. Same behavior with the decks.

Thus, I turn to you. I cannot figure out what is going on for the life of me, and I like to think of myself as a very computer savvy person. I don't think it is RAM related, due to the fact that every time it froze the task manager showed that 10% of my total RAM capacity was un-allocated. My CPU usage never exceeds 70% when running the program, so I don't think it is that. 2.0.3 is optimized for 64bit OS support. My computer is cool to the touch. My GPU usage is around 50%. I'm honestly perplexed. Any input would be appreciated.

For kicks and giggles I took a video of the behavior I am experiencing. Please forgive the darkness of the room.

Link: youtu.be

DjSyndic8 10:53 AM - 8 July, 2018

first off very detailed description of the issue, wish all post was like this,
also have you gone through the optimization guide that serato has put out find it here> support.serato.com

try toggling your virtual memory from Programs to Background, Ive noticed a big difference in stability with my windows machine I get less pauses when I use Serato DJ Pro

audeophilic 4:50 PM - 8 July, 2018

Thanks for your quick response! I've read too many vague forum posts to not be thorough. ;) I'm going through the driver updates as I type this, and I just toggled the v-mem to background. Hope this helps, will update after testing.

AddamXavier 4:59 PM - 8 July, 2018

I'll just mention a few things for you to be aware as well.

Up until SDJ Pro (aka SDJ 2.0), the Surface line were not supported machines. This was apparently due to power management from what I remember (there are a lot of underlying systems being controlled that you can't change). But that also means, that you'll need to use SDJ Pro or higher to ensure compatibility. Honestly, I've played around with a Surface Book up at work and while it a beautiful piece of hardware, the drivers and software left much to be desired. So i'm wondering if it's on Serato's end or on the Microsoft end in how they manage program priority. These are not meant to be SOL statements, but more as issues you need to be aware of when using a Surface for DJing/professional use.

A lot of people seem to be unaware that you can install multiple versions of SDJ (how to: support.serato.com), so i always like to mention it when people are having issues with a newer version. It's a great solution when you want to keep up to date but also want to have a stable program for those big, important gigs.

Another thing you can try is download the 32 bit version (Manuals and Download section: serato.com) some people that have been having issues on Windows machines, especially with the new update, have found the 32 bit version to work better for them.

Good luck!

audeophilic 5:49 PM - 8 July, 2018

Thanks for your input! I come to you with an update. There were no updates, and I was unable to change some optimization settings spelled out. However, I did change the virtual memory to background. No luck, it froze again after about 25 minutes. Will try the 32 bit version, maybe even will install old-school SSL on the machine to see how that performs.

I played around with the program for a few while keeping a close eye on task manager, and one thing I noticed is that the cached memory on my machine is usually at 2.2gb, but when Serato was running I watched it creep closer and closer to 4.2gb, and as it approached that it filled the memory composition bar almost fully, leaving only about 5% of my memory free. At this point it froze. I think the problem is memory cache.

As for compatibility, I'm curious as to why an older version of SDJ worked on my last surface I had to replace, but 2.0.3 (which is supposed to be compatible) is doing this with the replacement machine.

I'm attaching an imgur link showing my task manager screens at the time of the freeze. The important one (memory) is all the way at the bottom. Hoping to find a solution soon, kinda love djing.

Link: imgur.com

audeophilic 5:50 PM - 8 July, 2018

Edit: It switched the placement of my pictures. Disregard the "The important one (memory)..." sentence.

AddamXavier 8:14 PM - 8 July, 2018

Have you tried disabling you virus scan at all? I just run the embedded Windows Defender because of how much overhead 3rd party virus scanners have. I'm wondering if the freezing could be related to the virus scanner seeing "suspicious" changes and locking the files. We had an issue like that happen with WebRoot up at work where it would lock temp dev files until a reset.

AddamXavier 8:15 PM - 8 July, 2018

Quote:

Have you tried disabling you virus scan at all? I just run the embedded Windows Defender because of how much overhead 3rd party virus scanners have. I'm wondering if the freezing could be related to the virus scanner seeing "suspicious" changes and locking the files. We had an issue like that happen with WebRoot up at work where it would lock temp dev files until a reset.

Sorry just read you tried that, nevermind.

AddamXavier 8:19 PM - 8 July, 2018

Did you look at the Resource Monitor (bottom of task manager in the Performance tab)? that might give you better detail.

Also, i've had issues with cloud syncing (OneDrive in my specific case) completely crippling my machine when its actively trying to sync a large amount of data, specifically uploading, which can occur if you are loading/unloading songs

audeophilic 8:42 PM - 8 July, 2018

I did not, I'll have to try watching resource monitor when I get home tonight! I also uninstalled OneDrive when I first got my computer bc I never use the darn thing.

DjSyndic8 12:11 AM - 9 July, 2018

try one of these memory cache fixes for win10 here>
Watch www.youtube.com

audeophilic 4:31 AM - 9 July, 2018

Tried both of them, still happens. Thanks though!

I tried running Serato DJ using only music on my computer to eliminate the external drive as the cause. Sure enough, regardless of where the music is stored, or how complex (or NOT) the file path is, it still happens. Also tried installing the ASIO driver for the SL2. No luck...

DjSyndic8 5:15 AM - 9 July, 2018

Quote:

Tried both of them, still happens. Thanks though!

