Topic: ASIO and Win 10 Question

Is ASIO necessary with Win 10? Pianoteq seems to work fine with the device type of Windows Audio. This is for a SP4 with Realtek audio. I did install the ASIO4ALL and I really don't see much of a difference, compared with Windows Audio. The only problem with ASIO is playback through the headphones. It's all choppy and crackling. ASIO is fine when output is the built in speakers. Windows Audio works well with both outputs.

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

I'd always use ASIO if possible (except I don't see a lot of worth with a Realtek onboard... better get a proper audio interface...)

Hard work and guts!

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

EvilDragon wrote:

I'd always use ASIO if possible (except I don't see a lot of worth with a Realtek onboard... better get a proper audio interface...)

Do you have any recommendations for an audio interface? Thanks!

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

bSharpCyclist wrote:
EvilDragon wrote:

I'd always use ASIO if possible (except I don't see a lot of worth with a Realtek onboard... better get a proper audio interface...)

Do you have any recommendations for an audio interface? Thanks!

The Steinberg USB Audio Interfaces are very good, have a good reputation, they do have good sound and (very important!!!), stable ASIO drivers and regular updates
I have a UR 242, but the smaller UR12 or UR 22 Mk II also should do fine. Cost around EUR 100,-

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

I am super happy with my Steinberg UR22 mkII.  I do not  use additional inputs,  and once in a while I use headphones.   It gave me solid connectors,  low latency,  and a mechanical volume knob - just what I needed for my setup.

- David

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

Thanks, I'll check out the Steinberg units. What's the appropriate setup/connections to a PC? MIDI from Piano to interface I'm assuming. The "Pianoteq" output is only then heard from the PC, right?

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

bSharpCyclist wrote:

Thanks, I'll check out the Steinberg units. What's the appropriate setup/connections to a PC? MIDI from Piano to interface I'm assuming. The "Pianoteq" output is only then heard from the PC, right?

There are two possibilites:

Piano via MIDI to USB interface
or
Piano via USB-MIDI to PC
(the latter method should be prefered as long as your Keyboard has an "USB to host" connector)

See also here:
https://www.pianoteq.com/hookup

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

Arkanda wrote:
bSharpCyclist wrote:

Thanks, I'll check out the Steinberg units. What's the appropriate setup/connections to a PC? MIDI from Piano to interface I'm assuming. The "Pianoteq" output is only then heard from the PC, right?

There are two possibilites:

Piano via MIDI to USB interface
or
Piano via USB-MIDI to PC
(the latter method should be prefered as long as your Keyboard has an "USB to host" connector)

See also here:
https://www.pianoteq.com/hookup

Thanks, it's a YDP-181, no USB out. So I would have to send Midi from the keyboard to audio interface, which is what I expected. I guess my question would be does the sound produced by PIanoteq get sent back to the audio interface?

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

bSharpCyclist wrote:
Arkanda wrote:
bSharpCyclist wrote:

Thanks, I'll check out the Steinberg units. What's the appropriate setup/connections to a PC? MIDI from Piano to interface I'm assuming. The "Pianoteq" output is only then heard from the PC, right?

There are two possibilites:

Piano via MIDI to USB interface
or
Piano via USB-MIDI to PC
(the latter method should be prefered as long as your Keyboard has an "USB to host" connector)

See also here:
https://www.pianoteq.com/hookup

Thanks, it's a YDP-181, no USB out. So I would have to send Midi from the keyboard to audio interface, which is what I expected. I guess my question would be does the sound produced by PIanoteq get sent back to the audio interface?

Yes,
once you will connect the keyboards midi out to the audio interace's midi in, and after selecting the right midi input and audio output inside Pianoteq, the sound will go out thru your interface outputs and headphones output

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

I would definitely suggest RME if you can afford. They are excellent, the best drivers in the industry (yes, better than Steinberg's), very solid built, and the best support as well.

Hard work and guts!

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

Sorry to bring up an old thread, but this is related. I'm considering getting the UR 242. In my original post I mentioned the output with headphones was mangled. This has since been fixed, but I can't have both output from headphone and the Surface Pro 4's speakers at the same time using Pianoteq and ASIO.

So I'd like to get an interface to put in between the piano and SP4, listen to what I'm playing with Pianoteq either headphones. Also, send a single to the mic input of the camcorder. So I was thinking of connecting my headphones to the headphone out of the audio interface, and then sending the headphone out of the SP4 to the camera's mic input. Is this possible? I believe I need to make sure I have an appropriate cable for this (head phone out to mic input). I do this now and the sound seems to be a bit hot (loud), so I think I need a different cable with an attenuator.

Thanks!

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

+1 for RME

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

rAC wrote:

+1 for RME

Thanks, but RME is a bit pricey for me

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

my hammerfall dsp 9652 is now 11 year old and i continue to use it, still gives me the best experience and within this period i've found the driver and cubase optimizations improved alot.

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

I was looking at the setup diagram in an earlier post and I see that one can connect the interface to the computer, but the digital piano directly to the interface via MIDI, or the computer. If one uses an interface, is there a more preferred setup?

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

Hello bSharpCyclist,

Sound issues in Pianoteq tend to be related to CPU/system performance.
For live playing, using your internal sound card, it’s best to use Pianoteq in exclusive mode either native Windows or via an audio wrapper like ASIO4ALL.
Please check Sound Card options in Windows Control Panel (Win key + x), check Pianoteq Options and the current configuration in ASIO4ALL’s control panel.; see what changes when you switch from Windows to ASIO; confirm that the Sample Rate does not exceeds 48kHZ and try different polyphony settings.

If you want to record your sessions as sound files or your needs are more demanding in terms of sound quality, then yes,  it is best to buy an external audio interface (the component/circuitry are usually much better than the chips from your motherboard).  Just be sure that it has good ASIO drivers (check the brand support/user forums for complains). Also, the majority of audio interfaces that have midi ports have "zero latency" midi control which will improve/minimize the overall latency.

Last edited by mfiadeiro (02-05-2017 13:01)

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

bSharpCydclist wrote:

I was looking at Prosolution Plus in an earlier post and I see that one connect the interface to the computer, but the digital piano directly to the interface via MIDI, or the computer. If one uses an interface, is there a more preferred setup?

The steinberg units are really good.

Last edited by DerekBen (24-04-2020 10:18)

Re: ASIO and Win 10 Question

I can vouch for that - my SurfacePro4 runs very nicely on an external Steinberg UR-22 mk II.   ....and it's so nice to have real volume knows instead of just on-screen sliders and tablet-edge buttons, plus 1/4" phono connections are more reliable than mini-plugs (especially after I think that I bent the jack on my first Surface Pro4, necessitating it's return for service...).

- David