How to avoid extreme latency with hardware?

I'm trying to record a kick-sample through a hardware mono-compressor, but I dont know exactly what I am doing wrong:

- I inserted an I/O on the original kick's channel

- Set the I/O's in/out-channels to 6 which is where the compressor is placed in the 500-series-rack

- Clicked Ping to detect the latency offset

- Set the original kick's output to output 3

- Made a new track with 3 as input

- Recorded the original kick into the new track



If you look at the attached picture, the recorded kick is a victim of latency.

I/O Buffer Size was set to 512 when the picture was taken, but when set to 32 it was only slightly more on time

How do I work around this to make the recorded audio on time? Is there a smoother or more correct way of doing this?



I must admit I'm new to the realm of recording with hardware, so I'm pretty sure I have misunderstood some basic principle.

Bonus question: Look at the red cross on the original kick's solo-button. When I disable the red cross with control+click; it will stay like that for a while. But after tweaking around in the project it is suddenly back even though I haven't enabled it. Does anyone know what causes this?

You can use the ping value to move the recording delay slider in Logic's preferences.

Aha okay thanks!

Setting the slider to -600 worked in this case after zooming in on the two soundwaves. It was also easier when using the I/O-plugin on a bus (https://help.apple.com/logicpro/mac/10.4.7/#/lgcef2d8c7d2).

Although when opening a different project with the exact same settings the recorded audio was off time again; does this mean that I have to figure out the offset on the slider individually for every project? Is this just how life is when recording with hardware, or is there a more seamless way to do it?

I noticed that the latency offset in the I/O-plugin changed from +32 up to +36 when clicking Ping on various stages in the process. Does this matter, or is it of little consequence? I certainly didn't hear any difference. And why does it change when the settings/equipment is the same?

It should not change if everything else is the same. Something weird going on there. Generally the record offset is something you should only have to set once after doing a loopback test to determine round trip latency of your system. Usually in most cases the audio device driver will report its own latency to logicpro and you can leave record offset set to zero. If you are using other digital gear such as an external digital mixer, it may add additional latency and the driver of your audio interface would not be reporting that. So you do a loopback test do find out the difference and set it in record offset, and thst should be the end of it.

Some audio interfaces could have bad drivers that don’t report it accurately also.

But usually these devices do not change their latency, it’s a fixed value.

The record offset can sometimes be creatively used to make up for hard to measure midi latency issues.

If your reported latency is jumping all over the place then something is amiss. Tell us more about your complete setup end to end

Aha thats good news - it would have been a drag to do this in every project!

Tell us more about your complete setup end to end

I use a Cranborne 500R8 (https://www.cranborne-audio.com/500r8). In there I have a preamp, and two compressors. When recording using the 500-modules individually they all produce the same result latency-wise; so to me that sounds like there is nothing wrong them I suppose.

Do you have a suggestion on what I can test in order to come closer to what is amiss?

I don't know anything about that device, but being that its USB and that it has different possible configurations in a modular way, I'd say its highly probable that it is the culprit, changing your latency depending on the setup. You should check with them about that.

If that is the case, then yes, you'll need to adjust record offset every time you change the cranborne configuration in such a way that its own latency is changed.

- Set the original kick's output to output 3

- Made a new track with 3 as input

Are you sure about that ? Output 3 back into input 3 just to record the processed sound ? What if you route the track to Bus 3 and choose that as the input on the recording track ?

- Set the original kick's output to output 3

- Made a new track with 3 as input

Are you sure about that ? Output 3 back into input 3 just to record the processed sound ? What if you route the track to Bus 3 and choose that as the input on the recording track ?

I did it like that originally until I learned about the method you are referring to.

The new latency-issues occured when using the bus though.

You need to do a series of loopback tests using that device...come up with as many scenarios as you can think of and test the loop back using RTL utility. Once you have the info logged...keep track..hopefully it will come down to 5-10 different latency scenarios..then whenever you work on a project, decide which scenario it is and set the record offset accordingly.

the IO utility ping may be able to get you the info you need also without having to use the RTL utility, but I think you'll find the RTL utility enlightening also.

You need to do a series of loopback tests using that device...come up with as many scenarios as you can think of and test the loop back using RTL utility. Once you have the info logged...keep track..hopefully it will come down to 5-10 different latency scenarios..then whenever you work on a project, decide which scenario it is and set the record offset accordingly.

 

the IO utility ping may be able to get you the info you need also without having to use the RTL utility, but I think you'll find the RTL utility enlightening also.

Great! Thanks a lot. I will start investigating.