Can audio interface improve latency?

fastonebaz · February 2021

64bit Reaper and 64bit plugins will give you much better latency then 32bit. That's the biggest difference to latency for me after lots of experimenting.

John_A · February 2021

I’d recommend a thunderbolt interface if you are ringing a Mac with thunderbolt, my zoom tac8 runs with about 2ms of latency

the UA interfaces are IMO way overpriced, and the plugins soon turn in to a money pit. You’ve only got to look at how many used ones are for sale to see how many people come to the same decision

Lodious · February 2021

RME have a good rep for drivers, but it's worth checking the RME support forum to see you like their take on customer support. I've found my UFX II good, but not flawless, and two of the issues I (and others) had were dealt with in a pretty ungracious manner, especially considering in both cases to it turned out RME had issues with their product which were subsequently fixed.

Freebird · February 2021

Here's my latency for a RME Babyface Pro FS as reported by the RTL Utility ...

Sample Rate - Buffer Size - Reported RTL (ms)

44100 - 48 - 3.447

48000 - 48 - 3.167

96000 - 96 - 3.010

Laptop Spec:

Windows 10
Intel i7 7700HQ CPU
16GB RAM

Nerine · February 2021

Yes and no.

Drivers likely have the biggest impact.

I have a PT HD Native Thunderbolt rig hooked up to an HD I/O 8x8x16 (analogue expansion card innit.)

it has low latency monitoring mode, but with that engaged, and going through my OX, I can still sense a small amount of latency. I believe the OX introduces a few ms as well.

Was thinking of upgrading to the new PT Carbon interface and getting a new Mac to help to eliminate this.

Higher sample rates will reduce latency but at the expense of CPU and storage usage.

ToneControl · February 2021

Last time I was shopping, I found that many interfaces have the wrong impedance or level for electric guitar, and either make it sound thin or distort. Make sure you read reviews before buying. Easiest cheap one I found was the NI Komplete Audio 6

They've changed the design since I bought one though, so you have to check

Btw, I use something with more channels for recording, but the KA6 is/was a good entry point

I agree with Octatonic's points
my old system is a proper DSP HD Protools setup, but the modern plugins are no longer compatible, so I really miss low-latency live guitar DI recording

I just record from the AxeFx usually, as Jim demonstrated long ago
I like the idea of the philosophy "No need to reamp it if I can play it again anyway"
I could waste forever trying re-amps on everything

Freebird · February 2021

ToneControl said:
I just record from the AxeFx usually, as Jim demonstrated long ago
I like the idea of the philosophy "No need to reamp it if I can play it again anyway"
I could waste forever trying re-amps on everything

Reamping actually speeds up the sound design process as you have both hands free for tweaking, and this allows you to get creative with amp and pedal settings, or to sculpt coherant soundscapes out of existing guitar parts.

I also reamp more than just guitars, and I send things like digital synths & drums to outboard gear. You can also use VST FX in front of a real amp too, which opens up new areas of sonic experimentation.

Don't knock it until you have tried it

thegummy · February 2021

Not sure if the main question has been shared yet so here is how to tell if a different interface will improve your latency or if a more powerful computer will:

Your interface settings will have different buffer size settings. If you're already at the lowest setting and the audio is fine but there's too much latency for you then you need a new interface that offers lower latency.

But a more likely scenario will be that switching to the lowest buffer setting makes the audio glitch and crackle after only a few tracks and plugins are used. This is because the computer isn't fast enough to run at such a low latency so upgrading to a faster computer (with the same interface) would allow the workload to be done in time for the low latency.

Freebird · February 2021

thegummy said:

But a more likely scenario will be that switching to the lowest buffer setting makes the audio glitch and crackle after only a few tracks and plugins are used. This is because the computer isn't fast enough to run at such a low latency so upgrading to a faster computer (with the same interface) would allow the workload to be done in time for the low latency.

It's also possible to manage this scenario with a well thought-out workflow. I submix and use freeze/unfreeze when required, mainly because I use Nebula plugins, but also out of habit having owned lots of underpowered computers over the years. Basically my 3-year old laptop is functioning as a virtual tape machine and I prioritize low latency CPU performance when tracking, and I actually do utilize those latency figures I posted above.

Lodious · February 2021

There are also DAW specific optimizations you can do to the OS to improve latency, see example here for Ableton / Windows.

Optimizing Windows for Audio – Ableton

These type of optimizations can have a significant impact on the glitch free latency you can achieve in a real world situation.

Howdy, Stranger!

Categories

In this Discussion

Become a Subscriber!

Can audio interface improve latency?

Comments