Windows has been designed for a wide variety of applications. Unfortunately that means that, out-of-the-box, it works correctly for office or entertainment applications, but
Windows has been designed for a wide variety of applications. Unfortunately that means that, out-of-the-box, it works correctly for office or entertainment applications, but for DAW applications, several settings and features have to be fine-tuned.
Native users should also refer to this page for additional recommendations.
Windows 10 Fall Creator (1709) : Pyramix 11.0.6 / Ovation 7.0.6 / VCube 7.0.6 / AMR 11.0.6 required
Windows 10 Spring Creator (1803) : Pyramix 11.1.4 / Ovation 7.1.4 / VCube 7.1.4 / AMR 11.1.4 required. (MassCore mode : RTX64 3.4 version)
Windows 10 October 2018 (1809) : Pyramix 11.1.6 / Ovation 7.1.6 / VCube 7.1.6 / AMR 11.1.6 required. (MassCore mode : RTX64 3.6.2 version)
Windows 10 May 2019 (1903) : Pyramix 12.0.5 - Pyramix 14.0 / Ovation 8.1.5 - Ovation 10.0 / VCube 8.1.5 - VCube 10.0 / AMR 12.0.5 - AMR14 required. (MassCore mode : RTX64 3.7 version)
Windows 10 November 2019 update (1909) : Pyramix 12.0.5 - Pyramix 14.0 / Ovation 8.1.5 - Ovation 10.0 / VCube 8.1.5 VCube 8.1.5 - VCube 10.0 / AMR 12.0.5 - AMR14 required. (MassCore mode : RTX64 3.7 version)
Windows 10 May 2020 (2004): Pyramix 25th Hotfix 3 - Pyramix 14.0 / Ovation 9.0.6 - Ovation 10.0 / VCube 9.0.6 - VCube 10.0 / AMR 13.0.6 - AMR14. (MassCore mode : RTX64 3.7.4 version)
Windows 10 Fall 2020 (20H2) : Pyramix 25th Hotfix 3 - Pyramix 14.0 / Ovation 9.0.6 - Ovation 10.0 / VCube 9.0.6 - VCube 10.0 / AMR 1213.0.5 6 - AMR14 required. (MassCore mode : RTX64 3.7.4 version)
Windows 10 May 2020 2021 (200421H1) : Pyramix 25th Hotfix 3 - Pyramix 14.0 / Ovation 9.0.6 - Ovation 10.0 / VCube 9.0.6 - VCube 10.0 / AMR 13.0.6 - AMR14. (MassCore mode : RTX64 3.7.4 version)
Windows 10 Fall 2020 November 2021 (20H221H2) :Pyramix 25th Hotfix 3 - Pyramix 14.0 / Ovation 9.0.6 - Ovation 10.0 / VCube 9.0.6 - VCube 10.0 / AMR 13.0.6 - AMR14. (MassCore mode : RTX64 3.7.4 version)
Windows 10 May 2021 November 2022 (21H122H2) : Pyramix 25th Hotfix 3 - Pyramix 14.0 / Ovation 9.0.6 - Ovation 10.0 / VCube 9.0.6 - VCube 10.0 / AMR 13.0.6 - AMR14. (MassCore mode : RTX64 3.7.4 version)
Windows 10 October 2021 (21H2) : MassCore : currently not compatible - Native : validation pendingEditions : Pro or Enterprise (Home editions not tested)
Merging highly recommends you "defer feature updates" in Windows 10, see Updates section below.
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GRAPHIC CARD DRIVERS
Please install your graphic cards driver, and configure it card driver.
It is mandatory to configure the driver according to the Merging recommended settings (Mandatory for MassCore users)Graphic Cards recommended settings page.
Not properly configured drivers may trigger glitches and drops !
WINDOWS CONTROL PANEL
To access Windows 10 Anniversary (1607) Control Panel, right click on Windows Start and select Control Panel.
On other Windows 10 versions (since 1703), type "control panel" in Windows Search box.
You can right click on the control panel icon from the search result and pin it to the Start menu or Taskbar.
For ease of use, it is recommended to set the Control Panel to Small Icons.
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(In Windows 10 Anniversary, Windows Defender is only accessible through Windows Control Panel > Windows Defender.)
Full Virus Scanning should not run at the same time as Merging software.
If you plan to install an Antivirus software, Windows Defender will be disabled.
You should also disable scanning of the Pyramix files (pmx, pmf, pml, pad, pmw) but also media files (wav, aif, flac, mp3,...), because each time the DAW have to access such file, your antivirus may scan it.
