DJ & PRODUCER TIPS Series #3: Turn Your PC from an 'Average Computer' to a 'Music Making Machine'
INTRODUCTION:
'DJ Tips Series' with DJ Lethal Skillz is a community initiative to support the DJ's, Producers and Musicians in our Steemit community. An open space to encourage Musicians from our community to synergize, share knowledge, collaborate, build and support each other.
Salute!
What's up my fellow Steemian's! In today's DJ TIPS Series I'm going to share with you on How to Optimize your PC for Live DJ'ing and Music Production.
What You Might Not Know About Your PC
Nowadays more and more DJ's and producers are using PC's for music but what they might not realize is when you buy a PC chances are the computer is optimized for word processing and gaming and not necessarily music. In the following steps in this guide I will be sharing with you guided steps to help you make the best out of your machine and enable you to Turn your PC from an Average Computer to a Music Making Machine.
Note: These tips can also help normal Gamers and PC users in speeding up their computers performance in general.
Before We Start Please Make a Backup!!!
Always a great idea to make backups and a backup to the backup, Don't we all hate loosing some of our great productions or music libraries??? Yukkk....
Wi-Fi
One of the main audio killers for DJing on a computer is Wi-Fi!
Most of the time lots of DJ's ask me about audio dropouts in their Serato, Tractor and other DJ Software and 80% of the time the problem is their Wi-Fi is on while they are performing live DJ'ing or producing Music.
You should make it a habit to 'Turn Off Your Wi-Fi Before Every Gig'
How To Turn Off Your Wi-Fi
Here's how you can turn off your Wi-Fi in Windows:
1- Click on the little arrow on the below right corner and click on the Wi-Fi icon
2- Set the Wi-Fi to Wi-Fi Off
3- Et Voila!
As simple and easy this is, the reason why you want to make sure to turn your Wi-Fi off is because if your computer is trying to connect to an unstable network while you are performing live or making music you are going to get CPU spikes which lead to audio dropouts and pops in the audio.
Here are some steps you can take to optimize your PC for real-time audio processing
Update your BIOS
BIOS stands for Basic Input/Output System which is a mini operating system that runs a chip on your computer mainboard it controls how the mainboard components interact with each other.
The BIOS update will improve the performance of your mainboard components by fixing any bugs.
To update your BIOS visit your computer manufacturers web page and download and install the latest BIOS update for your exact computer model number.
I also recommend downloading any of the recommended updates for your computer including :
- Operating system updates
- Audio drivers, CD firmware updates network adapters
- Graphic devices, Input device drivers
- Any other drivers your computer manufacturer recommends that you download
Also always make sure whatever music programs you're using are updated and that all the drivers for your audio interface and controllers are updated as well.
One Rule to Live By If you're doing Music on a PC
Always use ASIO Drivers (Audio Streem Input/Output) the Universal ASIO Driver For WDM Audio drivers and not the PC Direct Sound.
Make sure that whatever sound card you select says 'ASIO' next to it.
If you don't see this as an option you can download ASIO4ALL at http://www.asio4all.org/
Important to note that most of the sound cards that are used for DJing and production come with their own ASIO drivers that are much better than the generic ASIO drivers.
Identify & Fix Performance Problems
The next thing were going to do is figure out what may be causing the problems with your audio stream and hogging your computers resources.
There is a couple of free applications you can download that it will show you much CPU you're using and also what processes are causing CPU Spikes.
The first program you should download is called DPC Latency Checker
Download on http://www.thesycon.de/eng/latency_check.shtml
DPC Latency Checker is a program that will give you a graphical chart that will show you how much CPU your computer is using.
Install the application and run it for two minutes and you will see a chart that shows you if your computer can handle the programs you are running or not.
If the bars are green that's good but if the bars are yellow or red that means that some applications or processes might be straining your computer and causing audio dropouts or distortion.
If your DPC Latency Checker is showing Yellow or Red spikes you will then want to download another Free program as per the following section.
Latency Mon
Download on http://www.resplendence.com/latencymon
After you've installed Latency Mon
- Launch Latency Mon
- Click on the Play button to Start analyzing the running processes on your computer
- Click on the Drivers Tab and double click on the Highest Execution Tab to sort by what processes are causing the highest values.
