• Registered: 2009-12-22
  • Posts: 15

Topic: Serious driver problem in a professional studio

It's now about a year I upgraded our Fireface 800 to a Fireface UFX. The studio is a quite popular studio with clients from Universal music, Sony BMG, EMI and Warner and we have been very happy with the previous 800 connected with two ADI-8's and and Octamic. We had 30 channels recorded with 128 buffersize and several plugins at the same time. Very smooth. We decided to upgrade to UFX and the problems started.

I installed everything and tested the system thoroughly after the purchase and was pretty impressed with the sound and what the system could do. We don't use any of the DSP effects inside, but they sounded pretty good. Just after the installing I went to do a client in a different studio, but I needed to take with me my system. I used the sytem on a top notch mac pro on that job. I barely was able to record in 128 buffersize, 20 tracks with a few plugins. After this I returned home and checked the system more on our windows studio machine and the results was the same. I reported this to RME and got answers back that this was not the drivers fault and I had to check my system.

The days passed and the system has just gotten worse. We are getting spikes all the time. Even in 1024 buffersize. The meter can be on 50 percent and suddenly jump up to 100 percent and total maniac sound. 2048 buffersize doesn't work, as the soundcard looses the sync between MIDI and audio!
Fireface 800 was always stable on high buffersize. No movement on the meters. This sundcard jumps up and down no matter what buffersize.

We are way passed our patient here and need some decent answers. The system has been remained unchanged as it was totally new right before the purchase. Win 7, 64 bit, i7, 12 GB RAM, 7200 recording disks (which shows no signs of usage), 32 bit version of Nuendo. We also have a Pro Tools system, which seems to work in the same manner. Everything is updated to the latest drivers.

We are starting to think that this might be a monday product and that we should get a new one.

Can some moderators please answer? Or I am afraid you might loose as serios customer. We have about 30 students learning the skills of recording visiting our studio every week and it would be bad if I have to let them on to another brand, because I have always been an RME guy with 5 soundcards over the years.

  • Registered: 2008-01-01
  • Posts: 3,025

Re: Serious driver problem in a professional studio

Do you still own the FF 800 for performance comparison with the UFX on your current system?

Could you post a screenshot of your DPC latencies for the Windows system? Both idle (no UFX connected) and during audio processing?

http://www.thesycon.de/deu/latency_check.shtml

  • Knut
  • Knut
  • DAW Mastermind
  • Offline
  • Registered: 2007-04-06
  • Posts: 1,618

Re: Serious driver problem in a professional studio

There is some important information missing:
- USB or FireWire connection, same problems with the other connection?
- Driver version / Firmware version (see setup dialog)?

best regards
Knut

4 Reply by Bluemusic (edited by Bluemusic 2012-01-12 00:22:15)

  • Registered: 2009-12-22
  • Posts: 15

Re: Serious driver problem in a professional studio

Hi there.

Thanks for the answer. The FF 800 is sold. I have used both firewire and USB with same results. Firware and driver version are latest.

I will try to post a screen of what you are showing me tomorrow.

  • From: Washington DC, USA
  • Registered: 2007-08-06
  • Posts: 442

Re: Serious driver problem in a professional studio

Where are you located?  Maybe there is another UFX user in your area that would be willing to let you use their unit to help narrow down where the problem lies.

  • Registered: 2011-01-25
  • Posts: 85

Re: Serious driver problem in a professional studio

You say it's a professional studio, but you use a pc???
:-O

  • Registered: 2009-12-22
  • Posts: 15

Re: Serious driver problem in a professional studio

Yes, it's a professional studio and we had several macs and has a mac pro in the B studio. BUT in my experience I have had 2 mac pros that the screencard, mainboard or cpu went broke so I decided on a PC last time. For me it doesn't matter as long as it works. Macs are stable and I love the macbook pro I'm writing on now, but they are not faultproof those either.

Here's the studio:

www.tinnitusrecording.com

8 Reply by Bluemusic (edited by Bluemusic 2012-01-12 14:02:28)

  • Registered: 2009-12-22
  • Posts: 15

Re: Serious driver problem in a professional studio

Here are the pictures:

This one is without opening Nuendo:

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/80 … alyse1.png

This one is with a project running at 256 buffersize with some plugs and about 70 tracks. The CPU meter in Nuendo shows 90/100:

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/83 … alyse2.png

To me these look like that my machine is in pretty good state. You tell me.

I've also added a video that shows the irradical behaviour without even hitting playback. This video is from a 1024 buffersize.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YsPrwMy … e=youtu.be

Hope we can fix this!

  • From: Germany
  • Registered: 2007-04-10
  • Posts: 9,558

Re: Serious driver problem in a professional studio

arctic wrote:

You say it's a professional studio, but you use a pc???
:-O

Oh please... fryingpan rant
Let's not spread or discuss the pointless "All Pros use Macs" urban myth in this forum, ok...?


Regards
Daniel Fuchs
RME

Regards
Daniel Fuchs
RME

RME Support's Website

  • From: Germany
  • Registered: 2007-04-10
  • Posts: 9,558

Re: Serious driver problem in a professional studio

Blue, whatever the VST meter is showing you is taking place inside the audio application. The audio interface (whichever that may be) has no direct influence on internal plugin processing etc.

There is no reason that I can see for Firewire operation to work any differently between FF800 and UFX. I would assume that whatever problem there might be would also show up with the FF800.
Even my old PIV 2.4, which practically comes to a standstill when I connect the UFX with USB, will work just fine with it over Firewire.

Have you testes other ASIO software, e.g. Reaper? Have you reset all VST devices in Nuendo after changing from FF800 to UFX?

Please provide more details of the hardware in question. Also feel free to mail me, we could set up a remote access session in this case.

Regards
Daniel Fuchs
RME

Regards
Daniel Fuchs
RME

RME Support's Website

11 Reply by arctic (edited by arctic 2012-01-12 15:29:27)

  • Registered: 2011-01-25
  • Posts: 85

Re: Serious driver problem in a professional studio

RME Support wrote:
arctic wrote:

You say it's a professional studio, but you use a pc???
:-O

Oh please... fryingpan rant
Let's not spread or discuss the pointless "All Pros use Macs" urban myth in this forum, ok...?


Regards
Daniel Fuchs
RME

It's no myth, cool people use macs :-P

  • Registered: 2009-12-22
  • Posts: 15

Re: Serious driver problem in a professional studio

Thanks.

You know what. I seem to have found some root to the problem. I have spent the whole day goint through my system and it seems like windows believes there are 2 network cards in the machine. Removing one of them stabelized the cpu meter a bit. I'm not sure if this is the whole problem as this is some times periodically. It can be stable for a while, then suddenly hell breaks loose. I will test a few days and see if this is really the case.

The problems didn't happen with the FF800 but then againg I'm not sure if windows duplicated the driver for the network card then.

My machine is not connected to internet (to much valuable stuff recorded to mess with viruses) so I'm afraid I can't do any remote...or can I? It is only connected with an internal server A studio / B studio.

I'll let you know what happens.

  • From: Connecticut, USA
  • Registered: 2011-08-01
  • Posts: 376

Re: Serious driver problem in a professional studio

Hi,
Please give specifics about your computer hardware and any peripherals.
Motherboard, CPU, video card.
We need to know what other PCI/PCI-e, USB, Firewire, etc.

Just saying it is Windows 7 and 12 gigs doesn't tell us much.

Thanks Chris

Chris Ludwig
North East USA Sales | Synthax/RME
www.facebook.com/RMEAmericas
Twitter @RMEAmericas

ChrisLudwig's Website