CRACKLING AND SKIPPING DRUMS.....

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GerardMcNamara
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2017/05/17 20:12:44 (permalink)
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CRACKLING AND SKIPPING DRUMS.....

Hello All!,                                                                                                                                                                          Just got brandy new Ultralite mk4 from Motu via Sweetwater a few weeks back....Loaded everything, all good. Now I cannot run JUST Addictive Drums and ANY Guitar sim without crackling and possible drum stuttering (overload?). Have tried a lot of quick fixes (moving USB from front to back---I have a Dell computer) , leaving the usbs constantly powered ( In power management) , etc. I have Sonar Platinum (x64) on a Dell computer, SSD for windows 10 Home x64 and Platinum somes vsts, Hard drive for the rest, i-5-4670 intel core chip, 4 cores, 4 Logical Pro. I do also have all my cords plugged into a Furman Power Station/Conditioner. The noise I am hearing sounds close to the electronic version of oil being poured on a very hot frying pan. If anyone has gone through this, or knows what is causing this I would be eternally appreciative. And yes have turned off Malwarebytes and Defender. Made sure the setting the same for Computer vs. DAW sounds....Thank You! Oh yeah, one more thing--my guitar is just a Gibson SG (not highest end though, but decent) routed through an ABY box (so i can record in stereo if need be).
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    abacab
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    Re: CRACKLING AND SKIPPING DRUMS..... 2017/05/17 22:09:46 (permalink)
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    Try increasing your audio buffers until the crackling stops.  If the numbers are excessive, then maybe contact Sweetwater?

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    GerardMcNamara
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    Re: CRACKLING AND SKIPPING DRUMS..... 2017/05/18 07:56:47 (permalink)
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    Thanks abacab!                                                                                                                                                                       Trying that and disabling the generic (Realtek/AMD(gaming)) audio drivers. Seems to be working---however, I am wondering if I am just coming in too strong. Like if I reduce the gain the noise seems to go away. But I'm not amplified going in, I don't think the MK4 is a preamp at all. Will keep trying! Thanks!
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    abacab
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    Re: CRACKLING AND SKIPPING DRUMS..... 2017/05/18 12:15:04 (permalink)
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    GerardMcNamara
    Thanks abacab!                                                                                                                                                                       Trying that and disabling the generic (Realtek/AMD(gaming)) audio drivers. Seems to be working---however, I am wondering if I am just coming in too strong. Like if I reduce the gain the noise seems to go away. But I'm not amplified going in, I don't think the MK4 is a preamp at all. Will keep trying! Thanks!




    Sounds like a good start.  Always a good idea to disable onboard audio if using an external interface.  And disable Windows system sounds.  No need to have them trying to access your audio system while you are doing your thing.
     
    Most Mic/Line inputs have a pad button to attenuate the input signal.  But that is not as likely to cause crackling, as too low audio buffers.  A hot signal is more likely to cause distortion.  Still worth checking out if you are sending a line level signal to your preamps.
     
    I see that the MK3 is advertised as capable of ultra-low latency with a 32 sample buffer.  Maybe so, but the PC needs to be capable of low latency real-time audio as well. The PC must keep the audio buffers full at all times, or you will get a loss of samples (crackling/dropouts)!
     
    Try setting the audio buffers up to 256 or 512 to test this out.  This would come into play using a guitar sim.  While a low latency is desirable, crackling and dropouts are not.  I leave my audio buffers at 256, and latency (~10ms) is not noticeable with virtual instruments.
     
    A handy free tool to check your PC real-time performance is at: http://www.resplendence.com/latencymon
     
    As far as MIDI drums skipping, there is a MIDI setting in Sonar that is too low by default.  Under MIDI Playback and Recording, set "Prepare Using: xxx Millisecond Buffers" to at least 500 or 750.
     
    Good luck!

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    GerardMcNamara
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    Re: CRACKLING AND SKIPPING DRUMS..... 2017/05/19 23:15:43 (permalink)
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    Thank-you abacab for all the help! I've been twiddling with all the controls and NOW it seems stable! So I'm going to leave things be! Thanks again!
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    abacab
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    Re: CRACKLING AND SKIPPING DRUMS..... 2017/05/20 00:43:44 (permalink)
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    GerardMcNamara
    Thank-you abacab for all the help! I've been twiddling with all the controls and NOW it seems stable! So I'm going to leave things be! Thanks again!




    +1
     
    Have fun!

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