OS X Driver Issue

Kont said:
Is there guarantee that the audio quality will be the same as via USB? If so, why bands such as Animals As Leaders uses D/A converter and avoid to use "analog holes on the back of the Axe-FX with 3 prongs"?



And the same variety of sound quality results you'll get…
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Right, the audio quality is best through USB.. and that just won't work on a Mac. A brand new iMac 27" with Apogee ensemble soundcard........ big difference in audio with jack.
 
Fabio KTG said:
A scam?

Do you know how much Line 6 and the users of the Kemper charges for their firmware upgrades and presets? Do you know how often Line 6 release a FW upgrade? Twice a year, if you're lucky.

You have bought a product that blows away the "competition", because Cliff is always developing and evolving the features of the unit. 99.9% of users will invest in a cheap audio interface for their Mac, if they have recording glitches, which I might add is APPLE's fault.
Quite frankly, I wonder if you'll be needing some cheese with your WHINE.
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Do you call a brand new 27" iMac, 3,4 ghz, 32 gb RAM with a 2000 euros Apogee Ensemble a cheap audio interface?
 
Maybe, until Apple sorts out *its* driver problems, you could be asking the good folks here how to re-amp w/o using USB.
I don't do any re-amping yet myself and am mostly ignorant of the types of connections needed to do it so forgive me if re-amping via AxeII w/o USB is impossible for some reason.

But I seem to recall folks talking about and presumably doing re-amping before the Axe or USB existed.
So I'm guessing that there's probably a way to do it.

And eventually the Apple drivers will be fixed or Fractal will find some sort of a workaround.

So hang in there.

Or you could buy a PC.
 
My gear: Macbook aluminum late 2008 w/ os 10.8.3 (2ghz core2duo, 2gb ram, 750gb hybrid HDD), Axe2 via usb

I have two issues (1st one is most important):

1) Axe-edit freezes every time I try to use it. Not only so, but I can't even get it to recognize my Axe2 (it "sees" it for a second, and then goes away)
- therefore, I've been unable to do any preset downloading into Axe2, and relegated to only my own preset creations and using front panel

2) lag/distortion on playback- when I play my axe2 along with a youtube video via USB, I get distortion (it's possible I'm maxing out my axe2 memory)
 
joegold said:
Maybe, until Apple sorts out *its* driver problems, you could be asking the good folks here how to re-amp w/o using USB.
I don't do any re-amping yet myself and am mostly ignorant of the types of connections needed to do it so forgive me if re-amping via AxeII w/o USB is impossible for some reason.

But I seem to recall folks talking about and presumably doing re-amping before the Axe or USB existed.
So I'm guessing that there's probably a way to do it.

And eventually the Apple drivers will be fixed or Fractal will find some sort of a workaround.

So hang in there.

Or you could buy a PC.
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The surest method for success at this point is full SPDIF reamping. It's just as high a quality as USB, at 48kHz, and works flawlessly. My axe-fx II has a bum SPDIF input, so if I do reamp (I don't do much reamping any more) I send the dry audio out to my Axe-fx rear input via analog and back in via SPDIF. Works like a charm. No noise problems. No glitching.

It would be nice to have a fix for this, but I have doubts that it will ever come about. And saying "Oh just get a PC" doesn't really work for a lot of people who have already set up a really great recording system built around a Mac OS. I use Logic Pro 9, and I also use a sound design program called Metasynth which is Mac only, and I won't write electronic music elements without it.... Ever...
 
I have a Macbook Pro Retina that I use with my Axe II and Axe Edit. Occasionally, Axe-Edit does something weird, but that could just be Axe-Edit. I also installed parallels on my Mac, and tried running Axe-Edit for Windows in a "window" on the Mac using the windows USB driver, and its seems to be fairly stable that way. Has anyone else tried running parallels?





Axe-Fx | My Cool Guitars
 
hippietim said:
There are two plugs on the back of the Axe-FX with 3 prongs. These plugs are called XLR connectors. There are also plugs that are just a 1/4" hole. These are called TRS connectors. As luck would have it, there are 13 trillion devices out there that you can connect to using these plugs that will also connect to your Mac to record with.
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I sense your frustation but this reply really doesn't help... the issue is not whether is even one device out there that you can record with, but whether the AxeFX II can be used to recover over USB (on a Mac and a PC). Period. Alternative are irrelevant in this context, as audio over USB *is* an advertised selling point.

