One thought on “Surface Go Ep5 – Onboard Audio, latency, WASAPI and ASIO4ALL”

1. Nicely done, as always! I’m thinking of getting a Surface Go as a backup and light travel computer. So, not hardcore production (of course) but working on parts of projects, maybe some notation, maybe some software stuff (SuperCollider, say), things like that. Plus all the digital art and normal computer stuff. Anyway, your review helps a lot.

   Re Windows sound/Wasapi: I think it’s unacceptable and weird for music software not to support Wasapi. Wasapi was introduced in Windows Vista, some 14 years ago. It’s ridiculous for software to advertise Windows 10 when their audio support is pre-Vista!

   I don’t consider ASIO4ALL to be a viable alternative. I have problems with crashes, noise bursts, and, at best, the need to go into that awful interface and change settings manually. (It doesn’t always respond well to things like plugging in/unplugging headphones, and also causes problems when you start/stop using an external interface.) And audio interfaces, too — if they don’t have their own driver, beware! Many audio interfaces require ASIO4ALL and all of its problems. My system and I have been much happier since I uninstalled ASIO4ALL and stopped using software and hardware that required it.

   It really seems unacceptable to me that professional audio software should handle audio by saying — either use pre-Vista audio drivers (MME/DirectX), or use a 15-year-old non-commercial software package that hasn ‘t been updated for 5 years.

   Oh, and also — yes, as you say, the performance of Wasapi is really excellent. I use an external interface when I can, of course, but it’s nice to have a fully-functioning music computer that gives you strong performance on its own. As you note in the review, it wouldn’t make a lot of sense to get a teensy computer but have to use a bagful of external gear to use it.

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