[Solved] Sonar 2016.05: still have significant performance issues [detailed report]

Hi kevinwal - that rumor of a batch utility to turn services and/or start items on or off may be referring to something I initially wrote in C# for use on machines when I was running Sonar on XP Pro for a 32-bit computer.
 
That utility worked well under XP and all the way into Windows 8.1, but to be honest, I have not needed to use it for several years now (though it does still work).
 
The reason I have not been using it is because once I moved to a 64-bit environment, with computers that are running 32 GB of memory, and split programs/samples/content across multiple disk drives, my performance was quite adequate, and I just quit bothering to do most tweaks altogether.
 
There are a couple of things that I believe the original poster would benefit from understanding.
 
1.  With 64 GB of memory, I would quit worrying about memory usage altogether.  You have WAY more memory than needed for any project I would ever have running through Sonar with that setup on MY computer.  32 GB is PLENTY for everything I do.  Having the extra memory is wonderful, but if memory is not the performance issue for you, (which I don't believe it is for you), then I would just quit worrying about it.  Sonar can load all it needs to into the memory you have, and will stream samples as needed from disk, and read/write projects as needed.
 
2.  For the REST OF TIME, you will have two basic modes of operation: Recording/Editing - and Mixing/Mastering.  The processing needs ARE different when you are Recording or Editing, versus Mixing or Mastering.  You will need to adjust your ASIO Buffer Size to something small enough to support low latency recording/editing, and then when ready to move on to Mixing/Mastering you will need to adjust your ASIO Buffer Size to something WAY bigger, which will give you lots more latency, but at the same time will give you the proper buffer sizes for running plugins that induce lots of latency - such as convoluted reverb plugins.  ANYTIME you move between Recording/Editing and Mixing/Mastering, you will need to set the ASIO Buffer Size accordingly - small for tracking/editing, and huge for mixing/mastering.
 
It would seem to me that if you approach projects a bit differently, you will find that your current computer has WAY plenty of horsepower to create incredibly complex and beautiful projects, but you need to adjust your approach to that of always keeping your latency LOW for recording and HIGH for mixing/mastering.
 
When recording/editing:
 
1) Get your latency low, through a combination of a small ASIO Buffer Size, a reasonable Sample Rate, and simpler plugins. I use an ASIO Buffer Size of 128 (could go down to 32, but 128 is easy and I find the latency is fine for me - I think my total roundtrip latency runs around 10 ms.
 
2) Don't do your initial recording with a whole bunch of plugins that add lots of latency.  Be aware that each plugin will add some, and that's OK to a point, but some plugins are simply NOT intended to be used during recording.  These plugin types would usually be those that use something called 'Look-Ahead Processing' or otherwise chew up lots of CPU, and would typically be things like convoluted reverb plugins.  Remember, your MIX will be where you sculpt your sounds with your plugins, other than some basic (and latency-lean) plugins to have perhaps some sort of delay/reverb that does NOT use the look-ahead processing.  SO, when choosing which plugins to use during recording, look for those that will help you get your signal recorded, but that don't jack up latency to do that.  Use a simpler reverb until you finish recording, and then you can swap that out for the fancier one that adds tons of latency once you move into the mixing/mastering phase of any given project.
 
 
When DONE with recording and editing, and ready to move to mixing/mastering:
 
1) Adjust your ASIO Buffer Size to 1024 or 2048 - big is FINE, because you won't be trying to record at this point in your project, you don't care if it takes a half-second before playback starts.  Having the huge ASIO Buffer Size for mixing/mastering gives lots of room for the more robust plugins to be used.
 
2) THIS is the point where you can swap out some of those low-latency but more basic plugins you used during recording, for the really powerful convoluted reverb plugs that DO add lots of latency.  Again, you are not trying to RECORD tracks during mixing, so who cares if your latency is 40-50 milliseconds or higher.  It is a non-issue for mixing to have high latency.
 
I would steer far away from ASIO4ALL if at all possible, and use a dedicated audio interface that has drivers that are SUPPORTED for the level of the operating system you are running Sonar on.  ASIO4ALL is really a program that basically acts as a wrapper - making programs THINK they are using ASIO drivers, but really underneath the covers, ASIO4ALL is using your CPU to do all the data conversions needed, and this is FREQUENTLY not going to give you smooth streaming audio, such as what is needed for recording in Sonar.  Some folks have reported issues simply having ASIO4ALL installed, even though they are using the ASIO drivers for their audio interface.
 
IF your audio interface does NOT have drivers for Windows 10, then as was posted earlier by someone else, either roll back your Windows to Windows 7 or 8.1, OR go buy a new audio interface that DOES have ASIO drivers that work with Windows 10.
 
I sincerely hope the above makes some sense - it IS 5:00 in the morning here, and I have NO idea why my eyes are even open at this point, since I have to get up in 2 hours and have not slept yet.
 
Please feel free to ask some questions, if you want me to take another stab at explaining any of the above.
 
I FIRMLY believe that if you match your dedicated audio interface to a version of Windows that interface has supported drivers for, AND you adopt an approach of Low Latency when recording/editing, and High Latency when Mixing/Mastering, you should have an AMAZING capability on your computer to do some huge projects without performance issues.
 
Bob Bone