How to Free the Cpu of a Thread but Continue to Use It Without Hoging the Cpu

October 21, 2022 Post a Comment

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can anyone kindly recommend to me how much RAM and Processor i need to run reaktor COMFORTABLY?
I have a Windows XP, Pentium IV 2.4, 1gig of ram.

When i load up one instance of Reaktor 5.1 into cubase SX3 i start to get audio stutters.

Ive also turned off all my programs in the background and it doesnt help. Also tried playing with the audio buffer settings on my Motu828. Ive come down to the coinclusion that it might just be simply lack of power from my computer.

Would getting another stick of 1gig RAM help the problem?

thanks in advance.
wich ensemble did you load? do you have the similar problems with the same ensemble, when you use reaktor standalone?
i mean, maybe you loaded a very cpu hungry ensemble or it's a problem of cubase?
tekara, ni hao,
Some of your system sounds similar to mine - I am running Reaktor 5.1 on Windows XP Pro (no updates) on a Pentium 4 2.4 gHz processor, but with only 512 mb RAM. On my setup the real CPU hog ensembles from the user library or the instrument folders are still playable without noticeable audio issues, so I don't think more RAM will necessarily help you. The primary differences are that you are running Cubase (I run Sonar) and your MOTU audio interface is more high-end than my sound card - so I'd look for issues connected with those two elements and your OS or maybe other aspects of your hardware setup.

Some related questions to consider
1) Which version of XP are you running? (Home, Pro, or Media - Media is supposed to have beaucoup problems with audio software and gear).
2) Which updates have you installed (Win XP Pro SP2 is supposed to have created some issues with certain audio programs and interfaces - in some cases there are separate patches available to fix these).
3) I've heard that MOTU interfaces do better with Macs than with PCs - so this may be an issue (now I'll get flamed by all the happy MOTU users on PCs).
4) What's your hard disk set-up? Are you using a separate disk for audio project storage? Is it internal or external? If it's external is it connected via USB or Firewire?

I won't include adjusting latency because it sounds like you've already tried that - but did you try looking at your Cubase driver? Are you using ASIO or WDM drivers? If you're using ASIO are your drivers native to your interface or 3rd party drivers (e.g. ASIO4ALL)?

It's been a long time since I was in Hong Kong - are you in the New Territories or the islands or where?
ew Moderator Moderator

Also, adding more RAM doesn't help that much with CPU issues- 1 GB should be plenty.
If your CPU meter's behaving itself, I'd look to the MOTU as causing the problem. I can't remember; does that use Firewire or a PCI card with a breakout cable going to the interface?

ew
hi
it was the carbon synthesizer ensemble. You're right. I actually checked out different ensembles and compared my meter to the different instruments and it seems certain synths will hog more cpu.

I think i need a faster cpu

thanks
Hi,
Watch your voice count. The polyphony of an instrument can seriously affect the CPU usage. Just try reducing the number of voices from 8 to 2 and the CPU will go from 50% to 20% just like that. Remember that Reaktor allocates CPU to the voices whether or not they are required so reduce the voices when you only require one or two.

Hope this helps.

Regards

David
thank you so much
i didnt think reaktor would use the processing power allocated to the voices even if they werent used. I was acutlaly thinking about that the other day. Now i know for sure. I will go home and test it out. thanks!
yeah, that prevents the CPU from jumping around, or other unstable behavior when going from mono lines to chords.
Hi Tekara,
You have enough ram and cpu to run Reaktor comfortably. There will always be a limit to how many instances you can run, but there is no way that your machine shouldn't handle a single instance of carbon (or carbon2).

Does the cpu meter in sx or reaktor indicate that it is maxing out the cpu?

Do you get stutters running reaktor as a stand-alone?

Do you have the sample rate set very high (above 44.1k) in reaktor.

As someone mentioned below, did you check that you are using the correct driver? (there are a number of asio drivers available through cubase by default, but you need to use the dedicated driver for your MOTU)

Can you run other soft-synths without stutters?

These questions might narrow the problem a bit for you.

Sx should be able to run at about 80percent cpu without drop outs if your soundcard is set up right. Remember - too large a buffer can also create drop outs with some drivers, not just too small.
probably wont fix everything, but - sometimes in windows it helps to turn off the windows graphics stuff. right-click on the "my computer" icon, and select properties. click the advanced tab, go to performance/settings, and click the other advanced tab. then, select "background serveces" for processor scheduling, and "system cache" for memory usage. this will probably get rid of XP's silly graphics, and make it look like win 98 again. also, for visual effects, i picked custom, and only selected "show contents while dragging". this helps processors with weak graphics abilities, or at least did for me.
all that said, ive heard that XP needs alot less tweaks than older windows versions to run well, but this stuff does help to an extent. also, like others said, id consider messing with latency.

one more thing, even though it may not help here, if you have another RAM slot, RAM is very cheap for desktop computers these days - go to crucial, or even Dell's website. hell, i bought RAM for my GF's Apple computer on Dells site. RAM is always nice, and with sample ensembles it is still important (although carbon only uses very small samples on the wavetable osc, and for the graphics).
probably wont fix everything, but - sometimes in windows it helps to turn off the windows graphics stuff. right-click on the "my computer" icon, and select properties. click the advanced tab, go to performance/settings, and click the other advanced tab. then, select "background serveces" for processor scheduling, and "system cache" for memory usage. this will probably get rid of XP's silly graphics, and make it look like win 98 again. also, for visual effects, i picked custom, and only selected "show contents while dragging". this helps processors with weak graphics abilities, or at least did for me.
all that said, ive heard that XP needs alot less tweaks than older windows versions to run well, but this stuff does help to an extent. also, like others said, id consider messing with latency.

one more thing, even though it may not help here, if you have another RAM slot, RAM is very cheap for desktop computers these days - go to crucial, or even Dell's website. hell, i bought RAM for my GF's Apple computer on Dells site. RAM is always nice, and with sample ensembles it is still important (although carbon only uses very small samples on the wavetable osc, and for the graphics).