Optimizing Your Kontakt Workflow, Part 2 (Spec check, DFD tweaks, CPU, bridging)

[zircon]

Part 2 has been published. Read and learn!

I've been developing Kontakt instruments for Impact Soundworks since 2008, and using the software since version 1 came out way back in 2002. Now that the plugin has become so widespread, it has more users than ever, but many people are unaware of some simple (yet powerful) features & functions to help improve their workflow.

So, I've decided to write a series of articles on the topic!

Part 1 starts with how to properly organize & load instruments. This sounds fairly basic, but you would be surprised how many emails we get from people who aren't sure of how to best do this.

http://impactsoundworks.com/optimizing-your-kontakt-workflow-part-1/

Part 2 discusses how CPU, RAM, HD & audio interface affect Kontakt performance, and covers tips for tweaking/hacking DFD settings, CPU optimization for multicore, and different bridging options.

http://impactsoundworks.com/optimizing-your-kontakt-workflow-part-2/

If there's something you want to see in this series, please let me know!

Edited February 18, 2014 by zircon

[timaeus222]

This is really helpful! I didn't know you could tag patches like you can in Guitar Rig, though I was really hoping you could!

[jnWake]

Nice! This is pretty cool especially since I recenty bought some of your ISW patches

[Argle]

Quick load is must-have for any Kontakt user, lets you create a patch structure just the way you want it with only the instruments you like. The only thing I don't like about quick load is the inability to cycle through patches in a quick load folder with the forward and back buttons, which instead cycles through patches in the source directory of the patch. Which defeats the purpose of me having this fancy-pants custom folder structure. Maybe someone can set me straight if I'm missing the obvious.

[MinnieMoog]

Would just like to say thank you very much for posting this. Kontakt's very fascinating, and there's a lot to learn within it. I'm looking forward to the second blog entry.

[zircon]

I've just written part 2, now available at our site! Hopefully this addresses some of the questions people were curious about after part 1, and of course we still have part 3 (and maybe 4) to go.

http://impactsoundworks.com/optimizing-your-kontakt-workflow-part-2/

Here I cover how different components of your computer affect Kontakt's performance, DFD tweaking, CPU settings (including multicore), bridging options, etc.

Excerpt:

As mentioned earlier, it’s possible to tweak the DFD streaming settings in Kontakt. This can be done globally or on a per-patch basis. The global route can be done by going to Options (in Kontakt’s top toolbar) -> Memory, then checking “Override Instrument’s preload size” and changing the value of the slider, like so:

Lower preload values mean less RAM used, but more CPU as more of the sample must be streamed from the hard drive. Higher values mean more RAM, but less CPU usage.

DFD tends to work better for libraries with fewer & longer samples. If you’re loading a library with 5,000 very small samples, then even with a small preload buffer, your memory usage will still creep up since each sample must have a memory footprint. As a result, you may want to tweak the DFD settings for instruments on an individual basis by first clicking on the ‘Wrench’ icon, then Instrument Options, then the DFD tab.

Note: As you can see, if you use the global override, you cannot edit instrument preload options.

There is one more way to tweak DFD settings to your liking, but first, a word of caution.

WARNING: Save backups of your NKI/NKM patches before trying the following edits!

Without getting too technical, an instrument (NKI) in Kontakt is composed of one or more “groups”. Each group can contain many “zones” (samples). Many modern libraries have dozens if not hundreds of groups, with delicate organization and naming. Changing group settings is generally a bad idea unless you know what you’re doing, BUT, this is also how you can shut off DFD completely, should you choose.

In any given instrument, hit the wrench icon, then open the Group Editor. One by one, click on each group, and find the dropdown pictured below. If “DFD” is selected, you can pick “Sampler” instead, and the entirety of that group’s samples will be loaded into RAM. No disk streaming! Depending on the instrument this may not even increase your RAM usage too significantly (i.e. groups with lots of small samples).

Do not touch groups with OTHER modes selected, like Time Machine Pro. These modes already do not use DFD, and changing them can mess up the instrument completely!

[ectogemia]

Awesome. Kontakt is a goddamn mystery to me. It'll be nice to read up on how to do stuff other than loading and routing