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  4. Epic Orchestra 2.0 & Synchron Player overload the PC

  • Epic Orchestra 2.0 & Synchron Player overload the PC

    G
    G

    Hi everyone! Hope you're safe during these uneasy times.

    I recently purchased VEPro7 that came with Epic Orchestra 2.0, among other things. Yesterday, I gave it a try and was extremely frustrated by the results. I installed Synchron Player on my better computer and put the library on an external hard drive (specs below). No matter what patch I load, the PC starts choking right away. Notes get stuck, stutter or stop abruptly. There are all kinds of clicks, pops and other noises. Basically, the whole thing is unusable, even if there's no other program running alongside it.

    Windows Resource Monitor shows severe spikes in Disk and Network load. I double-checked the system requirements for Epic Orchestra, and it seems that my PC, although outdated, still meets or exceeds all of them. I followed every piece of advice I could find online to optimize the PC for audio recording. What else can I try? Any suggestions will be much appreciated!

    Thank you!!!

    • iMac (27-inch, Late 2013)
    • Windows 10 Home Version 1909 (Boot Camp)
    • Intel Core i7 3.5 GHz
    • 32 GB 1600 MHz DDR3
    • 8TB 7200 RPM IronWolf HDD/USB 3.0 5 Gbps Sabrent EC-DFFN SATA Lay-Flat Docking Station
  • G
    G

    Update: swapped the external HDD, and the problem remains. Same symptoms as before: interrupted playback, dropouts, noises. At this point, it's safe to say I've eliminated the possibility of a faulty hard drive. Tried different Preload Size options, as well as the audio interface latency settings. At 1024, the latency becomes unbearable, yet it doesn't resolve the issue. After a few seconds of playing (I've tried Appassionata Strings and Power Drums Tama Star Light so far), it starts clipping, dropping off etc. Next step: USB settings. Peace!
  • G
    G

    One part of the problem was the network adapter. I should've spotted it right off the bat... For some reason, it was set to 100 Mbps. As soon as I changed it to Auto Negotiation, it went back to 1 Gbps, as it's supposed to be. No more network bottlenecks. Next, I'll try to figure out what's wrong with the HDD. Stay safe!
  • PaulP
    VSL Team
    PaulP

    Hi Grumon, 

    Sorry to hear about those troubles. 

    As many of theinstruments that come with Epic Orchestra 2.0 are streaming multiple channels, you will benefit GREATLY from a SSD drive.  HDD will come to its limits very quickly when streaming many voices. 

    Best, 
    Paul

    Paul Kopf Product Manager VSL
  • G
    G

    Thanks Paul, makes perfect sense. I've been looking for an 8-Gb SSD for quite a while now... Slim pickings. The prices for the most common decent brands are comparable to that of a new high-end PC ($1,500 more or less). I've tried to spread my libraries across several SSDs, but that didn't help much because of the limitations imposed by the computer itself. It's an iMac that has 4 USB ports sitting on the same internal hub, so adding an extra drive to the existing one immediately cuts down bandwidth for both. What do you think would be the ideal configuration? A regular desktop/tower PC with several SSDs for different libraries? In your experience, is there any preferred way of splitting the libraries across the drives? I.e. VSL on one, Kontakt on another, Steinberg on the third etc? Thank you so much in advance for your thoughts!
  • PaulP
    VSL Team
    PaulP

    Hi Grumon, 

    If your iMac has USB 3 ports or Thunderbolt ports, you should be fine with an external SSD drive that is connnected via these fast protocols. 

    Of course a newer computer will provide better performance. 

    Best, 
    Paul

    Paul Kopf Product Manager VSL