snap crackle n pop running halion sonic in elements

Hi, i have a 2015 macbook pro, specs below:

Model Name: MacBook Pro
Processor Name: Intel Core i5
Processor Speed: 2.7 GHz
Number of Processors: 1
Total Number of Cores: 2
L2 Cache (per Core): 256 KB
L3 Cache: 3 MB
Memory: 8 GB
Chipset Model: Intel Iris Graphics 6100
VRAM (Dynamic, Max): 1536 MB
mac os sierra 10.12.4
500gb ssd

I am running cubase elements and i am using a midi keyboard controller. I don’t have a huge amount of vst’s at this stage but i would like to build my collection. At this stage whilst using any vst I am getting tearing and stuttering crackles and pops. with no other apps running.
So Im assuming its a graphics issue? or RAM?. Can anybody help troubleshoot any problems they can see? I have enabled asio-guard to see if that helps but I don’t think it did? and my latency is at 32. Hopefully it aint a memory issue…thats a $390 issue to get an upgrade.

Any advice would be appreciated…
Thanks

Hi,

What Audio Device do you use? What Buffer Size?