Wish Exceeded CPU not to cut all of the preset off

[Dixiethedog]

I have come from an AX8 where if the CPU was hitting its limit it would normally cut the reverb off but still allow you to use the preset.

On my FM3 when you have a CPU "overload" none of the preset is playable to play.

I uploaded what I thought was an FM3 preset (which overloaded the CPU) and had to go into the edit and remove multiple FX's before I could get any sound. And this (from memory) was deleting delay, reverb, chorus and stripping things down to almost just an amp and cab!

This is the preset, from the FM3 section. Even stripped down it still sounds great though.

 

[usersnoozer]

I have come from an AX8 where if the CPU was becoming to its limit it would normally cut the reverb off but still allow you to use the preset.

On my FM3 when you have a CPU "overload" none of the preset is playable to play.

I uploaded what I thought was an FM3 preset (which overloaded the CPU) and had to go into the edit and remove multiple FX's before I could get any sound. And this (from memory) was deleting delay, reverb, chorus and stripping things down to almost just an amp and cab!

This is the preset, from the FM3 section. Even stripped down it still sounds great though.

Love that in the bolded.

+1

 

[Greg Ferguson]

I have come from an AX8 where if the CPU was becoming to its limit it would normally cut the reverb off but still allow you to use the preset.

On my FM3 when you have a CPU "overload" none of the preset is playable to play.

What is the CPU % display at that point?

 

[Dixiethedog]

What is the CPU % display at that point?

The next time I plug in I will check the CPU%. I just recall that it was a red flashing CPU indicator and no output.

 

[Dixiethedog]

Love that in the bolded.

+1

LOL, I changed the wording. It now says something more like what I should have typed on the first time around.

 

[Greg Ferguson]

The next time I plug in I will check the CPU%. I just recall that it was a red flashing CPU indicator and no output.

Like you said about the AX8, the modeler's priority is to process the sound, but some blocks, and some models in the blocks, require more CPU than others and the amount can change during audio processing and switching channels/scenes. According to Cliff, and we haven't heard anything different for the current generation, when the more CPU-hungry blocks begin affecting the sound they'll be disabled in an attempt to keep the sound output, but eventually it's a critical problem and all sound is killed so the unit can still respond to the interface so that we can manually correct the problem. That's why I'm a proponent of splitting "kitchen sink" presets into multiple presets, to reduce the load and improve the reliability. (I try to keep mine below 75% because firmware updates can bump up the load until the developers have a chance to optimize, and I don't like having to babysit my presets when that happens.)

Importing presets from the FM9 or FX3 is a good way to overwhelm the FM3's CPU - heh, I locked up the FX3 Mk II once by pulling in an overly ambitious FX3 Turbo preset. I'll import them into the FX3 first, and then make my changes there then export to the FM units.

 

[DC11GTR]

I have come from an AX8 where if the CPU was hitting its limit it would normally cut the reverb off but still allow you to use the preset.

On my FM3 when you have a CPU "overload" none of the preset is playable to play.

I uploaded what I thought was an FM3 preset (which overloaded the CPU) and had to go into the edit and remove multiple FX's before I could get any sound. And this (from memory) was deleting delay, reverb, chorus and stripping things down to almost just an amp and cab!

This is the preset, from the FM3 section. Even stripped down it still sounds great though.

It is an FM3 preset. It was made on the turbo and peaked at about 84%. Deleting the Flange dropped it to 77% and dumping the Wah was another few.

When I made this, I was trying to think of ways to lower the usage but I’m not as knowledgeable as the veteran users. I know that there are some tricks, like tweaking a delay to have a chorus effects, and things like that but I’m only just learning about those recently. As in I watched Leon’s video yesterday lol

 

[Dixiethedog]

It is an FM3 preset. It was made on the turbo and peaked at about 84%. Deleting the Flange dropped it to 77% and dumping the Wah was another few.

When I made this, I was trying to think of ways to lower the usage but I’m not as knowledgeable as the veteran users. I know that there are some tricks, like tweaking a delay to have a chorus effects, and things like that but I’m only just learning about those recently. As in I watched Leon’s video yesterday lol

I think your preset is great, even if in my case it is stripped down. My FM3 is a non-turbo.

The "wish" I was making was in no way a criticism of your preset, it was simply using it as a talking point in a way.
My good old AX8 would remain in a working mode if a preset was going into CPU overload, and would in general turn the reverb off to save CPU and allow the show to go on. The FM3 just puts the brakes on and won't play until you go in and alter, modify, or switch things off.

You are right in what you say about tips and tricks that can be picked up from the likes of Leon. Where there's a will, there's a way! Even though I owned an AX8 before the FM3, I still find that every day is a learning day when you check out what people are posting here or on YouTube.

 

[DC11GTR]

I wasn't taking it as criticism. It was a hope of mine that an elite user would take the preset and tweak it but I don't think anyone is interested in doing that lol

 

[Dixiethedog]

I wasn't taking it as criticism. It was a hope of mine that an elite user would take the preset and tweak it but I don't think anyone is interested in doing that lol

If I was an elite user (which I am not!!!) I would love to have been able to offer some tweaking advice. I think all of the real experts (and I don't mean this in any way disrespectful to us FM3 users) own the Axe 3s which can load up everything and the kitchen sink without any hint of the CPU hitting its limits. So, most of them would probably not even look in this forum section.

 

[Dixiethedog]

It is an FM3 preset. It was made on the turbo and peaked at about 84%. Deleting the Flange dropped it to 77% and dumping the Wah was another few.

