Intermittent problem: delay on audio playback

[JustinDaish]

Ever since using Show Buddy I have struggled with the programme playing the audio track out of time with the visible waveform and lighting cues. This is an intermittent and erratic problem.

The sound is usually delayed by perhaps a second. Every time I open Show Buddy I play a track to test whether the music and cursor are synchronised or not, and about 80% of the time they are not. I open and close the programme over and over again, playing the first seconds of a track just to see whether the sound of the track is in time with the movement of the cursor on the visible track. The lighting cues trigger exactly in time with the cursor, there's no issue there. The sound just tends to run a second or so after the lighting cues. If this was a consistent problem, if it happened every time, I would just drag each cue back along the track, but sometimes the programme opens and runs with everything synchronised perfectly.

If the programme has opened successfully and operates perfectly there is no guarantee it will continue to do so; the problem can surface at any time, usually happening because the track has been pause. When the track is restarted the playback of the audio may end up delayed, which means this problem could appear halfway through a performance. It also often happens when the track has been paused for a while. During editing the delay time can end up more significant/extreme if I don't close and reopen the software. There seems no reason or pattern. I find myself opening and closing Show Buddy far too frequently. Has anyone else experienced the same? Is there a way around it?

I'm using version 1.4.2 as I use Windows XP - the MIDI effects pedal I plan to eventually run with Show Buddy is not supported by any Windows OS newer than XP - and I'm aware that this problem may have previously been raised and then addressed in a version which isn't compatible with my effects unit.

Thanks in advance...

EDIT: Looking back through previous messages, this problem seems to be the same as the first issue listed in the OP here: http://forums.dmxis.com/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=985, but the user solved it by selecting an option I don't seem to have in my preferences.

EDIT 2: I think I've solved it! After reading the thread quoted above I explored the options I had on my own laptop and discovered I had an equivalent audio device listed. I have a feeling this forum is going to be so helpful!