I tried running Serato DJ using only music on my computer to eliminate the external drive as the cause. Sure enough, regardless of where the music is stored, or how complex (or NOT) the file path is, it still happens. Also tried installing the ASIO driver for the SL2. No luck...

do you have a lot of software's installed on your PC?

I would try and see what other programs run in the background while you run serato DJ
and pretty much just have serato dj run on its own and see if the problem still persist,
also a few DJs here have issues with some of windows 10s latest updates,

while you have this thread opened up to the members here
also start up a help request here --->support.serato.com
and one of the Serato mods will get back to you about your issue.

audeophilic 5:19 AM - 9 July, 2018

Another update. I uninstalled and reinstalled 2.0.3, changed compatibility mode to Windows 8, and then when I started the program up the memory usage bar showed that there was only 82 megabytes of free memory making the sum of the cache memory and in use memory almost the entire 8GB my computer has.

From what I understand, this is normal. Computers try to fill up Ram so that nothing is unused for the quickest possible performance of programs. I did notice that the crash this time happened after I tried to toggle on an effect. Specifically the left deck low pass filter.

Still searching.

audeophilic 5:21 AM - 9 July, 2018

That was the first thing I checked. There aren't a lot of other programs in use, I've made sure to disable a lot of things on Startup and almost all of these tests have been on Fresh restarts. In addition I have already started a ticket with Serato.

DjSyndic8 5:58 AM - 9 July, 2018

Quote:

That was the first thing I checked. There aren't a lot of other programs in use, I've made sure to disable a lot of things on Startup and almost all of these tests have been on Fresh restarts. In addition I have already started a ticket with Serato.

yer serato will go through your crash logs and determine whats wrong with your system hope they sort you issue out just quietly I got sick of windows issue and went Mac and I have zero issues, welcome to the forum 😎👍

audeophilic 6:29 AM - 9 July, 2018

Unfortunately because the program freezes and I have to hard reset the computer to remedy it, there are no crash logs in the dump folder. This should be interesting.

Aptidda 11:27 PM - 9 July, 2018

I am sorry to say but you are encountering all these issues (and will continue to encounter them) because you have a Windows PC. Why not ask you mommy and daddy to help pay for an Apple MacBook? If you were really serious about DJing and the Music Arts, it is a known fact that any self respecting person would ensure the heart of their system is a highly spec'd buttery smooth Apple product.

DjSyndic8 11:35 PM - 9 July, 2018

Quote:

I am sorry to say but you are encountering all these issues (and will continue to encounter them) because you have a Windows PC. Why not ask you mommy and daddy to help pay for an Apple MacBook? If you were really serious about DJing and the Music Arts, it is a known fact that any self respecting person would ensure the heart of their system is a highly spec'd buttery smooth Apple product.

I agree Mac = less problems all the windows fanboys please don't shoot me I'm speaking from my own excruciating experience👍

audeophilic 12:57 AM - 10 July, 2018

Nice one. It would seem that some people are too into their elitist branding to offer help to someone here simply trying to fix a problem. Thanks to all the respectable people who have replied on this post. :)

I'm aware that this program is optimized for Mac, but I have windows machines and am not about to spend 2 grand on another computer. Thanks for your input anyway, though helpful it was not.

cotdagoo 2:05 AM - 10 July, 2018

DVS adds a bit extra to the mix in terms of computer processing. Does it crash if you play tracks via INT ?

audeophilic 2:17 AM - 10 July, 2018

I did try that last night before posting. It crashed on int. I'm trying another computer with more memory tonight.

DJ Tecniq 3:08 AM - 10 July, 2018

I recommend you do a clean install of your operating system. New computers come with a lot of bloatware you don’t need also do you think maybe it’s your ext drive? Some ext drives can cause freezing esp if it’s being put to sleep while you’re actively DJ’ing. When all else fails backup your data onto the external and wipe your entire system then go from there. Also run a free anti malware program called malwarebytes it will scan your computer for anything that could harm your system.

DJ Tecniq 3:13 AM - 10 July, 2018

As for SDJ Pro I’ve come to find that the program uses more cpu than the previous SDJ versions. More features will always require more cpu. SDJ Pro has also been causing issues specifically with a certain windows update from what I’ve seen on the forum. If you still get freezing try using Serato without your external. Eventually you will find the culprit if you start from the beginning. Cheers

Comrade Tulayev 9:01 AM - 10 July, 2018

Quote:

I am sorry to say but you are encountering all these issues (and will continue to encounter them) because you have a Windows PC. Why not ask you mommy and daddy to help pay for an Apple MacBook? If you were really serious about DJing and the Music Arts, it is a known fact that any self respecting person would ensure the heart of their system is a highly spec'd buttery smooth Apple product.

You used to be funny.

DjSyndic8 9:08 AM - 10 July, 2018

Quote:

I am sorry to say but you are encountering all these issues (and will continue to encounter them) because you have a Windows PC. Why not ask you mommy and daddy to help pay for an Apple MacBook? If you were really serious about DJing and the Music Arts, it is a known fact that any self respecting person would ensure the heart of their system is a highly spec'd buttery smooth Apple product.

