billruys
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Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
Hi All, This may affect any of you who have your DAWs based on an Asus motherboard, so thought I'd post this here... After building a new DAW based on an Asus M5A97 EVO motherboard, I was disappointed to find that I was getting crackles in my audio at low latencies that I had not experienced in the past. I ran DPC Latency Checker and sure enough, there were spikes that were causing my troubles. I dutifully went about disabling the usual suspects, wifi/nic drivers, etc. but the problems persisted and meant that I just couldn't get Sonar down to the latencies I was used to running at. I was starting to think I'd bought a bad mobo for audio work. Not quite ready to quit, I started killing processes one by one. It turned out that as soon as I killed the Asus AI Suite, the problem went away, DPC Latency Checker showed no more latency spikes and my audio at low latency was once again pristine. The bummer here is that even if you just want the Asus BIOS updating tool installed, you are stuck with the AI Suite running. If you choose to have any Asus tools installed, just make sure you right-click on the AI Suite icon in your system tray and shut it down before running Sonar.
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Lanceindastudio
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 16:02:33
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Good report and good job finding the culprit.
It would also be nice if you modified your signature on the forum and put your system specs including what sound interface you use, motherboard, CPU, ram etc.
Lance!
Asus P8Z77-V LE PLUS Motherboard i7 3770k CPU 32 gigs RAM Presonus AudioBox iTwo Windows 10 64 bit, SONAR PLATINUM 64 bit Lots of plugins and softsynths and one shot samples, loops Gauge ECM-87, MCA SP-1, Alesis AM51 Presonus Eureka Mackie HR824's and matching subwoofer
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ProjectM
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 18:21:07
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Thanks for the tip! I'll keep an eye out for this. I'm in the process of breaking in my new DAW. Noticed glitches with other apps but not Sonar yet.
Cheers!
(Sonar Platinum - Win10 x64) - iMac and 13" MacBook - Logic Pro X ++ - UA Apollo Twin DUO - NI Maschine MKII - NI Komplete Kontrol S61 - Novation Nocturne - KRK Rokit 6 SoundcloudNegative Vibe Records
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Alegria
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 18:25:47
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"billruys"
The bummer here is that even if you just want the Asus BIOS updating tool installed, you are stuck with the AI Suite running. I installed only the BIOS updater and temp. monitor and it's only 3 services to enable/disable. I enable them only when needed (BIOS updates only as I'm done monitoring my system temp.). 
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Middleman
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 19:20:38
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I don't use but I used to. Thanks for that update.
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timidi
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 19:31:39
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Alegria
I installed only the BIOS updater and temp. monitor and it's only 3 services to enable/disable. I enable them only when needed (BIOS updates only as I'm done monitoring my system temp.).
Alegria, How do you just install the temp monitor? Thanks Thanks for the update Bill.
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Alegria
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 19:50:01
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"timidi"
Alegria, How do you just install the temp monitor? Launch the installer (from the CD) and you'll have the option of installing only the components you want. Unfortunately, I don't remember the module name by heart. But if you can't find it easily, let me know what choices you're faced with and that should kick start my memory recovery process. 
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timidi
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 20:19:28
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Alegria
"timidi"
Alegria, How do you just install the temp monitor?
Launch the installer (from the CD) and you'll have the option of installing only the components you want. Unfortunately, I don't remember the module name by heart. But if you can't find it easily, let me know what choices you're faced with and that should kick start my memory recovery process.
Ok, Thanks. I'll look into it.
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datadog
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 20:35:47
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Thanks for the info.
I had the same problems when I built my i7 920 system with a Gigabyte EX58-U3DR MoBo. I had installed their monitoring software upon commissioning the system and ran into the same problem. I uninstalled it all and no more spiking. I can still update the Bios the old way. This software may be written by the same vendor for many different board makers. It constantly polls everything, stealing resources and CPU cycles. Bad, bad stuff...
datadog http://www.518music.com i7 920, Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD3R, Mushkin DDR3 1600, ATI Radeon HD 5450, RME Fireface UFX, UAD2's, Windows7 x64, Sonar X3C x64, Reaper 4 x64, Studio One Pro V2.61 x64, NI Komplete 6, Waves v9 Gold, SSL Bundle x64.
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Jonbouy
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 21:36:08
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billruys
Hi All, This may affect any of you who have your DAWs based on an Asus motherboard, so thought I'd post this here... After building a new DAW based on an Asus M5A97 EVO motherboard, I was disappointed to find that I was getting crackles in my audio at low latencies that I had not experienced in the past. I ran DPC Latency Checker and sure enough, there were spikes that were causing my troubles. I dutifully went about disabling the usual suspects, wifi/nic drivers, etc. but the problems persisted and meant that I just couldn't get Sonar down to the latencies I was used to running at. I was starting to think I'd bought a bad mobo for audio work. Not quite ready to quit, I started killing processes one by one. It turned out that as soon as I killed the Asus AI Suite, the problem went away, DPC Latency Checker showed no more latency spikes and my audio at low latency was once again pristine. The bummer here is that even if you just want the Asus BIOS updating tool installed, you are stuck with the AI Suite running. If you choose to have any Asus tools installed, just make sure you right-click on the AI Suite icon in your system tray and shut it down before running Sonar.
