Latency issues - new computer

I just got myself set up on a new PC --- everything seems fine, except I have noticeable latency when playing soft synths (which I did not have in my old PC).

Driver mode is set to ASIO, and buffer size is 64 --- same result on 128 and 256. 

Midi controller (using a Yamaha Motif XS7) and MOTU Ultralite soundcard drivers, all updated.       

DPC latency checker, all green showing under 150 us (which I am presuming is OK?).

I don't know what else I should check - any suggestions? 

PC specs in signature.

Thanks Swamptooth for the advice.   Turned out to be that the midi keyboard which is connected by USB worked fine in another USB slot... I'm not sure why there was a difference but maybe this USB 2.0 and 3.0 like you suggest above, so thanks for that.

By the way, my audio interface is firewire, not USB (its older Ultralite Mk-3 which was only firewire).

Well - unfourtunately my problem came back again ... I've been working on a song, and all seems to be fine.  After a while I notice a small but distinct latency  - pressing my Midi keyboard short delay before hearing soft synth sound.   Seems that placing Ozone 5 on the Master Bus causes it.   Seems only some of the Ozone presets does it, not just an instance of Ozone on its own.  My PC is pretty powerful (or so I thought ...) --- should this be happening?   And is there something I can do about it?

I had this problem (with Sonar 8.5) and the latency increased as I got further in the project. 

There is a "feature" in 8.5 - when you experience problems, could you try to press Ctrl+D?
This is the "plugin delay compensation override?

A lot of information about timing in this thread

Try to see if the problem occurs without any effects.  That will distinguish between a system issue and one caused by a plugin. 'E' on the keyboard should do this.

If it works properly with no plugins, then load them one at a time until you find the offending one.

Bob Bone

Latency comes from two sources:

• Audio Interface (determined by the ASIO buffer size)
• Latent plugins

If you have a latent plugin inserted anywhere in the project, automatic plugin-delay-compensation will delay ALL other audio to keep things 100% in sync.  Thus, don't use latent plugins when tracking... oruse the global PDC bypass button (in the Control Bar) to temporarily disable PDC while tracking.

I assume you have at least 8 threads... there is a parameter in AUD.INI that allows you to set the MAX workers threads that SONAR will reserve for SONAR.  

I know this sounds counter-intuitive, but try and free up two threads for the OS overhead by setting this parm to 5 instead of ZERO.  ZERO will take all the available threads by default (if you have 4 cores, multi threading it will take all 8 for SONAR).

I think that SONAR is choking the rest of the system thus causing your issues.  Just try this setting and see if it helps.

It did for me and I just posted a helpful hint yesterday on this forum.

Good luck,
Jim

In general terms, yes, but it can also come from background services that periodically 'spike' the latency, as well as some hardware devices - such as wireless devices, and I believe insufficient memory for the given project can also cause latency/dropout issues.  Sometimes things like antivirus software, or that sort of thing.

Hi Bob,


FWIW, You're confusing "audio latency" and "DPC latency".
Effectively working at low audio latency is dependent on having low/consistent DPC latency... but they are two completely different things.   

Audio latency only comes from two sources:

• Audio Interface (ASIO buffer size)
• Latent Plugins (automatic plugin delay compensation causes all audio to be delayed by the total amount of latency from all inserted latent plugins - doesn't matter where they're inserted)

As far as soft synths go, there is a buffer for MIDI as well within SONAR... set too low and you get MIDI dropouts... as you set it higher, the MIDI latency increases as well... you need to find the sweet spot between the two.  If I set mine at 256, I get the MIDI note dropout.  At 512, the MIDI plays back fine but adds real time latency (un useable for me).

So, what I have had to do, is use an older LAPTOP and install my softsynths on it (as well as my main DAW).  I have a MIDI splitter coming from my MIDI keyboard and send one signal to the DAW for MIDI recording and the other MIDI to the extra laptop.

This laptop only runs the softsynth so I can monitor my MIDI performance in real time.  I mix my DAW audio and the LAPTOP audio through my external mixer so I can hear all the music at the same time.  

THis way my MIDI performance is in sync with my DAW project and I can monitor the soft synth in real time.

Just one of those workarounds.  In essence, I am using the laptop as a synth hardware unit but I am recording my MIDI in real time.  I then go to my DAW and link the soft synth to the newly recorded MIDI track and go on with mixing.

I don't know any other way to eliminate the dreaded MIDI delay with soft synths trying to record MIDI in real time using the sounds of the soft synth.

The above works flawlessly for me by the way.

Jim

For what it's worth Ultra, I can't do any tracking on my system if I have my usual chain of TRackS plugs in the master buss - the buss needs to be bypassed before latency becomes a non-issue.

Also, I try when possible to complete all my tracking before I start mixing (sometimes it's difficult not to!) and I have resorted to globally bypassing all Fx plugs ('E'), then do my recording before enabling the Fx again.

I don't think it matters what your computer specs are - once you have any latent plugs in your project, recording will not be possible until they are bypassed.