Utilizing PCI-E USB extension card for Less latency on Lynx Aurora for Windows

Question

I'm facing a situation, where I have a high end Lynx Aurora 8 A/D and D/A converter, and I was initially running windows 10. I experienced high CPU spikes and problems with audio, but absolutely no problems on my macbook, with literally the smallest amount latency I've ever seen on there. The Windows PC in question is a custom PC, with 16gb of ram, SSD operating system drive, 970GTX Nvidia Graphic Card, and one of the latest and best i7 intel processors to ensure no problems occur with heavy productions. I changed to windows 8, and the problems reduced, but latency is still a problem and I still get problems with CPU spikes in cubase, although not as much.

The main problem at hand is the windows ASIO drivers are complete nonsense when it comes to actually being efficient, in comparison to the core audio of the mac, but I'm looking to achieve optimization as much as I can with the windows system.

Would it prioritize the data transfer by running it through a PCI-Express card(usb outputs obviously) and then plug my lynx a/d converter in there instead of the motherboard? I'm thinking that it would achieve a better and more optimized data transfer because of its bandwidth.

Correct me if I'm mistaken or please offer some guidance.

Answer 1

The fact that you are running Windows itself is not the cause of your problems. Either you have bad/old drivers, a bad chipset (you do not mention which motherboard is used) or a shared USB port.

Make sure you have the latest chipset drivers. Go to the motherboard manufacturers website and see if they have updates (or refer to third party chip manufacturers). You may also be able to dig up some generic Thesycon drivers, which are some of the best (Ayre currently distribute them under the name Streamlenght, but it is the same really - you can see that from the install path).

Very important. Make sure you use a USB 2.0 port/controller that is not shared with other devices. Go to Control Panel > System and Security > System - Device Manager. In the Menu, select "View - Devices by connection". You should see something like this (this is another device though, but same principle):

Make sure your Aurora shows up under an Enhanced (2.0) USB controller and is unshared, i.e. it is the only device under that controller branch. Take a look here for additional details (this page was quite informative): https://www.ayre.com/usb-adc-windows-vista7.htm

If that does not fix it, go for a PCI Express card. Whatever you buy, make sure you check for appropiate drivers first. It may be best to go for a USB 2.0 card and not 3.0 to avoid compatibility issues, though USB 3.0 should be fully backward compatible.