How can I fix MIDI keyboard audio glitches in my DAW?

[JohnVR]

So I was trying to get this old MIDI keyboard to work with a new digital audio workstation, and after hours of fiddling with drivers, I finally got a signal. But now the audio is all glitchy and stuttering, even though my CPU usage is basically nothing. It’s like the software just can’t keep a steady buffer going, and I’m not sure where to even start troubleshooting that. Has anyone else hit a weird wall like this where the problem makes no sense?

[GaryM]

That stutter after you finally get a signal is maddening. I once had a MIDI keyboard do that until the clock between devices lined up. Have you tried matching the sample rate and the audio driver mode across everything?

[JonathanWW]

Glitchy audio with idle CPU usually means a buffer underflow or a USB bandwidth hiccup. Try bumping the audio buffer size, enable the correct ASIO/Core driver setting, and see if another USB device is stealing bandwidth.

[BenjaminJJ]

Feels like the problem isn't the keyboard at all but how the DAW handles timing when MIDI comes in. Maybe the MIDI input is triggering a lot of automation or plugins that spike occasionally.

[Emily92]

Here's a low effort isolator: run a minimal project with one MIDI track and one synth, then test with a standalone MIDI monitor. If the stutter disappears, the issue is your project chain rather than the keyboard.

[Aubrey.M]

I wouldn't assume the keyboard is cursed; maybe it's a clock mismatch, maybe a background process. Also check your OS power settings and USB sleep.

[Edward.M]

MIDI clock jitter is a thing that can bite you even when CPU is calm; it doesn't show up as CPU soak, but it makes timing drift.