problem with sync-ing tracks

  • Thread starter Thread starter nastynathaniel
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nastynathaniel

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I just got Cool Edit 2.0, and I'm not quite sure what's wrong. I'll explain.
When I try to record a second track over what I've already recorded, the second track consistently slows down when I play it back. I'm not sure exactly what accounts for this, because when I'm recording, it sounds to me and others like I'm playing exactly in sync with the first track. It could be that the playback of the first track slows down when I'm recording a second track, but if this is so, I'm not sure how I'd go about fixing it. Please help, because this is making it nearly impossibly for me to work with multiple tracks. Thanks.
 
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i'll try and help.
please tell me your computer confign. i'm a puter engr with my own studio.
so ive seen a lot. but i need details of your set up.IN DETAIL.
processor, drives,memory, XP ? etc etc....
also sound card model. if your using an on board sound card , they are terrible. this could be the source of your issues. but as ive seen so many things maybe not.
peace.
 
Wow, it looks like I needed only to look a couple posts down. The problem is latency, it seems. Well, I'm dumb. :rolleyes:
 
manning, I don't know a lot of that stuff. I have XP. I'll find out more though.
 
maybe the problem isn't latency then. I don't know, I just want to make music. :confused:
 
just find the invoice that came with your pc when it was purchased . it should list the items you purchased.
also device manager in xp will have a list of components installed.
in cool edit - also look under the drivers that cool uses ...it should say something like cmedia wave or something similar if your using on board sound.
i really need to know this stuff to help you.
it might not necessarily be latency. could be something else causing probs.
 
here's a list of things: Dell Dimension DIM2400
Intel(R)
Pentium(R) 4 CPU 2.20 GHz
2.19 GHz, 256MB of RAM
XP version 2002 Home service pack 2

I believe the soundcard is indeed onboard, It looks to be a SoundMAX of some sort. I apologize, I'm very ignorant in these matters.

What else do you need to know?
 
ok - that helps.
heres my comments.
you have a very nice machine for a recording daw. capable of loads of tracks. however your problems are two fold. running a daw environment with cool (a very capable multitrack software) , cool edit likes memory as does windows xp. i dont know who purchased this system , but a system like this should never have been purchased with 256 mb memory(way too low for a daw). minimum should be 512 ram.
who purchased this system with such low memory ?
the other problem is soundmax. this on board sound is better than some but still not suited to proper multitrack recording. its mainly for playback of windows sounds. also please tell me if dma is enabled on your hard drive. VITALLY IMPORTANT FOR A DAW.
was this system bought from dell directly ?
if you want more help ask.
also spend some time reading various tips ive posted in the past year. just search under my name.
huundreds of tips for folks new to recording.
 
Here's the information I found regarding my soundcard:
model:SoundMax Integrated Digital Audio
driver: smwdm.sys
I hope this helps a little.
 
as i said - the soundmax is not good for pro recording.
you need to consider something like an audiophile from maudio
around 100 bucks. but dont get it just yet till i figure out what else you got in that system. to run the audiophile you need a free pci slot in your pc.
properly set up your system should do 60 tracks.
but the problem is it isnt properly set up.
next step is to tell me if dma is enabled on the drive or drives. it would help to know how many drives you have. one ? two ?
 
I only have one drive.
what else do you need to know?
 
If these settings aren't checked, try recording again with first the "correct for drift" and if that doesn't work, try the 'start sync", then try 'em both, I think the "correct for drift" might get ya fixed.

it's under..

options/settings/multitrack tab.

:)
 

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nathaniel. you can certainly try stryders excellent point, but its a band aid solution for soundchips like soundmax that have design limitations for pro audio work. ideally you need two hard drives for a daw.
i'm going into a session now - so gotta go.
if you got more Q's i'll resp[ond tomorrow.
 
Latency problems usually point to the soundcard not working well with the software. Two things make your recording life *so* much more enjoyable and reliable - a good audio soundcard, and a second hard drive dedicated to recording.
 
thanks all for your help, I tried the "correct for drift" function, and it seems to be working pretty well, but I'll get back to you if there are more problems. once again, thanks for your time and help
 
Strryder

your playback/recording buffers are set on 4 ,while the default settings is 10 for both

the q is , what do you get by reducing them to 4 ? :confused:

does it help to fix the latency problems ?
 
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