Tremor
Thanks for deleting my post....but with respect... you are not me!!
 
I would have thought that any constructive input on the use of the TI chip-set issue with Firewire was a positive angle on best practice - and perhaps help others avoiding a potential pitfall.
 
Or is "best practice" intended only for the realms of the elevated??

Sorry, I was asked to delete what some thought as off topic posts. When I read your post I thought it was for help and did not think it was right for this thread. If I was wrong I heartily apologize. I will make errors and I will be wrong sometimes. I am human. 
 
A PM would have been a better way to contact me.  

gswitz
I have a sticker on top of my interface reminding me to check wifi and latency on whatever I plug it into so I don't forget. Proper practice latency is not proper live gig latency (where all monitoring is direct through the interface).
 
I'm also quick on the interface total reset. Sometimes all the routings of the previous gig don't apply.
 
I'm a heavy user of track templates (although for some reason I don't use a lot of project templates).

Thank you for your post. May I ask what you have that would need to be reset? 

Another idea is if a post is going to be deleted or moved, send a note to the OP so he knows what's going on.

soens
Another idea is if a post is going to be deleted or moved, send a note to the OP so he knows what's going on.

A note is sent. 

Excellent! 

Let tube devices warm up longer than the boot up time for non-tube gear.

1) Go through the tasks that are set up in windows task scheduler. You don't want many tasks to be running when recording.

2) If you use antivirus and malware products (I hope you do) make sure you exclude Sonar folders and processes from real time scan. Also MS has recommendations on files and folders to exclude.

3) Check to see what programs are running on startup and disable what you don't need. cc-cleaner is a very good way to do this there are other methods.

4) Yes latency monitor! But equally as useful and often overlooked is process explorer and process monitor utilities on the MS website if you want to fine tune.

5) Disable windows services you don't need. Uninstall software you don't use that includes windows components.

6) Use windows update regularly. Update your drivers and firmware regularly. Update your software with latest patches (that includes Sonar and plugins).

7) Don't install non DAW software. Consider dual boot if you want to play games etc. Keep your build lean and mean.

8) Backup backup backup to external hard drives using imaging software such as acronis.

9) Pay attention to power management, that includes throttling and speedstep as well as windows power profiles.

Ta

Latency the bugaboo of DAW users. Most users know how to use the drivers that come with their quality audio interface new user may not.
 
Sonar can use WDM and ASIO plus MME.For most ASIO is a good choice. I prefer WDM simply Sonar can adjust the latency via the buffer settings directly. With ASIO you have to go through the ASIO panel.
 
In most cases it wont matter which of the above driver models you chose. However, avoid MME because it is not meant for low latency.  
 
A word about ASIO 4 All do not use this its not for a modern audio interface with proper drivers. 
 
If after you have installed drivers and have adjusted your buffers to a nice mid size and you still get drop outs and the like it could be a DPC latency issue. Use a tool meant to check this.
 
Here is a link that can help explain this  http://www.sysnative.com/forums/windows-7-%7C-windows-vista-tutorials/5721-how-to-diagnose-and-fix-high-dpc-latency-issues-with-wpa-windows-windows-vista-7-8-a.html
 
 For me  because I have the option to use either ASIO or WDM they both work very well on my system I chose WDM this lets me adjust the buffer depending one what I am doing fast. Very low for tracking  medium for mixing. 

John

gswitz
I'm also quick on the interface total reset. Sometimes all the routings of the previous gig don't apply.

Thank you for your post. May I ask what you have that would need to be reset? 

Hey, John! Just notice your answer to my post.
 
With my interface, it remembers routings and so on, and my last routings are not always appropriate for my next recording.
 
So an example...
Set up 1
Route Analog Inputs 1+2 with Auto Level increase to analog outputs 1+2 and into my DBX Compressor and back into the interface on Analog inputs 5+6. I record 1+2 and 5+6 and play a solo guitar bit along with some singing.
 
Set up 2
I record 1+2 as microphones input and routed internally to loopback channels Digital 1+2 and use auto level and input compression within the UCX. I send tracks 3+4 out to analog out 1+2 with auto level into the compressor and then to amplifiers in the room which are mic'd and recorded on analog inputs 5+6. This allows for re-amping and also keeps levels into the amps a little hotter than the would be normally.
 
When switching between setup 1 and 2 without first resetting the interface, I might accidentally leave the analog inputs 1+2 routed to analog outputs 1+2 sending vocals to the guitar amps. Oops.
 
So, whenever I'm confused about all my routing settings, I just do a quick total reset on the interface. This gets me back to square 1 where I have no routings to the various outputs and I can go manually set up only what I want.
 
On my RME UCX, I plug the fiber cable from the ADAT out to the ADAT in, giving me the ability to do parallel compression on 8 analog input channels if I want, including the ability to use Auto Level, compression and multiple EQ stages before and after the EQs as I might like, all while auditioning at 0 latency.
 
I made this video a little while ago sort of exploring various options with the loopback of the ADAT.
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mAMp9MPAj3k
(You can watch faster than real-time by clicking in the settings in the bottom right corner and selecting a faster speed)

Thank you Geoff for being so detailed. Nice and it makes sense to me now.