You used to be funny.

lol

audeophilic 4:36 AM - 11 July, 2018

Quote:

I recommend you do a clean install of your operating system. New computers come with a lot of bloatware you don’t need also do you think maybe it’s your ext drive? Some ext drives can cause freezing esp if it’s being put to sleep while you’re actively DJ’ing.

I'm reinstalling Windows. Didn't want to come to this but it may help. Will update tomorrow eve.

DJ Tecniq 5:22 AM - 11 July, 2018

Quote:

I'm reinstalling Windows. Didn't want to come to this but it may help. Will update tomorrow eve.

Like just reinstalling? Or you mean wiping the computer clean, backing up your data and doing a fresh install? Not sure how windows works but if it’s not a complete install of the operating system like factory reset it’s not exactly starting from the start.

audeophilic 5:28 AM - 11 July, 2018

Fresh windows install.

DjSyndic8 5:45 AM - 11 July, 2018

Quote:

Fresh windows install.

any chance you might be installing windows7 at least you dont have to worry about any bugs :)

DJ Tecniq 6:01 AM - 11 July, 2018

Quote:

Fresh windows install.

any chance you might be installing windows7 at least you dont have to worry about any bugs :)

I highly suggest staying away from windows 10 I’ve read nightmares of that OS w/Serato. Be cautious

DjSyndic8 6:07 AM - 11 July, 2018

Quote:

Fresh windows install.

any chance you might be installing windows7 at least you dont have to worry about any bugs :)

I highly suggest staying away from windows 10 I’ve read nightmares of that OS w/Serato. Be cautious

windows 7 is rock solid Ill never upgrade there's no need :)

audeophilic 12:47 PM - 11 July, 2018

Not on a surface. It'll mess with the computer hardcore.

DjSyndic8 12:49 PM - 11 July, 2018

Quote:

Not on a surface. It'll mess with the computer hardcore.

what do u mean?

DjSyndic8 12:56 PM - 11 July, 2018

ok i think its only compatible with windows 8 upwards

audeophilic 1:37 PM - 11 July, 2018

The newer computers in the surface line I don't even think are optimized for anything other than Windows 10. Older surface computers used 8.1, but when they started with the newer line of them they moved on because 8.1 sucks lol

popnwave 2:43 PM - 11 July, 2018

Might want to search on here for others using Surface units. They had major problems getting Serato to play nice on them, I know I just returned my 3rd here at work (Surface Pro 4) for different failing hardware issues :(

DjSyndic8 10:17 PM - 11 July, 2018

Quote:

The newer computers in the surface line I don't even think are optimized for anything other than Windows 10. Older surface computers used 8.1, but when they started with the newer line of them they moved on because 8.1 sucks lol

might wanna look at this
www.insanelymac.com

Watch www.youtube.com

DJ Tecniq 10:50 PM - 11 July, 2018

Quote:

might wanna look at this
www.insanelymac.com

Watch www.youtube.com

According to the results in the video clip i would sell that computer fast it apparently is not built for Serato. Get a HP, Lenovo, Acer i7 laptop and be done with the headache. Basically the Surface Pro is not meant for digital DJ’ing. That sucks.

DjSyndic8 10:54 PM - 11 July, 2018

Quote:

might wanna look at this
www.insanelymac.com

Watch www.youtube.com

According to the results in the video clip i would sell that computer fast it apparently is not built for Serato. Get a HP, Lenovo, Acer i7 laptop and be done with the headache. Basically the Surface Pro is not meant for digital DJ’ing. That sucks.

i agree I don't think the surface pro handles heat and workload very well, all comes down to if your serious about DJing then you gotta spend some $$$ and if your doing a lot of gigs then it will pay itself of in no time, if you carry on with issues while playing Live then you will make yourself look bad and no one would want to hire you because of computer and sound issues.

clients will only blame the DJ and not their equipment.

DJ Tecniq 11:00 PM - 11 July, 2018

True story...Before I became a Mac fan I had a HP Pavilion w/Scratchlive that was a fucking tank except for video use. I had to upgrade to Mac for video DJ’ing. I haven’t cared for pc ever since the Mac is powerful and no headache. Too many driver and bloatware on Windows. Ever time i use Windows 10 on my desktop I remind myself of how shitty it is.

DjSyndic8 11:27 PM - 11 July, 2018

Quote:

True story...Before I became a Mac fan I had a HP Pavilion w/Scratchlive that was a fucking tank except for video use. I had to upgrade to Mac for video DJ’ing. I haven’t cared for pc ever since the Mac is powerful and no headache. Too many driver and bloatware on Windows. Ever time i use Windows 10 on my desktop I remind myself of how shitty it is.

I know windows cant seem to get there operating system right I think it all started going downhill ever since windows Vista I have never upgraded from windows 7 and I use windows at home for everything else but when it comes down to DJ application or anything to do with audio production Mac OSX is the only way.
I made the choice back in 2012 to spend 2K on a Mac and and its worth every $$$,
today you can spend top dollar on a gaming laptop and still have issues with DJ applications.

Aptidda 11:37 PM - 11 July, 2018

Amen, throw that POS windows tablet in the garbage, go and get your first credit card and purchase a fully spec'd mac 15". No looking back.....

