Reference Guide

861
Improving Performance with Digital Audio
Improving Audio Performance
control to the right in small increments until you see the value to the right of the slider increase;
close the dialog (click OK) and re-test your project after each increment.
• If problem(s) continue, move the slider control back to its original position, and try increasing the
number in the Buffers in Playback Queue textbox. (This value starts out at 4; try increasing it to
5, 6, 7, or 8). Close the dialog (click OK) and re-test your project after each such change.
• The total effective latency is displayed below the slider; it is determined by multiplying the per-
buffer latency time (in msec) by the number of buffers in the playback queue.
• If problem(s) continue, click the Advanced tab in this dialog, and turn off the WavePipe
Accelerator check box. Click OK to close the dialog and re-test your project.
• If problem(s) persist, turn the WavePipe Accelerator check box back on, and continue.
Your hard disk may be excessively fragmented
Audio data can be processed most efficiently if it is arranged in consecutive physical locations on
your hard drive. Over time, the chunks become distributed at various discontiguous locations on
your disk, which makes it more time consuming for SONAR to access the chunks. This extra access
time can interfere with smooth audio recording and/or playback.
Try defragmenting the hard disk:
• Make sure SONAR, and the Wave data directory are not installed on a compressed hard disk.
• Defragment your hard disk. If you have more than one hard disk in your computer, identify the
disk which contains the SONAR Data directory (this is where your projects’ audio clips are
stored.) To defragment the hard disk, exit SONAR first. Then, select Start > Programs > System
Tools > Accessories > Disk Defragmenter. We recommend that you backup your hard disk
before defragmenting it.
Your project file may be excessively fragmented
Audio data can be processed most efficiently if it is arranged in consecutive physical locations on
your hard drive. During normal SONAR usage, a project's audio data can become fragmented into
chunks stored at discontiguous locations on your disk. Accessing these discontiguous chunks can
consume extra processing time, which can lead to dropouts.
Try defragmenting your project file:
1. Open the project file that has audio problems.
2. Save it as a Cakewalk Bundle (.cwb) file by selecting Save As from the File menu and selecting
Cakewalk Bundle from the Save As Type drop down list and clicking the Save button.
3. Close the project.
4. Open the Cakewalk Bundle you just closed
Saving then re-opening the bundle file automatically defragments the audio data used by the project,
reducing the chances of a dropout or other audio problem.
When you are ready to save the file again, you may want to save it as a normal (.cwp) file. Saving
and opening .cwp files takes less time than saving and opening bundle files.