REAPER v5.11 latency

Recording Techniques, People Skills, Gear, Recording Spaces, Computers, and DIY

Moderators: drumsound, tomb

Post Reply
hugheju
pluggin' in mics
Posts: 31
Joined: Sun Sep 14, 2003 10:23 pm
Location: Atlanta
Contact:

REAPER v5.11 latency

Post by hugheju » Sun Jan 24, 2016 8:52 pm

On a new used Windows 7 laptop I downloaded the new version of Reaper and the latency is really bad, I've been able to tweak it with previous computers but nothing seems to be working, like lowering the buffers as I have always done before. The tutorials I have found on line are not making any sense to me. http://wiki.cockos.com/wiki/index.php/H ... ce_Latency I I I am using the same Fast Track ultra 8R (discontinued) interface I've had for many years, with a guitar direct in to test it out. I like this new Reaper so far but hard to work without being able to monitor if I can't fix latency. Maybe just install an older version of the program? Or there's something I am not doing right (which is quite possible).
Record it before you forget it. You can always record it better later.

mrc
re-cappin' neve
Posts: 620
Joined: Sun Nov 23, 2003 5:07 pm
Location: Dead Center, Bible Belt, USA

Post by mrc » Mon Jan 25, 2016 6:37 pm

I'm using Logic, mainly, but used Reaper on PC in the past, but Reaper always seemed fast enough on Win 7. If your interface was fast enough in the past, and you have it set up the same way it should be close to the same. Asio drivers are your friend on Windows, if your fast track is compatible. I'd start with it's manual after checking drivers and settings. If you can listen direct from the interface, that is a lot less latency than going in and out of the computer. I haven't used Reaper for quite a while, but it's a good program. Some one who is using it can maybe help, but they will need your laptops' cpu, drive type and if spinning it's speed, memory specs and size.
If your drive is less than 7200 rpm, that could be the problem, stress could. SSD really helped an old Lenovo I had.

User avatar
Randyman...
takin' a dinner break
Posts: 186
Joined: Sun Mar 04, 2012 8:30 pm

Post by Randyman... » Mon Jan 25, 2016 7:31 pm

Adding to MRC's post:
Are you sure you are using the M-Audio's ASIO Driver in Reaper?

I'm not familiar with Reaper, but I know Cubase/Nuendo ALWAYS default to WDM or whatever audio, and I have to select the proper ASIO driver inside Nuendo to get things where they should be...

FWIW - I just gave my guitar player an older i3 PC that had an ANCIENT M-Audio Audiophile 24/96 PCI card (pre-dates your Fast Track by a good 10 years), and it works fabulously for his realtime guitar-amp simulation purposes (and he is not willing to put up with any noticeable delay). That old PCI card actually runs fine under W10-64 if you believe it!!! 64-Samples fits the bill - but still not quite the RME performance I demand in my realtime DAW's :)

:cool:
Randy V.
Audio-Dude / Musician / PC Guru / Crazy Guy

hugheju
pluggin' in mics
Posts: 31
Joined: Sun Sep 14, 2003 10:23 pm
Location: Atlanta
Contact:

Post by hugheju » Wed Jan 27, 2016 11:27 pm

Definitely using ASIO drivers, the computer is an HP Pavilion Entertainment PC laptop with Windows 7 professional, Intel (R) Core (TM) 2 CPU T5600 @ 1.83GHz.
I have set up REAPER on many different PCs, and even a Macbook, and have always gotten it to work. But this is the latest version of Reaper. The computer was a donation as my music equipment budget is $0. I am thinking of trying to uninstall this version of Reaper and using an older version, since I was able to use it fine on two different Windows 7 computers in the past (and XP, and Windows 8 ).
The bad latency makes recording with monitoring (I record a lot of ideas on guitar straight through one channel of the 8 channel interface, but also do more serious work miking full bands (okay, my band, but I have recorded a few bands with this setup on older computers)) impossible because of the delay, but even with it muted, adding a second track is not aligned with the first one.
I still have the Mac and it works fine, but I have limited storage since my external drives are set up for PCs.
The latency was always a problem before when I first got a PC, but I was able to tweak it and get it working fine by lowering the buffers. It just doesn't seem to be working this time around.
Record it before you forget it. You can always record it better later.

User avatar
vvv
zen recordist
Posts: 10139
Joined: Tue May 13, 2003 8:08 am
Location: Chi
Contact:

Post by vvv » Thu Jan 28, 2016 10:32 am

If I recall, Reaper has a pretty good forum for Reaper stuff ...
bandcamp;
blog.
I mix with olive juice.

hugheju
pluggin' in mics
Posts: 31
Joined: Sun Sep 14, 2003 10:23 pm
Location: Atlanta
Contact:

Post by hugheju » Thu Jan 28, 2016 2:25 pm

I did start there, I'll check again, I think I saw some latency issues for the new version there.
Record it before you forget it. You can always record it better later.