DJ Tecniq 11:37 PM - 11 July, 2018

I agree i used to rock Serato w/Windows XP on my HP i had like 4 gigs ram which was shit but back then ram wasn’t much of an issue cause Scratchlive was so butter smooth and used such less cpu. Nowadays with SDJ you have to have a fucking gaming laptop just to get decent performance. To this day i still think Scratchlive is King. SDJ is just a fucking coded mess while it has awesome features the program is not stable enough. I can’t even practice fucking blends in offline mode cause the bpm never stays locked it is the craziest shit ever😬

DjSyndic8 11:50 PM - 11 July, 2018

Quote:

I agree i used to rock Serato w/Windows XP on my HP i had like 4 gigs ram which was shit but back then ram wasn’t much of an issue cause Scratchlive was so butter smooth and used such less cpu. Nowadays with SDJ you have to have a fucking gaming laptop just to get decent performance. To this day i still think Scratchlive is King. SDJ is just a fucking coded mess while it has awesome features the program is not stable enough. I can’t even practice fucking blends in offline mode cause the bpm never stays locked it is the craziest shit ever😬

yip I agree I don't know much about coding but scratch live was the bom back in the day compared to SDJ Pro :)

DjSyndic8 1:31 AM - 12 July, 2018

Quote:

Amen, throw that POS windows tablet in the garbage, go and get your first credit card and purchase a fully spec'd mac 15". No looking back.....

👍👍👍👍

DJ Tecniq 2:50 AM - 12 July, 2018

Quote:

Amen, throw that POS windows tablet in the garbage, go and get your first credit card and purchase a fully spec'd mac 15". No looking back.....

I agree with half of this. You don’t need a brand new Mac to get good performance on Serato I’d say at least a 2013 or above model Mac. Check fb marketplace students and users sell them cheap as hell between $500-$1000 in great condition.

audeophilic 5:01 AM - 12 July, 2018

May be better off on my gaming laptop lol. After reinstalling windows i ran Serato. Instant crash, same as before. I looked at the power dropdown and it was in recommended, not high performance mode. So slid the slider to max power and no hickups... till the computer got hot. I'm assuming it went into power throttling to cool itself down, then crashed. I will try monitoring temps with Intel extreme tuning.

Weirdly enough though this time I saved the crash by removing my USB hub with the peripherals. I was able to close the program normally... This is starting to make sense. There are ways to disable thermal throttling in the surface, may try it. Otherwise I think it is time to set the surface aside for school stuff. Bummed and confused. The last one worked so well. I'll have to figure out which version of SDJ I had installed before. May downgrade to an older less CPU intensive version.

I am smart with my credit card and have a car to repair so I don't see a mac in my future. At least not now. Making do with what I got. I hear you, apple fans, maybe someday. For now I will get this to work, and will continue to document it for other surface users.

Though I wonder what I could get for this computer anyway... $$

DjSyndic8 9:34 AM - 12 July, 2018

Quote:

May be better off on my gaming laptop lol. After reinstalling windows i ran Serato. Instant crash, same as before. I looked at the power dropdown and it was in recommended, not high performance mode. So slid the slider to max power and no hickups... till the computer got hot. I'm assuming it went into power throttling to cool itself down, then crashed. I will try monitoring temps with Intel extreme tuning.

Weirdly enough though this time I saved the crash by removing my USB hub with the peripherals. I was able to close the program normally... This is starting to make sense. There are ways to disable thermal throttling in the surface, may try it. Otherwise I think it is time to set the surface aside for school stuff. Bummed and confused. The last one worked so well. I'll have to figure out which version of SDJ I had installed before. May downgrade to an older less CPU intensive version.

I am smart with my credit card and have a car to repair so I don't see a mac in my future. At least not now. Making do with what I got. I hear you, apple fans, maybe someday. For now I will get this to work, and will continue to document it for other surface users.

Though I wonder what I could get for this computer anyway... $$

good on ya audeophilic... have a look online and see how much your surface is selling for so you get a fare Idea how much its worth, maybe set up a "go fund me" page for a new mac laptop you never know what people give $$$$ good luck audeophilic 👍

audeophilic 3:07 PM - 12 July, 2018

Update! I downgraded to 1.9 and as it crashed I was finally able to control alt delete to get 2 the restart button. It started restarting and then suddenly I got a blue screen of death that said "Driver Power State Failure." Have some research to do still but this just keeps unravelling.

As a bonus, I know now that it is not caused by overheating or turbo boost.

I think I can get 500 bucks for this computer...

audeophilic 3:46 PM - 12 July, 2018

BSOD got me thinking. So I took my sl2 off the powered hub and plugged it and my external HD into the computer directly......... no crash yet...

DJ Tecniq 4:54 PM - 12 July, 2018

Quote:

BSOD got me thinking. So I took my sl2 off the powered hub and plugged it and my external HD into the computer directly......... no crash yet...

friendly FYI “never” plug your Serato hardware into a hub it always should be connected directly to your laptops USB port this is prob the main reason why you’re having the crashes. DJ hardware is not supposed to be powered from a hub you are sharing that hub with other devices...it’s too much work load on the hub itself. I don’t know any professional DJ that runs their hardware off a hub.

popnwave 5:09 PM - 12 July, 2018

Quote:

friendly FYI “never” plug your Serato hardware into a hub it always should be connected directly to your laptops USB port this is prob the main reason why you’re having the crashes. DJ hardware is not supposed to be powered from a hub you are sharing that hub with other devices...it’s too much work load on the hub itself. I don’t know any professional DJ that runs their hardware off a hub.

