Topic by Viridis

  • Avatar
  • Viridis
  • Member
  • Offline
  • From: Utrecht, Nederland
  • Registered: 23-04-2019
  • Posts: 102

Topic: Big 'latency' with Yamaha cp33, usb and macbook pro

Hallo,

I have the trial version of Pianotec 6.
The master keyboard is a Yamaha cp33, wich is connected to my laptop by USB (1,5 meter).
What I notice, is when I hit a note, the actual sound is some tenth of a second too late ('latency').
When I hit a virtual key with the mouse, there is (almost) no latency.

Is this a known problem? I tried other virtual instruments (eg. FL Studio) with exactly the same 'latency' problem.

Thanks for reading and maybe answering my post.

Have a nice day,
Viridis

Have a nice day & happy playin'

Yamaha CP33 -- Scarlett 2i2 -- Yamaha HS7 / Sennheiser HD650 -- PTQ 8 Pro [Linux] -- Some instruments

Viridis's Website

Reply by Qexl

  • Avatar
  • Qexl
  • Member
  • Offline
  • Registered: 04-09-2015
  • Posts: 1,647

Re: Big 'latency' with Yamaha cp33, usb and macbook pro

The problem is that USB to USB cables are designed to also carry audio - which, if you don't use, you might be able to disable. Not sure how on your keyboar/Mac - would need to look up how it's done on other systems too - one of those do-it-once and forget things. My keyboard allows me to set "MIDI only" out. That disables sending of extra and unused audio via the cable.

Or, if you can't work out the how-to of that - but if you still only want super fast raw MIDI only, and never really use the built in audio features (like carrying your keyboard's audio to the PC as well as the MIDI signal) you might be best looking for a MIDI to USB cable - music stores, online etc. for anything from around $5 to $50. That's my go-to arrangement to avoid that latency (and other occasional hassles). You can sometimes get them cheap 2nd hand - don't need to buy the most expensive, they all do essentially the same.

Here's an example plug (on the expensive side).

Pianoteq Studio Bundle (Pro plus all instruments)  - Kawai MP11 digital piano - Yamaha HS8 monitors

Reply by Viridis

  • Avatar
  • Viridis
  • Member
  • Offline
  • From: Utrecht, Nederland
  • Registered: 23-04-2019
  • Posts: 102

Re: Big 'latency' with Yamaha cp33, usb and macbook pro

It seems that the latency problem is solved!

I put an (old and inexpensive) usb soundcard with a latency of only 2.9 ms.
Somehow, this helped to get rid of the latency!
Why I had latency when playing the MIDI-master, while not having latency when playing the virtual piano with the mouse, I don't know. But that's not so important, since it works now!

Have a nice day & happy playin'

Yamaha CP33 -- Scarlett 2i2 -- Yamaha HS7 / Sennheiser HD650 -- PTQ 8 Pro [Linux] -- Some instruments

Viridis's Website