Old 05-08-2021, 01:08 AM   #1
Junolab
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Default Reaper slows everything else down

I didn't write this in the bug section as I expect there's a magical switch somewhere that will fix this, but when I'm playing something in reaper which is just more than a few tracks it seems to decrease the performance in all other apps meanwhile (like the browser) even though there's plenty of spare-power left.

Normally not an issue as I could stop browsing while listening, but as I'm using Console 1's software which is also external (but connected to the DAW) it makes it almost impossible to use. I have tried to deactivate certain plugins, but it does seem to be Reaper itself that is causing this.

Any hints to how to fix this?
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Old 05-09-2021, 10:00 AM   #2
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Have you read "Glitch free" and applied it suggestions to your computer?
Also, what is reaper showing in its performance window when this happens?
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Old 05-09-2021, 09:56 PM   #3
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Only time I've seen any app slow down other apps like that is due to RAM usage. Hitting RAM limits is very noticeable. Fortunately it's easy to measure (task manager) and fix (add more RAM).

Browsers tend to use a lot of RAM. So do certain plugins, esp ones that might load many samples (e.g. Kontakt). But in general, you can increase DAW performance by increasing the buffer size of your device in prefs/device/asio config. This is of course a tradeoff with increased monitoring latency.
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Old 05-09-2021, 11:11 PM   #4
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Originally Posted by foxAsteria View Post
Only time I've seen any app slow down other apps like that is due to RAM usage. Hitting RAM limits is very noticeable. Fortunately it's easy to measure (task manager) and fix (add more RAM).

Browsers tend to use a lot of RAM. So do certain plugins, esp ones that might load many samples (e.g. Kontakt). But in general, you can increase DAW performance by increasing the buffer size of your device in prefs/device/asio config. This is of course a tradeoff with increased monitoring latency.
Thanks. I've still got plenty of RAM available. I've got 32 GB and having a hard time go over 20GB, so there should be plenty. Same for CPU which is at 30-40%
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Old 05-09-2021, 11:12 PM   #5
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Have you read "Glitch free" and applied it suggestions to your computer?
Also, what is reaper showing in its performance window when this happens?
I have not, but I've worked with IT in 20 years and the same in music, so I would find it very unlikely that it's some basic buffer settings which is the trouble. If I run a similar session in Logic Pro X there are no issues. It's only in Reaper. CPU is usually around 30-40% and Activity Monitor says about 10GB of free ram. I use a RME Babyface FS and regarding performance its both sluggish with 128 in buffer and 2048. So not real change between the buffer-sizes
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Old 05-09-2021, 11:23 PM   #6
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What CPU are you using?
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Old 05-09-2021, 11:26 PM   #7
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What CPU are you using?
6-Core 3.2 Ghz i7 (Mac Mini) with 32 GB DDR4 ram with an SSD drive. Uses an external eGPU too which should limit the stain on the CPU as well. But could potentially also be the culprit though (one never knows...)
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Old 05-09-2021, 11:31 PM   #8
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6-Core 3.2 Ghz i7 (Mac Mini) with 32 GB DDR4 ram with an SSD drive. Uses an external eGPU too which should limit the stain on the CPU as well. But could potentially also be the culprit though (one never knows...)
Perhaps you are using one or two extremely CPU intensive VSTs on the tracks?
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Old 05-09-2021, 11:43 PM   #9
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Perhaps you are using one or two extremely CPU intensive VSTs on the tracks?
Not any particular. I've attached a screenshot of one project running


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Old 05-10-2021, 12:06 AM   #10
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I find the performance meter misses the big spikes of activity that can momentarily max out your CPU.
Check out the iStat menus on your Mac, see what's happening per core, or maybe just look at Activity Monitor.

In Windows 10 I would be looking at task manager to see what they're really using.

The spikes of activity can be huge. Much, much higher than the base rate.
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Old 05-10-2021, 12:21 AM   #11
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Originally Posted by Softsynth View Post
I find the performance meter misses the big spikes of activity that can momentarily max out your CPU.
Check out the iStat menus on your Mac, see what's happening per core, or maybe just look at Activity Monitor.

In Windows 10 I would be looking at task manager to see what they're really using.

The spikes of activity can be huge. Much, much higher than the base rate.
Good point. Could perhaps be the issue. This is my istat-data:
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Old 05-10-2021, 01:34 AM   #12
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You are pushing the CPU hard in Reaper already without running other programs at same time.
Look to general purpose DAW optimisation guides for Mac and strip down your background processes while using Reaper.
Maybe freeze tracks too, especially on the most hungry plugins.
Beyond optimisations you're looking at CPU upgrades; in my case that would mean new motherboard, new memory, and new processor. I'm not too keen on that idea as my old (circa 2012) i7 3770 is still very capable most of the time.
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Old 05-23-2021, 01:20 AM   #13
Junolab
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Just reopening this one as it's not a CPU issue. I've currently a single instance of UH-E's Repro 5 available to play in reaper and everything else stutters outside Reaper although both Activity Monitor and Reapers CPU is on less than a half procent. Is there some allocation of resources inside Reaper which can be altered?
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