Audio latency in Arena 6 vs. Arena 5
Posted: Fri Feb 16, 2018 02:52
After endless troubleshooting and failure with my previous audio interface in trying to get Arena 6 to properly recognize its ASIO capabilities, I decided to upgrade my Roland Edirol UA-25 and get a Native Instruments Komplete Audio 6. My hope was that a more modern device would have no issue in integrating with the new software.
This was at least half correct. The new device fixed the issues I kept experiencing in Arena 5 (which is what I'm still using at live shows because of these issues) AND it seems that Arena 6 can recognize the new device's ASIO! So far, so good. However, I've noticed very different results in the two programs' behavior with its latency. Arena 5 is giving me nearly latency-free input. You can watch the waveform react wildly to the input and it's giving me the peaks and valleys of the input in real time. It is also allowing me to choose left and right inputs as a single external FFT which is fantastic because I often hook up two ambient mics at shows and run them straight into Arena for maximum reactivity.
This is NOT the case in Arena 6. The waveform behaves in that slow-mo way that would be typical of my Windows Audio or DirectSound options even though it is using ASIO. That means peaks don't fall as quickly and it does not react as closely to real time as Arena 5. What further confused me is that it will only allow me to select individual inputs (left or right instead of left and right).
So, even with applying the exact same settings (other than stereo vs. mono) in the two programs, they behave totally differently. The way in which I build my sets is VERY reliant on real-time reactivity and I have been super disappointed that I haven't been able to fully utilize and experiment with Arena 6 since its release. I was hoping purchasing a new interface would solve my problems, but it has only extended my confusion and frustration.
Any help at all would be so incredibly appreciated. Even a nudge in a direction that could help me troubleshoot further would mean so much because I'm all out of ideas. I am happy to answer any questions about my set up.
System specs:
Windows 10 64-bit
Intel i7-7700K at 4.8ghz
32GB RAM
Nvidia GTX 1080
NI Komplete Audio 6
This was at least half correct. The new device fixed the issues I kept experiencing in Arena 5 (which is what I'm still using at live shows because of these issues) AND it seems that Arena 6 can recognize the new device's ASIO! So far, so good. However, I've noticed very different results in the two programs' behavior with its latency. Arena 5 is giving me nearly latency-free input. You can watch the waveform react wildly to the input and it's giving me the peaks and valleys of the input in real time. It is also allowing me to choose left and right inputs as a single external FFT which is fantastic because I often hook up two ambient mics at shows and run them straight into Arena for maximum reactivity.
This is NOT the case in Arena 6. The waveform behaves in that slow-mo way that would be typical of my Windows Audio or DirectSound options even though it is using ASIO. That means peaks don't fall as quickly and it does not react as closely to real time as Arena 5. What further confused me is that it will only allow me to select individual inputs (left or right instead of left and right).
So, even with applying the exact same settings (other than stereo vs. mono) in the two programs, they behave totally differently. The way in which I build my sets is VERY reliant on real-time reactivity and I have been super disappointed that I haven't been able to fully utilize and experiment with Arena 6 since its release. I was hoping purchasing a new interface would solve my problems, but it has only extended my confusion and frustration.
Any help at all would be so incredibly appreciated. Even a nudge in a direction that could help me troubleshoot further would mean so much because I'm all out of ideas. I am happy to answer any questions about my set up.
System specs:
Windows 10 64-bit
Intel i7-7700K at 4.8ghz
32GB RAM
Nvidia GTX 1080
NI Komplete Audio 6