I get the Audiophile Edition annually for my studio computer. But now I want to add a second install for a laptop. The program runs fine if I use the full set of files, but I need to put the limited subset I actually use on a flash drive so I am not eating up the battery running a hard disk. All I need are the jazz and Latin styles with some odd bits, around 740 Gb. I tried removing the unneeded files to a folder outside BB folder and BiaB is not happy, obviously the file system is deeper than simple relational pointers.
How to PROPERLY remove the styles and files? Thanks, I know this is not trivial.

740 GIGABYTES? Audiophile is THAT big?

You can get a 1tb flash drive on Amazon for like 25 bucks.

So are you running Biab bb folder on the laptop and have the RealTracks and Drums folders on the flash drive ?
or is Biab bb folder on the flash drive also ?
are you using the wav files or the wma files on the laptop ?
If you use the wma files on the laptop and freeze the SGU it should load the wav files on the Audiophile Edition computer.

You can use Fast Copy to select the RT RD folders you want to copy and filter out *.wav so it only copies the wma files.

Audiophile is at least double that at 1.67TB. It's shipped on a 2 TB drive.

Had no idea Trev. Never bought "the big boy".

2TB thumb drive from Newegg

Eddie,
Those 2t thumbdives are fakes.
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The only two reliable compact options I know of for 2 ter. drives
Are Samsung model T5
Or build your own out of nvme m2 drive and proper usb enclosure.

T5 is extremely reliable and fast, but pricey.

I am sure there are couple of other options but vast majority of "sticks" advertised as 2tb are fakes.

Is there any evidence of that? I have never known Newegg to be anything but above board. I have bought from them for years. When you start tossing in words like "reliability" I get lost in what you are trying to say. "Fakes" like if you order one you never get it and lose your money? Or "fakes", adding reliability to that, meaning the data throughput is not the same speed as the higher priced ones? Remember, programs run from RAM. What difference if the program takes 5 more seconds moving through the CPU into RAM?

Love to know why you chose the word "fakes".

Products shipped by NewEgg have always been fine for me. Where I’ve had a small amount of difficulty is those ‘third party’ vendors they use, but they are identified if you look for it, so you can make an informed choice.

PG Music was asked several years ago (I’m going to guess about ten) about using flash drives. At that time, the throughput speed was not adequate for BIAB. Of course I would want to experiment again with current technology.

Ok quiz for Eddy and Matt.
Please find a 2 terabyte Flashdrive from a reputable manufacturer that had been around for decades... Clues: Kingston, PNY, SanDisk and couple of others. See what they offer in 2 terabyte flash drives.
I have not done my research in several months, but... I am guessing they will have none. At least at the form factor that trusty Newegg offers.


Eddy, I would place a nice bet with you, for example doing yardwork for a week... on that Newegg drive, but I don't think PG forum is the right place for those kind of bets


P.S. Newegg, Amazon and all other wonders of nature are marketplaces,and very often do not do "in house" checks. I got burned couple of times years ago specifically on high capacity Flash drives. For example, back then they would sell 64 GB flash (which was a rarity at that time) for ridiculously low price. A PC would recognize it as 64GB... They would fake that number, and only when you try to write a large file set, it would stop at 2gb that is when gou realize you had been bamboozled:)

I read the one review of the drive on the linked web page. Not very encouraging. One review is not a very large sample so I headed over to Amazon and the first review of their choice read as:
"This is one of those "I told you so" purchases. Do not do it. it is a 32 GB that has been modified to look like it is 1TB to the OS, but have not doubts, it will only store 32GB."

But there were many positive reviews ... Of course a great percentage of reviews at Amazon are fake further complicating the issue.

So grains of salt, FWIW's, etc.

Bud

PS Never had a problem with Newegg but it's been a while.
PPS Sorry to go so far off topic. I hope somebody can help the OP.

Rusty, getting me to do yardwork for a week on someone else's yard would involve carjacking and gunfire, so that's out. The other replies clear up for me what you meant by fake. When I see that word I think of "You order the stuff and it does not exist so you had money stolen." (What we used to call vaporware.)

