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Old 02-07-2015, 09:28 AM   #1
9559
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Default Find Out Latency? (very quick question)

Hello,

I'm just wondering where I can see what the latency is? I read that you can see it by looking at the 'menu bar', I'm not sure what the menu bar is but I think it's the bar at the top and there is some information to the left, which says, [44.1Hz 24bit WAV: 2/4ch 442spls ~23/33ms ASIO]. Is 23/33ms the latency?
I switched from WaveOut to ASIO, and I can hear the latency has improved, however it's still bad enough to make it impossible to play the MIDI controller without going mad so I need to know how much latency I have so I can check what's recommended.

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Old 02-07-2015, 09:38 AM   #2
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Click those numbers in Reaper's upper right corner, that opens the settings for your audio device. Click the ASIO configuration button.

There should be a control of some sort, so you can change the buffer size (442 spls). Try setting this to 128 spls, how's the latency now?


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Old 02-07-2015, 09:41 AM   #3
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Quote:
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Is 23/33ms the latency?
Yes. 23 ms input, 33ms output.
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Old 02-07-2015, 09:55 AM   #4
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Thanks for the information Dstruct. I've only seen people write about latency as one number, but you mention two, when people simply mention one, is that both of those sums put together or one of them if so which one?

Bluzcat, I followed your instructions but there is no buffer size to set, however there is something called buffer lenght (see attachment) which is set to max (10 ms) should this be decreased, if so to what?
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Old 02-07-2015, 10:04 AM   #5
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Thanks for the information Dstruct. I've only seen people write about latency as one number, but you mention two, when people simply mention one, is that both of those sums put together or one of them if so which one?
For audio input monitoring the both sum up. For MIDI, only the output value matters. You want something like 12 ms or less on the output latency for live MIDI playback/monitoring.


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Bluzcat, I followed your instructions but there is no buffer size to set, however there is something called buffer lenght (see attachment) which is set to max (10 ms) should this be decreased, if so to what?
Yeah, you should decrease it to lower value so that REAPER's toolbar reads 12ms or less for the output latency. But lower value = higher CPU usage ...
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Old 02-07-2015, 10:18 AM   #6
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Ah okay. Complex stuff haha! So then I'd say the latency was 55 ms, but 33 ms for MIDI?

I set it the buffer length to 1. It now reads ~5.1/6.1ms. I opened Task Manager and recorded a bit of MIDI; it hovered around 15% CPU most of the time, but did go up to 35% at one point. Is this a decent set-up or will the high CPU effect the recording somehow? Forgot to add, I've got like 20 tabs open and am running several programmes, so that might add to the CPU.
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Old 02-07-2015, 10:23 AM   #7
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Ah okay. Complex stuff haha! So then I'd say the latency was 55 ms, but 33 ms for MIDI?
Yes.


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I set it the buffer length to 1. It now reads ~5.1/6.1ms. I opened Task Manager and recorded a bit of MIDI; it hovered around 15% CPU most of the time, but did go up to 35% at one point. Is this a decent set-up or will the high CPU effect the recording somehow?
No, that's fine.
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Old 02-07-2015, 10:40 AM   #8
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Now it has stopped working :| There is no sound when playing the MIDI controller, nor if using the virtual keyboard, and if I press to play back a recorded piece, the play button becomes green but the line that normally moves over the tracks doesn't move and there is no sound. I tried changing the buffer length back to 10 but that didn't help. I also restarted the computer. The laptop also refused to play any audio, for example youtube just buffered but nothing happened. This problem was solved by disconnecting the interface and connecting the speakers directly to the laptop instead of through the interface. What's happened here?
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Old 02-07-2015, 10:45 AM   #9
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Reboot your computer and try with a little higher buffer size next time ...
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Old 02-07-2015, 12:25 PM   #10
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From my experience with a couple of focusrite ASIO drivers you will need to be around the 3 - 4 mark for reliability. Should still give you fairly decent latency performance though.

By any chance is this interface a USB one?

Always the hardest to get good latency from, unfortunately.

I have an RME Babyface USB which does great - but at a steep price
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Old 02-07-2015, 12:35 PM   #11
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It is now set to 3, and the latency is ~9.1/12 ms. After four restarts and reconnections it is now working okay when I'm using MIDI. As the latency will be worse when it's something else and not MIDI I'm gonna look into what else can be done to deal with latency, there seems be a lot of advanced stuff you can alter.

And yes it is a USB interface. Laptop doesn't have any firewire ports.