That said, I disagree with heyrich that this seems like a scam in any way, shape or form. Pointing fingers does nothing and never gets the problem solved, so saying "it's an Apple driver problem" is also a complete waste of time and adds nothing to the discussion or towards a solution. Fractal has already admitted it's an issue, that they're looking at it, and that a fix will be delivered in time. Looking at their track record, I think we have ever reason to believe that this is true.
 
adamqlw said:
I sense your frustation but this reply really doesn't help... the issue is not whether is even one device out there that you can record with, but whether the AxeFX II can be used to recover over USB (on a Mac and a PC). Period. Alternative are irrelevant in this context, as audio over USB *is* an advertised selling point.
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I get that. Believe me. My response was to the guy that said he was wondering how he could record his next album. My point was that it's not an intractable problem.
 
heyrich said:
Right, the audio quality is best through USB.. and that just won't work on a Mac. A brand new iMac 27" with Apogee ensemble soundcard........ big difference in audio with jack.
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I'll admit that I have not done any comparisons. But can anyone really tell the difference between using the XLR out to a high quality I/O and the Axe-FX USB I/O? Cliff spent a lot of effort to get high quality D/A convertors, XLR jacks, etc. The analog signal coming from my Axe sounds fantastic.
 
heyrich said:
connection to the 13 trillion devices won't reamp, like you're supposed to be able to with USB.
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People were reamping long before there were modelers. While not ideal, there are a lot of ways to pull this off.

I completely understand that USB I/O is an advertised feature that really ought to work reliably and that blaming Apple is not a particularly strong stance. It appears that Fractal has gotten the message and are working on a solution. Saying the Axe-FX is a scam and continually harping on the negativity does absolutely nothing to achieve the desired outcome. It's like yelling at your stove to compel the water to boil faster.
 
+ 1 Tim.

I think being desperate to record your new album, and the Mac connectivity problem are two different problems, with only the latter being Cliff's.... If "desperate" enough, will find a way.
 
I am using a Macbook Pro OS X 10.7.5 with 2.8ghz Intel Core I7, and 16gigs of RAM. My DAW is Logic Pro 9. I have two issues that manifest only after a length of time, sometimes 45 mins, and other times more than 90 mins while attempting to use USB for tracking. They are the "vinyl crackle/pops/ticks" and the other phenomenon, is where a 1 second latency occurs. I strum a chord, and I don't hear it through my monitors instantly anymore. I have to close the session turn off the Axe and restart the Mac to fix it.

I can't say with certainty, if simply closing the Logic session and reopening it, would fix it, or if doing that AND restarting the Axe FX II would solve it, but I do all three steps.

I was able to stop hearing bit crushed/distortion by recording at 48K instead of default 44.1K
 
hippietim said:
I'll admit that I have not done any comparisons. But can anyone really tell the difference between using the XLR out to a high quality I/O and the Axe-FX USB I/O? Cliff spent a lot of effort to get high quality D/A convertors, XLR jacks, etc. The analog signal coming from my Axe sounds fantastic.
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In my home studio, I can't hear any differences.

I patch analog into Pro Tools. Sounds stellar.
 
as soon as apple fixes their USB audio protocol.

i use a yamaha 01v96i which has audio over usb, and i get the same bit-crush problem after extended use. it happened at a few of my shows on tour - luckily i had an analog backup ready, but after happening 2 times, i just went to analog inputs for the remainder of the tour - no problems or quality differences and much more reliable.

yes it's supposed to work. it doesn't. move on and use analog.
 
Chris@KatsuKuriMedia said:
as soon as apple fixes their USB audio protocol.

i use a yamaha 01v96i which has audio over usb, and i get the same bit-crush problem after extended use. it happened at a few of my shows on tour - luckily i had an analog backup ready, but after happening 2 times, i just went to analog inputs for the remainder of the tour - no problems or quality differences and much more reliable.

yes it's supposed to work. it doesn't. move on and use analog.
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No as soon as Fractal & Yamaha fix the Driver!
I have a lot of USB Audio Gear here and all is working Day after Day except Axe FX.
Where do yo know that it is a Apple issue ???? Plz show me!
 
Have patience folks! Found these updates from Fractal in another thread (now closed I hope so that all updates and info are captured in this one place):

Of course we're done everything in our power to fix the problem. We understand that you are frustrated. We're very frustrated too, I assure you.
It is not a motherboard issue at all. It is an OS-related issue which for various reasons I am not at liberty to detail other than to say that the Axe-Fx II operates 100% within the USB2.0 specifications, as evidenced by the fact that it works perfectly under Windows. This is not an anti-Mac statement. It is an objective fact. I personally want you to be assured that a fix is on the way, but we at Fractal don't have any specific information on a date, other than to repeat, "soon."

************

FWIW we had a third party evaluate the issue and they have concluded that the problem lies in the "OS in-box" drivers, i.e. the native OS drivers. They have identified a couple possible solutions. Ideally the OS manufacturer should fix the bug but, in their experience, this OS manufacturer has not been receptive to fixing the issue.

source:
http://forum.fractalaudio.com/axe-f...ix-mac-usb-problems-now-not-apples-fault.html
 
The point of my last post is not to ramp up the finger pointing (actually the opposite - can we now move on). Fresh eyes and minds are working on this. Reread the first post of this thread and let's keep this thread focused on providing as much technical info on the repeatable issues we are having.... cheers!
 
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