Logic Pro X - Input monitoring crackling caused by graphics

[GrabtharsHammer]

I am having some bad performance issues with Logic Pro X on my Retina 4K iMac late 2015 (3,3 GHz Intel Core i7, 16 GB RAM, SSD HD, Audio interface RME Babyface Pro). MacOS Sierra, Logic Pro X, AU plugins and RME drivers are all updated to their newest versions.

As soon as I engage input monitoring on an audio track I am getting bad crackles and pops during playback and recording. I checked all the audio preferences. A buffer size of 128 is absolutely unusable, with 256 it gets a little better.

I suspect that this is a graphics problem because when I scroll the arrangement window up and down (or it gets moved to the right during playpack) or move the mixer window around the crackling gets really bad.

The only solution I could come up with so far is to open Logic in low resolution mode. That seems to solve the audio problem, but it looks like shit. And I assume with a system like mine there should normally not be any performance problems at all?!

Any ideas?

[GrabtharsHammer]

I just uploaded a short screen capture video in youtube (sorry, without sound, it’s just a screen capture video made with quicktime) that demonstrates the issue. The CPU meter is spiking heavily every time I click into the tracks area or scroll vertically/horizontally. The CPU spikes cause terrible audio crackling and pops. The CPU spikes only appear when input monitoring is activated.

[Jeff Cross]

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Have you reported this to Apple?

http://www.apple.com/feedback/logic-pro.html (http://www.apple.com/feedback/logic-pro.html)

[GrabtharsHammer]

Yes, I just did. Thanks for the link.

[Jace-BeOS]

which version of Logic X? I've seen reports that Logic X has had issues with Retina display Macs. Supposedly this was somewhat ameliorated in Logic 10.3.

Are you running the display in its default mode? Are you running any system modifications like third party drivers or system services?

[GrabtharsHammer]

Babyface Pro drivers are up to date, Logic and MacOS Sierra also updated to the newest versions. The problem was introduced with Logic 10.3's newly designed GUI. No other software is running. When run in low resolution mode, Logic works fine without crackles, pops and glitches - but looks bad. When run in full Retina resolution it looks nice - but has the aforementioned problem with input monitoring through plugins.

[Bombadil]

Hopefully, you will be avenged.

I don't have that happening to me, but when I scroll down the arrange page when Logic is running, I get crackling.

[GrabtharsHammer]

By the sons of Worvan... I hope so, too.

Are you running Login in retina resolution, too? What about horizontal scrolling e.g. during playback/recording. Any crackling in your case? Or only when scrolling vertically?

[Bombadil]

By the sons of Worvan... I hope so, too.

Are you running Login in retina resolution, too? What about horizontal scrolling e.g. during playback/recording. Any crackling in your case? Or only when scrolling vertically?

Retina, yes, but at 2560 x 1440 res. I just did a test, and it wasn't crackling whilst vertical scrolling either. Small test project, though.

EDIT: Ok, the crackling was there when I had the software instrument selected. It was not there when I had an audio track selected, or when I had my 'CPU saver' empty audio track selected. Also, when the crackling does occur, the CPU meter spikes.

[GrabtharsHammer]

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT207528

THAT is totally weird. I never thought a color profile could influence Logic's performance. A user on the official Logic forum hinted at that article. I tested it and indeed the performance got slightly better with the sRGB profile. Audio glitches are still there, but not as bad as with the default iMac color profile or the one I profiled with ColorMunki.

[Bombadil]

I checked Alchemy last night--the controls' responsiveness was fine. Had a bit of a weird issue with it, was about to post about it at LPHelp, and then discovered my lack of presets showing was because there was a search word in the GUI of my template. But, yeah, that is weird.

[GrabtharsHammer]

No improvement yet with the newly released macOS 10.12.5. Still getting the dreaded "scrolling glitches" and last core spikes when using input monitoring through plugins.