Surface (non Book) only has 1 USB and mini displayport.

audeophilic 5:44 PM - 12 July, 2018

The surface book has two USB 3.0 ports. What I usually do is plug in my external hard drive and the Hub with my lpd8, dicers, and Hardware all attached. Come to think of it in the past I had a similar issue but I thought I had resolved it. Might try switching the hardware and my external, so that the SL2 has its own port and the Hub contains the dicers, lpd8, and external hard drive. I think that I had issues with hard drives on hubs in the past but I don't remember whether or not it was with a powered USB hub. I wonder why it worked so well on my last computer though. Will test more, but I think it is solved. Thank you all.

Alternatively Microsoft sells a surface hub that functionally extends the USB capabilities through the power cable (which is the same plug that connects the tablet portion to the keyboard and attached USB ports) and adds I think two display ports or something, but it costs about $200.

popnwave 5:49 PM - 12 July, 2018

Quote:

Alternatively Microsoft sells a surface hub that functionally extends the USB capabilities through the power cable (which is the same plug that connects the tablet portion to the keyboard and attached USB ports) and adds I think two display ports or something, but it costs about $200.

You may have more luck with trying the USB configuration you mentioned, give the SL2 it's port and see how everything else falls in line off of the HUB.

We use these docks with our Surface Pro 4s and we love them, albeit not for DJing.

Microsoft Surface Dock (Compatible with Surface Book, Surface Pro 4, and Surface Pro 3)
by Microsoft
a.co

The Return of Dj Sparky 7:13 PM - 12 July, 2018

Not sure about how compatible Mac OSX is on surface books but that would be the answer to your problem, installing Mac OSX on that computer

The Return of Dj Sparky 7:14 PM - 12 July, 2018

or else seratop doesn't like that cpu, as some intel cpu's in the past had issues with serato

popnwave 8:44 PM - 12 July, 2018

Installing El Cap on that thing would be stupid, half the stuff doesn't work/isn't supported.

The Return of Dj Sparky 10:44 PM - 12 July, 2018

the goal is for get serato running without issues so screw the other stuff,

here is a guide if you want to try put osx on that surface book

www.insanelymac.com

audeophilic 7:53 PM - 13 July, 2018

It worked! I also narrowed the problem down to one of the 4 ports on the USB hub. It would crash when plugging the external into that port. Even with no other device attached. But any other was fine. Also that was the port the slow was plugged into.

Lesson learned, always check your peripherals.

DjSyndic8 7:55 PM - 13 July, 2018

Quote:

It worked! I also narrowed the problem down to one of the 4 ports on the USB hub. It would crash when plugging the external into that port. Even with no other device attached. But any other was fine. Also that was the port the slow was plugged into.

Lesson learned, always check your peripherals.

awesome audeophilic.

audeophilic 12:24 AM - 1 October, 2018

...or so I thought. F me. lol

RR437T 12:31 AM - 1 October, 2018

Do you use your external HD with any other Windows computers?

audeophilic 4:17 PM - 1 October, 2018

Yes, but that isn't the problem because it crashed last night under testing with a small music bank on the internal hard drive. Gonna try my other computer, but I'm starting to think there is some deep issue with the device configuration of the surface itself.

TurtleFaceBrownNoser 5:02 PM - 4 October, 2018

Quote:

Yes, but that isn't the problem because it crashed last night under testing with a small music bank on the internal hard drive. Gonna try my other computer, but I'm starting to think there is some deep issue with the device configuration of the surface itself.

Ya that's a total bummer audeophilic, I hope you get it fixed! Have you tried Serato on any of your friends machines to test against?

Good luck, I would love to hear you spin sometime.

mrpep 4:36 PM - 29 October, 2018

Hello Everyone, Id like to wake up this post by asking if the problem has been resolved? I too am having lag issues so downgraded from 10 to win7 and now i'm having freezes / lock ups. I use a external hard drive via usb and wonder if this is the issue. Any tips ? What did you eventually do ?

audeophilic 5:33 PM - 29 October, 2018

What computer do you have? Mine is a surface book, and the structure of the device inputs is the cause of my problem. As such I am now djing on a different computer and it is unstoppable.

mrpep 6:01 PM - 29 October, 2018

Quote:

What computer do you have? Mine is a surface book, and the structure of the device inputs is the cause of my problem. As such I am now djing on a different computer and it is unstoppable.

I’m on a dell latitude I think. It’s gut an I7, 8gb ram, 1gb graphic card, windows 7. So you think it’s the laptop ??

audeophilic 8:10 PM - 29 October, 2018

Have you tried putting a bank of music on the computers internal hard drive? It could be the USB drive. I've gotten lag and slowdowns from having a large bank of stuff on an external before. Follow the instructions on ram management on Seratos support page.

mrpep 8:52 PM - 29 October, 2018

Quote:

Have you tried putting a bank of music on the computers internal hard drive? It could be the USB drive. I've gotten lag and slowdowns from having a large bank of stuff on an external before. Follow the instructions on ram management on Seratos support page.

I will try this later and update, thank you.

