I'm having some CPU trouble in my DAW (Ableton) using Pianoteq. In the beginning, I could have 4-5 different Pianoteq instruments playing at the same time. Now, using two instruments make my CPU go up to about 50 %. It could have something to do with the buffer size; when I'm using Pianoteq standalone, buffer size is 1024 samples, but in Ableton, it's 128. Does anyone know how to fix this?
Yes, lower buffer sizes make your CPU work harder. If you don't need realtime recording of audio or MIDI input (that's the main reason to use a low buffer size), then increase the buffer size in Ableton.
Ah yes, managed to increase the preset buffer size in Ableton, and the problem is a bit better. But not fixed; simply using one Pianoteq instrument gets my CPU usage to 25 %; isn't that a bit much? Is Pianoteq 4.5 more demanding on the CPU than, for example, 4.1? Or perhaps, my Macbook Pro (2009 model) is simply dying...
Yes, CPU usage does depend on which model you're using - the latest models (Bluthner, U4) take more CPU. I would say 25% of CPU is quite ok when having dense polyphony going on.
That, and also Ableton's CPU meter doesn't really measure CPU usage but audio buffer processing time.
Unfortunately 25% from playing just a single note. I see other Ableton users have had similar problems; could be an issue with the latest update. I'm simply a bit confused, since I used to use 4-5 Pianoteq instruments at the same time (playing simple things, but still!) without any trouble.
I guess it's Ableton at fault then...