Intermittent noise from Virtual ASIO

[jakobras]

Hello forum

I have read through a lot of forum threads regarding crackling noise from voicemeeter, but it seems that my problem is somehow different (or i have insufficient search capabilities). I will describe below, and i have also made a video with live demonstration of the problem. Link for video is here: https://youtu.be/iDE5c1kbgJQ

Intermittent noise on recording in DAW using Voicemeeter VIrtual ASIO
I am using a DAW to make recordings from Voicemeeter Banana AUX Virtual ASIO (B2). The recordings are either crisp clean all the way through or crackling distorted dirty. That is, if the recording starts clean, it remains clean but if it starts dirty it remains dirty. But whether it is clean or dirty is completely random. If i make 10 recordings in the exact same way, i might end up with e.g. 4 clean recordings and 6 dirty recordings in random order. The DAW allows me to switch on “echo input” (monitor source), and in that stream i can hear, if the stream is clean or distorted. The strange thing is, that i can provoke the audio to change between clean and distorted by toggeling the “Arm for recording” button in the DAW. With this workaround, i can avoid making a complete 3 minute take just to find out afterwards, that the recording was dirty. Which is good, but i would prefer to solve the problem. A couple of things i have checked is 1) playing the recorded samples from another application to see if it was a playback audio loop issue in the DAW - which it was not. 2) Changing the DAW recording source to the Audio interface native ASIO driver - which worked without any distortion, causing me to suspect the Voicemeeter virtual ASIO. 3) Changed all sample rates (including Voicemeeter virtual ASIO) to 48000. 4) Checked buffer size to be 7168 samples according to advise in forum thread.

Here are some details of my setup:

Lenovo Desktop PC
Windows 10 Pro 10.0.19041
Core i5-4440, 3,10GHz
8 Gb RAM
System stable and with sufficient ressources in all other applications.

USB Audio interface:
Presonus AudioBox 22VSL
Latest version of driver (Universal control 3.4.2.63992)

UdklipAudioBox.JPG (40.56 KiB) Viewed 9156 times

Voicemeeter Banana set up:

UdklipVBsetup.JPG (211.73 KiB) Viewed 9156 times

DAW
Cakewalk by Bandlab ver. 2021.01, build 098, 64 bit.
Device preferences:

UdklipCakewalkPref.JPG (93.95 KiB) Viewed 9156 times

Please let me know any suggestions. Also let me know if you think it is too early to let Cakewalk off the hook, I just reckoned, that if the native ASIO drivers of the AudioBox is working with no issues, it might be VB Virtual ASIO causing the problem?

Best regards Jakob

[barium]

What version of VMB are you using? I just updated to 2058 and now unable to run ASIO4ALL at 384 bu @ 24bit 48000.

I am now running at 512 bu @ 24bit 48000 with slight crackles on 2058 and the audio is terrible.

Version 2054 I could run 384 bu @ 24bit 48000 but rarely sometimes it would fall out, but mostly only if changing the buffer. I may just go back to 2054.

[jakobras]

Thanks for the tip barium! I am currently on VMB 2.0.54 thinking about updating to see if it would solve my issue with recording. But i might just wait a while then.

[riccardo74]

Long last! I have found someone who has the exact same problem as mine. Completely random! Read here:
https://forum.vb-audio.com/viewtopic.ph ... 0bded39ffd

This event is completly random and like you it happens 30% times I launch Reaper (or other DAW). The issue is relative to to Voicemeeter AUX Virtual ASIO. For more than a week I have been looking for how to solve the problem and I have read dozens of forum pages and tried all the solutions proposed but there is nothing to do. I think there is a bug in the drivers or they are generating some conflict. The only solution is to use (before record) the monitor function and if audio is distorted close Reaper (DAW) and restart it. But this is only a partial solution, the problem should be solved. I can detect it with two USB cards, a Focusrite 2i4 2nd generation and a Behringer UMC202HD. So the problem unfortunately is just related to the AUX Virtual ASIO drivers.

Do you have find any solution?
My Voicemeeter Banana is versio 2.0.6.2

[Vincent Burel]

one pre-requisite to guarantee a stable stream on a DAW connected to Voicemeeter Virtual ASIO driver
is to have a buffer size above 5ms on the Voicemeeter main audio stream (so at least 256 sample buffer size at 48kHz for the output A1 device - and 512 samples if not stable enough with 256 samples).

One test you could perform to check that the problem does not come from the stability of your ASIO device (physical one)
Simply select a WDM internal Audio board as output A1 and you will see if you get the same behavior.

LAST WARNING about Presonus Audio Box: it seems there is a default on firmware side, they crack on peak:
https://forum.vb-audio.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=1598