How do I get rid of recording "lag"?

[Krishna Ramsundar]

The best way I can word this is it seems the program is recording a split second behind me.

Here's what I mean. I record the first track and then the second. When I listen to the full thing, the second track seems to play a split second behind the first track and I have to ripple edit a small piece out to line both up in sync. It's corrected afterwards, but I have to do this every single time I add more tracks. 

 

 

[Byron Dickens]

What audio interface do you have and what driver are you using?

[Krishna Ramsundar]

33 minutes ago, Byron Dickens said:

What audio interface do you have and what driver are you using?

I'm new to DAW so I don't have an audio interface atm.  I went from WASAPI to MME 32-bit bc my headphones weren't working, the lag is the same though. 

[msmcleod]

What you're describing is latency.   MME has the worst latency out of all driver modes.

These are the driver modes going from best to worst:

• ASIO
• WASAPI Exclusive
• WASAPI Shared
• WDM
• MME

There's a significant jump in latency between WASAPI Exclusive and WASAPI Shared so, if possible, record using WASAPI Exclusive when using an on-board device. 

You also want to make sure that your recording timer master is set to the device you're recording on within Preferences->Audio->Driver Settings.

If your device doesn't support WASAPI Exclusive, then WASAPI Shared is probably your next best alternative.  You'll need to live with the delay on the track in that case.  This delay should be constant however, so you could consider setting one of your nudge amount settings to that delay amount, so it's quick to just select that clip and nudge it accordingly.

 

[57Gregy]

Please note also that some stock sound cards may have an ASIO driver mode. Don't use that. An after-market audio interface with included ASIO drivers are the best.
Or the greatly improved WASAPI modes provided by Microsoft.
ASIO4All is not ASIO.

[Byron Dickens]

14 hours ago, Krishna Ramsundar said:

I'm new to DAW so I don't have an audio interface atm.  I went from WASAPI to MME 32-bit bc my headphones weren't working, the lag is the same though. 

That's the problem right there.

Get a decent audio interface with a real ASIO driver (NOT ASIO4ALL!) and the problem will disappear.

[Krishna Ramsundar]

On 11/23/2022 at 3:58 AM, msmcleod said:

What you're describing is latency.   MME has the worst latency out of all driver modes.

These are the driver modes going from best to worst:

• ASIO
• WASAPI Exclusive
• WASAPI Shared
• WDM
• MME

There's a significant jump in latency between WASAPI Exclusive and WASAPI Shared so, if possible, record using WASAPI Exclusive when using an on-board device. 

You also want to make sure that your recording timer master is set to the device you're recording on within Preferences->Audio->Driver Settings.

If your device doesn't support WASAPI Exclusive, then WASAPI Shared is probably your next best alternative.  You'll need to live with the delay on the track in that case.  This delay should be constant however, so you could consider setting one of your nudge amount settings to that delay amount, so it's quick to just select that clip and nudge it accordingly.

 

Thanks for your reply. WASAPI Shared is the only one that give me no trouble. It slightly improved but its still there.  The delay is constant however. So if I can tell exactly how much it's off by, I can use that number to precisely trim each track

I didn't know about nudge until now. That's neat! Now I gotta set it up.

[Krishna Ramsundar]

On 11/23/2022 at 1:16 PM, Byron Dickens said:

That's the problem right there.

Get a decent audio interface with a real ASIO driver (NOT ASIO4ALL!) and the problem will disappear.

Any suggestions for one under $50? 

I'm not going into recording professionally atm, if I do, I'll invest in a high end one.  

[Byron Dickens]

There isn't one. $100 will do it.

[azslow3]

6 hours ago, Krishna Ramsundar said:

Thanks for your reply. WASAPI Shared is the only one that give me no trouble. It slightly improved but its still there.  The delay is constant however. So if I can tell exactly how much it's off by, I can use that number to precisely trim each track

I didn't know about nudge until now. That's neat! Now I gotta set it up.

I think you question is not about latency by itself, but about recorded material shift between tracks coursed by that latency and the fact Cakewalk has not way to calculate it correctly. There is "Record latency adjustment" setting which you can try to set. For that you need to loop-record or just use your "constant delay", if precision is not important. You can really see it in "samples" (as required by the setting) in timeline.

I recommend make WASAPI Exclusive to work (if WASAPI Shared works, that should be an option as well). Shared mix other audio from computer (youtube, etc.), so that is "convenient". But it has higher and more unpredictable latency.

Dedicated audio interfaces with ASIO driver are nice and allow auto-calculation working (or almost working), but if you don't record mics nor guitar and you don't have studio monitors nor studio headphones, almost all there features and advantages are void for you. Note that modern Realtek (build-in chip in most if not all PCs) has ASIO drivers. Not the best, but it's latency is comparable with what you can get from $100 interface (you will need to invest more and optimize the computer for audio to really go lower). So dedicated interface will be more stable,  has better sound quality and  pre-amp(s). But you need some way to use these features, and that is not possible in under $100 price range (you will need to spend more that $50 just for headphones).

Getting Realtek ASIO working can be tricky, especially on notebooks. They sometimes have "own" drivers which don't include it (or not include its controlling panel). But normally you can Google for solution (like downloading original Realtek drivers, sometimes just copy something from it, sometimes install it and then specialized drivers...). WASAPI Exclusive normally has almost the same performance, so start with that.

Most important is matching sample rate in Windows settings and sample rate in Cakewalk. Just use 44.1 or 48 for everything, whatever you prefer.

PS. when/if you look for an interface, plan in advance. Manny non-professionals (me inclusive) too the "long road" and have collected several interfaces before getting something they like, just wasting the time and money. I understand that $500+ price tag sounds like "OMG, that I don't need for sure..." at first. But it all depends what you do and will do. Also in some situations second hand middle-high range interfaces can be not so bad choice. In other, Yamaha AG can be the thing (unlike "normal" interfaces in that price range, it can work stand-alone). I repeat, better plan then just follow the idea "something under $50", I have 2 of such (second hand, originally in over $200 price range) laying around and collecting dust...

 

[Byron Dickens]

7 hours ago, azslow3 said:

Note that modern Realtek (build-in chip in most if not all PCs) has ASIO drivers. Not the best,

Talk about understatement. The Realtek ASIO driver is even worse than ASIO4ALL.

[azslow3]

2 hours ago, Byron Dickens said:

Talk about understatement. The Realtek ASIO driver is even worse than ASIO4ALL.

Well, unlike ASIO4ALL it has never corrupted all ASIO drivers on computer for me. And I was using Realtek ASIO not at "prehistoric" times (ASIO4ALL almost make no sense since introduction of WASAPI).

[Starship Krupa]

Here is an audio interface from a well-regarded company for just under $50:

https://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-audio/m-audio-m-track-solo-2-channel-usb-audio-interface/l79549000000000

Check to be sure that it comes with an ASIO driver, but I would find it hard to believe that it doesn't.