Additional Tracks Gradually Out of Sync

[fastlanestoner]

I have a problem with Audacity that I cannot get to the bottom of. I have been everywhere looking for answers but here, hopefully you can help.

Say I record a rhythm track. I will record a new track and it will gradually get of sync throughout the course of the song. I will use the time shift tool to line it up at the beginning, and it is, but it will gradually get more off sync throughout the rest of the song. It will start off as a few milliseconds and hardly noticeable (but it still is) and by the end of the song it can be a half second to a full second lag between the tracks.

I have tried the latency correction in the new version, but it still does it.

What could the problem be?

[kozikowski]

There have been sound cards that use different time base electronics for record and for playback. People who record their guitar solo and then burn it straight to a CD will never know that the song on the CD is actually slightly longer or shorter than the actual performance. You will know because you're in a position to directly compare the two electronics by comparing the rhythm structure of the music.

It's always off the same direction, right? Try this. Use the original rhythm track to sync a new music track. Then use the new music track as a base to capture yet a third track. I bet all three of them are off--and all the same direction.

Koz

[fastlanestoner]

I have tried the latency correction tool in the new Audacity, but since it gradually gets more off sync, that option doesn't work.

I have exhausted the audacity wiki. The only way I can get any recording done is if I go through the whole track and align about every 5 seconds. It's very tedious and quite painstaking.

[kozikowski]

<<<It's very tedious and quite painstaking.>>>

But not tedious enough for you to do what I asked?

It's not latency. Latency is the same delay over the whole performance. You very probably have a broken sound card.

Koz