bitflipper

Well, that's a stumper. Assuming there are no plugins or automation on the track, that's gotta be caused by something external to the DAW. Might be helpful if you listed your entire signal chain, such as type of audio interface and anything that's in front of the interface. Is this an acoustic guitar with a microphone going straight into the interface, an electric guitar through an amp amp sim, and are there any pedals in the chain? How long is this clip? The envelope looks like a compressor kicking in. But if the picture represents, say, 10 seconds of audio or more then that's not it.

Well, honestly the most prudent course of action is to stick with what's working for you already. If you're just looking to relieve some GAS pains, maybe acquire some cool effect to play with instead. If you don't have any ValhallaDSP stuff yet, go there, close your eyes and randomly pick one. They're all great, and they're all 50 bucks apiece. The freebies are very good, too.

Yes, Adaptive Limiter was an excellent plugin and it would be great if Bandlab would bring it back, along with the CA2A compressor. Dimension Pro, too, as long as we're wishing. You never know. Lots of cool things are in the works. In the meantime, there are gobs of good limiters to pick from. If you don't mind throwing some bucks at it, FabFilter's Pro-L2 comes closest to the AL experience. By that, I mean a) great results with minimal effort, b) a friendly graphical interface, and c) efficient enough that multiple instances won't over-burden your CPU.

^^^ Best answer.

Yes. They are named after the project file with date and time appended, and have a .dmp file extension. Someone from Cakewalk can analyze them for you (probably only one is needed, since they're probably all showing the same problem). If you like, I can take a look at one for you, although the amount of information I can glean from them will be less than what's available to the Cakewalk folks. If you want to do that, post one of them to a public file server such as DropBox and sent me a PM with the link to it. Yes. It's just a way to edit aud.ini (%appdata%\cakewalk\cakewalk core\aud.ini) without having to exit Cakewalk and start it back up. When you click the Edit button, it'll bring up the file in a text editor (usually Notepad). Just add the new variable at the top like this: [Aud] ExceptionHandlingSeverity=7 DataDir=C:\Cakewalk Projects\Audio Data PictureDir=C:\Cakewalk Projects\Picture Cache PicCacheMB=500 PicCacheZoom=128 PicCacheLevels=2 EnablePicCacheThreads=1 ComputePicturesWhilePlaying=1 ... Don't worry about messing anything up. If you type it in wrong, it'll just be ignored. If you want to un-do this troubleshooting aid later on, you can either change the value from 7 to 1 or simply delete the entry. P.S. If you feel like taking a stab at examining the dump file yourself, here's an ancient post I made with some basic instructions for using Windbg to look into a dump file. It references the old exe name for Sonar Producer (sonarpdr.exe), but other than that everything's still applicable. If your googling skills are better than mine, I made another post on the old forum about troubleshooting plugins that, iirc, went into greater detail.

I bought MModernCompressor when it first came out, because that range control looked interesting. Turned out, dynamic range isn't something I even think about when setting up a compressor on individual tracks. I used it on a couple projects and haven't touched it since. I have two favorite compressors that cover every situation between them; the other dozen or so in my collection just take up space. That said, well hey, it's just 9 bucks.

I don't remember that. Coulda sworn I had Zebralette installed prior to buying Zebra. I'd gotten it when KVR had a one-synth challenge using Zebralette. I liked it so much that it convinced me to buy Zebra, which has since become my go-to synth for pretty much everything. But this was c. 2013-2014 and likely Zebralette version 1. I haven't used it since, because it's a subset of Zebra's functionality.

That's a hip venue in one of Seattle's hippest neighborhoods. Or so I'm told. I don't think they'd let me in - there may be an age limit.

When you say "Save in the Edit menu", I assume you meant to type "Save in the File menu". CTL-S does exactly the same thing as File -> Save. It is literally a shortcut key to the dropdown menu selection and executes the exact same code. If it works when the menu selection does not, it just means the problem is intermittent. File->Save does not close the program. That suggests an error during the save is causing the program to abort. First, check to see if there is a crash dump in %appdata%\cakewalk\cakewalk core\minidumps. Next, go to Preferences -> Audio -> Configuration File and see if there is a variable there named ExceptionHandlingSeverity, If it's not there, add it to aud.ini. Set its value to 7. This tells the program to be more verbose when choosing which errors to tell you about, which might result in a helpful warning. It's unlikely - but not entirely impossible - that this has anything to do with the use of Trillian. To see if there's an issue with it, try freezing your bass track before saving the project. If cakewalk aborts during the freeze, there could be an issue with corrupt Trillian sample files.

