When it comes to computer-based music production having the appropriate level of hardware is crucial. But having hopefully heeded our advice in "Your Computer: Is it ready for digital audio?" you now need to consider how to optimize your equipment. It's rather like buying a great guitar made from the best materials and using custom pickups etc., but still needing to set up the action, polish the fretboard, and put on a new set of strings.

Not only are there are many factors to consider when optimizing a computer for running Cubase, there are also different tasks depending on whether you are using a Mac or a PC. Whichever, if you possibly can, reserve a computer that is dedicated to audio processing. Computer manufacturers would like you to believe that the computer is an all-encompassing, all-knowing creature but music production involves a fairly taxing set of skills and any system that doesn't also have to deal with your email, your home movies, and your taxes, will give you better and more consistent service.

On the Mac (which should be running OS X 10.3.3 or higher) it may be a good idea to set up one account for audio, and one for performing any other tasks. There are many ways to conserve resources, such as storing most of the fonts in the other account. There are also applications available for turning off some of the processor-draining effects that make the display so attractive.

There are many things that can be done in System Settings. Here are some examples:

1. Un-check all options in Sound Effects.
2. Choose a plain, one color desktop background
3. Disable the sleep settings in the Energy Saver menus.

There are numerous online resources dedicated to resource-saving tweaks for the Mac. If you want the smoothest ride for your music production endeavors, spend a little time searching these out.

For the PC also there are a number of tweaks that can greatly improve the performance. Here are two simple pieces of advice to get you started:

1. Have a separate user profile for audio only. This not only helps conserve some resources, it also helps you keep track of what startup programs are running.

2. If you are not running this already, Cubase prefers the Windows XP Home/Pro operating system. This OS includes a readily accessible tweak that optimizes the performance of ASIO drivers (these are the primary sound drivers for most PC compatible studio audio cards). The setting can be found by going to the Control Panel and double clicking the System icon. When the System Properties window appears, choose Advanced > Performance > Settings > Advanced, then under Processor Scheduling select Background Services as shown.