Tracks out of sync!

Nico2112

Nico2112

New member
This past monday, I purchased an M Audio Fast track pro USB recording interface.

After testing my new unit for a few days now, I’m stuck with a problem I can’t figure out:

My rig:
Digitech RP50 effects -- > into Crate GX80 amp -- > miced with a Shure SM57 -- > into left input of my Fast track pro -- > recording using Cool Edit Pro 2.0

I use this setup to record into my Toshiba Satellite laptop with the following specs:
Windows Vista Home Basic SP1 32 bit
Pentium Dual Core 1.86 Ghz
1 GB RAM

I edit and mix all tracks on a different PC, with better specs than the laptop. What I’m trying to say is: Laptop=recording device, PC=editing and mixing device.

I don’t have any latency, dropouts, clicks or crackle problems with my tracks.

What happens is, inside the Cool edit session, all tracks are in sync, they sound great; but when I want to take each track individually and transfer them to another PC for editing and mixing, they are all out of sync. Even inside my laptop, if I want to take each track and start a new session, they all are out of sync too. So, THEY ONLY SOUND IN SYNC IF PLAYED ON THE SESSION I RECORDED THEM.
I really don’t know how to fix this.

Any info will be greatly appreciated.

Cheers!
 
Instead of simply copying the track audio files, try exporting each track from the original CEP session.

Often, what's happening looks like this:

Original Recording:
Audio 1: [.................................]
Audio 2: ...[..............................]
Audio 3: .................[......]
Audio 4: [.................................]

Tracks Copied to New Recording:
Audio 1: [.................................]
Audio 2: [..............................]
Audio 3: [......]
Audio 4: [.................................]

When What you Want is This:
Original Recording:
Audio 1: [.................................]
Audio 2: __[..............................]
Audio 3: ___________[......]
Audio 4: [.................................]

Since the original had markers working behind the scenes to indicate where the audio was supposed to begin on each track, this is lost when simply copying the audio file. Exporting the track simply puts silence in front of the audio clip, but keeps it in time with everything else.

You could also export the entire project, with markers, etc., but it would probably be faster/easier to export the tracks.
 
Thanks for your input Kinetic.

I'm aware of that, hence I always start recording from 0:00.000

All my tracks start from 0, so they should line up no matter in what computer I use them.

It's really weird. I'm on my PC now, I'll take a screenshot of what they look like.

Cheers!
 
I got pics to best describe what I'm talking about.

Screenshot 1: Zoomed in pic of the tracks as they were recorded in the session.

Screenshot 2: Zoomed out pic of the tracks as they were recorded in the session.

Screenshot 3: Zoomed in pic of the tracks being inserted in a new session. Notice how they differ.

Screenshot 4: Zoomed out pic of the tracks being inserted in a new session.

Hope this explains better than my words.

Again, any info will be much appreciated!
 

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I understand Cool Edit Pro 2.0 does not support ASIO drivers.

The drivers provided for the Fast Track Pro are ASIO, could that be originating the problem?

Please give me a hand here.

Cheers!
 
Why can't you just burn a CD of the laptop Cool Edit session and just open that in your other computer? It sounds like you are taking the tracks over individually. From your post it sounds like you are using Cool Edit on both machines.
 
Yes Albert, thanks for the suggestion!

I could do that temporarily while I get this problem fixed.

When I used my old rig (analox mixer + old laptop), I was able to export single tracks and use them on any other machine without this problem.

I'll try an ASIO capable DAW, such as Audition, before I give up on this.

Thanks again.

Cheers!
 
I don't understand why you want to transfer the tracks individually.

The only way to go is to open the entire file in compatible software on the other computer. Ideally, you have the same DAW running on both machines, or at the very least, different versions of the same software.
 
SonicAlbert said:
I don't understand why you want to transfer the tracks individually.
Click to expand...

Flexibility.

I use Cool Edit on both machines, but my tracking is done in different days and locations.

If I transfer the files tied up to the session, I would have to do that everytime I record a single track. Sometimes, it takes me months to finish a single song project.

Now that I've been reading a bit more, driver compatibility and support should fix any of this.

I really want to know if having the innapropriate driver is causing this problem. I would have to switch to AA 2.0, which supports ASIO drivers, just to try it out.

Bottom line: if I'm unable to do this, I can always try out your suggestion.

Thanks.
 
I tried your suggestion Albert, and even exporting the whole session, the tracks were out of sync:confused:

I tried also recording on AA2.0, having the same problem.

I quit on this USB device (I'm returning it tomorrow).

Going back to standalone multitrack recorders.

Thanks for those who helped with their comments.

Cheers!
 
