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Third-Party Plugin GUIs Lagging in Studio One

Zikax

New member
I’ve noticed that the GUIs of third-party plugins, such as Waves and others, are lagging and stuttering in Studio One.
The only way to fix this issue is by disabling Graphics Hardware Acceleration in the settings.
This problem has been known for quite some time, but unfortunately, no action has been taken to address it yet. It’s frustrating, especially for users relying on a smooth workflow.
Has anyone else experienced this? Are there any updates or workarounds besides disabling the hardware acceleration?
 
I’ve noticed that the GUIs of third-party plugins, such as Waves and others, are lagging and stuttering in Studio One.
The only way to fix this issue is by disabling Graphics Hardware Acceleration in the settings.
This problem has been known for quite some time, but unfortunately, no action has been taken to address it yet. It’s frustrating, especially for users relying on a smooth workflow.
Has anyone else experienced this? Are there any updates or workarounds besides disabling the hardware acceleration?
You say "this problem has been known for quite some time", then "has anyone else experienced this?".
I don't see this in either S7 or any version before it. What version of S1, what OS, what plugins and what are your system specs?
 
I’ve noticed that the GUIs of third-party plugins, such as Waves and others, are lagging and stuttering in Studio One.
The only way to fix this issue is by disabling Graphics Hardware Acceleration in the settings.
This problem has been known for quite some time, but unfortunately, no action has been taken to address it yet. It’s frustrating, especially for users relying on a smooth workflow.
Has anyone else experienced this? Are there any updates or workarounds besides disabling the hardware acceleration?

Concur with AAV - and I do not even have a third party video card - just the GPU internal to my CPU driving a Samsung TV for my main monitor.

AND I have Waves and all the other usual suspects here - all appear on screen instantly.

You need to divulge your OS, computer hardware, graphics layout and anything else that could be contributing to this.

VP
 
I’ve noticed that the GUIs of third-party plugins, such as Waves and others, are lagging and stuttering in Studio One.
The only way to fix this issue is by disabling Graphics Hardware Acceleration in the settings.
This problem has been known for quite some time, but unfortunately, no action has been taken to address it yet. It’s frustrating, especially for users relying on a smooth workflow.
Has anyone else experienced this? Are there any updates or workarounds besides disabling the hardware acceleration?
Please update your signature (see link and example in mine) with your system specs as this helps in responding to posts.
 
The only way to fix this issue is by disabling Graphics Hardware Acceleration in the settings.

I do not even see this option in Settings - like anywhere.

What "Options" tab are you looking at - and what version of S1 are you using?

VP
 
Thank you for the quick response.
I’m using a MacBook Pro M2 Pro with macOS Sequoia 15.1.

Currently, I’m working with Studio One 7, but I’ve been using the software since Studio One 3. There have already been threads about this issue in the old Studio One forum, and if you search online, you’ll find plenty of discussions on this topic. As mentioned earlier, the only way to resolve this problem is by disabling Graphics Hardware Acceleration under Settings > General.

To clarify, this issue only occurs in Studio One. In other DAWs I use, such as Logic, Cubase, or Live, plugin GUIs run smoothly without any stuttering.
Additionally, not all plugins are affected. Studio One’s native plugins work perfectly fine. However, I’ve noticed this issue specifically with Waves plugins, which I use most frequently.
 
As mentioned earlier, the only way to resolve this problem is by disabling Graphics Hardware Acceleration under Settings > General.

Must be Mac only. No such setting in Windows.

VP
 
I have an old Mac Pro and a Windows desktop and laptop and do not see this here. On 3 machines in total. Even if there is an issue it's not a widespread one, not even on the Mac platform. So, there must be something less common contributing to what you experience. That is not to say the problem is with you, knowing that most other people do not see what you experience is a clue you can use to further investigate for a solution. This also means that you really really need to update your signature to include you system specs and other info (like Trucky asked three times now) so whenever you ask something we will know that information and don't have to ask.
 
Thank you, everyone! I will update my signature tonight. I’ll also make a video to show you what I mean, if I manage to get around to it.
 
I ran into this yesterday. Ultimately, there were two different issues.

