How to fix a recording that sounds slightly late

A recording that lands slightly behind the beat is almost always a latency problem, and Loop by Zaweba gives you two settings to fix it. Adjust the latency compensation setting for recording and the buffer in Tools > Preferences, then record the part again. Once they are set for your computer and your microphone or interface, new takes should sit where you played them.

Here is why it happens, how to set things up, and how to check you have got it right without guesswork.

Why recordings come out late

Sound takes a little time to get through your computer. When you press play, Loop sends audio to your speakers through a buffer, a short queue that keeps the sound smooth. You hear the backing track a fraction of a second after Loop has played it. You then play along with what you hear, and your microphone or line input takes its own small delay to get your playing back into the program.

Add those together and the part you just recorded is placed a few milliseconds after where you meant it. On a slow pad you may never notice. On drums, a guitar strum or a vocal that starts on the beat, it sounds sloppy.

The two settings that matter

The buffer is set in Tools > Preferences (Ctrl+,), anywhere from 10 to 200 ms, with 30 ms as the default. A shorter buffer makes everything feel more immediate, which helps when you are playing a MIDI keyboard or singing along. A longer one avoids dropouts and crackles on a busy song or a slower computer. Loop uses shared-mode WASAPI, so there will always be some delay; the aim is to keep it small and steady.

Latency compensation is a setting for audio recording. It tells Loop how far to shift a new recording earlier so it lines up with the backing. Get it right once and every take is moved back into place for you.

Finding the right settings

Start with the buffer. Open Tools > Preferences and choose the sound output you actually use. Try a shorter buffer than the default if your computer copes, and play the song back. If you hear clicks or gaps, go back up a step. Pick the shortest setting that plays cleanly.

Then make a test recording. Add an audio track (Track > Add audio track), turn on the metronome with M and set a count-in of a bar or two. Arm and record with R, and clap or tap sharply on each click for a few bars.

Look at the clip on the grid next to the beat lines, or zoom in with Ctrl+wheel to see it more clearly. If the claps sit just after each beat, raise the latency compensation and record another test. If they now sit just before, you have gone too far. A few passes usually find the spot.

Keeping it fixed

Any time you change the buffer, change your sound output or plug in a different microphone or interface, the delay changes too, so run the clap test again. It takes a minute and saves a lot of fiddling later.

Takes help here. Every pass over the same place is kept, so you can record a test, adjust, record again and compare without losing anything. Choose between them from the clip's right-click menu or the Instrument tab.

When a single part is still out

If one take is late and the rest are fine, the setting is not the problem; the playing is. That happens to everyone. Drag the clip slightly earlier, or record another take now that the click is fresh in your ears. Undo (Ctrl+Z) takes you back if a nudge makes it worse.

For MIDI parts recorded from a keyboard or the computer keys, timing can also be tidied after the fact with quantise in the piano roll, which is a separate fix from latency and works on notes rather than audio.