tips on tweaking your hardware or software to get the best performance out of cubase
Bootcamp Windows 7?
Aloha m,
Bootcamp Windows 7?
IMHO true.
As a Mac user I have a friend that has the exact same 'puter as me (see sig)
but runs Cubase while the Mac is booted into Bootcamp.
Without a doubt that combination feels ‘zippier’. Graphically for sure.
Give it a try.
The real beauty is, you can.
Or go the other way.
Get a Windows machine and morph it into a ‘hackintosh’ box.
Ahh technology. Ain’t it grand!
HTH
{‘-’}
I’d like to say that “use Windows” as a solution for a speedy Cubase is a B.S. response. So here are my “tips”;
– Make sure you have enough RAM (Google how to use the Activity Monitor app on mac to check out if you have enough memory)
– save audio data/sessions to a fast external hard drive (Google how to turn off Journaling for this drive using Disk Utility)
– make sure your interface drivers are updated to the most recent stable version (which might not necessarily be the very newest drivers, depending on the company. ask around)
– Make sure you don’t have any unnecessary apps running in the background which may interfere with tracking sessions (check the Dock, in particular). Generally, OSX does a pretty good job of managing CPU use, so this primarily falls under point #1; Do you have enough RAM for OS X to function efficiently?
– Only use ultra-low buffer settings when tracking live VSTi. Reset to higher buffer settings when mixing or tracking non-MIDI instruments. When tracking live instruments, you should use your audio interface’s no-latency mixer monitoring feature (i.e.: MOTU’s Cuemix).
That’s about all I can think of. I’m pretty new on Cubase 6 (finally upgraded after years on SX 2.0 on a G5), and the only major issue I’ve found is that I can’t run it at the “32” buffer setting (clicks and pops). I record mostly real instruments and program most of my MIDI (as opposed to playing it live) so this doesn’t affect me that much. It’s pretty well known that Cubase low-latency on mac sucks, so if you frequently track MIDI instruments, then maybe yes, you might consider using Windows as your DAW OS. Personally, I’d rather poke a sharp stick in my ear than have to deal with rebooting into Windows every time I wanted to fire up the DAW (never mind having to deal with maintaining two separate OS systems), so if I ever get to the point where regular low-latency recording is a must, I’ll just “bite the bullet” and move to Logic.
Hope this helps.
Nice one!
Try to optimize your system, as it is in Knowledge base written.
Buy VE Pro and host your virtual instruments within it. It allows you to squeeze a little more power out of the VST system.
If your needs are greater (big orchestral sessions using virtual instruments) consider a slave PC networked through VE Pro.
Use reverbs as sends rather than inserts. I often find I don’t need more than two reverbs pes session. Also, the occasional freeze of a particularly demanding virtual instrument can free up a lot of power.