Mac Pro M4, Sequoia, latest S7. The first was a failing USB hub causing my Softube Console One to misbehave. When I disabled the Console One (either by unplugging it or quitting the Console One tasks that run on system startup), it behaved better. Now, I should stress that this made my mouse stutter, not just the GUI. Bypassing the hub fixed the problem. I doubt that this is your issue.

Unfortunately, the project that I subsequently opened had the third party GUIs running slowly. This turned out to be the VST3 version of native UAD Waterfall B3. Replacing that with AU version took care of it, and all of the plugins ran fine afterwards.

Since I had been flipping between PC and Mac with my projects, I used VST3 to maintain compatibility. This is the second instance where replacing it with the AU version fixed it. I can't remember what the first plugin was, but I do remember that the GUI was blank when I opened it. AU worked fine.
 
I have not seen this issue at all here. But with any sort of USB hub it is essential the hub has a powerful power supply. Like 70 Watts or more. The better USB hubs run on 12V not 5V as well. I had some strange behaviour with one of my earlier USB hubs but since investing in a decent one with a hefty power supply no such issues have happened. Underpowered USB hubs can cause all sorts of issues with MAC computers. In fact my Mac Studio decided to shut one of my USB ports down due to an underpowered hub. I thought it would need repairing but it righted itself after a while.

Also i am using a rather expensive monitor with a 144 Hz refresh rate. At first I did not think the higher refresh rate was necessary in a music production environment but now I have changed my view on that. It really does make a difference here and there in a few places.
 
In my case, the hub was failing, and is now completely dead. I'd been using it for 2 years, and currently it won't recognize a single USB stick (with nothing else plugged in). Sometime stuff dies...

Hey, but I did manage to fix a single cup Keurig coffee maker that wouldn't power on today. That's a win!
 
In my case, the hub was failing, and is now completely dead. I'd been using it for 2 years, and currently it won't recognize a single USB stick (with nothing else plugged in). Sometime stuff dies...

Hey, but I did manage to fix a single cup Keurig coffee maker that wouldn't power on today. That's a win!
I got one of those too. Did you reset the thermal fuse somehow?
 
I got one of those too. Did you reset the thermal fuse somehow?
Yes, that's easy to do. There is a small hole in it that you hit with a paper clip. The issue is taking that puzzle box apart without breaking the plastic clips. That was nasty. Though there are videos online, there are multiple models of the Keurig Supreme, and they come apart in very different ways.

Now, back to plugins!
 
I’ve noticed that the GUIs of third-party plugins, such as Waves and others, are lagging and stuttering in Studio One.
The only way to fix this issue is by disabling Graphics Hardware Acceleration in the settings.
This problem has been known for quite some time, but unfortunately, no action has been taken to address it yet. It’s frustrating, especially for users relying on a smooth workflow.
Has anyone else experienced this? Are there any updates or workarounds besides disabling the hardware acceleration?
Same here with Sequoia 15.2 and Mac Mini M4 Pro.
 
I use S1 on multiple Win,(7-11), machines and have had some VST graphics issues on some machines.
In some cases it was due to older 32 bit plugs needing an earlier MS Runtime. But in some cases,
with some newer plugins, I'd get a blank black screen when instantiating the plugin. Some newer
plugins, (such as several of Pulsar's latest offerings), require OpenGL to be enabled. That is, unfortunately
not possible with some older GPU's.
 
Everyone on a Mac: check your plugins‘ compatibility: if you are using WAVES as AU versions, then it is no wonder if you have issues, as WAVES do not support AU in Studio One. Use VST3 for everything and you will probably be fine.
 
Everyone on a Mac: check your plugins‘ compatibility: if you are using WAVES as AU versions, then it is no wonder if you have issues, as WAVES do not support AU in Studio One. Use VST3 for everything and you will probably be fine.
Oddly enough, I had a lagging Waves 14 plug VST3 yesterday (CLA Mixdown). Changed it to the AU version, and all was well.

And, yes, I'm behind on my Waves releases. Waves 14 is not supported on Sequoia. But, WUP is expensive, and I can get them to work. I'm also way down these days on the number of Waves plugins I use.
 
This also happens to me with Waves plugins, I can't recall any other brand causing issues. The controls become really laggy, dragging the slider on RVox for example is a chore, it stutters and jumps instead of having a smooth motion. I never tried disabling graphics acceleration nor would I want to, the solution is worse than the problem. I'd say this one is on Waves...
 
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