Ezdrummer randomly “hogging” audio device

[nebstor]

Hi! I’ve been playing my E-drums through Ezdrummer 3 to music i’ve been playing from Tidal, and other apps on my pc. However, now suddenly my audio device has decided randomly (without me changing any settings etc.) that it can only receive input from one source (either EZdrummer if open, or my desktop & adjacent apps such as tidal, spotify, and web browsers). I had this problem when I first got ezdrummer 3, but it randomly started working after a few restarts and just me fiddling back and forth with different settings. Now it isn’t doing so though, and I’m wondering why this is the case. Any tips?

EZdrummer version: 3.0.6
Operating system: Windows 10

Topic

[Barney_1966]

I now use a MacBook, which seems to work far easier with E-Drums and EZD3, but when I used my Windows laptop I routed my portable device through a Yamaha AG03 mini mixer. So E-Drums into laptop via USB/midi, AG03 into laptop via USB, and phone (Spotify) and headphones plugged into the AG03. I don’t think Windows copes well with sound inputs/outputs. Justin at 65 Drums did a “Mac vs PC for triggering drum software in real time” on YouTube which explained it pretty well (which is why I bought a cheap used MacBook Pro and use that instead of my Windows PC)

[John]

Hi nebstor,

it depends on which audio hardware/interface you are using.
As Barney_1966 points out, it is generally easier on the Mac platform since its Core Audio is built in another way than the equivalent on Windows.

However, if you have an audio interface that has got ASIO drivers, I believe you can get the results you are after. As an example, my son (who’s on Windows 11) wanted to play guitar while viewing YouTube videos or listening to Spotify. As he got himself a UAD Volt interface, he managed to do that by letting the system access the MME (I think) driver and then his DAW (FL Studio) the ASIO driver for the Volt interface. Some ASIO audio interfaces have internal mixer and/or control panels that can make things like this easier as well.

BR,
John

John Rammelt - Toontrack
Technical Advisor

[Glenn Stanton]

usually for multiple apps to share the IO on Windows you need to either all run the same ASIO or use the shared WASAPI. most Windows compatible IO will let you use the WASAPI mode but some are very specifically only ASIO. depending on what you’re trying to do, like paly along with video, you could simply route your instrument into a channel on your IO and output that directly to your monitors (speakers / headphones) and let the recorded material play via the video / audio player software. if you’re trying to record your live performance, then things get a bit trickier as latency from the instrument, through the IO, and into the DAW (e.g.) and then back out (if monitoring that way vs direct), you generally want the audio and MIDI latency settings as low as possible before you start get audio or MIDI tracking issues (pops, crackles, buzzes, drops etc). so ASIO generally can be adjusted to get down very low — with the caveat that low latency settings increase the CPU and other utilization – so often times minimizing the # of effects during the recording is a good idea.

EZdrummer version: 3.0.6
Operating system: Windows 11

Glenn

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