Hello Nico,
I was thinking about your problem and only thing that hit me is different sample rate.
But in the same time I know you are using very same sample rate all the time.
I am not a fan of USB-interfaces and probably never going to use one but I know many people use it and it works fine.
It must have to do something with different internal clocking on your two systems.
It looks like files are being mistranslated while transferring. Like places with no sound where cut off.
It is hard to believe ‘cause even without sound the file consists of data and it should have proper length measured in time.
I remember similar issue once before and I would really like to understand what is really happening.
Don’t let it break you down.
sikter
 
But if it is a different sample rate, wouldn't all the tracks be out of sync by the same amount? Whch means they would be in sync, just at a different pitch now because of the different sample rate.

I get the reasoning behind transferring the tracks one at a time, that makes sense.

That's really a very odd problem you have there.

For sure the tracks were recorded at the same sample rate, and you are exporting them at the same sample rate?

Are you doing any kind of processing to them when you export them? Like bouncing them down or something like that? It's possible that you or the program is somehow adding a few samples to the start of the tracks in the export process. It seems like that's when that would happen.

Another suggestion is to add a sharp short sound to the beginning of each track in the laptop. The sound would be at exactly the same place on each track. Then after you transfer them, line up that sound and the tracks should line up. That would also tell you if the program on either end is doing some funny business with adding samples or anything else.
 
Thanks for your comments Sikter and Albert.

Yes, it's a very odd problem I have.

All tracks are saved and exported at the same sample rate, I've double checked that many times.

Right now I'm bummed. Maybe in a couple of days, I'll be willing to try once again, this time, using my old setup (analog mixer into laptop's internal soundcard).

I bought this interface, because I was having latency problems. It was suggested, that the problem was the shitty internal soundcard, and that I needed an audio interface....so I got one.

I'm sure there must be a way to work around this problem, I'm just not into it right now, I need to clear my head.

Thanks again for your input.

Cheers!
 
Have you tried doing an audio mixdown of a specific track and then transferring the wav file it generates to the other pc instead of exporting?

I'll assume that you've made sure the tempos match.
 
Ok, it sounds to me as if you're doing something wrong at the export stage. My reasoning being, if you're using exactly the same setup, and it's still the same problem, then the issue is with neither the ASIO driver, your desktop PC, or anything like that. The problem either lies within CEP (which would be surprising), or there's a mistake being made during the export stage.

Can you explain, in detail, how you're "exporting" these audio files? Are you simply drag/drop'ing the .wavs? or using some sort of export function within CEP?
 
I record various tracks.

Save them individually.

Save the session.

Then I copy/paste each track into a USB flashdrive.

I then insert the tracks in my main PC.

Basically this is how I've tranfered the files from my laptop to my PC

Cheers!
 
That's a lot of different steps that are essentially out of sync from the beginning, even though they play back together in the original session.

I suspect that the audio files do not in fact start at the same point in time, even though they may look that way in the original session.

If I may again make a suggestion:

Put a two pop on each track. A two pop is what they use in the film and tv industry to ensure the picture and soundtrack are syncronized. It's called a two pop because it typically is placed exactly two seconds before program start. You could put it anywhere, just as long as it was in exactly the same spot on each track.

What you need to do is put a pop at the same point at the beginning of each track in the original file. The pop can be any short sharp sound like two drum sticks being hits together, a snare hit, a metronome click, anything like that. You only need to make one pop, and cut and paste it into all the tracks. Different pops for each track will not work. You need to do this in the session edit window on your laptop, not by opening each audio track up individually and placing a pop--the pops have to visually and audibly line up in the original file.

Put it at *exactly* the same point on each track, save that, then line up the tracks visually in your other computer using the pop. In other words, expand the timeline so you can see the exact start of the pop waveform and visually line up all the pops. They will most likely sync up fine then. You really need to try this, as it will tell you a lot about what's going on.
 
Thanks for your suggestion Albert,

I have to be honest, I'm very frustrated right now, and will stop doing tests for a couple of days.

Once my head is clear once again, I'll get back to testing.

Thanks again mate!

Cheers!
 
SUCCESS!!!

Came back home last night. Decided I was not going to do more testing, but instead, "clean up" my laptop. Uninstall drivers and software and do a fresh reinstall.

After I installed everything back, I couldn't resist to do a new test:rolleyes:...and so I did.

Inmediately after recording two guitar tracks, I transfered them to my editing PC and to my surprise THE TRACKS WERE IN SYNC:D:D:D:D

Recorded two more, tranfered them too, and they also were in sync!

Problem solved.

Conclusion:
M Audio Fast Track Pro USB interface works well with Adobe Audition 2.0 and up. Asio support by the software is a MUST.

Couldn't be happier:D

Cheers!
 
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