Logic Audio for Windows

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Setup &emdash; Audio

Cubase and Logic differ significantly in the way that MIDI and Audio hardware is set up. Firstly, we'll take a look at setting up your audio hardware. Cubase allows the use of MME/DirectSound and ASIO device drivers. Logic Audio (dependent on the version you're using) allows the simultaneous use of MME/DirectSound, ASIO, EASI and Digidesign Direct I/O drivers plus native support for the Audiowerk hardware.

MME & DirectSound
Under normal circumstances, when using hardware with an MME/DirectSound driver, Logic Audio's EASI/MME setup utility will detect the hardware and determine the best buffer settings etc. for it. Should there be a problem with the card's driver software or an incorrect installation or system incompatibility, you can manually adjust the settings via the EASI/MME setup utility, which can be found in the Logic program folder (or via the Start menu shortcut). It has excellent online help which will assist you with the correct selection and settings of the various parameters.

The following steps are generally unnecessary, but should you encounter a problem... The procedure for hardware selection of an EASI/MME device within Logic Audio is as follows:

ASIO
Unlike Cubase, which requires that ASIO drivers be placed in a particular folder, Logic Audio will automatically detect any ASIO driver installed on the system.

The procedure for adjusting the settings in Logic Audio for use of an ASIO driver is as follows:

ASIO Buffer Delay and Max I/O Streams should generally be left alone and the default driver settings should be used. If you are experiencing any difficulties, then these settings can be adjusted.

Also see the Audio Engine Parameters section below.

Yamaha DSP Factory (Logic Audio Gold, Platinum)
To directly access Yamaha's DS2416, follow the steps outlined below.

N.B. - The I/O handling is controlled via ASIO, NOT MME in version 4.5 and up of Logic Audio.
ASIO drivers - version 2.4 and higher are REQUIRED by Logic Audio 4.5 and up.
Use of the DS2416 in conjunction with an SW1000 sound card, requires that the support of the SW 1000 in the ASIO driver of the DSP Factory be switched OFF!
In addition, the parameter clock source in the ASIO section has to be set to "SI" (serial in).

Direct I/O
Digidesign hardware (such as the Digi001 and AudiomediaIII) can be addressed via the Direct I/O interface, as per the following:

N.B. - A Direct I/O driver MUST be installed on the system for use of the DirectI/O interface in Logic Audio (e.g. Wave Driver version 1.6 or higher). For further information, please contact Digidesign.

Audio Engine Parameters

These options are found in Logic Audio's Hardware Setup window and allow you to "fine tune" your audio system/hardware performance.

Volume Smoothing [ms]
This parameter defines the length of the fade between two consecutive volume values for an audio track. When setting this value to 0 you might hear "zipper noise" when moving a volume fader during playback. Higher values soften the volume changes and eliminate the zipper noise.

Max. Number of Audiotracks
The Audio Engine requires free system memory. The amount of memory needed depends on the maximum number of tracks to be played, and on the number of I/O channels supplied by the driver. This setting allows you to reduce the amount of memory used by the driver, by reducing the number of tracks. This may be practical should you wish to run other applications or audio hardware types simultaneously.

Larger Disk Buffer
This option influences the amount of audio data that is read from the disk in advance. It is deactivated by default, matching the demands of fast hard drives and powerful computers.
Should you experience frequent error messages while running Logic Audio in this mode, you can switch this setting ON. This will allow an increase in the number of playback tracks and reliability.
The downside?...more RAM is needed.

Larger Process Buffer
This parameter determines the size of the native buffer used to compute mixers and effects. Do NOT activate this option if you own a fast computer!

A "fast" computer is determined by your tracklaying/effects use...so if your audio playback requirements are modest - say four to eight tracks with a few compressors/EQ's and a reverb or two, then a PII/300-400 would be considered "fast". If, on the other hand, you need to run 24 audio tracks with loads of effects, then a "fast" computer would be up towards the PentiumIII 650-800 mark.

If you find your system straining under the load, enabling the Larger Process Buffer reduces response times to operations such as volume changes or track soloing. Experiment with various settings covered above to find the optimal configuration for your Logic Audio system.

Plug-in Handling

DirectShow plug-in Integration
Some Direct Show plug-ins may not appear in plug-in lists in version 4.5 and up of Logic Audio.
Should this issue affect your system, exit Logic and start the latest version of the plug-in enabler in order to re-activate the deactivated plug-ins.
The plug-in enabler can be found in your Logic Audio program folder. As per the EASI/MME setup utility, the online help is very good in the plug-in enabler.

VST plug-in Integration
VST plug-ins are not handled by the plug-in-enabler in the current version of Logic Audio 4.5 and up. The plug-in enabler is only responsible for DirectShow (DirectX) plug-ins.
To use VST plug-ins under Logic Audio 4.5 and up, you MUST place/install the plug-ins in the "Vstplug-ins" folder which, in turn, must be located in the Logic program folder.
To avoid particular VST plug-ins being shown in Logic's plug-in list, move the plug-in file to another folder, which could be named "Vst_Unused", as an example.
See this document for links to shareware, freeware and commercial suppliers of VST Plug-ins.

Setup &emdash; MIDI

Cubase and Logic differ markedly in the way MIDI hardware is identified and selected. Where Cubase has a separate utility for the setup of MIDI In/Out ports, Logic Audio handles this automatically.
Ports in Logic cannot be reordered as with Cubase.

Output Port Selection
Selection of channels and ports also differs between Logic Audio and Cubase, with Logic Audio's Environment window being used for input and output of data. Please see this document for a basic tutorial on setting up the Environment and getting Logic Audio communicating with your MIDI and audio devices.

 

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