Hello!
 
I've just completed my first project on Sonar X3 Studio.  I do mostly MIDI instrumentation and only record audio when I'm doing vocals.  I use ASIO4ALL. My practice is to track using as low a buffer as possible.  My Core i3 desktop PC handles this pretty well up until about 15 tracks.  When all my tracking is done and I go to mix down I max the buffer up to its highest (2048, I think).  When I increased the buffer on this project I found that some of my MIDI tracks went off synch, but when I put the buffer back to 128 (which I use for tracking) the timing went back into proper synch.  Is it supposed to work like this?  This never happened when I used to use Samplitude.
 
Thanks
 
John B.

What audio interface are you using? ASIO4ALL has always been hit-or-miss for me. I avoid it. 

Hi Craig!  Audio interface is a Line 6 Pod Studio UX2.  As far as ASIO4ALL, I've been using it for years and it's never been an issue for me.  To be honest, I really don't know of any other alternative that I can use, but would appreciate any suggestions you could give me.
 
John B.

Go to the Line 6 site and download the latest UX2 drivers.

Johnbee58
...My practice is to track using as low a buffer as possible...When all my tracking is done and I go to mix down I max the buffer up to its highest (2048, I think).  When I increased the buffer on this project I found that some of my MIDI tracks went off synch, but when I put the buffer back to 128 (which I use for tracking) the timing went back into proper synch...

This was happening for me too, so I'm now sticking with lower values in the buffers. And I'm not using ASIO4ALL.

If you're using hardware synths, they will play late because MIDI out to hardware ports isn't compensated for realtime audio latency by sending it early. You can try setting a Timing Offset value in preferences to compensate, but I find this can cause more trouble than it's worth. It's best to just maintain a low latency until all your hardware synths are recorded to audio.
 
If you're only using soft synths, their output is handled more like recorded audio, and changing buffer latency shouldn't affect them.

brundlefly
 
If you're only using soft synths, their output is handled more like recorded audio, and changing buffer latency shouldn't affect them.

 
Exactly!  That's what I always thought.  I never had this happen in Samplitude or Mixcraft.  It seems that the buffer size throws the whole timeline off.
 
What are some alternatives to ASIO4ALL?
 
John B.

Johnbee58

brundlefly
 
If you're only using soft synths, their output is handled more like recorded audio, and changing buffer latency shouldn't affect them.

 
Exactly!  That's what I always thought.  I never had this happen in Samplitude or Mixcraft.  It seems that the buffer size throws the whole timeline off.
 
What are some alternatives to ASIO4ALL?
 
John B.

Download the Line 6 drivers. Also, bigger is not always better for buffer settings. There's a range of values that's optimum, and found mostly through trial and error.
 
I've never seen a situation where ASIO4ALL provided better performance than the manufacturer's dedicated drivers, although I suppose anything is possible.

Anderton
 
I've never seen a situation where ASIO4ALL provided better performance than the manufacturer's dedicated drivers, although I suppose anything is possible.

This is where I get confused a bit.  Others have also advised me to use the MANUFACTURER'S DRIVERS.


Fact is, I DO use Line 6's Pod Studio UX2 drivers for audio recording.  I have to.  That's the only way the Pod Studio will work.  People have advised me to also use the Pod Studio's drivers when recording MIDI.  Is that possible?  I just assumed that when recording MIDI (sound libraries) I just HAD to use ASIO4ALL or something comparable.  I assumed that the Line 6 drivers for the Pod Studio will only work for the Pod Studio.  Am I wrong about that?  Also, please note that there is no MIDI (USB) input on the Pod Studio UX2 interface.  I know some interfaces do have MIDI inputs, but not the UX2.
 
John B.

ASIO4ALL only relates to audio, not MIDI. You do not need ASIO4ALL for recording MIDI, and having both ASIO4ALL and your Line 6 drivers installed could be a problem. I'd recommend uninstalling ASIO4ALL.
 
As to MIDI, it's not clear if you're using a controller, what type of controller, whether it's USB or 5-pin DIN, etc. or exactly how you're using MIDI.