AVAST has already caused a lot of problems with several Merging programs, it is therefore not recommended.
See this page for help on configuring your antivirus exceptions.
Windows Defender users can download and run a script to include the required rules in Windows Defender.
MTWindowsDefenderExclusions.zip
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Cortana can be disabled (recommended but optional)
In Windows Search field, type GPEDIT.MSC
Right click on the gpedit.msc and select Run as Administrator
Browse to Computer Configuration > Adminsistrative Templates > Windows Components > Search and set Allow Cortana to disabled.
If you want to keep Cortana, please configure it :
Fall Creator (1709) / Spring Creator (1803) / October 2018 (1809) :
Cortana can be configured through Windows Settings > Cortana.
In the Talk to Cortana page, set "Let Cortana respond to Hey Cortana" and"Use Cortana even when my device is locked" to off.
In Permissions & History, set "Windows Cloud Search" to off. Turning off ""View activity history", "My device history" and "Activity recommendations"(1809 only) is optional.
May 2019 (1903) / November 2019
Cortana can be configured through Windows Settings > Cortana.
In the Talk to Cortana page, set "Let Cortana respond to Hey Cortana" and"Use Cortana even when my device is locked" to off.
In Permissions > Manage the information Cortana can access from this device, Merging recommends you set all to off.
In Windows Settings > Search > Permissions & History, set "Windows Cloud Search" to off. Turning off "My device history" is optional.& History, set "Windows Cloud Search" to off. Turning off "My device history" is optional.
Taskbar
Right click on the taskbar to access its configuration.
Merging recommends you turn off the News and interests, and disable Show Cortana and Show Taskview.
Taskview may cause glitches if used during real-time operation, it is therefore recommended to not use it while recording or other critical operation.
Windows Store Apps auto-update
Merging recommends you disable the auto updates on Windows Apps, for better performance.
Open Windows Store, and click on the profile icon on the top right corner and select settings (On Spring Creator, click on the ... icon)
Set “Update apps automatically” and show products on tile to offor "App updates" (depending on your Windows Store version).
OneDrive configuration / uninstall
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RAVENNA ASIO users have to set WOL & Shutdown Link Speed to Not Speed Down.
For better performance, RAVENNA ASIO users should use a dedicated RAVENNA network adapter.
Find more details on this page.
Please also follow the Native recommendations from this page.
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In both case, Merging recommends you disable updates from other computers (your computer can receive, but also send updates directly to other computers, costing computer resources and network bandwidth) .
Go in Windows Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > Advanced options > Choose how updates are deliveredDelivery Optimization.
“Updates from more than one place”“Allow downloads from other PCs” should be set to off. The second option will be automatically disabled.
DPC LATENCY CHECK
To handle real time application, the CPU gets a defined amount of time to perform the required tasks.
If those tasks are delayed, the result is usually drop-outs in the signal.
A common tool to verify if your computer is able to handle real-time audio was DPC Latency Checker, but the reported values are false in Windows 8 and 10.
The alternative solution is to use the LatencyMon tool,
Download the tool and install it on your computer.
You can start the test by clicking on the Play icon on the top left corner.
To get useful results, the tool should run for quite some time (10 minutes minimum).
The driver or process using the highest DPC or ISR is clearly stated in the main window.
If you have too high values, you can get more detailed information in the Processes or Drivers tab.
Don't pay too much attention to the hard pagefault resolution time (last indicator)
If you have higher values, you will have to search for the driver/ device that is causing the issue by disabling them one by one.
Remember that some devices cannot be disabled, proceed with caution.
Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, LAN specific (usually ndis.sys),USB devices, on-board audio, PCI / PCIe devices are the common culprits.
On laptops, the ACPI battery driver is also a common problem (ACPI.sys), you can try to disable (do not uninstall!) the "Microsoft ACPI Compliant Control Method Battery" and "Microsoft AC Adapter" listed under Batteries in Windows Device Manager (but pay attention to not disable any other ACPI device listed under System devices, your computer may not start anymore !)
Note on Wi-Fi and Bluetooth : If you have DPC issues related to Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth, not only the driver might be the culprit, but also the stability of the Wi-Fi network (if the signal is not stable, the Wi-Fi adapter constantly have to work which will introduce DPC latencies) or the Bluetooth devices connected to your computer. Therefore this means that if Wi-Fi does not cause DPC issue in one place, it could in another place with unstable Wi-Fi. Same applies to Bluetooth, it may cause DPC issues with certain devices only.
Be careful if you want to use Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth on your computer.
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