Crazy ass idea using Boot Camp & DP or DP 8?

[nutotech]

Can't bear to part with my Tascam FW-1884 that's integral to my work flow. But realize 64 bit is next mountain to climb and Tascam doesn't support Mac in 64 bit mode. Running a Mac Pro 6 core and wonder if DP could run on Mac side and interface with FW-1884 via Windows at the same time?

Other option would be to run DP8 in Windows. But then I'd be into VSTs instead of AUs. Can only imagine the hassles with plugins like Kontakt, Mach Five 3, Spectrasonics, et al not to mention my UAD card.

Anyone out there made the switch and running DP8 in Windows on their Macs? Can it be done? Have looked high and low trying to find a box to replace all the functions of the FW-1884 and there's nothin' being manufactured. All suggestions welcome!

[bayswater]

Yikes! I looked up replacements for this unit. Sweetwater recommends the SSL AWS 948. Only $99,225.00. I can sympathize. I liked the Tascam stuff I had but they just don't keep drivers up to date very well.

You could probably get both Windows and OS X sessions running on your Mac at once, but I'd be amazed if you could get the necessary audio and MIDI data passed back and forth with reasonable latency.

Going with Windows doesn't seem to be such a bad thing if the Tascam is essential to your setup. All of the stuff you mention, other than DP is probably run on more PCs than Macs. And as John Dvorak said, the best computer for running Windows is a Mac.

[solex]

From time to time (rarely) I need to use DP on booth camp. Runs without problems so far. I only use VST-Plugins in DP8 on Mac OS X. I decided to switch and forget about AU when I upgraded to DP 8, so no problems there for me

[NazRat]

Can't bear to part with my Tascam FW-1884 that's integral to my work flow. But realize 64 bit is next mountain to climb and Tascam doesn't support Mac in 64 bit mode. Running a Mac Pro 6 core and wonder if DP could run on Mac side and interface with FW-1884 via Windows at the same time?

Boot Camp is either one or the other OS. they don't run side by side. I ran Windows on a Mini for a while and did not have any problems with drivers, etc. DP8 is pretty solid on Win8.1 here, but I haven't really pushed it hard. You can install BC/Windows while leaving your current Mac configuration intact so maybe worth a try.

[bayswater]

Boot Camp is either one or the other OS. they don't run side by side.

Yes, but, can't you run Windows under something other than Boot Camp so it runs inside an OS X window, allowing other things to run under OS X at the same time? Parallels, for example?

[mikehalloran]

Parallels will let you attempt what you want to do. Absolutely no guarantees that the results will be satisfactory.

[NazRat]

I'd check around and see if FireWire is available in the hosted options. I know USB is, but not so sure about fw. Check Parallels etc. For FireWire options.

[bayswater]

Parallels will let you attempt what you want to do. Absolutely no guarantees that the results will be satisfactory.

Do you know how MIDI and Audio would be passed between OS X and Windows?

[mikehalloran]

Master/Slave. You should be able to do it the same way as between multiple CPUs if they were stand alone. That's the theory, at least. Whether the Mac controls the PC or the other way around (I would think in this case), I am not certain.

It may be elegant and simple, a Rube Goldberg type of kludge or there may be a technical impediment that keeps it from happening.

My guess: It will depend on your available ports and how they interact. If you can assign ports to the PC and others to the Mac, you should be fine. Remember that you have two ethernet ports available on an MP - you may have to use both through a switch to make this happen.

[bayswater]

Master/Slave. You should be able to do it the same way as between multiple CPUs if they were stand alone. That's the theory, at least. Whether the Mac controls the PC or the other way around (I would think in this case), I am not certain.

It may be elegant and simple, a Rube Goldberg type of kludge or there may be a technical impediment that keeps it from happening.

My guess: It will depend on your available ports and how they interact. If you can assign ports to the PC and others to the Mac, you should be fine. Remember that you have two ethernet ports available on an MP - you may have to use both through a switch to make this happen.

OK, I get it. I can see it working. Even so, latency is where it could fall apart. If part of the setup is transferring data from a control surface to Windows, then to OS X, you'd want that to be pretty tight. I have two Macs working in a similar fashion, but I have to add a AU Delay plugin to the signal paths to get them to sync properly.

[Gravity Jim]

I don't know why the hell Sweetwater would recommend a 100k SSL replacement for an FW1884 (Cripes, even SLL makes a unit that would blow the Tascam to hellengone for closer to 20K), but that's ridiculous.

And yes, Tascam is slow on drivers, but they, like every company, are REALLY slow on drivers for units that have been discontinued for years. The FW1884 isn't even considered "legacy" anymore. I'm not disparaging it... A very cool unit that embodied Tascam's philosophy of cheap, effective and stylish.

For less than $3,500 you can get into a Tascam DM3200 with FireWire interface and get all the functionality of the 1884 and a lot more besides. I mean, that is, if you're of a mind to replace the unit.

I tried to convince the FW1884 users at the Tascam forum to do what MOTUNation did and approach Frontier (the actual designers) about an updated driver, but they don't seem to understand the concept, even after I've linked to the AlphaTrack thread over here. They just keep whining at Tascam about how much they hate them for not updating the drivers for a discontinued item, which is getting them nowhere. Maybe you could carry a torch over there and enlighten them?

[mikehalloran]

They just keep whining at Tascam about how much they hate them for not updating the drivers for a discontinued item,

OK, I get it. I can see it working. Even so, latency is where it could fall apart. If part of the setup is transferring data from a control surface to Windows, then to OS X, you'd want that to be pretty tight. I have two Macs working in a similar fashion, but I have to add a AU Delay plugin to the signal paths to get them to sync properly.

Yep, just because something might be possible doesn't mean you want to go there. Likewise, the hit on the processors and RAM will be critical. Windows, Parallels and DP all add to the load on the CPU - there's no Magic here (with apologies to Dave).

For less than $3,500 you can get into a Tascam DM3200 with FireWire interface and get all the functionality of the 1884 and a lot more besides. I mean, that is, if you're of a mind to replace the unit

Street $$$$ seems to be $2,399 on the DM3200 with a few offering it for less.

What is your time worth? For that matter, since it could defray the cost, what is the resale value of the old unit? Remember that licenses of Parallels and Windows cost $$$, too.

[James Steele]

I tried to convince the FW1884 users at the Tascam forum to do what MOTUNation did and approach Frontier (the actual designers) about an updated driver, but they don't seem to understand the concept, even after I've linked to the AlphaTrack thread over here.

Just to keep the record straight, I think Frontier referred us to a programmer that they'd worked with and was familiar with the AlphaTrack and he updated the DP control surface bundle as his own project. Fortunately Frontier was willing to help though and may have supplied him source code. I may not be clear on all the details, but it wasn't an in-house project at Frontier.

[bayswater]

And yes, Tascam is slow on drivers, but they, like every company, are REALLY slow on drivers for units that have been discontinued for years.

I don't expect hardware to last forever, but if we are to believe MOTU, the 828 predates this Tascam unit, yet there is a 10.9 64 bit driver for it.

[NazRat]

Something from the knowledgebase on Parallels re firewire.

Thunderbolt and FireWire storage devices are supported in Parallels Desktop 9 for Mac. Parallels Desktop 9 for Mac does not provide support for non-storage FireWire devices.

Thunderbolt and FireWire devices are not supported by Parallels Desktop 8 and earlier.

Note: If you are trying to connect a FireWire External Storage Device to your virtual machine, you may follow this article:


5161 Using Firewire and USB 2.0 External Storage Devices