User Manual-Mac

CHAPTER
105
12 Reducing Monitoring Latency
OVERVIEW
Monitoring latency is that slight delay you hear
when you run an input signal through your host
audio software. For example, you might hear it
when you drive a live mic input signal through a
reverb plug-in running in your audio sequencer.
This delay is caused by the amount of time it takes
for audio to make the entire round trip through
your computer, from when it first enters a 2408mk3
input, passes through the 2408mk3 hardware into
the computer, through your host audio software,
and then back out to a 2408mk3 output.
If you don’t need to process a live input with
plug-ins, the easiest way to avoid monitoring
latency is to use the PCI-424’s CueMix DSP feature
to patch the input directly to your monitor outs via
the PCI-424 audio hardware. This is just like
bussing inputs to outputs in a digital mixer. For
details, see “CueMix DSP hardware monitoring”
on page 108.
If you do need to process a live input with plug-ins,
or if you are playing virtual instruments live
through your MOTU PCI audio hardware, you can
significantly reduce latency — and even make it
completely inaudible, regardless of what host audio
application software you use. This chapter explains
how.
Monitoring live input. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .106
The samples Per Buffer setting. . . . . . . . . . . . . .106
Lower latency versus higher CPU overhead . .107
Transport responsiveness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .108
Effects processing and automated mixing. . . .108
CueMix DSP hardware monitoring . . . . . . . . .108
Two methods for controlling CueMix DSP . . .108
Controlling CueMix DSP from your audio
software. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .108
Controlling CueMix from within AudioDesk or
Digital Performer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .108
Using CueMix with Sound Manager. . . . . . . . .109
Controlling CueMix DSP from within Cubase. . .
110
Other ASIO-compatible host software. . . . . . .110
Using CueMix Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .110