ASIO with no playback?

Report · Mar 07, 2017

Hi people,

So as you may be able to tell, I'm very new to adobe audition. I was messing around and trying to record myself rap when I noticed I kept being off beat. After doing a test, I noticed I was receiving latency on my recording.

(NOTE: I am using a MXL990 Blizzard through a Focusrite Scarlet Solo Inerface for recording, and an Astro Mixamp plugged into the Optical port on my computer)

When I checked my preferences, I noticed I could adjust the Latency down to 30ms, which is still noticeable for me.

I then changed the device class from MME to ASIO (not sure what either of these are). Doing this disables all latency, and I have these options:

ASIO4ALL v2: Does not register microphone, provides no playback device option and I get no sound.

FL Studio ASIO: Registers the mic, is quiter and a slight delay, does not allow me to use my Blizzard/Focusrite interface.

***Focusrite USB ASIO: Absolutely ZERO latency, registers the mic fine!

HOWEVER, there is no audio playback via the Focusrite ASIO. I hear nothing when I "Monitor Input", and when I play the songs or recordings back, I hear nothing. This is a problem if I want to have a song playing on one track, while recording on the other.

SORRY IF I WORDED THIS HORRIBLY I SUCK

TL;DR Why is there no option for a playback device when using my Focusrite ASIO? If there is, how do I activate/set it up?

THANK YOU!

Report · Mar 07, 2017

Well, to reply to your TL:DR question, there's no option for a playback device because with ASIO you have to specify a single device for both input and output. Once you select ASIO as a driver, whatever device you select has to do input and output. (As an aside, that's why so many USB mics can't use ASIO drivers--you have to monitor via you existing sound card.)

One of the deficiencies of the low end Focusrite interfaces is that they only allow switching between input and output with no facility to mix--if you look at other interfaces--even low end stuff--you'll find that instead of a simple switch on the monitor control, they have a knob that lets you create a mix of input and output at the same time.

Things to try: first update/reinstall your Focusrite driver ( Downloads | Focusrite ) I'm not hopeful but it might help.

I'm also slightly concerned about your mention of the Astro Mixamp--it's not a device I know but ASIO is very specific in only handling one audio device at a time. It may be a wild goose chase but it's presence may be confusing your computer. I'd try some recording without it.

Finally, you could try setting the Focusrite to Direct Monitor Off and click on the little "I" box (in the Edit Panel at the left end of each track) for your mic. This will let you monitor your mic after a round trip via your computer. You can use the Audition mixer screen to balance between recorded tracks and the input. There will be some latency but hopefully with ASIO drivers this will be low enough to be workable.

Finally finally (this is what happens when you finish a post after an hour spend driving your son to the doctor) maybe consider a different interface. For example the Alesis iO2 is usually pretty cheap but has good drivers and can let you create you monitor mix on its front panel. There are lots of other relatively inexpensive interfaces that have the same feature.

Let us know how you get on.

Report · Mar 08, 2017

Well that seems to be a pretty dumb design if the Focusrite Solo doesn't allow you to mix your Direct/PC monitor feeds.