you might find it actually helps NOT having such distractions as youtube etc 


you can learn how they make sounds , well boom , have more punch etc... you can't really do it from a mix as it's not on it's own. Once you learn stuff like that , theory wise you won't need to listen to it on others work.

again EQ wise , your not comparing like for like, even if you have say the same synth , the sound can be coloured by numerous subtle effects , which again really alters the overall mix.

learn about side chain ducking , and things like that , if you haven't already .. is one of the things that gives you more room Hz wise, as sub bass / kick will clash.

Make sure the sample rate and bit depth are the same in SONAR and for the Windows Sound setup.

Try that? Now, does it work?

Fog


you might find it actually helps NOT having such distractions as youtube etc 


you can learn how they make sounds , well boom , have more punch etc... you can't really do it from a mix as it's not on it's own. Once you learn stuff like that , theory wise you won't need to listen to it on others work.

again EQ wise , your not comparing like for like, even if you have say the same synth , the sound can be coloured by numerous subtle effects , which again really alters the overall mix.

learn about side chain ducking , and things like that , if you haven't already .. is one of the things that gives you more room Hz wise, as sub bass / kick will clash.

Well I'm not copying the sounds exactly 100%, I'm just using them as a reference and to help get ideas. In the end, I EQ and mix with my own ear.
Anyways I appreciate your suggestions and advice, but they do not change the fact that I want to fix the conflict I am experiencing with my drivers.

thomasabarnes


Make sure the sample rate and bit depth are the same in SONAR and for the Windows Sound setup. 

Try that? Now, does it work? 

Where do I find the sample rate and bit depth for the windows sound setup?

I wish I had an answer for your problem, but I have to chime in to say +1 for referencing other recordings and for taking breaks!  If I have a few tracks that I know I will reference frequently for a mix, I drop them into their own tracks in the project I'm working on and use mute/solo to check in on them for a second when I need to.

I hope you get your problem solved.   It would drive me nuts too if I had the problem you're describing.

Good luck,
Seth

Where do I find the sample rate and bit depth for the windows sound setup?

 
In the Windows Sound Control Panel, select your playback device and then select Properties at the bottom. Then select the advanced tab, there is a section called "Default format," you select the sample rate and bit depth from a drop down list in that section.

sethmopod


I wish I had an answer for your problem, but I have to chime in to say +1 for referencing other recordings and for taking breaks!  If I have a few tracks that I know I will reference frequently for a mix, I drop them into their own tracks in the project I'm working on and use mute/solo to check in on them for a second when I need to.

I hope you get your problem solved.   It would drive me nuts too if I had the problem you're describing.

Good luck,
Seth

Thanks for all your input. Yeah, hopefully I find a fix for this soon because its definitely becoming a nuisance...

thomasabarnes

In the Windows Sound Control Panel, select your playback device and then select Properties at the bottom. Then select the advanced tab, there is a section called "Default format," you select the sample rate and bit depth from a drop down list in that section. 

So I just checked and rechecked everything, and yes everything is the way it should be. Sample rate and bit depth in Sonar's preferences match that of the Windows sound control panel, Sonar is running on the ASIO drivers from my Fast Track, and the "share driver with other programs" is checked in Sonar's prefs.


I even tried unchecking the "allow applications to take exclusive control of this device" from the sound card's "properties" window underneath the samplerate/bitdepth dropdown menu... no difference.


Thanks for your help, but any other suggestions? Really hoping to get this problem solved...

Hmmmm.....

OK here's an option:

-Use your onboard audio for media player/Youtube audio by selecting the onboard audio as the default Windows playback device

-Use the FastTrack in ASIO mode for SONAR

-get a Y spliter adapter that has one male connector and two female connectors, connect the male end into your speakers input and connect the output from your FastTrack headphone jack into one of the female connectors (using a cable that has to male ends) and the front output of the Onboard audio into the other female connector (using a cable that has two male ends.)

Will that work for you?

thomasabarnes


Hmmmm.....

OK here's an option:

-Use your onboard audio for media player/Youtube audio by selecting the onboard audio as the default Windows playback device

-Use the FastTrack in ASIO mode for SONAR

-get a spliter that has one male connector and two female connectors, connect the male in into your speakers input and connect the output from your FastTrack headphone jack into one of the female connectors and the front output of the Onboard audio into the other female connector.

Will that work for you?

I suppose I could do that. But I would need to buy the splitter, and deal with more wires and cables. That would be my last resort, and I would much rather have the problem fixed in my laptop... I mean, should it be working? Is the problem I'm dealing with supposed to be normal? I feel like it shouldn't be, and that there should be some kind of fix. Should I contact Cakewalk customer service? Could it possibly be a problem with the M-Audio Fast Track?

Some audio interface drivers allow sharing drivers with other programs, some don't.

I can do it with my UltraLite-MK3, but some audio interface drivers don't allow it.

Also, maybe you can contact Cakewalk/M-Audio and see if you are suppose to be able to do it internally without having to use a spliter.

Have you tried posting to the M-Audio forum?