When I made this, I was trying to think of ways to lower the usage but I’m not as knowledgeable as the veteran users. I know that there are some tricks, like tweaking a delay to have a chorus effects, and things like that but I’m only just learning about those recently. As in I watched Leon’s video yesterday lol

You had me on a journey of discovery last week with Eric Johnson's music and I hold my head in shame with this. Your preset is working superbly on my FM3. I think that my CPU was going crazy when I tried to use (I think?) some Axe 3 EJ presets on my FM3. This will be the reason why I had to delete, shunt, FXs, etc to get a sound. So I offer my humble apology for my stupidity.

However, I still save my wish that the FM3 would work even when the CPU limit is hit and act in the way the trusty old-fashioned out-of-date AX8 does. Just by cutting off the reverb and allowing you to play.

 

[Anton Karelin]

+1

 

[weird guitar person]

I have come from an AX8 where if the CPU was hitting its limit it would normally cut the reverb off but still allow you to use the preset.

On my FM3 when you have a CPU "overload" none of the preset is playable to play.

I uploaded what I thought was an FM3 preset (which overloaded the CPU) and had to go into the edit and remove multiple FX's before I could get any sound. And this (from memory) was deleting delay, reverb, chorus and stripping things down to almost just an amp and cab!

This is the preset, from the FM3 section. Even stripped down it still sounds great though.

Has to be some model specific voodoo involved with the runtime memory management to anticipate the limit vs shutting down upon reaching a limit? If the AXE8 handled it differently, I imagine there’s been discussion before?

 

[Greg Ferguson]

My good old AX8 would remain in a working mode if a preset was going into CPU overload, and would in general turn the reverb off to save CPU and allow the show to go on. The FM3 just puts the brakes on and won't play until you go in and alter, modify, or switch things off.

The AX8 would do what the FM3 does if it was pushed too far.

From the Wiki:

(AX8) "If I am reading these posts correctly, it sounds as though folks seem to think that an effects CPU usage is a static thing. That is, if I use a compressor in my preset it uses X% of the CPU. This is not actually how it works. CPU usage fluctuates as you use the device. That is, depending on what an effect is doing, or how it is configured, the CPU usage will vary dynamically. The AX8 monitors and manages the CPU usage. This is done for two reasons: (1) If CPU load gets too high, then the audio is effected (2) If CPU load gets too high, the front panel (footswitches primarily) is adversely effected. The performance of preset, scenes, effect bypass, etc. starts to become effected. A lot of development time has been put into reducing these effects, but it is impossible to eliminate them entirely. Rather than just allow the AX8 to behave in an undesirable fashion, the unit manages the CPU load by disabling effects. The biggest offenders are disabled first in an effort to reduce the number of disabled effects. This typically means the REVERB block is the first effect disabled. The trick is to build your presets in a manner in which this does not happen when you are playing live. In other words, test your presets out and give yourself some head room for last minute changes whenever possible." [13]

 

[Greg Ferguson]

Has to be some model specific voodoo involved with the runtime memory management to anticipate the limit vs shutting down upon reaching a limit? If the AXE8 handled it differently, I imagine there’s been discussion before?

There is “voodoo”, yes, but it’s written into the code to prioritize sound generation and keep the modeler processing sound until the CPU is pushed too far.

See https://wiki.fractalaudio.com/wiki/index.php?title=CPU_usage for information or the quote from the Wiki in my previous post. ^^^

The algorithms changed as Fractal listened to people’s requests and based on their goals. Also how they report the CPU load has changed.

 

[weird guitar person]

There is “voodoo”, yes, but it’s written into the code to prioritize sound generation and keep the modeler processing sound until the CPU is pushed too far.

See https://wiki.fractalaudio.com/wiki/index.php?title=CPU_usage for information or the quote from the Wiki in my previous post. ^^^

The algorithms changed as Fractal listened to people’s requests and based on their goals. Also how they report the CPU load has changed.

Thanks for chiming in with the details. And I used “voodoo” tongue in cheek as a programmer responding far too early in the morning. Question mark was probably misplaced and the thought incomplete.

Anyhow, the hardware has changed. Thinking of the FM9 processing on a dedicated processor where shutting it off wouldn’t necessarily achieve what is desired. Dumb of me to speculate further.

 

[JoKeR III]

I wasn't taking it as criticism. It was a hope of mine that an elite user would take the preset and tweak it but I don't think anyone is interested in doing that lol

I'm not an elite user, but here's the preset with a couple of tweaks that make it usable on a non-turbo FM3. All I ask is that you play through it before looking for the tweaks to see if they are noticeable without knowing what they are.

 

[DC11GTR]

Lemme finish my “morning” coffee and I’ll take it out for a spin!!

 

[DC11GTR]

I'm not an elite user, but here's the preset with a couple of tweaks that make it usable on a non-turbo FM3. All I ask is that you play through it before looking for the tweaks to see if they are noticeable without knowing what they are.

Love it!! My ears don’t have the memory they used to have but I can’t really tell the difference. And even if I could, I wouldn’t be able to say one is better than the other. In fact, I might be using yours more often since that “blinking red warning” makes me nervous lol

What were the tweaks?

 

[JoKeR III]

Love it!! My ears don’t have the memory they used to have but I can’t really tell the difference. And even if I could, I wouldn’t be able to say one is better than the other. In fact, I might be using yours more often since that “blinking red warning” makes me nervous lol

What were the tweaks?

Cool! I reduced the Reverb 'Echo Density' to 4 and turned off the preamp in the Cab block.