Post your software instrument live setup!

[waltercruz]

Going to a higher buffer setting isn't really adviseable for live playing as the latency will get really noticeable

256 is good to me.

[pljones]

I'm a drummer - I like acoustic drums but they're a bit loud... and the kit's a bit big (though we could sort out space).

So I use an AlternateMode TrapKAT - I've an upgraded TrapKAT 3, with a new XL arriving very soon, I hope:


I trigger a variety of sampled kits, mostly hosted in either Plogue Sforzando (ns_kit 7 - my mapping) or Native Instruments Kontakt (Abbey Road kits, plus a couple of others) both wrapped in MuTools MuX with effects chains. (I'm reworking on the Analogue Drums kits I have to do new Sforzando mappings. Again.) I jam live at weekends over NINJAM, using ReaNINJAM, so everything gets loaded up into Reaper. I've got some full set up photos on the ninbot.com site (though a little dated -- the coat has gone and I have had a replacement stripy mug).

Screenshots:


I really should name the effects in the Distortion Rack better...

Given I'm using NINJAM (though I do use Jamulus), I'm not really playing "live" live -- playing with synchronised intervalic delay...

Main effects are to get a decent push through of the drums against heavily overdriven (or even clipping) guitars without having to resort to similar effects... which is where the "Distortion" rack comes into play . Although it's got more in the way of interesting reverbs, really, as I play quite a bit of weird stuff as well as more traditional styles.

[iPlogger]

My setup is fairly simple. I have a Microsoft Surface Pro going through my Yamaha synth's built-in USB Audio/MIDI interface. All output is then through the Yamaha L/R Outs. I set the computer leaning against the keyboard stand where it is out of the way and not really noticeable. I use mainly Alchemy 1.55, Omnisphere 2, SynthMaster and sometimes Addictive Keys in Ableton Live.

Depending on the set, I may have a 49-key controller on a 2nd tier and lay the Surface on it.

I've been enjoying this setup and has been working very well for my needs.

[FredOnEarth]

Yeah, I really thought I had gone for specs a bit over the top, just to let me layer pretty much whatever I wanted, but apparently not... In Ableton, I layered the Spitfire strings (loaded in Kontakt 5) with Pianoteq 5 (trial version) and two Massive sounds. Buffer at 128, roundtrip latency at 6,73ms according to Ableton. To be fair, I activated all four microphones in the Spitfire library, presumably putting a quite heavy load on both CPU and RAM.

This friday, I'll re-install my whole computer and all the plug-ins. I'll return here when I've done some testing again!

Maybe your buffer setting is too low?

As evilantal hinted at; a buffer of 256 brings me over 10 ms latency, something I'm aiming at avoiding. I'm not the most sensitive when it comes to latency, but over 10 ms I'm starting to feel it, especially on fast passages.

[FredOnEarth]

Can you isolate if it's a single plugin doing the glitching or if it's the whole audio buffer.
I would suspect Kontakt first as it has the most stuff you can tweak for performance.

What are your buffer size settings and selected multicore settings in Kontakt 5 (I presume) ?

Do you really need all the mic positions at once for Sable? Because that can add up to a lot of voices playing at the same time in Kontakt, which could be stressing your CPU or the voice count / IO throughput of your SSD.
Maybe try with just the close mics and an algorithmic reverb plugin.

Yeah, that will be my first issue to investigate; if there is one plugin that's causing noticeably more stress than others. My guess is also the strings, although up until recently I always thought that a pure sampled sound wouldn't stress the computer much at all, whereas a "computed" (modelled) plugin would more. But I realize now that streaming that many samples at once must not be easy for the computer either...

No, I'm not needing it really. Of course I could make it work with a solution less demanding for the computer. This first layer test was more of a test to see how "limitless" I was with my new computer specs. I guess I hoped for a bit much, but on the other hand that's not surprising as this is my first venture into an all-software rig and finding which specs sets which limits. And which plugins are a challenge to any specs.

Actually, I barely know my way around Kontakt at all, so I wasn't aware of the settings you mentioned! I will definitely have a look at those! Maybe they're at some terrible default setting, and there's room for improvement with my specs.