User avatar
Randyman...
takin' a dinner break
Posts: 186
Joined: Sun Mar 04, 2012 8:30 pm

Post by Randyman... » Sat Jan 30, 2016 3:16 pm

You aren't using any latent plug-ins are you? I recall that "biting" me in my early days of monitoring "through" my PC-DAW's...

:cool:
Randy V.
Audio-Dude / Musician / PC Guru / Crazy Guy

hugheju
pluggin' in mics
Posts: 31
Joined: Sun Sep 14, 2003 10:23 pm
Location: Atlanta
Contact:

Post by hugheju » Tue Feb 02, 2016 11:33 pm

Using plugins has always caused latency, but with this problem it's bad even with no plugins. I have now switched to an earlier version and it's having the same problem. Nothing I do anywhere on the preferences page, under "device", "recording", "buffering", seems to change anything. I've always gotten it to work somehow before just fiddling with it but there seems to be something specific to this computer that I can't figure out. Obviously I am not very good with computers and technology in general but I am usually able to get things to work somehow.
Record it before you forget it. You can always record it better later.

hugheju
pluggin' in mics
Posts: 31
Joined: Sun Sep 14, 2003 10:23 pm
Location: Atlanta
Contact:

Post by hugheju » Wed Feb 03, 2016 12:05 am

Fiddling with all those settings has gotten it to work a little better, but there is still some latency. New tracks are at least syncing up now. baby steps...
Record it before you forget it. You can always record it better later.

User avatar
Nick Sevilla
on a wing and a prayer
Posts: 5555
Joined: Mon Mar 03, 2008 1:34 pm
Location: Lake Arrowhead California USA
Contact:

Post by Nick Sevilla » Wed Feb 03, 2016 11:27 am

It is probably the Windows system, and how they address asynchronous tasks within the CPU and motherboard routing of signals.
They are usually addressing too many silly tasks in the background, which hog CPU resources, and push bacl anything you are doing in the foreground. No matter how you set this up, it will not work properly.

This is why I still do not use PCs for audio work.

Cheers
Howling at the neighbors. Hoping they have more mic cables.

hugheju
pluggin' in mics
Posts: 31
Joined: Sun Sep 14, 2003 10:23 pm
Location: Atlanta
Contact:

Post by hugheju » Wed Feb 03, 2016 12:23 pm

In the preferences window there are a couple of asynchronousness-related settings.
Yes I know macs are better for audio, but my macbook is real old and doesn't have much memory so I can't do much with it. It works but Reaper has always worked better on a PC. If I had money I'd get a super fancy mac desktop and some better software but I don't. This new computer was a donation. But it is in general a much better computer than the mac (not all PCs are terrible).
Record it before you forget it. You can always record it better later.

User avatar
Randyman...
takin' a dinner break
Posts: 186
Joined: Sun Mar 04, 2012 8:30 pm

Post by Randyman... » Sat Feb 06, 2016 12:19 pm

Windows PC's can handle 32-Samples of ASIO buffer all day long (been doing that for 5+ years now for hours on end). I'm running 196 Ins and 198 Outs with zero problems - all native. I love Nick - but those PC/Mac statements are just blatantly incorrect. Something else is going on.

Even *if* windows was doing way too much other stuff in the background, it would not simply result in more audio latency - it would result in dropouts and pops/clicks at the currently specified ASIO latency. So called "DPC Latency" (deferred procedure calls) have nothing to do with the overall Audio Latency, but rather will affect *if* you can process your audio cleanly at the currently specified ASIO latency (a high DPC latency will not cause your audio to be more latent, it will however cause you to raise your ASIO buffer to the next highest setting to obtain clean audio).

So if you are able to set your ASIO latency to whatever value and it is clean (no pops/clicks) but the perceived latency seems beyond the actual ASIO buffer setting - then the Card and associated AD/DA are where the additional RTL latency are coming from (and not because Windows is "addressing too many silly tasks in the background").

Try a latency test using a clean/empty project without ANY plugins and see if you get any better RTL. I shot myself in the foot more than once with latent plugins (anything that uses liner phase algorithms or lookahead detection will ruin any kind of low-latency performance if monitoring through your DAW software)...

FWIW - The M-Audio USB drivers might not be the best - so don't expect RME type latency performance & efficiency from that interface. I'm sure you can make it usable though - just not to my anal latency tolerances :) (and believe me - I WILL NOT tolerate perceivable latency - and I monitor through my PC DAW 24/7).

:cool:
Randy V.
Audio-Dude / Musician / PC Guru / Crazy Guy

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 76 guests