Automation Plays Exactly One Bar Behind on Hardware Synth

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Roo Stercogburn
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2014/10/01 05:47:03 (permalink)

Automation Plays Exactly One Bar Behind on Hardware Synth

Hi chaps,
 
Got an interesting one here. I've got a DSI Pro 2 connected to my system via USB. I'm running X3e on Win7 64bit, i7 quadcore, 24GB RAM, oodles of terabytes of storage. My audio interface is a Fireface UCX.
 
When I'm working on a track and automate CC sends to the Pro 2, it plays fine, so I can work on it happily without any hassle.
 
However, once I arm for recording and start to record the audio output of the Pro 2, all automation sent to the Pro 2 happens exactly one bar behind where it is supposed to occur.
 
This is not latency, it doesn't matter what tempo I play at or how many tracks or instruments are in a project. I've tested this with the Pro 2 as the only instrument.
 
I can work around this by moving the automation forward one bar every time I go to record but this is painful in the extreme.
 
Anyone had this happen to them and/or know of a solution?
#1

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    dcumpian
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    Re: Automation Plays Exactly One Bar Behind on Hardware Synth 2014/10/01 08:12:52 (permalink)
    I've never seen this with any of the hardware synths that I use. Are you running any plugins while recording?
     
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    Dan

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    #2
    Roo Stercogburn
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    Re: Automation Plays Exactly One Bar Behind on Hardware Synth 2014/10/01 08:19:41 (permalink)
    dcumpianAre you running any plugins while recording?

     
    No, its completely raw input from the Pro 2. I don't even use any Pro Channel stuff while recording.
     
    It only occurs when recording. During ordinary playback, automation occurs exactly where it should.
     
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    tlw
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    Re: Automation Plays Exactly One Bar Behind on Hardware Synth 2014/10/01 09:09:34 (permalink)
    Can't say I've ever seen anything like that, an interesting problem alright.

    Have I got this straight...

    You create a MIDI track with automation on it. That feeds a Pro2 which in turn is routed via audio interface to an audio track.

    When played back the synth behaves as anticipated and the CCs operate at the correct time.

    When the audio track is armed for recording and Sonar is run in record mode the CCs are delayed one bar irrespective of changes to tempo.

    If that's correct, how are you monitoring the synth on playback? Directly via the interface/mixer/whatever or through Sonar using input echo on the audio track?

    How are the CCs created? In Sonar's editors or by recording control changes on the synth?

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    #4
    Roo Stercogburn
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    Re: Automation Plays Exactly One Bar Behind on Hardware Synth 2014/10/01 09:18:51 (permalink)
    tlw
    Can't say I've ever seen anything like that, an interesting problem alright.

    Have I got this straight...

    You create a MIDI track with automation on it. That feeds a Pro2 which in turn is routed via audio interface to an audio track.

    When played back the synth behaves as anticipated and the CCs operate at the correct time.

    When the audio track is armed for recording and Sonar is run in record mode the CCs are delayed one bar irrespective of changes to tempo.

     
    Aye, that is exactly correct.
     
    tlwIf that's correct, how are you monitoring the synth on playback? Directly via the interface/mixer/whatever or through Sonar using input echo on the audio track?

     
    Input echo on Sonar, output to the Audio Interface.
     
    tlwHow are the CCs created? In Sonar's editors or by recording control changes on the synth?

     
    In an Automation Lane, I create an envelope using the drop down list. To choose what gets automated, rather than select from the dropdown list, I manually type in the CC number of the control I want to automate on the Pro 2, so for example I might type in the number 102 for Frequency Cutoff. I then just click on the envelope to create nodes as usual, and drag them around using the mouse to get the shape I want, same as if I was automating any other synth.
     
    I do not create any of the automation within the Pro 2 itself.
     
    Worth mentioning, the music with the delayed automation is what gets recorded into the audio track. It isn't just a playback-while-recording issue.
    #5
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