Thanks for the help guys!
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Old 02-07-2015, 03:30 PM   #12
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Assuming it is either a scarlett or a saffire 6 you may find you dont get a whole lot better than that, sadly.
That is why I got shot of a Saffire6 AND later a Scarlett 2i4

Best of luck with it, though.
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Old 02-07-2015, 04:07 PM   #13
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It works fine when recording instruments, as there is the Direct Monitoring feature, for example I recorded some stuff using a Korg T3 and that went well after I got the different volume settings right. I might be able to lower the buffer length more when I am only running REAPER as today I've had about 20 tabs and five programmes running alongside it, probably bothering the laptop.
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Old 02-08-2015, 02:12 AM   #14
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Ha Ha! And no prize for guessing htat you were using wireless internet and probably running antivirus and a bunch of other programs at the same time.
PC music is always best done with the minimum amount of other stuff active at the same time.

I have a pretty heavy duty system so I no long er do things like disabling internet and antivirus but I do still close things down that may affect cpu and ram usage significantly.

Try again with some of the sh1t turned off.
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Old 10-27-2020, 01:01 AM   #15
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Bit of an old thread here, but useful info!

What has always confused me is those numbers in the upper right corner.

I've seen some people's reported latency as the exact same number (input / output, in milliseconds), but I've never had the same exact number. Should I?

Mostly a MIDI guy... v-drums into Superior Drummer... my 20-year old M-Audio Delta 66 reports 44.1, 24-bit... at 128 samples, ~3.8ms / 3.5ms.

For my laptop, I'm using a Focusrite Scarlett 18i20. Same settings, same buffer (128 samples). This one shows ~10ms / 15ms (with the MixControl settings at 5.0ms).

Just got a new Motu M4... at same settings, same buffer (128 samples), I get ~3.5ms / 8.2ms.

Why is there such a drastic difference between the PCI card (Delta 66) and the USB interfaces? Those numbers aren't great.

Granted, the M4 can go as low as 16 for the buffer (I get static, sadly)... but at 32, I can get ~1.3ms / 3.8ms.

What confuses me? The Delta 66, at 64 samples, I get ~2.4ms / 2.0ms. Why is the output number lower with the PCI, but higher with the USB interfaces?

Any help is GREATLY appreciated. Thanks!
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Old 10-27-2020, 03:08 AM   #16
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PCI card are generally lower latency than USB equivalents.
Only the best interface drivers (RME) will get near to those on USB.

They will vary greatly between connection types and manufacturers.

It should also be noted that these figures are reported latency rather than measured. Some manufacturers are not very good at reporting hidden buffers and so the true figures may be higher.

If you want to know for sure you should measure with RTL utility using a physical loopback cable. (and can use these figures as a record offset to correct for latency more accurately)
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Old 10-27-2020, 03:21 AM   #17
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Trying out the RTL... latency's pretty crappy with my Scarlett 18i20.

Sometimes it doesn't even go down to 64, in RTL... lowest it goes is 96... any reason why?

I'm getting on average, 15 to 24ms round trip, which I think blows... haha.

Midi input is tight, though... so I don't know why this is!
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Old 10-27-2020, 05:20 AM   #18
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Are you using latest drivers for the focusrite.....I think they improved things last year and backdated it to work with older interfaces.

Not sure why it wouldn't go to 64....with some of the ridiculous settings like 16 i can imagine the computer simply can't handle it so no audio is passed, but most computers should easily work at 64 if nothing else is running.

MIDI should feel a bit tighter than monitoring audio through Reaper as it only runs through output latency.
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Old 10-27-2020, 10:02 AM   #19
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Default bad latency

I have bad latency,too. I use a Focusrite Saffire6 USB. When performing a drum part (recording it) I try to set my options for the lowest latency..but at BEST it's 14mSec..any less and clicks,pops and reaper will stall and restart a second later...UN-USABLE.
Dammit. And yes, I have the latest Focusrite drivers.
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Old 10-27-2020, 05:39 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Stella645 View Post
Are you using latest drivers for the focusrite.....I think they improved things last year and backdated it to work with older interfaces.

Not sure why it wouldn't go to 64....with some of the ridiculous settings like 16 i can imagine the computer simply can't handle it so no audio is passed, but most computers should easily work at 64 if nothing else is running.

MIDI should feel a bit tighter than monitoring audio through Reaper as it only runs through output latency.
No, not AT ALL.... I tried them (I'm on the 1st Gen Scarlett 18i20). Nothing but glitchy playback with mic... robot-voice, etc. Even with latency set safely. Completely unstable, trash drivers. I went back to 2.5.1 and MixControl 1.8. Anything else runs like trash. I told Focusrite this but they don't care, haha.
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