You need to Disable as many of these drivers as you can from the Windows Device Manager
Very Important that you do not deactivate a device that windows needs to run properly.
Some of the devices you should never Deactivate
- System Time keyboard
- System CMOS
- Real-time Clock
- Microsoft ACPI Compliant System
- Numeric Data Processor
- Primary IDE Channel
- Secondary IDE Channel
- Graphics Controller
- Ultra Storage ATA Storage Controllers
In general we should avoid deactivating anything that is listed in the system devices.
Hope with these tips you will be able to speed up and solve any common performance PC issues when making music or DJ'ing live.
I will be releasing a follow up to this series sharing more tips and tools to Turn Your PC from an Average Computer to a Music Making Machine.
Thank your for reading, please do let me know if you find this helpful and also if you have any recommendations or more tips you like to share?
Let me know in the comment box below. Until the next One!
Where Words Fail, Music Speaks Kudos
Previous DJ Tips Series w/ DJ Lethal Skillz
Musicians On The Blockchain | DJ TIPS & FREE GOODIES SERIES #2" w/ DJ Lethal Skillz
'DJ TIPS SERIES' w/ DJ Lethal Skillz #1 | INSIGHT ON 'SERATO DJ SAMPLER' & FREE GOODIES OF FREE SOUNDS & FX
'DJ Tips Series' with DJ Lethal Skillz is a community initiative to support the DJ's, Producers and Musicians in our Steemit community. An open space to encourage Musicians from our community to synergize, share knowledge, collaborate, build and support each other.
Salute!
What's up my fellow Steemian's! In today's DJ TIPS Series I'm going to share with you on How to Optimize your PC for Live DJ'ing and Music Production.
What You Might Not Know About Your PC
Nowadays more and more DJ's and producers are using PC's for music but what they might not realize is when you buy a PC chances are the computer is optimized for word processing and gaming and not necessarily music. In the following steps in this guide I will be sharing with you guided steps to help you make the best out of your machine and enable you to Turn your PC from an Average Computer to a Music Making Machine.
Note: These tips can also help normal Gamers and PC users in speeding up their computers performance in general.
Before We Start Please Make a Backup!!!
Always a great idea to make backups and a backup to the backup, Don't we all hate loosing some of our great productions or music libraries??? Yukkk....
Wi-Fi
One of the main audio killers for DJing on a computer is Wi-Fi!
Most of the time lots of DJ's ask me about audio dropouts in their Serato, Tractor and other DJ Software and 80% of the time the problem is their Wi-Fi is on while they are performing live DJ'ing or producing Music.
You should make it a habit to 'Turn Off Your Wi-Fi Before Every Gig'
How To Turn Off Your Wi-Fi
Here's how you can turn off your Wi-Fi in Windows:
1- Click on the little arrow on the below right corner and click on the Wi-Fi icon
2- Set the Wi-Fi to Wi-Fi Off
3- Et Voila!
As simple and easy this is, the reason why you want to make sure to turn your Wi-Fi off is because if your computer is trying to connect to an unstable network while you are performing live or making music you are going to get CPU spikes which lead to audio dropouts and pops in the audio.
Here are some steps you can take to optimize your PC for real-time audio processing
Update your BIOS
BIOS stands for Basic Input/Output System which is a mini operating system that runs a chip on your computer mainboard it controls how the mainboard components interact with each other.
The BIOS update will improve the performance of your mainboard components by fixing any bugs.
To update your BIOS visit your computer manufacturers web page and download and install the latest BIOS update for your exact computer model number.
I also recommend downloading any of the recommended updates for your computer including :
- Operating system updates
- Audio drivers, CD firmware updates network adapters
- Graphic devices, Input device drivers
- Any other drivers your computer manufacturer recommends that you download
Also always make sure whatever music programs you're using are updated and that all the drivers for your audio interface and controllers are updated as well.
One Rule to Live By If you're doing Music on a PC
Always use ASIO Drivers (Audio Streem Input/Output) the Universal ASIO Driver For WDM Audio drivers and not the PC Direct Sound.
