problems with 828MK3

[jian]

Hi

I called Motu tech today regarding a problem I have with pops and clicks. When I run ableton, I often have another editing aplication opened (soundforge). Ableton runs flawlessly, but whateverI have another program opened simultaniously I hear cracks, pops and distortion in the 2nd app I have opened (never ableton). The cracks and clicks are so bad I cant even hear the sample I'm editing. Motu tech support says I dont have enough ram to run 2 daw program at the same time. I need a second opinion before I return this unit, here are my specs...

1 year old dedicated audio comp (no internet)
xp pro sp2 (would sp3 perform better?)
Intel Q965/Q963 chipset
Intel Duo Core2 6600 @2.40GHZ
4 Gigs of ram
TI OHCI Compliant 1394 Bus Host Controller
3 x MIDI controllers plugged in via usb (2x usb powered/ 1 x ac powered)
Novation AutoMap plugin GUI
Motu Cue FX GUI
Beringer BCF view GUI
Using all 10 analog inputs and SPDIF i/o only/ Main outs and analog 1/2 out
optomized xp as described in Muscic XP website


With my previous audio interface (Presonus Firebox) I was able have more than one audio application opened at the same time (@ 4 ms latency) without the cracking/popping issue. The Firebox had only 1 stereo analog input and 1 stereo spidif input. Would having all the extra inputs on the 828MK3 really put that much additional strain on my CPU? I kind of thought 4 gigs of ram was plenty to have multiple audio programs opened. I could understand not being able to have 2 x instances of cubase 4 opened, but not being able to have ableton and soundforge opened together seems crazy. I must add that the popping and clicking issues become more tollerable at 1024 buffer rate, but I need to run at 128 to minimize latency issues to play vst inst and record guitar/vocals. If anyone has any ideas I would apreciate them. Thanks

[trunk79]

try disabling your bcf2000 my motu828mk3 dont like it. works fine when using mackie onyx 1220 but i get bsod when i use it with the motu, might be someting else tho

[timizere]

4gig is plenty, i have rewired on pcs with 1g. not recommended but it worked. motu tech support is full of ••••.

actually having said that theres an easy way to find out if you are maxxing ram... look on task manager!

[jian]

Thanks for your replies . I appreciate your input on this issue.

Trunk79: My Bcf is connected to comp via usb and I mostly use bcf to control daw, not cue fx. I have done a few tests in the meantime and realized that the cracks and pops subside (slightly) when i have bcf disconnected. In fact when I disable all of my MIDI usb controllers (I have edirol pcrm80 {usb d/c} and novation nocture{usb bus powered}) the pops and cracks almost dissapear in the 2nd of the 2 programs I have opened. Not using my MIDI controllers is out of the question. Do you think this could be a usb/firewire power conflict? How would i go about fixing this problem?

Timizere: I too experience zero issues connecting my daw via rewire to a slave program. My problem occurs when I have a program opened in the background of my daw (essentially 2 programs opened at the same time) I use editors that do not use rewire (old soundforge)Can you run 2 audio programs (not via rewire) at the same time on the MK3 without hearing cracks and pops in the 2nd program? I do monitor my task manager when these problems occur and funny thing is that the cpu usage NEVER spikes above 15 %!! This hardly seems like a ram issue, especially when the cpu of my daw hovers around this number when I have a 16 or so channel project opened with vst's/fx. That is why I was so pissed at Motu tech. The tech was so insistent that I had a ram problem and wouldn't even touch on anyother topics. He was actually pretty rude but thats a different topic. From my oppinion, none of the evidence supports a "lack of ram" issue.

In short, I have a few days left to decide if I want to keep the 828MK3. I think the unit is a great value, but if I have to compromise too much, Im not sure if its worth it. Im seriously considering spending a few more bills to get a rme 400, but I'd rather get 828mk3 and my comp to function together properly. Any thoughts?

[jian]

I finally figured it out. It wAS NOT A firewire chipset problem or a windows problem. I was the problem. It seems that I was not aware that if you are to run 2 applications at the same time on the 828mk3 under aiso drivers you must choose different outpiut channels for each device! Duh. I had the same output channel in use for both programs therefore the second program was full of pops and clicks. I used main outs for main daw and 7/8 for editor app I have opened in the background and voila... no pops and clicks. Im super happy. ironically enough, I found the answer to this question on the rme site whiel i was reading the ff400 manual ( which motu doesnt offer online )At this point no need looking at the rme 400 cause finally im able to use the 828mk3 the way i want it too. Although im having a hard time figuring out how to record multiple channels with the cue fx eq's/comps/reverb in my daw in real time. i hope my stupidity helps someone save hours of wasted time.