In Windows 7 it installs a scheduled task to run at the login of any user. You can remove that from Task Scheduler, and then from Services you can set all the associated services to Manual they will only run if you ever choose to run the AI suite. On XP it is a registry entry for it to autostart that you need to delete. Better still uninstall the whole bunch of garbage, any part of it is only required for those sad enough to want to watch all the pretty gauges and dials while their computer runs. If it is set up properly in the first you wont have to worry about watching those things and there are plenty of better tools and less invasive tools for monitoring temps and stuff anyway. Having said that it also installs a couple of drivers that wont come off via the uninstaller you'll have to get rid of those manually if you really want to get clean again. If you don't know how to do that then I'd recommend just leaving them be.
"We can't do anything to change the world until capitalism crumbles. In the meantime we should all go shopping to console ourselves" - Banksy
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Alegria
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 22:05:57
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How do you do your BIOS updates Jonbouy?
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Jonbouy
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 22:29:16
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Alegria
"billruys"
The bummer here is that even if you just want the Asus BIOS updating tool installed, you are stuck with the AI Suite running.
I installed only the BIOS updater and temp. monitor and it's only 3 services to enable/disable. I enable them only when needed (BIOS updates only as I'm done monitoring my system temp.).
This ain't right as AI Suite will install 3 services and 2 drivers anyway whatever modules you choose to enable/install. One of those drivers at least, certainly with older versions of AI Suite was notorious for causing DPC spikes.
Alegria
How do you do your BIOS updates Jonbouy? ? From the BIOS - Tools/EZ Flash then select the memory stick you have the previously downloaded BIOS on. Have you or anyone here ever successfully downloaded a BIOS from an ASUS server via AI Suite? I doubt it, as it doesn't work.
post edited by Jonbouy - 2011/12/21 22:43:43
"We can't do anything to change the world until capitalism crumbles. In the meantime we should all go shopping to console ourselves" - Banksy
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Alegria
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 22:43:09
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"Jonbouy"
This ain't right as AI Suite will install 3 services and 2 drivers anyway whatever modules you choose to enable/install. What's your point? What's wrong with my statement? "Jonbouy"
Have you or anyone here ever successfully downloaded a BIOS from an ASUS server via AI Suite? I don't use that method, but rather prefer to update from file... which I download from Asus. But I have in the past (oh around 2003-2004) as it did work then. I wouldn't know about it nowadays. Are you in a bad mood or something?
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Jonbouy
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 22:51:55
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Alegria
"Jonbouy"
This ain't right as AI Suite will install 3 services and 2 drivers anyway whatever modules you choose to enable/install.
What's your point? What's wrong with my statement?
"Jonbouy"
Have you or anyone here ever successfully downloaded a BIOS from an ASUS server via AI Suite?
I don't use that method, but rather prefer to update from file... which I download from Asus. But I have in the past (oh around 2003-2004) as it did work then. I wouldn't know about it nowadays.
Are you in a bad mood or something?
Eh? What's wrong with your statement is that it is incorrect, the services installed are nothing to do with how many modules (which you described as services) you install and/or enable, the 'services' are to do with the AI Suite itself. What gave you the impression there was anything down with my mood? I'm just clarifying the fact for any ASUS users out there that AI Suite is largely an unecessary option.
"We can't do anything to change the world until capitalism crumbles. In the meantime we should all go shopping to console ourselves" - Banksy
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Jonbouy
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 22:59:23
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Ah yes, it just groked with me what you were saying in your first statement. I misunderstood thinking you were implying that the services installed were relative to the modules you had installed but I can see now that you weren't saying that.
I do apologize.
But yes it still the case of the two drivers that get installed along with the services that 'AsIO.sys' has been the known cause of DPC spikes in some versions of AI Suite.
As it isn't required I don't recommend using/installing AI Suite at all if you can help it.
"We can't do anything to change the world until capitalism crumbles. In the meantime we should all go shopping to console ourselves" - Banksy
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Alegria
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/21 23:12:10
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Then we are in complete agreement, as I've stated more than once in these forums... concerning Asus AI suite. As far as the drivers are concerned, I manage those with the help of SysInternals "Autoruns" (I'm sure you've heard of it). We may have a slightly different approach but the end results are the same. And as far as spikes are concerned, I'm proud to say that I deal every day with a flatline.
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derFunkenstein
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/22 11:24:58
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Thanks for the tip, billyrus. I got an ASUS board with my Sandy Bridge upgrade and for the life of me couldn't figure out why I had to keep latencies at 1024. After running dpc latency checker (which I'd never heard of before last night as well) I uninstalled AI Suite and tried 128 and BLAMMO it worked.
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GlennKay
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Re:Beware ASUS AI Suite - it kills audio
2011/12/22 11:57:47
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datadog
I had the same problems when I built my i7 920 system with a Gigabyte EX58-U3DR MoBo.
Check out the following thread on a forum devoted to PC audio, for some Gigabte-specific tips. There is a lot of discussion on the same forum about the Gigabyte monitoring software, which is apparently not compatible with pro audio applications.
FWIW i had the ASUS AI suite installed on my previous DAW, and it didn't cause any problems.Don't have it on my current system, but only because i have no need of it.
Regards
Glenn
ASUS P8P67 LE/i5-2500k/8GB DDR3-1600/1 SSD (system) & 3*SATA HHDs (recording, samples, backup)/ ATI HD 6450 Silent/Win 7 Ultimate x64/RME Multiface/ UAD2/3*Creamware DSP cards on a separate PC connected via ADAT "The path of excess leads also to the palace of wisdom," but they let you in through the back door.
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