Something I’ve noticed is that certain modules in VCV take a lot more CPU than equivalent modules in various synth VSTs (eg, oscillators or filter modules). To be clear, I don’t intend this as a criticism at all – Rack is a lot more robust than a VST synth, and the oscillators and filters in Rack sound very good. I’m just curious as to why an average oscillator/filter in Rack will use more CPU than most oscillators/filters in VST synth plugins.
How did you measure it?
In Rack, I use F3 to see CPU usage for both (I’m running the VSTs inside Host).
There are many factors, and most require computer science/engineering/architecture knowledge to understand. VST synths use frame buffers which allow more proper use of SIMD, and instruction/data cache hits are more likely.
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Ok, I see. Thanks!
I’m also wondering how graphical interfaces impact on cpu usage.
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