I have a template where I use a separate instance of Kontakt for each patch I use. This allowed me to easily disable instrument tracks before closing the template, so I could re-enable only the tracks I needed when reopening it.
Recently, I decided to switch to a more efficient method by using a single instance of Kontakt to load multiple patches (e.g., all articulations for a specific library) and route each one to different outputs. This setup works well for MIDI control and linking outputs to individual rack returns in Cubase, but I’ve faced a problem: I’m unable to disable the Kontakt rack or its output returns before closing the template. I can disable the MIDI tracks linked to these patches, but the Kontakt rack and associated outputs remain active, which could lead to resource issues when reopening the template.
Is there a way to disable the Kontakt rack and its outputs, or am I missing something? If it’s not possible, I lose the optimization I was aiming for, as I wanted to avoid having all the patches loaded when reopening. Otherwise, I might have to stick to my previous approach, even though I thought this method would be better. Am I missing something, guys?
You can use freeze/unfreeze as a workaround to that limitation of racks, but it’s not clear to me what efficiencies you’re trying to achieve, so you might be better off with instrument tracks anyway.
If you’re trying to speed up load times for large templates, VEPro is often used as a way to solve that problem, since it keeps the vsti’s loaded in another process.
Hello @raino and thanks for answering.
My understanding was that running more instances of Kontakt (one per patch) would load more into RAM and potentially demand more processing power compared to having fewer Kontakt instances, each containing multiple patches. I was thinking that with a large template (let’s say with hundreds of tracks), the latter approach—where multiple patches are loaded into a single Kontakt instance—would be more efficient overall, both in terms of memory usage and CPU load.
Wouldn’t reducing the number of Kontakt instances globally improve performance, especially with such a large number of tracks? Or is the performance impact not as significant as I assumed? I’m just trying to figure out the most optimal way to set up a large template.
If my understanding is incorrect, would you please clarify for me that? If the first method proves to be more optimal, I’ll definitely stick with it, as it aligns with what I’m currently using.
Thank you for the response, @GlennO. My primary goal is to improve load times, as you mentioned, while also optimizing CPU performance. If the second approach can achieve this more effectively.
However, due to the lack of the option to easily enable/disable Instruments Racks, which is a powerful feature in Cubase, I’m considering sticking with my current workflow. Still, about VEPro, I might give it a try and see if it is worth it or just simply stick to what am actually using.
Not sure if I’m missing something here, but If you have the right pane open showing the rack instrument list, you can just click on the on/off button to disable Kontakt (or any other instrument).
The RAM used by each instance is minimal, the big hit comes from the sample libraries used. If you are using the same libraries the memory use should be about the same either way.
That seems intuitively how it should work, but it causes problems with CPU load distribution. When you put multiple Instruments in a single instance then they all have to use the same CPU Core. Where if each has its own instance then Cubase can spread the load across multiple cores.
Here’s an analogy. Say a supermarket has 5 checkout lanes open and there are 4 shoppers ready to checkout. If they are all using their own shopping carts they each can use a different lane & they all checkout in parallel. But if they were all sharing a single cart they would need to checkout using the same lane, one after the other which takes longer overall.
@KT66, there’s nothing wrong with what you said—you’re absolutely correct. From my personal experience, though, when dealing with a large template of over 100 tracks, it becomes impractical to repeatedly go to the rack panel to find the right rack for each corresponding MIDI channel. What you mentioned works well for smaller setups, but in my opinion, it’s not the most efficient method for managing a large number of tracks. In these cases, being able to quickly disable or enable tracks directly from the arrangement window, similar to how it’s done with instrument tracks, would greatly improve workflow and save time. That’s why I was hoping there might be a faster way to disable/enable directly from the arrangement tab, just like with instrument tracks.
