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I’m afraid I haven’t been able to reproduce the problem at all, and I haven’t heard reports from anyone else, so I’m really not sure what it could be.
When you see the high CPU usage, can you check in task manager and see which process is using all the cpu? Does the cpu usage increase in the breakaway instances for both instances, or just one?
If you make a copy of breakawaybroadcast.exe and name it something else (like breakaway2.exe), and start your second instance from this executable, then you will be able to see which is which in the task manager.
I’m interested to know which one it is, and if that’s consistent, because that would indicate that it’s (somehow) related to the sound card driver.
My KS audio I/O code did change between 0.90.77 and 0.90.9x so it’s not impossible that this has something to do with it. If so, one workaround might be to use Wave instead of KS, until I can find the real reason.
///Leif
Compared to the many other potential ways of screwing up the audio (such as turning speed up to 100, or setting a crazy eq curve), mono is pretty safe. Stereo/mono switch is such an easily understandable feature that I don’t believe anyone would turn it on without really needing it.
There’s also a good reason for doing it in Breakaway DJ as opposed to in the mixer. If you have wide stereo content, run it through a stereo processor, and then mix to mono afterwards, you lose a lot of the energy by nulling out the L-R, thus creating loudness inconsistencies. This also happens when listening to Stereo FM stations in Mono. Mixing to Mono before the processor avoids this issue, and maintains consistency.
///Leif
Indeed. This is my favourite method of doing it, as you then also see whether the tuner is actually any good. Square wave is a great initial test — some tuners have PLL problems that make them impossible to use for accurate MPX signal.
///Leif
Sound Blaster makes consumer gear. It’s (usually) an improvement over on-board, but I wouldn’t actually call it good.
There are audiophile-grade external D/A converters, but they’re *expensive* — several hundred dollars, way more than for example an ESI Juli@ which is probably under $150.
In the near future I’m planning to make a more advanced Breakaway version for consumers — Breakaway HT. This of course stands for Home Theater, and it will have several new features you will be able to make use of. Dual Outputs (with separate sample rate conversion), 5.1 support (the primary output), and 12-band parametric EQ.
That last feature (PEQ) is probably the most important one. Logitech speakers are hit-and-miss when it comes to frequency response, but with PEQ and an RTA (such as the free Breakaway RTA software) and a calibrated microphone (such as Behringer ECM8000, about $60), you can make a night-and-day difference — it will sound like different speakers. If you’re a serious budding audiophile, I’d say this is a good first step to take 🙂.
Breakaway HT doesn’t exist yet, but it will, and it will be an upgrade option from Breakaway Audio enhancer.
The Behringer ECM8000 microphone is a professional measurement microphone, and it needs a microphone input with 48v phantom power. I use an EMU 0404 USB interface, which is $199, and is a very nice sounding external audio interface, and also has S/PDIF output. "EMU Tracker Pre" is cheaper at $149, and also has phantom powered mic inputs, but no S/PDIF — which as you know doesn’t really improve anything if the analog outputs are already good, which they are.
Sorry. I don’t mean to frivolously be spending your money. 🙂
However, I firmly believe that an RTA calibration setup is the best investment anyone serious about audio can make, because of the enormous quality improvement it can make. The microphone is of course only needed while calibrating, so you can calibrate any one number of sound systems with it — all the sound system needs permanently is either a 1/3 octave (31-band) EQ, or a Parametric EQ.///Leif
I’d say the biggest argument is that the 17-20 kHz eats as many bits as the 14-17 kHz range, but most humans don’t hear the former very well (or at all) 🙂.
///Leif
Wow! So, the split process architecture really does work. I guess I’ll be making it the default in Breakaway DJ then, just like in the other Breakaway products.
Very good news for me. 🙂
///Leif
Digital signals has to be converted to analog somewhere — it’s just a question of where to do it. (Here I go again 😀 )
All other things being equal, it’s best to do it as close to the speakers as possible. Doing it inside the amplifier means you get the D/A converter out of the computer, and you avoid any hum/noise from the cable between the computer and amp. That’s the advantage — the signal has a shorter path in the analog domain.
However, if the S/PDIF is going through the TV, who knows what’s happening inside there! There COULD theoretically be all sorts of processing. There’s also nothing that states that the D/A in the TV is better than the one inside the computer. Realtek makes pretty good quality stuff — very impressive for on-board.
If it was a good quality home theater amplifier, I’d say s/pdif is a good thing, but going through the TV there’s really not much to gain (even in theory) and possibly some things to lose, as you’ve heard in your particular situation. I’d say stick with the on-board output if you’re happy with it!
If you’re not, how about getting a better sound card? An ESI juli@ is a tremendous improvement over the on-board realtek.
It’s also possible that your speakers / headphones are the weak link. How much were they?
Best,
///LeifBAE never had the feature — I originally added it in BBP, after already branching off the BAE source code. I may add it to BAE though, probably while working on Breakaway HT (home theater).
///Leif
New version is up!
http://www.claessonedwards.com/beta/bre … _alpha.exe
New features: Selectable Test tone or Pink Noise generation
Audio Realtime Priority is back, but off by defaultTNGDJ, please try the new version, turn on Test tone generator, and listen carefully to the sound *while loading a large playlist in otsav*.
If it’s consistently clean, it means Breakaway DJ’s audio engine has no problems, but the OTS ASIO output does, then I’d have to blame OTS, and there’s really nothing I can do other than offering a larger asio buffer option.
On the other hand, if you hear the glitches even with the test tones, then it could be breakaway dj’s audio engine that doesn’t get enough cpu power, and then turning Audio Realtime Priority on MAY help.
Please let me know.
///Leif
I never quite know what I’ll think of next, but so far I’m planning for more presets, as well as a 4-deck upgrade option.
I will also of course look into a possible glitch issue while loading a large playlist, reported by a user here on the forum.
So far though, I think it’s working incredibly well for an initial release 😉.
///Leif
You know, that’s a good point. I never thought about it — free updates have always been an obvious thing for me! Maybe I should make a point of it instead. 🙂
///Leif
