I've successfully networked my machines (specs at bottom), and my mac pro running the latest version of pro tools 10 is able to connect to my PC slave.
The problem I'm encountering is that the hardware buffer setting required to get a clean signal from one instance of VE pro is much too high to be usable for overdubbing. In addition, I am experiencing latency upon playback from the slave in proportion to the same hardware buffer setting. (around 512 to 1024 required to avoid distortion and drop outs)
I am experiencing these problem while running pro tools without any additional plugins except a single VE pro instrument. The slave is loaded with a single instance of Kontakt 16 out.
I believe the weak link may be that I"m using an old piece of hardware: The firewire Digi 002. My question is, what are the steps I can take to reduce this required hardware buffer setting, and make the latency much lower?
My inclination is to spend $$ on a PCIe based audio card, but I'd like to hear your advice first. I'd also be interested in hearing what buffer settings others have been able to find usable on their Pro tools systems, and what kind of audio cards they are using.
Thanks for your time!
Master: Nehalem Mac Pro 2.66 with 24GB RAM. Latest version of pro tools 10 (downloaded this week) Newest version of VE Ensemble Pro (same version both machines) Digi 002 firewire interface
Slave: intel i7-4770K 3.5GHz 32GB RAM VE pro with Kontakt.