Adjusting The Buffer Setting Under Mac Os 9; Lower Latency Versus Higher Cpu Overhead - MOTU 828mkII User Manual

Figure 12-4: In Cubase SX or Nuendo, choose Devices menu> Device
Setup and click VST Multitrack to access the window above and the
Audio Buffer Size setting.
Figure 12-5: In Logic Audio, go to the Audio Driver preferences to
access the I/O buffer Size option shown above.

Adjusting the buffer setting under Mac OS 9

Under Mac OS 9, audio I/O buffer size adjustment
is made in the MOTU FireWire Audio Console, as
shown in Figure 12-6 via the Samples Per Buffer
setting.
92
Figure 12-6: Lowering the 'Samples Per Buffer' setting in the MOTU
FireWire Audio Console Window reduces patch thru latency. But
doing so increases the processing load on your computer, so keep an
eye on the Performance Monitor window in AudioDesk (or similar
feature in your host audio software).

Lower latency versus higher CPU overhead

The buffer setting has a large impact on the
following things:
Patch thru latency
■
The load on your computer's CPU
■
Possible distortion at the smallest settings
■
How responsive the transport controls are in
■
AudioDesk, Digital Performer or other audio
software
The buffer setting presents you with a trade-off
between the processing power of your computer
and the delay of live audio as it is being patched
through your software. If you reduce the size, you
reduce patch thru latency, but significantly increase
the overall processing load on your computer,
leaving less CPU bandwidth for things like real-
time effects processing. On the other hand, if you
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