Random Gain Change

[S Wats]

HI,

Every now and then for me Cakewalk randomly boosts the gain to maximum. This happens to either individual VSTs or audio tracks, frustratingly the event does not appear in the undo menu.  When it occurs its sudden without any obvious trigger. I thought at first it was a controller sending rogue MIDI data but it seems to happen even when all my controllers are switched off.  I was thinking  at first it might be my MIDI interface or maybe a driver issue but googling around I see that Cakewalk was heavily impacted by unresolved bugs in the past, before I replace the interface has anyone else experienced this?

[bitflipper]

Don't replace your interface just yet. When you hear the volume jump, do you see a corresponding rise in the meters on the master bus? If so, it's not your interface.

Is it repeatable or random? Does it happen at the same point in the playback, or is that random?

If it's repeatable, globally bypass all plugins and see if the problem goes away. If it does, you can then start looking at plugins. If not, disable all automation and see if the problem goes away. If it does, you can start looking for stray MIDI CCs.

Is it specific to one project? Does it occur with a new, minimal project? Does it persist if you freeze all tracks?

I doubt it's Cakewalk that's boosting the gain.  We'd all have noticed such an obvious bug. The challenge is to narrow the focus of investigation to a specific project, synth, sample or track and drill down from there.

[John Vere]

3 hours ago, shaun watson said:

I was thinking  at first it might be my MIDI interface or maybe a driver issue but googling around I see that Cakewalk was heavily impacted by unresolved bugs in the past, before I replace the interface has anyone else experienced this?

Yes in the past there were a lot of small none showstopper bugs. When Bandlab took over the first thing the staff they kept on board did was dig in and work hard to rectify this. I think now bugs are rare and Cakewalk might just be the most stable it's ever been. 

Are your projects 100% midi? Seems your not talking about any audio or using an audio interface. And if your midi interface has up to date drivers there's should be nothing happening there. 

This may sound stupid but, did you swap out you audio cables and anything in your audio system that might cause this like a loose connection or a dirty volume pot? 

Trouble shooting is a process of elimination. 

 

Edited January 10, 2021 by John Vere

[S Wats]

Thanks for the responses if its not a common problem then it looks like its something at my end, so a fair amount of step by step elimination awaits . . .