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Terrible Logic Pro X Performance (M1 MAX MacBook Pro)


SomeMusicKid44

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I am beyond confused with my M1 Max MacBook Pro running current Logic Pro X and macOS Monterey. I'm getting constant clicks and pops and CPU spikes, sustained midi notes that will not stop even when I unplug my Midi Controller.

 

For CPU issues in the performance meter it's always the Processing Threads far right that spike all the way to the top. I have Logic set to use all cores but it never does during recording and tracking. I'm using UVI Falcon which is M1 Native but this happens even with intensive Alchemy Patches. Clicks and pops everywhere smh.

 

I hope someone can help me understand what the heck is going on. Very frustrating to be having this kind of performance on a $5k machine. 64gb Ram and 4TB SSD M1 Max 16 inch model. I'll also attach a screenshot of this happening on a bass patch only being played from Lo-Fi dreams UVI Falcon expansion. This can't be the performance I'm supposed to be getting?

 

1809585693_ScreenShot2021-11-24at8_47_55AM.thumb.png.7225befb00f36e2b597aa97b85416e44.png

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  • 2 weeks later...
I looked at the developer's website here:

 

https://www.uvi.net/lofi-dreams.html#specs

 

and the specs state that it's good only through Mac OS 10.15 Catalina. So that instrument may not run on your machine.

 

Jim

 

Appreciate the reply! But the actual library runs inside UVI Falcon which is M1 Native. And this is only one plugin issue I'm having with Logic. Kontakt, Alchemy and even Sampler seem to have these weird CPU spikes on tracking. But Playback of a large full session I can play everything back no problem at super low buffers.

 

I think the way Logic is handling the cores is causing the issues. Very weird behavior interested to know if anyone else has run into any issues! Seems to be when I click on an instrument and get ready to play the CPU will spike but when I record it is normal. No clue what's happening!

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I think the way Logic is handling the cores is causing the issues. Very weird behavior interested to know if anyone else has run into any issues! Seems to be when I click on an instrument and get ready to play the CPU will spike but when I record it is normal. No clue what's happening!

 

I have a similar issue on my M1 Max - however the popping/cracking is happening on a single track of a stock instrument plugin. With video proof - https://bit.ly/3lzxlT8

 

Not sure if my issue is the same cause as yours, but I'd imagine the M1 Max should be handling this way better!

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I have a similar issue on my M1 Max - however the popping/cracking is happening on a single track of a stock instrument plugin. With video proof - https://bit.ly/3lzxlT8

 

Not sure if my issue is the same cause as yours, but I'd imagine the M1 Max should be handling this way better!

 

 

Indeed it should be handling this way better! My older late 2013 MBP retina doesn’t even have this issue. Which is very strange behavior.

 

If the CPU in the M1 MAX is supposed to be this powerful beast where you can throw anything at it, then I am patiently waiting to see it!

 

It is blazing fast and the performance (when working properly) is fantastic, so maybe the current Logic on Monterey just has a lot of bugs. Maybe they should think about adding a “power mode” to Logic for M1 Max computers to really take advantage of the power of the machine. Seems like some kind of bottleneck is happening IMO.

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Same here, i get random cpu spikes, random midi notes hanging, crackles turning into feedback... with a 16" M1 pro macbook pro.

Logic Pro feels messy in native mode. I'm only using M1 plugins btw. There's also this small window then big regular window bug when you open some third party plugins.

 

Overall, i guess we're too early. I expected better from Apple. Final Cut Pro on the other hand seems really well optimized and runs very well.

 

I've posted on the official apple forum and invite you to do the same, maybe we'll get some traction.

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253438656

 

edit : my post got removed....

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Same here, i get random cpu spikes, random midi notes hanging, crackles turning into feedback... with a 16" M1 pro macbook pro.

Logic Pro feels messy in native mode. I'm only using M1 plugins btw. There's also this small window then big regular window bug when you open some third party plugins.

 

Overall, i guess we're too early. I expected better from Apple. Final Cut Pro on the other hand seems really well optimized and runs very well.

 

I've posted on the official apple forum and invite you to do the same, maybe we'll get some traction.

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253438656

 

edit : my post got removed....

