Only one channel in audio setup [Resolved]

[hcjohnson]

Hello,

I'm new to Amplitube 4 and have been fiddling around with it just seeing everything it offers. Well I was messing around with the audio midi settings when suddenly I only had channel 1 available for the input and output channels. I've tried everything I can to get two channels again but nothings working. I'll attach an image of what my settings look like.

Thanks!

[garfy]

Hello hcjohnson and welcome to the forums.

I don't use Windows, but I suspect that the issue is with the interface driver.

In the Technology box, that should be either a specific Focusrite driver or the generic ASIO_4_ALL depending on what your actual interface is.

Hope that helps, let us know.

[hcjohnson]

Hello hcjohnson and welcome to the forums.

I don't use Windows, but I suspect that the issue is with the interface driver.

In the Technology box, that should be either a specific Focusrite driver or the generic ASIO_4_ALL depending on what your actual interface is.

Hope that helps, let us know.

In the technology box I have this other option shown in the atttached image. I also have the generic ASIO. Should I use the DirectSound instead of Windows?

[garfy]

AFAIK, you will need to use the ASIO driver to be able to get the Buffer Size down to a reasonable value to help with any latency issues.

[hcjohnson]

AFAIK, you will need to use the ASIO driver to be able to get the Buffer Size down to a reasonable value to help with any latency issues.

Okay, so does buffer size affect latency? The lowest size DirectSound goes to is 64 while ASIO's lowest is 16. Is that a big difference? Would there be any difference in quality between DirectSound and ASIO or would the only different be the lowest buffer size? Sorry, I'm really new to all this. Thanks again.

[garfy]

No need to apologise, this is what the forum is here for.

Yes, buffer size and latency are connected. The buffer size indicates how much information has to be processed in a chunk before it is output. A larger chunk takes more time to process and so introduces the latency, so the time between you physically playing a note and hearing it back after it's gone through software. The lower the buffer size the better, but that relies on faster processing and good drivers.

In your case, ASIO will be better than the Direct Sound driver, but 64 is still a pretty decent buffer size and you will be hard pressed to hear (feel) how long that is while playing. Some people can, but it is a personal thing. The issues might arise when, even though the DS driver lets you pick a buffer size of 64 it doesn't mean that your processing can keep up. You may end up with an output from software that breaks up and crackles. Even ASIO drivers can cause this if the computer can't keep up.

The good thing is that the driver itself doesn't effect the 'quality' of the audio, it's just how fast it can process it. You'll need to experiment with both drivers to see which one performs the best. Start with the lowest buffer size it allows and, if you hear it crackling/stuttering, move up to the next size until it lets you play without interruption. Hopefully it will still be with an acceptable latency. If your computer is relatively new, you should be able to balance processing speed against playability to allow you to use the software.

Like I said I don't use Windows so I'd be interested in hearing how you get on, so do let us know what driver/buffer size works out best. It might also help out other users in the future.

[hcjohnson]

No need to apologise, this is what the forum is here for.

Yes, buffer size and latency are connected. The buffer size indicates how much information has to be processed in a chunk before it is output. A larger chunk takes more time to process and so introduces the latency, so the time between you physically playing a note and hearing it back after it's gone through software. The lower the buffer size the better, but that relies on faster processing and good drivers.

In your case, ASIO will be better than the Direct Sound driver, but 64 is still a pretty decent buffer size and you will be hard pressed to hear (feel) how long that is while playing. Some people can, but it is a personal thing. The issues might arise when, even though the DS driver lets you pick a buffer size of 64 it doesn't mean that your processing can keep up. You may end up with an output from software that breaks up and crackles. Even ASIO drivers can cause this if the computer can't keep up.

The good thing is that the driver itself doesn't effect the 'quality' of the audio, it's just how fast it can process it. You'll need to experiment with both drivers to see which one performs the best. Start with the lowest buffer size it allows and, if you hear it crackling/stuttering, move up to the next size until it lets you play without interruption. Hopefully it will still be with an acceptable latency. If your computer is relatively new, you should be able to balance processing speed against playability to allow you to use the software.

Like I said I don't use Windows so I'd be interested in hearing how you get on, so do let us know what driver/buffer size works out best. It might also help out other users in the future.

Thanks for the in depth response. Sorry for the late response but I finally got around to messing around with it. With the Direct Sound driver pretty much any buffer size below 500 was unplayable because of the crackling sound. I achieved much better results with the ASIO driver using the lowest buffer size of 16 with no crackle or latency issues. I really appreciate the help so I'll definitely be back if I have another more questions later on!

[garfy]

I achieved much better results with the ASIO driver using the lowest buffer size of 16 with no crackle or latency issues.

Well, that's excellent news. Glad we got it all worked out. I thought the ASIO driver would be the best, but it's good to hear the outcomes in any situation. Feel free to post any new questions as you work with the software.



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