dj papoua
I would like to report a problem that I have been troubleshooting for several days.
Hardware:
Laptop: Dell Inspiron 15 3520
CPU: Intel Core i7-1255U (12th Gen)
GPU: Intel Iris Xe Graphics
Windows 11 Home 25H2 (Build 26200.8737)
VirtualDJ v2026 b9482
Controller: Numark Mixstream Pro
Engine OS: 5.0.3
Driver: Numark Mixstream Pro ASIO
Problem
When I load a track into a deck, VirtualDJ starts preparing/analyzing stems.
During this process:
"System" CPU meter jumps to 100%.
The Mixstream screen waveforms become unstable (they speed up, slow down and stutter).
Sometimes VirtualDJ freezes for a few seconds and then recovers.
With WASAPI the software often freezes completely.
With ASIO (800 samples latency) audio is usually still clean, but the waveform stuttering remains.
If I reduce latency further, audio dropouts and "broken cassette" effects start appearing.
The problem mainly occurs while stems are being prepared.
Troubleshooting already performed
Clean uninstall and reinstall of VirtualDJ.
Deleted VirtualDJ cache.
Tested both ASIO and WASAPI.
Tested different latency values.
Tested another USB cable.
Disabled MIDI 2.0 (disableMidi2 = Yes).
Tested with stemsGPU = Automatic.
Tested with stemsGPU = Don't use GPU.
Disabled Intel Smart Sound USB driver.
Removed unnecessary Dell software.
Windows Defender scan completed (clean).
SSD optimization and disk cleanup performed.
Mixstream firmware updated to Engine OS 5.0.3.
None of the above solved the problem.
Additional testing
I tested the same Mixstream Pro on another Windows 11 laptop with very similar hardware (Intel CPU + Intel Iris Xe).
The behavior was almost identical:
System CPU still spikes close to 100% while loading tracks.
Waveforms on the Mixstream display still stutter (although slightly less).
Audio is stable with ASIO but the waveform issue remains.
Finally, I tested the Mixstream standalone using the same external hard drive and the same music files.
Everything works perfectly in standalone mode.
My observations
The issue seems to happen only when VirtualDJ prepares stems.
It looks like the CPU/System load reaches 100%, causing waveform rendering to become unstable.
Since the problem appears on two different Windows 11 laptops with Intel Iris Xe graphics, I suspect it could be related to the interaction between:
VirtualDJ 2026
Windows 11
Numark Mixstream Pro ASIO
Real-time stem preparation
Could you please advise if this is a known issue or if there are any recommended settings or newer builds that address this behavior?
Thank you.
Hardware:
Laptop: Dell Inspiron 15 3520
CPU: Intel Core i7-1255U (12th Gen)
GPU: Intel Iris Xe Graphics
Windows 11 Home 25H2 (Build 26200.8737)
VirtualDJ v2026 b9482
Controller: Numark Mixstream Pro
Engine OS: 5.0.3
Driver: Numark Mixstream Pro ASIO
Problem
When I load a track into a deck, VirtualDJ starts preparing/analyzing stems.
During this process:
"System" CPU meter jumps to 100%.
The Mixstream screen waveforms become unstable (they speed up, slow down and stutter).
Sometimes VirtualDJ freezes for a few seconds and then recovers.
With WASAPI the software often freezes completely.
With ASIO (800 samples latency) audio is usually still clean, but the waveform stuttering remains.
If I reduce latency further, audio dropouts and "broken cassette" effects start appearing.
The problem mainly occurs while stems are being prepared.
Troubleshooting already performed
Clean uninstall and reinstall of VirtualDJ.
Deleted VirtualDJ cache.
Tested both ASIO and WASAPI.
Tested different latency values.
Tested another USB cable.
Disabled MIDI 2.0 (disableMidi2 = Yes).
Tested with stemsGPU = Automatic.
Tested with stemsGPU = Don't use GPU.
Disabled Intel Smart Sound USB driver.
Removed unnecessary Dell software.
Windows Defender scan completed (clean).
SSD optimization and disk cleanup performed.
Mixstream firmware updated to Engine OS 5.0.3.
None of the above solved the problem.
Additional testing
I tested the same Mixstream Pro on another Windows 11 laptop with very similar hardware (Intel CPU + Intel Iris Xe).
The behavior was almost identical:
System CPU still spikes close to 100% while loading tracks.
Waveforms on the Mixstream display still stutter (although slightly less).
Audio is stable with ASIO but the waveform issue remains.
Finally, I tested the Mixstream standalone using the same external hard drive and the same music files.
Everything works perfectly in standalone mode.
My observations
The issue seems to happen only when VirtualDJ prepares stems.
It looks like the CPU/System load reaches 100%, causing waveform rendering to become unstable.
Since the problem appears on two different Windows 11 laptops with Intel Iris Xe graphics, I suspect it could be related to the interaction between:
VirtualDJ 2026
Windows 11
Numark Mixstream Pro ASIO
Real-time stem preparation
Could you please advise if this is a known issue or if there are any recommended settings or newer builds that address this behavior?
Thank you.
Inviato Mon 06 Jul 26 @ 2:24 pm
Adion
Try to enable 'lower priority' for the stemsFix option.
Also check the system report (go to options, click the cog on the right-bottom and open systemreport.txt) to see if stems are using the GPU or the CPU
Note that the U variant of Intel cpu's means the low-power variant, so if the Intel graphics are also integrated graphics for this cpu, then chances are that it will be too slow for real-time stems, and you will probably need to change stemsRealtimeSeparation to Prepared.
Also check the system report (go to options, click the cog on the right-bottom and open systemreport.txt) to see if stems are using the GPU or the CPU
Note that the U variant of Intel cpu's means the low-power variant, so if the Intel graphics are also integrated graphics for this cpu, then chances are that it will be too slow for real-time stems, and you will probably need to change stemsRealtimeSeparation to Prepared.
Inviato Mon 06 Jul 26 @ 2:36 pm
kradcliffe
As Adion saya that spec of laptop isn't suitable for realtime stems. Because the GPU isn't capable it will be falling back to use the CPU hence the spike.
Either use lower quality or pre-compute them on a faster machine then sync over.
Either use lower quality or pre-compute them on a faster machine then sync over.
Inviato Mon 06 Jul 26 @ 4:15 pm