 

Yeah I agree Logic doesn't seem ready for the new chips. Maybe Logic Pro 11 is coming and they are saving some of the powerful features for that? This scenario is why I skipped the first apple M1 generation thinking when these newer and more powerful chips are released, Logic and most of the plugins I use will be native and less buggy. Guess it's still too soon!

 

I'm gonna post on the official apple forum as well and try to link to this topic so hopefully the Logic devs can see multiple users are reporting this kind of behavior. I wonder why your post got removed on the official forum?

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I reformulated my post and it passed this time :

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253438649

 

edit : looks my message disappeared again...

edit : it re-appeared... go figure

 

What soundcard are you all using ? I'm doing some tests using only the built in soundcard and so far things seem to go better.

 

edit : more tests : soundcard seems to be at fault. Internal really is more stable. Well, i thought most bugs would have been ironed out by now, but no.

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Here too! Problems with cracking sounds in Logic Pro 10.7.1 CLICKS / POPS immediately after playing and selecting between channels! iMac Pro, Big Sur 11.6.1

 

 

 

I am beyond confused with my M1 Max MacBook Pro running current Logic Pro X and macOS Monterey. I'm getting constant clicks and pops and CPU spikes, sustained midi notes that will not stop even when I unplug my Midi Controller.

 

For CPU issues in the performance meter it's always the Processing Threads far right that spike all the way to the top. I have Logic set to use all cores but it never does during recording and tracking. I'm using UVI Falcon which is M1 Native but this happens even with intensive Alchemy Patches. Clicks and pops everywhere smh.

 

I hope someone can help me understand what the heck is going on. Very frustrating to be having this kind of performance on a $5k machine. 64gb Ram and 4TB SSD M1 Max 16 inch model. I'll also attach a screenshot of this happening on a bass patch only being played from Lo-Fi dreams UVI Falcon expansion. This can't be the performance I'm supposed to be getting?

 

Screen%20Shot%202021-11-24%20at%208.47.55%20AM.png

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I've done a lot of tests and i'm still scratching my head. The most annoying issue is that playback often restarts randomly at the beginning of the looped section.

 

- I thought my RME drivers were at fault, but i have the same issue with the built in soundcard of my ROde NTG usb mic.

- Running the session through the internal soundcard = zero issue, either native or rosetta.

- Opening the same session in Rosetta mode and it seems to be much more stable

- I'm currently using my Philips monitor soundcard (plugged through a usb hub then a displayport port) and it seems fairly stable

 

 

Can you all confirm you get the same issues using the internal soundcard ? Using rosetta instead of native ?

 

Thanks

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I've done a lot of tests and i'm still scratching my head. The most annoying issue is that playback often restarts randomly at the beginning of the looped section.

 

- I thought my RME drivers were at fault, but i have the same issue with the built in soundcard of my ROde NTG usb mic.

- Running the session through the internal soundcard = zero issue, either native or rosetta.

- Opening the same session in Rosetta mode and it seems to be much more stable

- I'm currently using my Philips monitor soundcard (plugged through a usb hub then a displayport port) and it seems fairly stable

 

 

Can you all confirm you get the same issues using the internal soundcard ? Using rosetta instead of native ?

 

Thanks

 

 

I'm having clicks and pops when selecting between channels no matter the internal soundcard or the universal audio apollo is selected.

Also having laggy UI when looping midi regions more than 2 minutes long.

Please report the bug ASAP!

https://www.apple.com/feedback/logic-pro.html

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Can you all report that you get the same issues playing the MONTERO session by Lil Nas X ? So we're all on the same page. You can download it using file > new > demo sessions.

 

The session has zero third party plugins, and runs perfectly on the built in soundcard here, but i get random restarts with my babyface.

 

I did do a bug report yesterday.

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and has anyone (especially anyone with a newer mac and applecare) contacted apple about this? because complaining on an internet forum is not much of a fix.

 

i had a logic-specific issue a few years ago; called apple, got forwarded to someone on the 'logic support team', and got help. seems worth trying...