Hmm, you also made me think about SSD throughput, something I've also overlooked. So far I've thought that if I only use SSDs for everything, I won't have any drive concerns whatsoever. But yeah, when streaming a lot of string samples, maybe that can cause some issues as well. Let's see if things get any different now that I'm going to install all my sample libraries on a separate internal SSD and have the DAW/hosts on another internal SSD. By the way, should I install just the sample libraries on the separate SSD, or each and every plugin? Even the modelled ones? Do you have any knowledge about such things?

[risome]

my favs are Serum Zebra 2 and Predator 2

[evilantal]

Actually, I barely know my way around Kontakt at all, so I wasn't aware of the settings you mentioned! I will definitely have a look at those! Maybe they're at some terrible default setting, and there's room for improvement with my specs.

Hmm, you also made me think about SSD throughput, something I've also overlooked. So far I've thought that if I only use SSDs for everything, I won't have any drive concerns whatsoever. But yeah, when streaming a lot of string samples, maybe that can cause some issues as well. Let's see if things get any different now that I'm going to install all my sample libraries on a separate internal SSD and have the DAW/hosts on another internal SSD. By the way, should I install just the sample libraries on the separate SSD, or each and every plugin? Even the modelled ones? Do you have any knowledge about such things?

The voice count thing is a bit of a longshot, but you never know. I'd look at Kontakt's multicore options first. For some hosts that have their own multicore/multithreading optimising code, it's actually better to turn off Kontakt's multicore option altogether. Trial and error there..

I use 1 SSD for OS+plugins and 1 SSD for samples (Kontakt,Omni,Alchemy,Falcon,WAV) myself.

[Tony Ostinato]

i play windsynth with laptop, also real sax and trumpet. heres my current setup:



but after the video i added a ssd and i figured out how to use project tabs to have 2 of these projects loaded and switch instantly between them.

which is really needed because in at least 2 of the bands i play with frequently the leader doesnt tell anyone else the set list and calls tunes sometimes with less than 1 bar to react.

also the same with solos, you'll get a cue on beat 1 for a solo that he wants starting on beat 1.

so i was going for lots of sounds but no loading times. 64 samples buffer. a weird thing about buffer size i tried 32 and had a hard time playing because latency was less than a real sax or trumpet and that freaked me out where i couldnt double tongue and stuff.

[waltercruz]

which is really needed because in at least 2 of the bands i play with frequently the leader doesnt tell anyone else the set list and calls tunes sometimes with less than 1 bar to react.

Woah, that would make me crazy. In the Pink Floyd cover band I organized the Mainstage Project by sets, to I can rearrange the patches easily when I receive the setlist, that could happen like 1 or 2 hours before the show.



also the same with solos, you'll get a cue on beat 1 for a solo that he wants starting on beat 1.

64 samples buffer. a weird thing about buffer size i tried 32 and had a hard time playing because latency was less than a real sax or trumpet and that freaked me out where i couldnt double tongue and stuff.

Thats a really interesting problem.

[Tony Ostinato]

it is interesting and i've gone back to it a few times to try again but its the same.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BwZgIG ... sp=sharing

theres an example on "this magic moment" that i did with a band i play with once in awhile that's all motown and soul. i am doing the ascending/descending glissando tremolo strings part by double tonguing the notes. i absolutely can't get even thru the first bar at 32 samples. at 64 its no problem at all. my theory is that i am used to double tonguing on trumpet and trumpet has air resistance and lip function lag that add up to somewhere near 64 samples etc on the computer.

[thetechnobear]

take a look at Gig Performer, http://www.gigperformer.com

its pretty new, but designed for live stage use, so enables you to do all normal mappings, and also to tailor the controls for the ones you need. (has a lemur template too, if you want to leave you PC/Mac off stage)
designed by a guy who tours, and who previously used Mainstage and then Max, but found them 'wanting'

what I like is the way only the current rack's vsts use cpu, others are idle till you switch to that rack - designed so that as you move through your set, you only have the vsts you need for that song active.