Make sure that whatever sound card you select says 'ASIO' next to it.
If you don't see this as an option you can download ASIO4ALL at http://www.asio4all.org/
Important to note that most of the sound cards that are used for DJing and production come with their own ASIO drivers that are much better than the generic ASIO drivers.
Identify & Fix Performance Problems
The next thing were going to do is figure out what may be causing the problems with your audio stream and hogging your computers resources.
There is a couple of free applications you can download that it will show you much CPU you're using and also what processes are causing CPU Spikes.
The first program you should download is called DPC Latency Checker
Download on http://www.thesycon.de/eng/latency_check.shtml
DPC Latency Checker is a program that will give you a graphical chart that will show you how much CPU your computer is using.
Install the application and run it for two minutes and you will see a chart that shows you if your computer can handle the programs you are running or not.
If the bars are green that's good but if the bars are yellow or red that means that some applications or processes might be straining your computer and causing audio dropouts or distortion.
If your DPC Latency Checker is showing Yellow or Red spikes you will then want to download another Free program as per the following section.
Latency Mon
Download on http://www.resplendence.com/latencymon
After you've installed Latency Mon
- Launch Latency Mon
- Click on the Play button to Start analyzing the running processes on your computer
- Click on the Drivers Tab and double click on the Highest Execution Tab to sort by what processes are causing the highest values.
You need to Disable as many of these drivers as you can from the Windows Device Manager
Very Important that you do not deactivate a device that windows needs to run properly.
Some of the devices you should never Deactivate
- System Time keyboard
- System CMOS
- Real-time Clock
- Microsoft ACPI Compliant System
- Numeric Data Processor
- Primary IDE Channel
- Secondary IDE Channel
- Graphics Controller
- Ultra Storage ATA Storage Controllers
In general we should avoid deactivating anything that is listed in the system devices.
Hope with these tips you will be able to speed up and solve any common performance PC issues when making music or DJ'ing live.
I will be releasing a follow up to this series sharing more tips and tools to Turn Your PC from an Average Computer to a Music Making Machine.
Thank your for reading, please do let me know if you find this helpful and also if you have any recommendations or more tips you like to share?
Let me know in the comment box below. Until the next One!
Where Words Fail, Music Speaks Kudos
Previous DJ Tips Series w/ DJ Lethal Skillz
Musicians On The Blockchain | DJ TIPS & FREE GOODIES SERIES #2" w/ DJ Lethal Skillz
'DJ TIPS SERIES' w/ DJ Lethal Skillz #1 | INSIGHT ON 'SERATO DJ SAMPLER' & FREE GOODIES OF FREE SOUNDS & FX
Always a great idea to make backups and a backup to the backup, Don't we all hate loosing some of our great productions or music libraries??? Yukkk....
Wi-Fi
One of the main audio killers for DJing on a computer is Wi-Fi!
Most of the time lots of DJ's ask me about audio dropouts in their Serato, Tractor and other DJ Software and 80% of the time the problem is their Wi-Fi is on while they are performing live DJ'ing or producing Music.
You should make it a habit to 'Turn Off Your Wi-Fi Before Every Gig'
How To Turn Off Your Wi-Fi
Here's how you can turn off your Wi-Fi in Windows:
1- Click on the little arrow on the below right corner and click on the Wi-Fi icon
2- Set the Wi-Fi to Wi-Fi Off
3- Et Voila!
As simple and easy this is, the reason why you want to make sure to turn your Wi-Fi off is because if your computer is trying to connect to an unstable network while you are performing live or making music you are going to get CPU spikes which lead to audio dropouts and pops in the audio.
Here are some steps you can take to optimize your PC for real-time audio processing
Update your BIOS
BIOS stands for Basic Input/Output System which is a mini operating system that runs a chip on your computer mainboard it controls how the mainboard components interact with each other.
The BIOS update will improve the performance of your mainboard components by fixing any bugs.
To update your BIOS visit your computer manufacturers web page and download and install the latest BIOS update for your exact computer model number.
I also recommend downloading any of the recommended updates for your computer including :
- Operating system updates
- Audio drivers, CD firmware updates network adapters
- Graphic devices, Input device drivers
- Any other drivers your computer manufacturer recommends that you download
Also always make sure whatever music programs you're using are updated and that all the drivers for your audio interface and controllers are updated as well.