 

These issues seem to be something that will need to be fixed in a future update. Not something they can actually fix over the phone or via chat, although I won't rule that out as every time I have called Apple over the phone support has been excellent. This just seems like a software issue with the current version of Logic and Monterey not playing well together. Could be wrong though I have a call setup later today and hope they can shed some light on what's going on.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Not sure if this would help in your specific case but you could try downgrading to Logic 10.6.1. Runs without issues on my M1Max with 64Gb over here. I'm running 100's of instances of Kontakt at the same time (in Rosetta mode). I tried native M1 mode and it seems to work just fine too.

 

Also check Activity Monitor if anything is happening in the background that could cause CPU spikes such as spotlight indexing e t c.

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  • 4 weeks later...

I was having similar issues a while ago, when I first got the machine, and fixed it by setting the Processing Threads to 10 (based on a YouTube video's advice). After that it ran beautifully... until recently... Stupidly, I didn't keep track of exactly when it changed, but it was sudden, and I think it was the 10.7.2 update that borked it for me. Going to see if I can roll back to 10.7.1 to test.

 

I should note that I noticed two things, rather suddenly: 1) horrific MIDI latency, and 2) pops and clicks during playback. The MIDI latency can be solved by going into low latency mode, but I've never had to do that before, so it seems pretty ridiculous that I have to now.

 

Also, it seems I'm not able to downgrade... Wtf, Apple??? I swear, they are the Overlords of Hubris. (Yes, Apple, regression bugs are a thing...)

 

Anybody have any advice on how I might downgrade Logic?

(I'm on Monterey 12.2... new machine, using something other than Monterey isn't an option...)

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It's a good habit to make a copy of the Logic app in case this happens.

 

Apple doesn't do downgrades on the App Store.

 

First thing you should do is to turn off automatic updates in your System preferences.

 

Logic updates fix things and break other ones. It's always been like that. That's why I have a copy of almost every Logic app version since 10.2

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Actually, can anybody report on a version of Logic that's working without issue on an M1 Pro or M1 Max? I know @a-stream mentioned being fine on 10.6.1.

As I mentioned, I think mine was fine on 10.7.1, but I can't recall for sure. I definitely had it running fine on this machine (16" M1 Pro).

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Logic 10.7.2

M1 Max 64gb Ram OS 12.1

It is unusable here. Rosetta a bit better. I get constant cpu spikes crackles playhead jumping back etc.

Same result with Native and Rosetta, only Logic plugins and nothing connected. Nothing makes a difference.

BY the way weirdly 128 buffer works better than 512 or 1048!

Old projects do not run without problems. New projects with few plugins cause random core spikes even idle.

 

 

There is an ongoing discussion about it over at Apple Logic Forum.

Seems Apple does not acknowledge the problem but nonetheless I hope a fix is coming soon

 

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253438649

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Okay, so just updating here: my friend sent me a copy of 10.6.2 from his machine. So far, so good—MIDI latency issue is gone, playback seems fine. I'll report back if things go south on a longer session, but the MIDI latency being solved is a big giveaway that something has changed significantly. I've literally never had to use the "Low Latency Mode" before, and that's the only way I could get responsive MIDI on 10.7.2. (And I'm not talking about razor-sharp MIDI here—on 10.7.2 it was in the ballpark of 500ms, so, completely absurd and obviously very wrong.)

 

It's honestly so idiotic that Apple doesn't have a public repo for older versions. The idea that every new version is perfect for everybody, on every system out there, is just complete madness. Apple is such a weird combination of brilliant and moronic. Hard to understand...

 

PS: Logic did warn about my current session being created on a newer version of Logic, suggesting there might be issues, but I haven't noticed anything thus far.

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If there is any possibility to also get a copy of Logic 10.6x that would be extra swell. On my old machine I only got to 10.5.1 which is impossible to install on ARM Macs

I'm in the same boat with a M1Pro 16" 32GB and it's ridiculous Logic performance. Jumping between reddit, this thread and apple discussion looking for a solution.

Possible silver lining: After an hour on the phone with apple Support one member of the "Logicdepartment" told me that in the next 2 Weeks there will be an Update although not knowing, if it adresses our issues.

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After your Tip I also found a friend with 10.6.2. At first I thought that everything was perfect, but unfortunately the clicking and popping came back.

What is confusing to me is that the new Macbooks and Logic 10.7 seem to work for some people, hence the rave reviews. So I sometimes think that there might be something wrong with my Macbook... I have 3 Days left to send it back and am still undecided.

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