Are USB Audio Interfaces fine for softsynths??

[-groovatious-]

Just wondering if USB interfaces are fine for running multiple softsynths with low latency?

 

I could run 10 softsynths no problem on my laptop with virtually no latency using an Echo Indigo IO PCMCIA card.

 

Would this be possible with a USB interface?

[ew_]

Sure it is; I have a couple USB interfaces that I use.

 

Some things to be aware of, though;

 

1) Your CPU load will be higher; there's additional processing involved with managing the USB stream.

2) Your latency will probably be a tad higher; once again because of the USB stream. Some drivers (such as NI's Windows drivers for their USB interfaces) will allow you to adjust USB latency as well as audio latency; too low and you'll get glitches as well as higher CPU usage.

3) Peripherals can cause problems. On a notebook, have network adapters and the like disabled.

4) Power management. Have any and all power saving schemes disabled. This includes turning off speed stepping/Cool 'n Quiet or any other form of processor power scheduling in the BIOS.

5) On a Windows machine, turn off power management of the USB hubs. Go into device manager and right click a hub to bring up its properties. Under power management, uncheck all. Repeat for each hub and reboot. All your USB devices will thank you.

 

Last but not least; if you have a multicore machine and XP, download and run this patch;

 

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=896256

 

ew

[brzilian]

 

Just wondering if USB interfaces are fine for running multiple softsynths with low latency? I could run 10 softsynths no problem on my laptop with virtually no latency using an Echo Indigo IO PCMCIA card. Would this be possible with a USB interface?

 

 

Not when compared to PC-Cards. USB cards will always have higher latency than their PCI, PC-Card and Firewire counterparts which, worst case, will result in a noticeable delay between when you hit a key on your controller and hear the sound out of your speakers.

 

Just stay away from USB completely - you'll be happier in the long run.

 

Why are you so against just buying another Indigo?

[Gus Lozada]

I do agree partially, brazilian. That is true with single-core computers.

 

However I do have now a MacBook Pro and a Core2Duo Dell computer. I do run Pro Tools or LIVE perfectly on both, several audio channels, several soft synths... while using USB interfaces.

 

Yes, FireWire gives computer less load and yes, it is kinda better in overall performance, but for PC users, sometimes having a FIreWire port working right is not that simple... and then USB appears as a good -or the only- choice.

[-groovatious-]

 

Why are you so against just buying another Indigo?

 

 

Because I've only had my old one for a little over a year and it BLEW UP dude - doesn't really make one inclined to go out and buy the same thing again..