X2 crashing with softsynths

Hi - could you have a sample rate mismatch between the interface and X2?  Edit>Preferences>Audio>Driver Settings I think

I know I locked it all up with that when I AudioBox 1818 VSL was set differently than I had it set in X2.

Hope it's that simple, 

Bob Bone

I too have X2 Producer.

That's the only way I am aware of setting it in X2.  I am assuming you have the driver mode set to ASIO?

Anyways, in the Device Settings section of Preferences, you will see sort of in the upper middle a Sample Rate, and you can pick the one there that matches whatever you have your interface set to.

Then click Apply.

Give that a review and change if needed, 

Bob Bone

Well, now you have ME confused.

I was meaning to say that it is only through editing Preferences that you can change the sample rate within X2.  BOTH 'P' and Edit>Preferences SHOULD get you to the same place.

Why you burst into flames upon hitting the letter 'P' is beyond me.

I guess since you got to the sample rate that part is done, anyway.  Just pretend that whole 'P' thing never happened?

Sooooo, at the end of all of that, did you see any improvement in the outcome?  Are you able to play things without crashing now?

Bob Bone

I hadn't actually meant to suggest that using the 'P' to get to preferences was to be avoided.

I had just meant that Preferences (however you get to them) was the only place to change the sample rate.

Good luck though that for whatever the reason, getting the sample rates the same was accomplished, and that it fixed your issue.

WHEEEE :)

Bob Bone

Well, it would depend on several factors, such as the capabilities of the interface itself, the horsepower of the computer, and how close to the edge you want to run.

For SURE you need to make sure to keep Sonar's sample rate the same as whatever you have your interface's sample rate set at, or you will cause audio processing problems - either bad performance, no sound, or flaky intermittent performance.

It would be probably safe to start with a setting of 44.1, bit-depth of 24, a driver mode of ASIO, and an ASIO buffer size of either 128 or 256.  You can check the total round-trip latency within Sonar (Preferences>Audio>Playback and Recording).  If all works there you could try bumping up the sample rate to 48, then maybe try 96, making sure to keep them matched between the interface and Sonar.

Once you get to a point of audio problems, simply back it back down to the highest level you can where normal processing sounds clear, without a lot of latency.

Thousands of threads have jumped into this piece of things - it's getting easier with the more powerful computers we can get now days, but can still be a giant pain to get set correctly.

There is a site, I think it is www.blackviper.com that goes into an incredible amount of detail on what Windows Services you can turn off to improve performance.  I went through a MASSIVE undertaking to set all of mine per that site, and achieved about a 2 millisecond reduction in latency.  That was, however, at the expense of being connected to the internet, and did away with my antivirus software, and I couldn't print anymore, and that sort of thing, so I just undid it and everything works fine.

Generally, a fast processor, lots of memory, and running on a 64-bit Windows 7 is a pretty safe bet, additionally going through some experimentation as indicated above, to see what you find works at an acceptable balance of it all.

Hope that helps, 

Bob Bone

Parts list to follow.

Bob, so the sample rate is a choice and not dictated by the interface hardware?

Sorry for being a dunce!

Planned Specs:  (I will go 620W on power supply and get ECC RAM from Crucial as it is cheaper than getting RAM from DELL. ALso, the video cards my be nVidia Quadro 600  2D card, someone suggested a 3D card so I need to do a bit more research on this. Prob add a hard drive for projects)

PROCESSORS Four Core XEON (E5-1603, 2.8GHz, 10M) edit
OPERATING SYSTEM Windows 7 Professional,SP1, No Media, 64-bit, English edit
BASE Dell Precision T3600, 425W edit
POWER SUPPLY 425W Power Supply, 90 Percent Efficiency edit
ENERGY STAR No Energy Star edit
MEMORY 2GB, DDR3 UDIMM Memory, 1600MHz, Non-ECC (1DIMM) edit
VIDEO CARD Dual 512 MB AMD FirePro™ 2270, QUAD MON, 4 DMS59 edit
HARD DRIVE/RAID CONFIGURATION C1 SATA 3.5 Inch, 1-2 Hard Drives edit
BIOMETRIC FINGERPRINT READER No RAID edit
CONTROLLER CARD PERC H310 SATA/SAS Controller for Dell Precision edit
HARD DRIVE 250GB, 7200 RPM 3.5" SATA 6Gb/s Hard Drive edit
OPTICAL DRIVE 8X DVD-ROM SATA edit
SYSTEM MANAGEMENT MODE No Out-of-Band Systems Management edit
SPEAKERS No Speaker option edit
KEYBOARD Dell USB Entry Business Keyboard, English edit
MOUSE Dell MS111 USB Optical Mouse edit
OFFICE SOFTWARE No Productivity Software

