Latency and Buffers
Buffer size, what the toolbar figure means, and where a route's delay comes from.
intermediate
Buffer size#
Set in the toolbar: how many samples the engine processes per block. The figure beside it is what one block costs - buffer รท sample rate, so 256 samples at 48 kHz is 5.3 ms.
| On | Sizes |
|---|---|
| An ASIO driver | 32 to 4096 samples |
| The built-in clock | 128 to 4096 samples |
Smaller is lower latency and more CPU; too small crackles. Start at 256 and go up a step if you hear dropouts. Changing it restarts the stream with a short, faded gap.
Sample rate (44.1 or 48 kHz) is in the device menu.
A route's latency#
The toolbar shows one block, not a route. A route also includes:
- the buffering of each device on it - see Primary and Secondary Devices
- the latency its plugins report (an FX Module adds nothing else, unless a Volume Knob is wired on both sides of it, which adds one block)
- one block each way through Virtual ASIO
A Latency Probe adds these up for any two nodes you pick.