So just got off the phone with RME UK distributer and their lead tech guy, Mark. Mark guided me through what I assume is the Terminal command put forward on this forum in another thread... though I'm not sure it's the same command!
This was the command to be typed once the MBP was rebooted, in recovery mode and using terminal....
kmutil trigger-panic-medic --volume-root /Volumes/MacintoshHD
I had put the drivers in the bin and emptied it prior to doing the above. I then reinstalled the drivers, had security&privacy open and ready (the "allow" button did not appear), rebooted and it's back to SQ1!
Mark gave me another command for terminal (while running)
sudo kextutil -v 2 /Library/Extensions/RMEFirefaceUSB.kext
He found under system report/extensions that RMEFirefaceUSB wasn't loaded - the above command makes it load.
I am expecting after a certain amount of time that the MADIface will just disconnect for no reason again and though the original issue was noise which was taken care of by Driver update v3.26 - that has now lead to the current issues... so out of the frying pan and into the fire!
Give me a console and a tape machine any day!!
Thanks Waedi - I will have to try and go back to Catalina but that's not going to happen in less than two hrs when my vocal session "was" starting and I wonder will it then reintroduce the noise issue?!
Intel Big Sur, Burl B80 MADI, RME MADIface USB, Universal Audio 4-710d, TLA 5052, Tube-Tech SMC 2B