As to Bud's comment, even if they are genetically modified to read as 1TB and they are only 32GB, Amazon has always been good about backing up the products sold through them. I have never lost a dime buying there, and I have done my share of returns/refunds.

The disclaimer here is that I am somewhat disinterested in this topic because I will never do what you want to do. Thus I don't understand doing all this dancing and trial by error file manipulation. Unless you live off grid in an old missile silo, why not just just plug your laptop into a wall? Where are you working that battery life is such an issue that the slight power consumption caused by intermittent powering up of an external hard drive is going to matter? Before I did all that file work I'd just buy a solar generator that will give you enough power to run your laptop and that hard drive for like 25 hours on a full charge.

Can you tell us a little more about the "why" here? I mean, you have come up with a scenario here that had never even occurred to me. A far more efficient and logical solution might be a 2TB solid state drive as a secondary mounted inside the case. I have yet to see a laptop case that didn't have room for a tiny little drive to be stuck inside it. I have a Dell 2 in 1 that I did that to. There was a spot under the motherboard where I stuck the extra SSD with 2 sided tape. Not a 2TB though by any stretch. That computer doesn't get that kind of usage because I am not a pro musician like you are. The only way I get into jazz festivals is with a ticket. So please elaborate if you care to. I am curious.

I did not say I would buy a 2TB flash drive from NewEgg or anyone else. I would not want a device that big that was that slow.

It's not just NewEgg, Amazon also has them. They ARE fake, well-documented. Hold about 360G usually according to several reviewers.

I forgot about the WMA option, I'm so used to the WAVs. I have maybe 200G available, should be able to get all the basics and the updates I need on there. Great idea.

"I would not want a device that big that was that slow."
Basic flash drives - agreed.

When it comes to thunderbolt 3 or true USB 3.1 Gen 2 ports and SSD drives that support these (such as Samsung T5), it is another story. They are lightning fast compared to standard "flash drive" plugged into USB 2 or 3 port.

I have two of these, 1 x 1TB & 1 x 2TB. I run BiaB off the 1TB drive and many VI libraries off the 2TB. They are fast and reliable but not cheap.

SanDisk SSD drives

Now I get it Misha. This is how to fake it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHQxB7Ve2wQ&ab_channel=KrisOcchipinti

The Soundsmith, sorry to derail your thread a bit, but since you figured it out and we are on the subject I will share what I think is the most universal "portable" way to have Audiophile....
PG music ships version on a spinner USB 3 drive, which is fast enough for most users, but there are instances where you want or need greater portability, speed or no moving parts...

Samsung T5 2tb is probably the best choice for the external setup. It is much (MUCH!) faster than spinner drives if you have Thunderbolt 3 or USB c gen 2 ports, and about 5 times smaller that external drive PG ships. Second up is SanDisk, a competitor, that was mentioned by TRYUK. Good drive, but I prefer Samsung.

Now, here is a hybrid option, that I think is the best way to go.
A drive, that can be installed as internal drive either straight up, if your system allows, or with adapter:

https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-970-EVO-Plus-MZ-V7S2T0B/dp/B07MFZXR1B/ref=sr_1_3?crid=5NKZLEEUE4NY&keywords=m.2%2Bnvme%2B2tb&qid=1655772054&s=electronics&sprefix=M.2%2BNVMe%2B2%2Celectronics%2C100&sr=1-3&th=1

And external case:
https://www.amazon.com/SSK-Aluminum-Enclosure-Adapter-External/dp/B07MNFH1PX/ref=sr_1_4?crid=2T4L64ZRJAN5D&keywords=m.2+nvme+enclosure&qid=1655772087&s=electronics&sprefix=m.2%2Bnvme+enclosure%2Celectronics%2C92&sr=1-4


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I am lucky to have two M.2 NVMe slots in my PC, one drive is completely dedicated to BIAB.