One Rule to Live By If you're doing Music on a PC
Always use ASIO Drivers (Audio Streem Input/Output) the Universal ASIO Driver For WDM Audio drivers and not the PC Direct Sound.
Make sure that whatever sound card you select says 'ASIO' next to it.
If you don't see this as an option you can download ASIO4ALL at http://www.asio4all.org/
Important to note that most of the sound cards that are used for DJing and production come with their own ASIO drivers that are much better than the generic ASIO drivers.
Identify & Fix Performance Problems
The next thing were going to do is figure out what may be causing the problems with your audio stream and hogging your computers resources.
There is a couple of free applications you can download that it will show you much CPU you're using and also what processes are causing CPU Spikes.
The first program you should download is called DPC Latency Checker
Download on http://www.thesycon.de/eng/latency_check.shtml
DPC Latency Checker is a program that will give you a graphical chart that will show you how much CPU your computer is using.
Install the application and run it for two minutes and you will see a chart that shows you if your computer can handle the programs you are running or not.
If the bars are green that's good but if the bars are yellow or red that means that some applications or processes might be straining your computer and causing audio dropouts or distortion.
If your DPC Latency Checker is showing Yellow or Red spikes you will then want to download another Free program as per the following section.
Latency Mon
Download on http://www.resplendence.com/latencymon
After you've installed Latency Mon
- Launch Latency Mon
- Click on the Play button to Start analyzing the running processes on your computer
- Click on the Drivers Tab and double click on the Highest Execution Tab to sort by what processes are causing the highest values.
You need to Disable as many of these drivers as you can from the Windows Device Manager
Very Important that you do not deactivate a device that windows needs to run properly.
Some of the devices you should never Deactivate
- System Time keyboard
- System CMOS
- Real-time Clock
- Microsoft ACPI Compliant System
- Numeric Data Processor
- Primary IDE Channel
- Secondary IDE Channel
- Graphics Controller
- Ultra Storage ATA Storage Controllers
In general we should avoid deactivating anything that is listed in the system devices.
Hope with these tips you will be able to speed up and solve any common performance PC issues when making music or DJ'ing live.
I will be releasing a follow up to this series sharing more tips and tools to Turn Your PC from an Average Computer to a Music Making Machine.
Thank your for reading, please do let me know if you find this helpful and also if you have any recommendations or more tips you like to share?
Let me know in the comment box below. Until the next One!
Where Words Fail, Music Speaks Kudos
Previous DJ Tips Series w/ DJ Lethal Skillz
Musicians On The Blockchain | DJ TIPS & FREE GOODIES SERIES #2" w/ DJ Lethal Skillz
'DJ TIPS SERIES' w/ DJ Lethal Skillz #1 | INSIGHT ON 'SERATO DJ SAMPLER' & FREE GOODIES OF FREE SOUNDS & FX
Wow super informative mate! Upvoted :)
Thank for reading through and kudos on the support mah man! @crypto3d
Well done my man!!! Get advice and much appreciated.
Kudos!
These are great tips for recording. I'm interested this year in getting into recording and need all the help I can get.
Respect! there's lots of resourceful musicians and producers in the community and lot s of knowledge and resources shared. Steemit is the place to do it, Good luck with your musical journey on the blockchain ;)
that green fella there in center right next to the main keyboard is dope had my hands on that recently.. iis this a place you are able to hire for your tracks? and nice info.. haven't got latency issues luckily IF that allen and heath thing I have doesn't has issues because of a broken usb port but good to know thanks for that
@seveaux Salute bruv! Thank u for the feedback, this studio is were i teach when i visit back home in Beirut, Lebanon but we do have access to studios on this level and more in Malaysia also all depends on the size of the project or job. Lucky u dont face latency issues! u use PC or Mac btw? Kudos
Thank you for the great info brother. Much love
Hope it helps bro, Kudos on the feedback! Salute @bboyady
I like so much on music basically this type of music .It is also educative types.
Share more and more with us.I thank you.
Keep it up
Tq !
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