DjSyndic8 10:59 PM - 29 October, 2018

Quote:

Have you tried putting a bank of music on the computers internal hard drive? It could be the USB drive. I've gotten lag and slowdowns from having a large bank of stuff on an external before. Follow the instructions on ram management on Seratos support page.

how big is your external drive maybe there is a limit on how big the drive is, example if your drive is a 3TB portable drive there might not be enough power from your surface USB port to keep constant power to the drive and transfer data at the same time I guess the only way to remedy this is to use a powered USB hub first to the surface then the drive to the hub, just saying.

audeophilic 5:25 AM - 30 October, 2018

I solved ut. This was a response to mrpep. The thing is I had a powered hub. Also bigger hard drives dont require more power, they just have larger storage capacity, ie bigger disks and more of them. The specific issue I faced seemed to be surface specific, and as previous responses from me state, the problem persisted when I made a bank of music on the surface internal hard drive.

Other research seems to point to one thing: the surface itself is the problem. Yes it is a powerful pc, but normally computers have designated pinouts for particular functions, so that things like the USB ports, monitor, touch screen, keyboard and mousepad, and gpu are all on separate device trees, so to speak.

The surface, being a tablet, is built around trying to condense all input and output devices to a single pinout. The same port that charges the thing is also responsible for connecting to the keyboard, which has an identical port that the surface hub connects to. The keyboard, thru its direct connection to the tablet, also hosts the USB connection. It is for this reason I believe that I experienced the perplexing freeze.

TLDR: my understanding is the surface is built like a USB hub powering ALL INS AND OUTS connected to a motherboard via a fancy bottlenecked port. It gets overloaded and signals get mixed up, so it crashes and cannot recover. This explains the only blue screen of death I got. Case closed.

Forevernightdj 2:13 AM - 5 November, 2018

Just finished reading this issue with a WIN PC. Ladies and gents this has happened to me on a MBP 2015 500SSD 16GB RAM . Same issues as audeophilic. Downgraded to 1.9 from 2.0.5 Serato Pro. Still have the same issue Serato frozen but yet it continues to play active tracks and mac is responsive except for Serato GUI and Pioneer hardware. I will do a backup my mbp and do a clean OS install and go back to vers. 1.9

DjSyndic8 2:29 AM - 5 November, 2018

Quote:

Just finished reading this issue with a WIN PC. Ladies and gents this has happened to me on a MBP 2015 500SSD 16GB RAM . Same issues as audeophilic. Downgraded to 1.9 from 2.0.5 Serato Pro. Still have the same issue Serato frozen but yet it continues to play active tracks and mac is responsive except for Serato GUI and Pioneer hardware. I will do a backup my mbp and do a clean OS install and go back to vers. 1.9

what OSX do you have

audeophilic 8:09 PM - 5 November, 2018

Serato, y'all got some optimization to work on. Lol

capo don juan 5:10 PM - 18 November, 2018

i got rid of my ddjsx2 bought a new apple (after thinking my top of the line hp envy) was the problem. bought the djm s9 mixer and rane 12. It ran smooth for about 3 months and bam freezing and glitches STILL.. I am so sick of serato it's not even funny. I wouldn't wish this program on my worst enemy. WTF is so hard about making a stable platform to play your music!!!!!. You buy a $1500 mixer $800 cdj only to have problems with this $2.00 program.. like WTF SERATO

RR437T 6:57 PM - 18 November, 2018

Quote:

i got rid of my ddjsx2 bought a new apple (after thinking my top of the line hp envy) was the problem. bought the djm s9 mixer and rane 12. It ran smooth for about 3 months and bam freezing and glitches STILL.. I am so sick of serato it's not even funny. I wouldn't wish this program on my worst enemy. WTF is so hard about making a stable platform to play your music!!!!!. You buy a $1500 mixer $800 cdj only to have problems with this $2.00 program.. like WTF SERATO

Just go back to Windows if you still have your old computer. Apple isn't what it used to be. I've got 2 Windows 10 laptops running the latest version of Serato and haven't had a single issue in over 6 months. I had issues when Serato Pro first came out but they went away as updates were released. I guess with Apple, most people have to downgrade to an older version of the OS to get Serato working. For me personally, that wouldn't be an option.

audeophilic 4:22 AM - 19 November, 2018

I'll give it to the dev team, as a programmer I understand how hard these things can be. Fixing one problem can cause so many other things to go wrong, and especially when you're working with multiple platforms and non standard computing equipment... it's a thing, they're doing their best. Still a bummer though.

DJ James Burkill 3:46 PM - 4 December, 2018

I have a similar Problem with Serato pro 2.0.5 high CPU, I wonder if it is thermal throttling of CPU, I'm running:
HP Probook 430 g1
2.5 MHz i5
8 GB Ram
480 GB SSD

no USB hubs in sight, any thoughts?

ChosunNYC 10:38 PM - 7 December, 2018

Forgive me if this was mentioned before, but I use a Surface Pro as my developer machine, and am not a fan of the thermal throttling. I put a couple fans on the back of the laptop, and it now rarely throttles.

That being said, I've used my personal laptop (more powerful than my surface), and I get random freezes all the time. It fear that Serato has given up on Windows 10 support.