The browser still works pretty much the same way it did in X1. I had to bring it up just now to make sure, as I haven't chosen instruments or fx that way in a very long time. Nowadays, I select instruments via the Insert -> Soft Synth menu, which features a handy Favorites section for quickly selecting a previously-used Vi. This will probably suit you well, given that you use one instrument more than others and thus it will always appear at the top of the list. Note that in the above screenshot I am listing effects (sorted by vendor). Clicking on the little keyboard icon switches the display to instruments. Does yours come up blank, or is it just missing the particular instrument you're looking for?

Well, yeh, there was that particularly embarrassing episode. She wanted to be a pop star and instead became a meme. But it's television producers that forced acts to lip-sync, going back to the 60's. It was all for control, to assure consistent and predictable audio for broadcast. Here's a great band pretending to perform for TV. Note the wireless guitars, the phantom acoustic guitar, the incredible pickup patterns of the Beyer mics. You know it wasn't the band's decision to fake it - they were a great live band.

I've never used a USB mic, either. However, it's just an LDC with a built-in A/D converter. I don't know why it would necessarily sound awful. The Blue Yeti is very popular among podcasters, popularity that would seem unlikely if it really sounded that bad. This comment troubles me: Question for the OP: where is "anywhere"? Have you successfully used it with other audio recorders or DAWs? I ask because it seems that if it sounds OK with other software, it should sound exactly the same in Cakewalk. Whether the recording software is Cakewalk or Audacity or whatever, they're all receiving the same digital data from the microphone's driver. If it truly sounds different in Cakewalk, there must be a reason beyond "it's a crap mic". Now, I totally agree that investing in a good mic and interface is a good idea. But I am always reluctant to a address any problem with the too-easy conclusion that "you just haven't spent enough money yet". Everybody here knows how that logic can take you down a GASaholic rabbit hole.

FabFilter Pro-L Might also consider sonible's "smart" limiter, which is currently on sale for 49 EUR.

Sheesh, I feel so cheated when I hear a band that plays with backing tracks. OK, I can make an exception for solo acts because they're not trying to fool anybody. I can also make an exception for a band like Nightwish because it's unrealistic to expect them to show up with a full orchestra and choir. But a 5,6 or 7-piece wedding/bar band? They have everything they need to play it for real. A local casino used to regularly host a band that would take on the personas of different bands on different nights. To my amazement, the audience didn't question where the brass section was that everyone could clearly hear. I spent the whole time trying to figure out which parts were live and which were recorded. Needless to say, they didn't take requests or otherwise switch up their set list. Personally, I just wouldn't / couldn't do it. I make so little money playing in a band that it has to be fun or why bother.

Looking over the release notes...yawn...oh, wait a minute...Kontakt now has a ring modulator! I'll never use it, but cool. But... There is also a delay called Psyche Delay, which NI describes as "a stereo delay effect that produces a range of atmospheric ambient echoes and reverse effects reminiscent of the "backwards tape" sound of the 1960s." Basically, a delay with pitch modulation and reverse delay. I have a few delays already that can do that (my go-to is tkDelay) but it's neat that you can now do it right inside a Kontakt instrument.

This is probably true, or at least a good place to start. Unfortunately, the advice to "disable what is not necessary" is a deep dark hole that most users are unprepared to enter. Is "Device Association Framework Provider Host" necessary? How about "Microsoft Network Realtime Inspection Service"? It says Microsoft, must be important. If you look at a list of your computer's running processes, it will be full of mysterious names that even after googling may remain just as mysterious. And to make matters worse, Task Manager doesn't even list all of them. Sometimes, the worst offenders are hidden from you (e.g. interrupt servicing overhead). Which is not to say a performance analysis is so daunting that you shouldn't embark on it. Just do it cautiously, making notes as you go about any processes you've disabled that might turn out to actually be necessary. It's worth downloading a few helpful tools to make your investigation easier. In particular, Process Explorer and Autoruns are two free utilities that I always start with when running down performance issues. Another indispensable tool is LatencyMon. Process Explorer is a souped-up version of Task Manager that gives more detailed information and includes processes that Task Manager does not show you. It's a good place to start your googling adventure to simply identify what they are and to start building a potential "not necessary" list. Pay attention to the "Working Set" column, which shows how much RAM each process has allocated for itself, in addition to the CPU usage. Autoruns shows what processes are kicked off at boot time, and gives you an easy way to disable them. Again, run down the list and google them to figure out what they are and if they're truly necessary. LatencyMon shows you DPC latency, and I know of no other way to get this information. DPCs (Deferred Procedure Calls) are usually run in response to a hardware interrupt. They can be CPU-suckers, and they are normally hidden from view. LatencyMon will show which drivers are generating the most DPCs and how much overhead they're incurring. Often, the most egregious offenders are unnecessary or may even represent a broken I/O interface or failing disk drive. P.S. Yes, the size of your ASIO buffers is important, but research that 51% number first. And yes, kill that Dell crap.

