Mixing with Stock default plugins

[LarryParticipant]

I recently wandered into the realm of M.2 NVMe  drives  and upgrading the memories and whatnots.  Got a sweetheart deal on a brand spankin 2TB NVMe drive I couldn't pass up, so I slammed it in there, thinking, performance-wise, there should be a massive improvement in overall workflow.  I mean, an NVMe drive can read/write at 7GBPS, vs a SATA drive craankin out at 600MBPS.  Between that upgrade, and the memory, I figured my issues in Cakewalk would abade......nope.  Cakewalk is every bit as clunky as folks say it is.  Crackles with only 40% CPU use (MAX) and negligible RAM usage (Maybe 3 gig MAX).  So, I know now, it is Cakewalk that is clunky, not the PC.  I may have to dabble into pro Tools again, or some other paid thing, but I really like being able to do this stuff for free.  To show folks you don't "need" to spend thousands upon thousands of dollars to get a decent sound.

 

Well...

 

When I did this, instead of migration, I opted for a fresh install of Winders, with just that, fully updated, then Cakewalk installed.  No other plugins.  No nothing.  Just the stock whatever it comes with.  I grabbed up "Come Together" and tossed that into a session, and started mixing away.  I wanted to see what I could do, with all the junk floating in my grey matter, with just a few simple plugins.  I may still do a version of it and then install all my goodies I use and go through it again with all my other stuff I do.  It is....difficult to say the least, to break it down to brass tacks, and  use a few basic plugins to get a competitive level and sound.  Sometimes I think  we forget how daunting this can be once we reach a level where we can crank out a decent sound, using all the aftermarket gizmos and doodads out there.

 

One thing is for sure tho...Cakewalk is a very clunky DAW.  They are planning on going to a paid model with it, and if the paid version is as lackluster as this free version, which has been being refined for what?  30 years now?  My only thought is that either they have an intentional cap on performance in there, to spur those of us who use this free version into a paid version (which would be kinda BS really), or this software has not been being "refined" correctly.  I'm no software engineer, but if your performance craps out at 32% CPU usage and barely touching the RAM, there is something wrong inside the software.  I could see bouncing off the limiter at 100% being an issue, but 32%?

 

We see.  In the mean time, I will prolly be working on "Come Together", and dropping 2 versions to compare stock plugins vs fancy plugins.  The beauty to both, in my case, is everything I use is, well, free.  I either got it for free with something, or saw the facebook ad for a free giveaway....whatever.  They were all free.  So, lets see what I can do with this.............and hope that I can get to 50% CPU....

 

Wonder if it is a power supply limitation........600w should be plenty.......hmmmm

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