JDub_77 5:56 PM - 14 May, 2019

UGH...the when they can't figure it out the fanboys are always ready to give the ultimate Serato fix..."BUY A MAC"...this is such a bullshit answer..actually it isn't an answer...how about if you actually try and figure out what the problem is with SUPPORTED hardware/software being used????? Serato should run fine on Windows PCs, especially when they are spec'd to the teeth!
So Fing frustrating. Just fix your shit and provide some decent support for a change. You should be able to afford it since you've been raping the DJ community for years now.

SERATO SUPPORT IS NON EXISTENT!!! They do SHIT!

JDub_77 6:03 PM - 14 May, 2019

Serato is crashing when external monitor is connected and selected as primary. This started after the last serato upodate...this is not a Windows issue, this is a serato issue.
I have already optimized, running for background.
All nonessential apps are stopped.
If i disconnect the display or switch the primary to my laptop, the issue stops.

MSI GS60 Ghost Pro 4K
Win10 Pro
32 GB RAM
i7 6700HQ
64 bIt
All nonessential apps stopped (followed all instructions in optimize doc, and have done so fo over a decade now)
No Antivirus other than Win Defender

please actually try to resolve rather than regurgitating the suggestion to buy MAC...MAC is retarded and I will never buy. You support Windows `0

ChosunNYC 6:18 PM - 14 May, 2019

Quote:

Serato is crashing when external monitor is connected and selected as primary. This started after the last serato upodate...this is not a Windows issue, this is a serato issue.
I have already optimized, running for background.
All nonessential apps are stopped.
If i disconnect the display or switch the primary to my laptop, the issue stops.

Is dual-booting to Windows 7 an option? I know it's not much help, but it seems like there might've been significant changes to Windows 10 that are screwing with the Serato software. It could also be the Rane hardware causing the issue (dunno if you're using Rane, but I was). Have you tried updating your software and firmware to the latest versions? I honestly haven't tested out my setup for a while because I stopped djing to focus on work, but I'm hoping when I get back into it, that the software will have had this issue fixed.

Regarding the people suggesting to switch to a MAC: you're delusional if you think MAC is more stable/safer/etc. I've worked as software developer on both systems, and they both crash for stupid reasons. You can say it's better for music, but that's not entirely true, either; I know very successful musicians who use PC's and are very happy with them. I will admit that Serato runs better on a MAC, but that's simply because whatever is causing the issue hasn't been rooted out, yet. Also, your stupid-ass suggestions of "get a MAC!" are both unhelpful and idiotic; it's akin someone telling you to "get a real job" if you find yourself struggling, financially.

popnwave 6:47 PM - 14 May, 2019

Quote:

Serato is crashing when external monitor is connected and selected as primary. This started after the last serato upodate...this is not a Windows issue, this is a serato issue.
I have already optimized, running for background.
All nonessential apps are stopped.
If i disconnect the display or switch the primary to my laptop, the issue stops.

MSI GS60 Ghost Pro 4K
Win10 Pro
32 GB RAM
i7 6700HQ
64 bIt
All nonessential apps stopped (followed all instructions in optimize doc, and have done so fo over a decade now)
No Antivirus other than Win Defender

please actually try to resolve rather than regurgitating the suggestion to buy MAC...MAC is retarded and I will never buy. You support Windows `0

So use the older version?

popnwave 6:53 PM - 14 May, 2019

Quote:

Regarding the people suggesting to switch to a MAC: you're delusional if you think MAC is more stable/safer/etc. I've worked as software developer on both systems, and they both crash for stupid reasons. You can say it's better for music, but that's not entirely true, either; I know very successful musicians who use PC's and are very happy with them. I will admit that Serato runs better on a MAC, but that's simply because whatever is causing the issue hasn't been rooted out, yet. Also, your stupid-ass suggestions of "get a MAC!" are both unhelpful and idiotic; it's akin someone telling you to "get a real job" if you find yourself struggling, financially.

Ah boy, the fact still is most studio stuff runs out of the box with less issues on Apple hardware. It's not the golden unicorn it used to be but time and time again, you're going to spend less time setting up your rig if it's a Mac in some form. That being said if you:

Don't value your time and don't mind screwing around with various manufacturers drivers, do your thing and user a cheaper PC, since price point is your gripe.

If you read these forums most of us long time users talk about buying 2012 models (for sheer upgradability) or 2015 for having the last year of non USB-C/TouchBar silliness as awesome options.

ChosunNYC 8:04 PM - 14 May, 2019

Buying a 2015 mac is not unlike buying a Windows 7 PC; both of which handle Serato just fine. If Serato simply decided to throw more resources into fixing their drivers for an operating system that they claim to support, then this wouldn't be an issue. Even if they decided to only support Mac OS, that's fine, but if you claim to support Windows 10, then you should probably do what you claim. As I stated before, simply offering up "get a mac" as a solution is completely stupid and a waste of time.

Also, it's a bit presumptuous that we're all using PC's as a result of a "price point" gripe. My PC is the same price as a MacBook pro; it just happens to be my primary development machine. Because PC's tend to be cheaper, I've been able to max out the RAM, processor, and storage, making it easier to use a single machine for the multitude of things I do. Additionally, as the owner of a successful dj-driven venue in NYC, I've had to troubleshoot issues for countless dj's using Macs, but I never tell them "get a PC". Why? Because I'm not a dick, and that does nothing to help. Macs have tons of issues (just like PC's) when it comes to drivers and connectivity issues. In fact, I find it harder to fix many issues on a mac because lower-level settings are typically abstracted away from the user, and have even had to go into using bash shell to correct issues.