Oh, the wisdom I could impart to my teenage self . Unfortunately it would have fallen on deaf ears. It takes a long time to realize how deep one's ignorance goes.

Right here in Seattle, at the Snoqualmie Casino. It's their first North American tour and this was their next-to-last stop. I will definitely look them up next time I'm in the islands. I'm guessing the price of admission will be considerably lower over there. Well, if you don't count airfare. They've been invited to play the Cavern Club next year. They're best known for their Beatles covers.

...that was so good they made me question why I even bother trying. But it's too late for me to take up a different avocation, so this morning I'm trying to come to grips with my own inadequacies, to remind myself it's important to do what you love - even if you suck at it. The band enjoys an effect that I call the "Carpenters Effect", a smooth vocal blend that can usually only be achieved between close relatives. Think Lennon Sisters or the Bee Gees, and of course the Carpenter siblings. They are five brothers and cousins with broad vocal ranges and impressively good pitch. Good enough to emulate double-tracked studio vocals. When all five sang harmony it was transcendent. This is the band. And yes, they pulled this off live last night. And it wasn't even their best tune. That would have been The Beatles' Don't Bring Me Down in 5-part harmony.

Mostly true, yes. I'd even extend that window to 5 years, and in some cases 10. The prudent consumer does, however, have to beware of old products that just never were very good from the start and are now being discounted in a last-ditch attempt to squeeze a few bucks out of them. I've been suckered into buying some products that once had a lot of buzz, that were previously too expensive to have actually tried them, and that turned out to be crap.

That's certainly not a problem, then. Well, you gotta knock down the possible explanations one at a time. It may seem like you've made no progress, but you have: at this point you do know that it's a hardware problem.

This has nothing to do with your problem.

I let Windows turn off my screen, too. A habit going back to burn-in concerns on CRTs. I do have the timer set to a long time (2 hours, I think) to avoid the annoyance of having it go black when I'm just looking at it. So no, I don't think blanking the display would have any effect. What you're seeing is overhead from changing some setting, e.g. a disk drive spinning back up after a power-saving shutdown (probably not your problem, given it's an SSD). Thinking about it further, it seems the DPC has to be in response to the BIOS doing something and alerting Windows of the change. One of those would be throttling the CPU clock speed to save power (aka SpeedStep). This feature can be turned off in the BIOS. Note that your BIOS may call it something else, e.g. "Cool 'n Quiet" (AMD). Although Cakewalk does recommend disabling SpeedStep, it should normally not be a problem and it isn't the kind of thing that happens continuously. It normally wouldn't be triggering many interrupts like you're seeing - unless your computer has a heat problem. It might be worthwhile to check how hot your CPU is running. There are several free tools for taking your CPU's temperature. I use CoreTemp. What's a good temperature? A rule of thumb is < 80 degrees C, but some CPUs routinely run hotter. Some are fine running up 100 degrees C.

I've seen complaints about ACPI.sys having excessive DPC latency before. Usually on laptops, usually having something to do with power settings. You might try some different power schemes, just to see if it makes any difference. Make sure that sleep mode is completely disabled. I've always used the "High Performance" power preset, which, iirc, disables sleep mode. Also go into the Advanced power settings, expand the USB Settings category and verify that USB suspend is disabled (assuming your interface is connected via USB). ACPI does more than just power management, though. (Well, technically ACPI doesn't do anything on its own, as it's a driver that interfaces with your BIOS. The idea is that ACPI.sys lets you change certain BIOS settings directly from Windows that in the old days would have required booting into the BIOS.) It might be worth booting into the BIOS and poking around in there. It may allow you to disable ACPI.