Buffer run out problem

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moxol
Posts: 170
Joined: Fri Apr 28, 2017 11:23 pm

Buffer run out problem

Post by moxol »

I have a problem running MST.

I have 15 tracks, 6 midi with samplers, 8 with VSTi and 1 audio track.
5 VSTi tracks have SuperDrumFX (hihat, snare drum, bass drum...).
Most tracks have EQ and Transpose effects, some of those have Compressor.

I can't play it more then 10-15 seconds before I get Buffer run out error.
Sometimes I have to restart MTS because it's not responding.

My PC is Intel Dual Core E6550 2.3 Ghz with 8 GB of RAM, Windows 7 x64.

I have try to narrow the issue, and I have found out that cause of Buffer run out error is SuperDrumFX VST.
When I remove all tracks that have SuperDrumFX , then it runs fine.

Can I do something about this, or my PC is too weak?
Support
Posts: 1717
Joined: Fri Aug 27, 2004 2:17 pm

Re: Buffer run out problem

Post by Support »

Buffer underruns happen when the computer can't process all synths and effects in time. The last paragraph at https://www.multitrackstudio.com/midiinstruments.php describes what you can do about this ('Freezing software instruments').

MTS not responding as not something that's supposed to happen because of this though. Perhaps the 5 SuperDrumFX instances use a huge amount of memory? Or CPU power? Or harddisk traffic? You can use the Windows task manager to get an idea what what's happening.


Giel Bremmers
moxol
Posts: 170
Joined: Fri Apr 28, 2017 11:23 pm

Re: Buffer run out problem

Post by moxol »

I think that SuperDrumFX is the cause, by try & error diagnose method.
I don't know how to look for specific amount of CPU used by tracks.
Maybe you should build some monitoring system in MTS to diagnose what CPU and RAM usage is per track.

Perhapse you can test yourself MTS with http://www.superdrumfx.com to see what is CPU usage.
I am not sure why is such big CPU usage with SuperDrumFX, it has about 7mb, but it does have effects processor built in it, like EQ, wave samples of drums etc., probably that is the cause of overbuffering.
Dijon
Posts: 57
Joined: Tue Jun 15, 2010 5:32 pm

Re: Buffer run out problem

Post by Dijon »

Never heard of that virtual drum instrument.

Try "MT Power DrumKit 2" instead. Very popular freebie, so it's been tested across different systems over a number of years:

https://www.powerdrumkit.com/
moxol
Posts: 170
Joined: Fri Apr 28, 2017 11:23 pm

Re: Buffer run out problem

Post by moxol »

I am using it also.

SuperDrumFX is also very good, you should try it.
moxol
Posts: 170
Joined: Fri Apr 28, 2017 11:23 pm

Re: Buffer run out problem

Post by moxol »

I have to say that I am experiencing Buffer problems quite often, even though I think that it shouldn't happen.
If I have only 6 MIDI tracks, with 3-4 of them having VSTi and EQ, why is this so heavy on MTS? I get buffer problems 10 seconds after transport start.
It's almost basic recording setup.

My comp is Core 2 Duo 2.4 Ghz, 8 GB RAM, and 1 TB HDD.
It should be more then enough to handle.

I recall 2 years ago I had song with 20 tracks that worked most of the time ok, but now with this new version I can't get it to work normal.

Can you explain me this?
Support
Posts: 1717
Joined: Fri Aug 27, 2004 2:17 pm

Re: Buffer run out problem

Post by Support »

You can use the Windows task manager to find out what your computer is doing. Perhaps there's a virus scanner that scans all audio files?

You can try running the VSTi plugins bridged (see the Bridging section at https://www.multitrackstudio.com/vstplug.php). A bridged plugin appear in the task manager as MtStudioVSTServer.exe. This makes is possible to see in the task manager how much CPU power is used by the VST plugins and MultitrackStudio itself.
moxol
Posts: 170
Joined: Fri Apr 28, 2017 11:23 pm

Re: Buffer run out problem

Post by moxol »

I look at the CPU usage in MTS, when transport is not playing it's 60%, at playing it's 80-85%.
I do have Kaspersky but it's not scanning, but as I said, earlier versions of MTS didn't cause me so much buffer issues.
I tried on other computer with even better CPU and same RAM, and there are same buffer issues.
Support
Posts: 1717
Joined: Fri Aug 27, 2004 2:17 pm

Re: Buffer run out problem

Post by Support »

MTS shows the total computer CPU usage, not just MTS CPU usage. So you really need to use Task Manager to find out what's going on.
moxol
Posts: 170
Joined: Fri Apr 28, 2017 11:23 pm

Re: Buffer run out problem

Post by moxol »

OK, I will monitor.
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