Some recent tests being discussed in this PC Music thread have shown that your choice of audio interface can have a marked effect on how many plug-in effects/softsynth voices you can run, particularly at lower latencies/buffer sizes:
The big confusion there seems to be what buffer sizes most musicians typically use/need, so let's try to find that out here
Please explain the reason for your choice with a short post e.g.
a) Monitoring live vocals
b) Playing guitar through plug-in effects
c) Playing drum pads live
d) Playing keyboards
e) Mixing/mastering
f) Composing
I suspect this will prove very useful information for audio interface manufactureres fi they know what the majority of us are trying to do with their products
OK - I voted first, and my choice of 256 is for playing softsynths - at 44.1kHz this buffer size offers me a perfectly acceptable playback latency of 6mS. I tend to leave it the same for mixing/mastering too.
Well, I voted for 256, because that's what I generally use for tracking. on my interface at 44.1 it gives the slightly higher latency of about 7-8ms, but I don't often notice a problem with that.
However, I will add that I use a range of latencies depending on what I'm doing. For instance, I may drop down to 128 sometimes tracking something really percussive just to be safe on timings, and for mixing I'd bump it up to 512, again, just to be safe. Plus by then latency isn't that much of an issue.
In the main, 128 or 256 gives me acceptable performance for playing synths and stuff. Occasionally if there's something particularly timing critical, I might whack it down to 64.
32 puts a little too much strain on my MBP system - it's fine for just playing a simple softsynth, but playing a heavier one, particularly with other fx on, is a bit heavy.
If I'm playing guitar through FX and software monitoring, I will go to 64 (again, 32 here, by the time you are adding live amp modelling and FX processing, is a little too heavy for me).
However, the days of moving up to a higher buffer setting to mix with are long gone for me, I seldom find it's necessary to go to a 512 buffer size or something as Logic is pretty well optimised in this area.
So generally speaking, I'm at 128 most of the time for general use, and shift down to 64 for software monitoring live playing...
Mostly 256 to allow for using softsynths, but since I monitor outside of my DAW (RME TotalMix) I'm happy to run at 512 to get a bit more grunt when the mix needs it.
Hi Martin. I've not filled this is, as I don't use only one!
I can't remember the last time I thought of the buffer size as a set-and-forget thing: it depends what it is I'm doing. I'll set it for as low latency as I can get it if tracking V-Drums/BFD or playing soft synths via MIDI; or to free up as much CPU resource as I can when mixing very large projects with a gazillion thirsty plug-ins; or leave it at whatever it happens to be set at when 'programming' instrument parts. Like Elf, I'll use Total Mix for monitoring while tracking so the setting isn't important there.
It also depends to some extent on which computer system and audio interface I'm working with at the time, and what word-length/sample rate I'm working on.
Hi Martin. I've not filled this is, as I don't use only one!
I can't remember the last time I thought of the buffer size as a set-and-forget thing: it depends what it is I'm doing. I'll set it for as low latency as I can get it if tracking V-Drums/BFD or playing soft synths via MIDI; or to free up as much CPU resource as I can when mixing very large projects with a gazillion thirsty plug-ins; or leave it at whatever it happens to be set at when 'programming' instrument parts. Like Elf, I'll use Total Mix for monitoring while tracking so the setting isn't important there.
It also depends to some extent on which computer system and audio interface I'm working with at the time, and what word-length/sample rate I'm working on.
ditto. i set it as low as it can go when recording MIDI inputs, but then whack it up pretty high when doing other things so it doesn't bother me.
Voted 64 for tracking edrums - it'd be 32 if my set-up could reliably sustain it (close, but it'll occasionally blast digital noise down the 'phones).
After drums I'll track guitars through Guitar Rig at 128.
After that I increase the buffer throughout a project as demands dictate - heavy use of certain Play and Kontakt libraries will often force me up to 512 at which point I'll start to freeze tracks to decrease CPU load. I intend to upgrade my PC soon. I'd like to stick with the interface for its particular feature set.
(Tascam FW1082 / Phenom X4 9750)
64. For composing, an option that wasn't in Martin's list.
Covers a multitude of sins - VSTi, external instruments, slave machines etc.
Agree with Matt too - when it comes to mixdowns I tend to ramp it up a bit, but anything above 128 makes decent accurate playing difficult unless you adjusts your playing timing to allow for it. Come what may, the idea of anything as high as 6ms is my idea of hell.
