Audio Performance window shows the system running out of resources and overloading, which causes crackling and makes mixdown literally impossible. The problem is that there are barely any resources being used.
The computer can handle several DAWS with this size workload all running at once and still work fine, so what could the issue possibly be?
I moved the buffer up to 2048 but the issue persists. Multithreading is active in Nuendo “Studio” settings.
Its definitely not an issue with USB bandwidth or anything like that, since its not using USB or anything problematic like that.
Is there something I need to do in BIOS maybe??
SPECS
OS: Windows 10 Pro
Mobo: Asus ProArt X570
CPU: R9 5950x 16-Core
RAM: 64GB DDR4 (128GB, but I removed 2 sticks while troubleshooting)
SSD: (3) Samsung SSD 980 1TB NVMe M.2
Soundcard: Marian Clara E 512x512 Channel Dante PCIe
ADC/DAC: Avid/D.A.D. MTRX Studio, Lynx Aurora16 LT-Dante, RedNet A16R
Some plugins use cpu differently than others, like ex. Acustica Audio. Audio performanace 90%. but cpu cores about 30% sometimes its normal. Check your DPC latency.
Tikk, can you share what BIOS version you’re using and how you have PCIe, Thunderbolt and NVME configured?
I have the same mobo and discovered that either I have a device that doesn’t play nice in one configuration (an older Radeon VII likely), and/or I have a faulty board where the chip that splits up the first 16 PCIe 4.0 lanes isn’t working correctly.
In my problematic configuration I used all three nvme slots and then used the graphics card in the top slot. Didn’t seem to play nice. I took out the drive that shared resources with the GPU and it was fine (i.e. the problem seems to occur when splitting the x16 to either x8/x8 or x8/x4/x4).
Haven’t tried the latest BIOS. I think I’m a few versions back on 08-something.
Also, might be worth sharing the AGESA/driver package for CPU/chipset.
Wonderful board but support sucked and this feeling of maybe there being a problem with a component is… not optimal.
ASUS Pro WS X570-ACE
Windows 10
Ryzen 3950x
32GB Ram
RME Fireface UFX +
Asio Guard peaks, buffer is already on 2048…
In the actual case I know the plugins which lead to the overload and dropouts (TOMO Lisa and Pulsar 8200), but checking Windows task manager, CPU is only at 14%, Ram also no problem…
Unfortunately not, I can try running the onboard sound device…
Maybe it is because I’m running the UFX+ via USB (it is directly connected to a USB 3 slot) and have some USB issues?? Often read about USB spikes caused by hubs or other devices. Any idea how I can debug this?
I suppose maybe check different USB connectors on the motherboard. Typically some go straight to the CPU while others go through the x570 chipset. So maybe try that. Of course also look into drivers for chipset etc. as well as BIOS - maybe don’t upgrade them immediately but make sure they’re all compatible or suitable with that version of Windows, and see if there are any release notes that mention USB performance.
I mean… I would probably upgrade to Win 11 Pro if I were you but… is there a reason you’re on v10?
There may also be a problem with the computer’s heat dissipation. Yesterday, I did the same. I put the computer down and it was immediately fixed. The computer model I am using is Miniforum Hx90
I would always advise when checking the Windows Performance Meter to switch to the detailed Core view (it’s right click on the graph somewhere iirc). I don’t think it’s the problem here as ASIO guard values are high, too, but as always, if there is one core nearly saturated, that can be a cause for at least high realtime values.
Another thing I would routinely check is that no antivirus scanner like Windows defender is active, or if so, at least exclude the Cubase.exe and the project/sample folders from the realtime scan. Ran into that myself once…
the problem lies in reading the data. the resources used are indeed 25% (example and data that the system confirms to you). But w10 distributes cpu resources badly. when i had my ryzen 5900x i had the same problem. the very structure of intel and amd processors of this generation had the same problem. the asio resources are real and just even if the results are different. asio looks at the saturation of a core and not of the cpu itself. the distribution of resources is done much better with w11. I decided to change cpu and motherboard and upgrade to w11 22h2. I did not regret. I no longer have this phenomenon of saturation of a heart. the cpu load is distributed coherently and distributed as well as possible. the result is quite fantastic since I can use quite an incredible number of tracks. I use the swam 3 plugin (flute, sax…) these plugins consume a lot of cpu since they are physical models. but the sound is amazing.
why this change?
the 7950x3d processor accepts the lowest latency and buffers. At 32 samples, he does not flinch.
471 physically modeled vsti tracks. (Swam 3). It is totally unthinkable. The processor develops such power that this type of vsti is no longer a problem. 471 instances in 128 samples or 4 ms of latency.
it does not heat up. At 100% use it rises between 70 and 74 degrees. Congratulations to AmD for this feat.
if you cannot change machine check that your memory is 3600mhz. not above, not below. “infinity fabric” must remain on a 1/1 ratio. we gain enormously in stability and more fluid cpu resources. it’s ok with 3600mhz memory
I will post a link on this forum that explains the phenomenon of audio glitsch when system resources are low. The video explains this phenomenon really well.
Already tried all my USB ports, doesn’t change anything. So you think updating to Win 11 can improve the situation?