Star,  what's your take on professional 2D vid card -vs- entry level 3D vid cards?

Sorry - hijacking the thread here.

I would suggest some mods to your parts:

1.  Check the specs for the max memory supported by the motherboard, and the allowable configurations.  Ideally, you want a motherboard that can support at least 8 GB of memory, and if it not much of a cost bump, try for 16 or even 32 GB support.  Also, each memory strip should be able to be at least 4 GB in size, (8 GB is the other size if going to a board supporting 16 or 32).

2.  Try to get at LEAST 8 GB, which only runs around $40 for 2 4 GB strips.  If the motherboard supports more, you can pick up either 4 4 GB strips, or you could get a single 8 GB strip and add more later it needed - or get 16 GB.  2 8 GB strips run about $52 or so these days.  Memory is one of your best friends when setting up a machine for audio processing, such as recording with Sonar.

3.  You can buy a 2 TB 7,200 rpm SATA 6.0 gps hard drive these days for around $99, so I wouldn't even think of buying a single 250 GB drive.  You should try to get 2 disk drives for your new machine in any case, 1 to contain programs and the OS, and the other for samples and storing audio.  Splitting partitions on a single drive does nothing for performance (is however helpful for organization and backups and such).  Splitting it off to a 2nd drive will help things load faster and therefore perform better.

4.  I am not sure about that processor, so I have no advice one way or another.  I thought that the Xeon processors were for servers, and if that is the case, I would recommend a re-think on your part.  I believe that an i5 or i7 from Intel, or an AMD Phenom II 965 quad-core black edition would be a much better choice.  They would be better suited to audio processing.

5.  The power supply sounds a bit small for what will be asked of it.  I see lots of systems with a minimum of a 500 watt power supply.  I currently have a 1000-watt one, but I think perhaps a 650-watt or better would be a better choice than the 425-watt one in your specs.


6.  I just re-read your comments about alteration on memory, and the adding of an additional drive.  Good choices.

7.  It has been my experience that vendor companies, like Dell, sometimes skimp on the quality of some components, such as the manufacturer of internal components, so check out the maker of all of the internal parts.  I just build my own, have done so for the past zillion years.  Look at the cost of all of the individual components from a place like www.microcenter.com, and compare that to the cost Dell is charging you, and you may end up re-thinking how you approach getting your new machine.

I hope the above helps - there are lots of opinions and choices, but basically you want a quad-core processor (Intel is a bit faster than AMD, but AMD gives you good bang for the buck), at least 8 GB of memory, 2 hard drives, and some middle of the road or better video card, with a power supply of I would suggest 600w or better, and you should be fine. 

If you have any money left over, you can also look at picking up a second monitor - you can buy a 32" HDTV that would work wonderfully for a computer monitor, for around $200.  You can look at those on the site I provided above, and also like Best Buy or Walmart or wherever.  

Bob Bone

It be nice to know what the motherboard make and model are

Star - we're getting old - I missed it too.

I do have to say that I do not understand choosing to get a laptop for a dedicated DAW, unless there is a specific NEED to be mobile.  Everything just costs more for an equivalent amount of performance when compared to a desktop.

You could save several hundred dollars by getting a desktop rather than a laptop - money that could be spent for things like more storage, more memory, a better processor, etc., please consider this in your choice.

Bob Bone

This isn't a laptop. It's a DELL Precision T3600

EDIT:  I think!

In my opinion, hgj1357 should start a thread of his own in the computer section.

The OP's problem was forgotten a long time ago.

No problem, but I'll bet juan47 is thinking WTH