iTunes problem

September 28, 2006 1:40 PM

I recently upgraded an old Mac G4 733mhz to iTunes 7. Yeah, big mistake. Beachballs galore. Is there a way to switch back to the previous version? Or could I install a faster processor (If I had read the system requirements it called for 1 ghz chip or faster)? This is a secondary computer that was basically used as a music player, so some light tinkering would be acceptable.
posted by vronsky to computers & internet (13 comments total)

Heck, I upgraded my dual G5 to iTunes7 and it has slowed down my system noticeably. What a clunky piece of software.
posted by NationalKato at 1:45 PM on September 28, 2006

You might try upgrading to the 7.0.1 version that's now out. I did that with my Mac Mini (a G5 machine, I believe) and it solved most of the problems.

If that doesn't work, there are ways to reinstall the iTunes 6 version, but I think they get into deleting and shifting directories a bit.
posted by Gordion Knott at 1:48 PM on September 28, 2006

Just tried it Gordion, and it did help a bit, but definitely not enough.

"but I think they get into deleting and shifting directories a bit."

That is what I was afraid of. I do have all my music backed up so I might try this. Is there a website you would recommend for guidance?
posted by vronsky at 2:05 PM on September 28, 2006

I'm running iTunes 7 on a 400mhz G4 and don't have a problem either iTunes not downloading all the album art in my collection.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 2:32 PM on September 28, 2006

And yes, you can upgrade your processor really easily.

Check out the offerings at Sonnet. I upgraded an AGP Graphics G4 a year ago with no problems. I bought the upgrade via eBay cheaply, and it easily gave me another year out of the machine.
posted by donguanella at 2:47 PM on September 28, 2006

How much memory have you got in it? That might have as much of an effect on iTunes as the processor speed.
posted by kindall at 2:53 PM on September 28, 2006

I have 1.5 gb sdram so I don't think that is my problem.
posted by vronsky at 3:01 PM on September 28, 2006

Out of curiosity, how large is your music library? Part of the problem with "it runs fine with X processor speed and/or Y ram / it runs like crap even on my Z" is that there are a whole lot of factors besides just the machine's specs.

That said, I do not know of anything specifically that would cause iTunes to crap out with a large library, but I wouldn't be surprised if the new features in 7 cause things to scale worse. I.e. scanning the entire library for artwork, etc.

Also, I assume the beachballing is persisting after the initial few minutes wherein it updates your library to be gapless and so forth?
posted by cyrusdogstar at 3:23 PM on September 28, 2006

My library is huge - 40 gigs. But the machine basically serves as my jukebox and that is all.

The delays are at their worst at startup. It takes 15 - 20 seconds to "install itunes library" and loading new songs from my desktop also takes 10 or more seconds. These tasks used to be instantaneous. I could probably live with it, but the drop in performance from the last version is startling. Like NationalKato said - very CLUNKY.
posted by vronsky at 3:34 PM on September 28, 2006

To downgrade to iTunes 6:

If you have added new songs since upgrading, see the footnote. Otherwise:

0. De-authorise your mac from the iTunes store.
1. Delete the iTunes application.
2. In the finder, choose "Go To Folder..." from the "Go" menu and type /Library/Receipts/ then press return
3. Delete iTunesX.pkg
4. Open your Music folder and open the iTunes folder.
5. Delete the files iTunes Library and iTunes Music Library.xml
6. Open the folder Older Music Libraries in a new window.
7. Rename "iTunes Library 2006-09-xx" (The most recent) to "iTunes Library" and copy it to the Music/iTunes folder.
8. Download iTunes 6.0.4 from here and run the installer.

It worked for me.

FOOTNOTE: If you have imported or bought new songs then:
1. Create a new Smart playlist, with "songs added in the last 3 weeks"
2. While looking at the playlist, choose export from the file menu, and export the playlist as a text file to the desktop.
3. When you have installed iTunes 6, choose "Import..." from the File menu, and select the text file you created. iTunes will add the songs and find them in your music library.
posted by bonaldi at 4:30 PM on September 28, 2006

I do not know of anything specifically that would cause iTunes to crap out with a large library

My library is ~1Tb. iTunes 6 could, just barely, load a significant subset of it. iTunes 7 dies a horrible hung death during the attempt and all my RAM gets gobbled. iTunes seems to be very sensitive to large libraries, especially the current version. I suspect there is a good deal of optimisation left for later point releases.
posted by meehawl at 6:09 AM on September 29, 2006

Well, compared to meehawl, my library is tiny!!
posted by vronsky at 1:31 PM on September 29, 2006

1TB! I havent been able listen to a good portion of my library-- @35Gb.
posted by vaportrail at 9:24 PM on October 2, 2006