Horrible freezing/intermittent lagging when using virtual instruments inside PT

[stevenkwlee]

Help on this would be appreciated:

When I load a virtual instrument plug-in, like Keyscape, onto an instrument track, I can play it fine and hear audio playback.

However, the plug-in lags a terrible deal. It actually ends up freezing my entire session.

It's like an intermittent lagging -- a stuttering that occurs every 2~3 seconds of playing. Everything freezes, then unfreezes ... only when I play virtual instruments.

The lag itself is not in audio playback. I can hear the audio fine, without it lagging. Instead, it is the display and GUI that ends up freezing.

This only occurs when I use virtual instruments.

I have tried:

- Turning on/off delay compensation, MIDI thru, low latency monitoring

- Changing my buffer size all around, from 16 to 1024

- Changing my H/W buffer size from 32 samples to 1024 samples

- Moving my project files from a SSHD to a SSD

- Using a variety of different virtual instruments -- Lounge Lizard, Keyscape, Omnisphere, etc.

- Changing the disk cache to 20 GB

- Changing high DPI settings on Pro Tools

- Changing Windows Scaling to 100%

- Updating all my drivers manually

- Going into Nvidia Control Panel and changing Pro Tools to use my dedicated graphics card rather than the integrated graphics card

- Turning Pro Tools on and off again

My specs:

- Using Focusrite 2i4 audio interface

- Windows 10 (v1803), 64-bit

- 32 GB ram

- Nvidia GTX 1070 graphics

- i7-8750H processor- My primary hard drive: Samsung SSD 960 EVO 1 TB

- Using ASIO driver


Any help and/or advice on this matter would be greatly appreciated, thank you in advance!

[musicman691]

Where are your samples located - separate drive and if so is that a spinner or ssd? Have you done the recommended optimizations? Turned off unneeded Windows services?

[stevenkwlee]

Originally Posted by musicman691

Where are your samples located - separate drive and if so is that a spinner or ssd? Have you done the recommended optimizations? Turned off unneeded Windows services?

Hey there,

I've tried both a SSHD and SSD for my audio projects (the SSD is my primary drive, the SSHD is a separate drive). I'm still getting the same problem.

I've done all recommended optimizations.

I've turned off almost every useless Window service.

[musicman691]

Originally Posted by stevenkwlee

Hey there,

I've tried both a SSHD and SSD for my audio projects (the SSD is my primary drive, the SSHD is a separate drive). I'm still getting the same problem.

I've done all recommended optimizations.

I've turned off almost every useless Window service.

I'm not asking about the session drive but the drive where your samples are stored. Is it a spinner drive or an ssd?

As near as I can figure out via Google sshd is a hybrid drive (combo of ssd and spinner) and if that is what you have those are a no-no for PT usage. On a Mac they are known as Fusion drive. They move data back and forth from the ssd part to the spinner as usage dictates. It's this shuffling of data that is causing your problems. Best to have either a true spinner drive or true ssd. And you want to have separate drives for the system and sessions although a true ssd large enough will suffice until you get a separate session drive.

[stevenkwlee]

Originally Posted by musicman691

I'm not asking about the session drive but the drive where your samples are stored. Is it a spinner drive or an ssd?

As near as I can figure out via Google sshd is a hybrid drive (combo of ssd and spinner) and if that is what you have those are a no-no for PT usage. On a Mac they are known as Fusion drive. They move data back and forth from the ssd part to the spinner as usage dictates. It's this shuffling of data that is causing your problems. Best to have either a true spinner drive or true ssd. And you want to have separate drives for the system and sessions although a true ssd large enough will suffice until you get a separate session drive.

Hello, I've been moving the audio samples back and forth from the SSD and SSHD. But what you write here is important.


Either way, I'm still have the same problem with my instrument tracks. Do you have further suggestions?

[musicman691]

Originally Posted by stevenkwlee

Hello, I've been moving the audio samples back and forth from the SSD and SSHD. But what you write here is important.


Either way, I'm still have the same problem with my instrument tracks. Do you have further suggestions?

You need to get rid of that SSHD - that's your problem.

I'm having trouble understanding your system configuration. Is what is your system drive - the Samsung 960 or the SSHD? You say the 960 is your primary drive and to me that means it's the system drive.

[stevenkwlee]

Originally Posted by musicman691

You need to get rid of that SSHD - that's your problem.

I'm having trouble understanding your system configuration. Is what is your system drive - the Samsung 960 or the SSHD? You say the 960 is your primary drive and to me that means it's the system drive.

The Samsung 960 is my primary drive. The SSHD is only being used as a storage drive. I store documents, games, etc. on there.