there was a thread about this not that long ago, X1 forum? Anyhow I think they said 25' and if you use a powered usb hub you might go further

Thanks again Cactus you ve been so helpful! 

I just did some audio editing using Sonar on my desktop and I opened the task manager to see what s going on. To my surprise it was barely hitting 14% on the max. Other than that it was between 01-06%. 

I will investigate further to find out why Sonar is idling on my lap top at 90%. 

Such great news about the 25' USB cable! That will give me a good chance to have the laptop close to me! I ll try to find the discussion thanks for sharing!

Have a good night and thanks again!

Test that long USB cable ahead of time! It may or may not work reliably. Another possible solution might be a wireless keyboard. (The ideal solution is, unfortunately, a product you can no longer buy, but might be available on eBay: a Frontier Designs Tranzport.)

Also take a look at the Korg Nanokontrol controller. It's got the necessary transport controls and it's cheap, but the downside is that it also requires a USB connection to your computer and is therefore restricted by USB cable-length limitations. I don't have one myself, but it's long been on my list as a potential replacement for my Tranzport, should that treasured device ever stop functioning.

Thank you Bit!

I tested last night the longest USB cable I have (15') and recorded a few long notes from a sine wave patch I generated from my keyboards. I did not find an issue. The 8 minute and the 15 minute recordings were identical with the ones I recorded using the USB cable provided with the interface.

I am not in a position right now to spend even a dime. I wish I could, but I live tough times. I feel blessed you guys go out of your way to help me and provide advice and input.

I do have an old M-Audio Axiom 25 key keyboard controller that I might be able to have with me. I havent used it in ages, but I remember that the transport controlls were working pretty well with Sonar. I am wondering if I will be able to map the "Save" command to the "Rewind" button or something like that. I ll give it a try.

One more thing I tried was to use the Teamviewer app from my android phone to remote control my laptop. It worked and it was relatively fast, but needs a lot of zooming to hit the "Save" button from my phone screen. It s a hassle and I am going to need to bring my router with me.

I still havent found out why the SONARSTD.exe is constantly on 90-100%. Damn you task manager! I was happy living in ignorance not knowing that it taxes the processor so much!

Thank you all again! Have a nice day!

SONARSTD.exe Problem solved!


I uninstalled Pro Tools and for some reason everything is working as it should! 
8 Mono tracks recording and the processor doesnt even sweat! You were right and thank you so much for your help!

Cactus Music


That's odd about your Task Manager. I just tried it on 2 different computers and they both are showing a low reading with a song playing, This one is a few audio tracks and MIDI via TTs1. Both computers are XP P4 and 1.5 GIG RAM 2.5 Mz. single core. This screen shot is from my office computer and it's so full of apps and software, It is not optimized at all.  The CPU usage history shows it was high during Sonar loading then it settled down to 5-15%