SF 11 Pro Problems in Windows 10

shaun-toole wrote on 2/2/2020, 9:30 AM

I am a heavy user of Sony Sound Forge Pro 11 build 299 (SF). I have used it successfully since mid-2016 on a Dell Inspiron 3650 with an Intel Core i5-6400 CPU @ 2.790GHz, with 16.0 GB RAM. Recently, I have encountered a suite of problems that lead me to wonder if there are software copyright, certificate or registration issues that are causing the problems I am experiencing.

In looking at this forum in the past few days, other people seem to be encountering similar issues.

Here's my timeline: just before Christmas 2019, I migrated the PC from Windows 7 Pro 64-bit to Windows 10 Pro 64-bit. SF ran normally and without problem for a couple of weeks. I use Batch Converter a lot in my work, and the process was working fine with scripts I had created before migrating Windows.

About a week ago, I was prompted to register SF when I started it. I entered the registration data and SF started up, but Wave Hammer (WH) was in demo mode and inserted beeps in all the files I processed with Batch Converter. Registering WH didn't help, but starting SF with the "run as administrator" option seemed to fix the beeps. All other SF plug-ins appeared to be registered and were not in demo mode.

At the same time, I began being prompted by User Access Control every time I start SF. (I saw the posted fix for that issue but haven't had time to try it out - I use SF for my livelihood and making it work is a higher priority than the inconvenience.)

After I worked around the registration problems, I ran several files through Batch Converter using old and reliable scripts and encountered new problems: Batch Converter hangs after it has processed a few WAV files. It may hang while saving a WAV file after several audio processes or effects were applied, or it may hang in the middle of one of the processes.

My workaround for the hanging issue is to use Plug-In Chains in Batch Converter rather than individual process steps. The Plug-In Chains contain the same processes - ones which shipped with SF - and settings as I had run as individual steps in Batch Converter.

All of these problems have consumed a substantial amount of time and energy, and my workarounds shouldn't be necessary for this product. I've considered throwing in the towel and upgrading SF, but found the learning curve due to changed icons and other modified aspects of the new release a productivity killer. I would appreciate guidance and advice more than commiseration, but I'll take that, too.

Thanks for reading this far.

Shaun

Comments

rraud wrote on 2/2/2020, 11:55 AM

Did you do the Elevated Privileges registry tweak or did you just enable "Run as Administrator? RAA can cause other annoyances, though it makes SF 'usable' for most folks who (wisely) prefer to avoid registry changes .

Otherwise you could try uninstall and reinstall Pro 11.using a third-party uninstaller like Revo Uninstall, which has the option to scan and remove tjhe old SF reg entries the default Win uninstaller leaves behind. You obviously will want to save your scripts away from SF folders as well.. Layouts and such can be copied from the pertinent AppData system folders and pasted back in after the reinstall. Some of the other custom settings will have to done manually though, which is a PITA.l.

shaun-toole wrote on 2/2/2020, 4:32 PM

Thanks for the feedback. I have not tried the registry tweak yet. I used to be fairly fearless about editing the registry, but I am getting more cautious in my old age. 💀 There are ways to export registry settings, and I plan to back up the SF section before getting adventurous.

Also, I am running SF in Windows 7 Emulator mode, which doesn't seem to help. I will only try the uninstall option as a last resort. I upgraded to Windows 10 rather than do a complete new installation primarily because of SF.

shaun-toole wrote on 2/2/2020, 5:22 PM

I bravely deleted the registry key as described in the Elevated Privileges tweak posts, but I'm still getting the prompt from Windows User Access Control. Was it supposed to stop asking with the key removed?

As I was staring at the User Access Control question before it launched the program, noticed the option to show more information. I took a look at the publisher's certificate. The certificate says it is valid from September 18, 2012 until October 9, 2015. Does that mean something connected to this issue?

rraud wrote on 2/3/2020, 11:25 AM

"The certificate says it is valid from September 18, 2012 until October 9, 2015. Does that mean something connected to this issue?"

I do not know about the certificate and do not think it has anything to do with the issue. I recomend uninstalling SF 11 using a third-party uninstaller that cleans the left-over registry entries, Download the latest Magix Pro 11.0 build and re-install. You will need your serial number to download and install.

Have you tried disabling "Run as Administrator" in compatibility?

 

shaun-toole wrote on 2/3/2020, 2:04 PM
Have you tried disabling "Run as Administrator" in compatibility?

 

Honestly, I think I tried it, but won't swear to it since I've tried a lot of combinations of settings lately. I'll pass on the clean install for now. It works, and I can handle having to respond to the prompt.

This does remind me about another glitch that recently reared its ugly head. I can no longer drag-and-drop WAV files onto the open SF editing window. Files used to open, but now I get the big "no" symbol. Some SF-specific keyboard macros that used to work with my Microsoft keyboard also quit working around the same time.

rraud wrote on 2/5/2020, 12:42 PM

"I can no longer drag-and-drop WAV files onto the open SF editing window."

I recall that is also a result of "Run as Administrator"..

shaun-toole wrote on 2/6/2020, 6:02 AM

All signs point toward upgrading. 😖