Additionally, how many dj's do you know that are happy using the new macbook pro's for djing? I've heard so many gripe that they now have to carry a stupid dongle/USB hub, and know a few that have even reverted back to using older hardware (as you stated). The reality is that Apple doesn't really care about DJ's using their devices, and neither do Microsoft or the multitude of PC manufacturers. On the other hand, this is Serato's primary focus, and yet the most constructive feedback is to switch to Mac? This is a Serato forum, discussing issues with Serato and Windows 10; this is exactly where this question needs to be raised in order to get helpful input to correct the situation.

I'm happy that you're happy with your mac; I hope you continue to enjoy it for years to come. But if your only input is to "get a mac", please keep that shit to yourself.

popnwave 9:00 PM - 14 May, 2019

Ah yes the disgrunted, projecting Win10 user. I've never once told someone to get a Mac, actually I recommend people switch to VDJ, especially since I am video DJ and the video product for Serato on PC is straight busted.

Luke B 9:03 PM - 14 May, 2019

Quote:

Serato is crashing when external monitor is connected and selected as primary. This started after the last serato upodate...this is not a Windows issue, this is a serato issue.
I have already optimized, running for background.
All nonessential apps are stopped.
If i disconnect the display or switch the primary to my laptop, the issue stops.

MSI GS60 Ghost Pro 4K
Win10 Pro
32 GB RAM
i7 6700HQ
64 bIt
All nonessential apps stopped (followed all instructions in optimize doc, and have done so fo over a decade now)
No Antivirus other than Win Defender

please actually try to resolve rather than regurgitating the suggestion to buy MAC...MAC is retarded and I will never buy. You support Windows `0

Hi JDub_77,

Sorry to hear you're having trouble with crashing. I've tested a Windows 10 laptop with the latest SDJP updates, and using a secondary display poses no issues.

Can you please submit a support request, with your system report and any crash reports attached, here: support.serato.com

If you've already submitted a support request (I can't see any recent ones, based on the Serato.com account you're posting from), please provide the reference number, and I will follow-up for you.

Cheers

ChosunNYC 9:42 PM - 14 May, 2019

Quote:

Ah yes the disgrunted, projecting Win10 user. I've never once told someone to get a Mac, actually I recommend people switch to VDJ, especially since I am video DJ and the video product for Serato on PC is straight busted.

You're saying I'm a disgruntled Win10 user because I'm asking Serato to stand by their product? What, exactly, am I projecting? I love that you're trying to categorize me as a generalized "disgruntled Win10 user" when you know nothing about me, except that I chose to use a PC for my personal stuff. I started a tech company not that long ago which was based on...guess what? Mac. Is it because Mac is better? No. The fact is that OSX plays nicely with Linux development, and we were using Java on Linux boxes for cost concerns. I'm now starting another company that's based on PC. Why? Because I have been working in C# for the past few years and have a team of amazing (and available) C# developers in my close network, not because PC is better.

What I know about you, on the other hand, is that you're unable/unwilling to read my comments, and recognize which ones are targeted towards you. I suspect that you're also the type of person who struggles to recognize and understand another person's issues with empathy, and instead chooses to look down on others who are struggling. Well, bravo to you, good sir, for choosing Mac. I hope they never let you down.

I never said you suggested getting a mac; but you are defending those who say it. My point is, if you have nothing constructive to offer, why are you bothering to say anything at all? Us Windows users are still valid customers of Serato, and this thread is directly related to issues for that customer-base. If you've take issue with the fact that we are trying to get Serato to work with our PC's, then take your negative bias elsewhere.

ChosunNYC 10:23 PM - 14 May, 2019

My bad popnwave, I realize (after re-reading) that you were actually trying to offer up constructive advice to the original poster. So please disregard my presumption on your inability to handle issues with empathy. I still stand by my positions, otherwise.

ChosunNYC 10:38 PM - 14 May, 2019

Quote:

Other research seems to point to one thing: the surface itself is the problem.

audeophilic: I work on a Surface Pro at my day job, and had logging turned on for an overnight indexing project. After reading the logs (and failed indexing), I learned that the Surface has a unique low-power mode, where the OS seems to go into a semi-sleep like state. There are a bunch of small things that seem to happen with the Surface that aren't widely used in other hardware; one of which I already mentioned (CPU throttling). I don't know if this helps much, but I think the Surface may be one of the Windows 10 laptops most prone to issues because of their power/thermal side-effects. I don't know this for a fact, but I think trying to troubleshoot the issue with a Surface is going to be much more difficult than most other Windows laptops.

jerrymatt 5:26 AM - 4 December, 2019

In this situation, you might be looking for the easiest and instant solution. This article has some of the fixes for frozen computer screen.
Fixes for Frozen Computer
1. The basic fix to resolve this issue is to restart the computer by holding the power button for a few seconds.
2. The issue might be due to virus in the computer. So, to resolve it, you need to run a scan or get an antivirus to keep the computer secure.
3. Sometimes when the computer is running out of memory, causes the issue. So, the RAM should be kept clear and unwanted files should be deleted from the system.
4. The issue might be coming up due to hardware issues. For this, you can check the hardware components of the computer. If any component is faulty, it should either be repaired or replaced.
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