In think there has to be another bottleneck in my system (maybe on Windows optimization for audio, or in the BIOS) because I often hear people saying how super low latency and fluent they go with their RME interfaces. Any tips and tricks here, maybe some special stuff for the AMD Ryzen (3950x)?
When I look in the task manager for each core, they are alle doing some work, but I think none of them is saturated or completely on the limit.
The way I see it the general idea is to leave Windows mostly alone. There are some tweaks to make but not that many. Pete Brown from Microsoft is a great guy, very helpful, doesn’t push Windows or make excuses for it, and does audio himself. He put together a quick guide for settings you can change to potentially improve performance:
To me it seems that some of the things causing problems are USB interruptions because of power saving options (see guide I think, or ask if you can’t find it), potential latency induced by the graphics card, and lastly things like Wifi or Blutooth that can interfere.
The tech guy has been MIA for awhile (family issues). I don’t wanna replace him because he’s like family and he’s been around since my mentor (who started Deadly Mix Studios) was alive. I can build a PC and get it running no problem, but I’m not so great at configuring BIOS, “optimizing”, over/under-clocking, etc. So, if there’s an issue there, I probably wouldn’t know.
The NVMe part, sounds plausible. I added another SSD not too long ago. I’ll have to see if there’s a slot behind the ProArt plaque and, if so, whether or not that’s where I installed it. I can’t see the plaque because its behind the GPU. That drive hasn’t appeared as a new storage drive since the install; so I suppose that’s a logical place to look. Either way, I need to reinstall that Samsung 990 because I need to archive some old projects and move soundbanks and current projects over to it.
Our slots are filled, from top to bottom:
GPU
Clara E Dante PCIE
USB3 expansion card
(Yes, I really shelled out for an AMD chipset mobo with Thunderbolt4, and filled the last slot with a USB3 card, instead of a TB3 expansion, which I could have used just 1 slot of to connect a PCIe chassis and added as many PCIe as I want: but that’s a whole other thing. As a friend once told me, I’m “the dumbest genius anyone’s ever seen” lol).
Do you mean the drive doesn’t show up at all in Windows - i.e. you can’t even create a volume / format it?
In general I agree with an earlier poster that it would probably make sense to upgrade to Win 11 (and if you do just clone the system drive at least to an image before you do). Outside of that navigating BIOS isn’t that complicated, it’s just a matter of knowing what to touch and what to leave alone.
There are three NVME slots and all are under heatsinks but unless your motherboard is different than mine none of them are under the ‘plate’ with the name on it:
Thanks. The undiscovered SSD should be behind B, in that case.
No, I haven’t seen any new drives in Windows, when I try to save or open files. I just checked device manager and found it there though. Looked when I installed and didn’t find it, but someone probably showed up for a session or something and I never went back to look again or something like that. Happens a little too often lol.
I’ve never had issues with stability since updating to v12, but I’ve been getting tons of crashing over the last few days.
I’m wondering if any updates that its bugging me for have anything to do with these issues.
I’m still on Win10 Pro, because I don’t want to switch until I’m certain they’ve had time to work out any bugs, and software and hardware companies have had time to ensure compatibility. The abandonment of 32bit software cost me use of my favorite plugins and standalone drum machine emulator in the past when I updated [I had the full Nomad Factory catalog, including all the Blue Tubes, and lost use of Reason’s grandfather “ReBirth”]. I’m sure the big stuff works fine, but I’m concerned about the the little stuff with important purposes. Like, if ipMIDI don’t work in Win11, we lose use of the console controls. If the Neve software isn’t compatible, we lose that recall. If we lose SessionRecall, we lose recall sheets, etc. I’m mostly worried about ipMIDI and other software & drivers for hardware that the manufacturers have since moved on from (replacing them with cheaper shitty Chinese-made garbage for the massive amateur market).
There is a lot of stuff in this control-room and I never have time to go over each and everything before we update to win11.
I came back to the studio tonight to try to troubleshoot the few issues I’ve been putting off.
I don’t think the new M2 SSD is related to any other issues afterall. I just didn’t know that I had to initialize it and then create a partition in diskmgmt, since this was my first time installing a new one alone. Luckily, Microsoft’s AI was able to explain it to me. It’ll put us out of work in a few years, tear society apart, and eventually cause our extinction, but it was helpful today.
win 11 is superior to win 10 in every way. More stable in any case.
Everything AMD-Asus Pro ART requires the latest updates, as everything is developed and adapted very quickly (compared with Intel, for which everything is planned). At least, that’s my experience here. Every time I’ve encountered a problem, it’s been solved by updates, sometimes to the core of the system via Asus utilities: Bios, Thunderbolt Driver (very mysterious with Asus, but life-saving), memory manager and other gizmos, and… Win 11!
I’m still hesitant to switch our PCs to 11. I’ve waited long enough to update our computers now that all the software and hardware should be compatible by this point, but I’ve had so many issues in the past that changing while everything is running smoothly feels like looking for trouble lol
Certainly it’s a bit scary to update and it always carries some risk. I always run an image update of both work drives and the system drive every evening so there’s always a backup available. As long as you have that and can roll back you should be fine.
In my opinion Windows 11 is clearly better than 10 all things considered. You can check the system specs in my sig to see what versions I’m on. Actually, an update got pushed today to me so I’ll likely have that installed by tomorrow.
