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Massive problem with audio interface

Hi there.


I recently bought a brandnew iMac 27" Haswell i7. I encountered problems with my Focusrite Scarlett 18i8 audio interface. These are buzzing, clicking and noise immediately or after 3 minutes or so. I tried everything, re-installed the driveres several times, nothing, really nothing worked.


Then I bought an RME Babyface audio interface - and guess what? It's the same problem. I also have a massive sound noise after some minutes or the recording channel in Garage Band drops completely.


What is wrong here? I already tried using a different power plug, tried all USB ports, turned off WiFi, HDD sleep mode, etc. Nothing worked.


Do you have an idea?


I appeciate your help,

Adrian.

iMac (27-inch, Late 2013), OS X Mavericks (10.9)

Posted on Oct 25, 2013 1:29 PM

Reply
762 replies

Jan 15, 2014 2:46 AM in response to L0owL0ow

Excellent guys!


I bought my first Mac ever two month ago. 27 inch 1 Tb FD. I didnt work together with my existing USB connected Line6 device (all the issues that you have described above) so I went and bought an Apogee soundcard that I thought would certainly solve it all. Sadly as you all know that didnt make any difference. So I had to keep the PC which works perfectly and only using the Mac for mail, Safari and minecraft.


I will now install the Beta version and see what happens.


Jan 15, 2014 2:58 AM in response to SweFrank

Swefrank, what kind of Line 6 do you have ? i have a POD XT that was nit working good with Reaper software (i tried and abnadonned) and went back with Garageband (tanx god i didnt buy logic


but with garareband the POD XT is ok, no latence ; i plug it directly in the imac USB


my issue and concerne is with the exetrnal card ...


it such a pity to be obliged to go back to you PC man !!! cant you ask apple to refund you ??? they failed obviously

Jan 15, 2014 4:17 AM in response to hankboomer

Hankboomer,

my setup is Pod X3 Pro (acting as sound card) USB connected to the Mac and Cubase. I can understand if the driver for the Line6 is not compatible since Line6 dont support it any longer. So I got the Apogee instead (which didnt do any difference).


But with this new information and upgrading to new OS Beta version, the Line6 might actually work. We'll see.

However, I think will be using the Apogee as soundcard and the Line6 as input for the different sounds I will record (vocals, bass, guitar etc).


I have not experienced any latency problems on neither setup (PC or Mac). The only thing is the dropouts and distortion that you all mention here. And those I have for both Apogee and Line6 soundcard.


It certainly is a pity this situation but. My idea was to have a stable music production setup. But, I cant imagine that it wont be solved so I will keep all the devices and try figure out a solution. Im in no hurry really. I havent tried partitioning the disk yet or anything as I have seen some do. But if upgrading OS seems to be working for you all then I will do the same.


The phrase "it just works" that I ve been hearing for 15 years....I think we can throw that away now.

Jan 15, 2014 11:22 AM in response to SweFrank

Hello guys...


So after using the beta update 10.9 .2 for a couple weeks I can share my experience with you.

I own the late 2013 iMac i7 3,5Ghz with the 3TB FD with the Apogee Duet2


The update DOESN'T FIX the problem it only MAKES IT WAY BETTER.


I would say 90% better but there is still some persistant audio clicks and after a couple hours of using logic pro recording and playback (Latest update) the audio drops and acts weird.

BUT before I install the beta update I couldn't even start working so it's a big improvement, I can manage to work on my session I have to restart the iMac whenever it starts to mess up the audio (About 2/3 times a day) Which is still a pain in the a** but better than not being able to work at all.


This update leave me hopefull but I really hope they entirely fix the problem with the public version.


Just wanted to share this with ya'll.

Jan 15, 2014 11:31 AM in response to derKlecks

For all the Apogee users here's what I just found on their website at the support / download driver page :


MPORTANT MESSAGE:
For customers with Haswell Macs

If you are experiencing interrupted or distorted audio on a new 2013 Haswell Mac, Apogee has developed a beta update for Duet 2, Duet for iPad & Mac and Quartet that may resolve the issue. If you have already contacted Apogee support and received a support ticket number please email betafeedback@apogeedigital.com and include the support ticket number and "New 2013 Mac Beta" in the title. If you do not have a support ticket number please click on this link to start the process: http://www.apogeedigital.com/contact-support.php

Jan 15, 2014 11:37 AM in response to XCellMusic

tanx for the feedback XcellMusic this is suuuuuch a pain in the A.... ! i mean we all bought apple for multimedia reputation and it is failling big time .. i cant accept to boot and reboot because of this mess ! man .. this is unacceptable


i have an idea ... i am considering removing mavericks and install windows ... i d only keep the apple design as apparently they are NOT ABLE anymore to deliver reliable software


my advice : SELL APPPLE


i wish you manage to record peacefully some good music without being too much annoyed by this (expansive) failure


in your last post i see that Apogee is more reactive than multi billion dollars APPLE ... this is amazing

Jan 15, 2014 6:19 PM in response to SweFrank

I'd be VERY curious to know if the Apogee beta fixes things for you (and anyone else) since I have five days left to decide whether to retrun my shiny new Haswell iMac which I bought to use exclusively as a music production machine. My PreSonus Firepod isn't Mavericks compatible (before discovering all these threads I had assumed that's why I was getting pops and clicks) so I was also about to shell out for a Duet 2. I'm just not sure if it's going to turn out that there's a hardware problem with the Haswell iMacs, in which case I'd definitely want to return it while I can, or if it's really an issue that can be fixed via a software patch or firmware update. If the Apogee beta fixes things, I'll obviously feel much better, and will have some peace of mind in keeping the iMac. Thanks!

Jan 15, 2014 8:23 PM in response to edavies

Hey all, I just got my replacemend duet for ipad mad, updated the firmware and new mavericks drivers from the apogee site, and whammo, same problem.


It seemed as though it was going to work. iTunes initially worked fine, but after trying to add simple drum loop to 2nd track guitar in garageband, the plugged in guitar was not audible, totally static’d out. At this time, flipping back to iTunes revealed same thing, all frapped out iTunes. Had to unplug and replug duet to get it to reset. Even playing Itunes by itself without the other "challenge" apps at the same time reveals crapping outr after approximately 30 minutes.


I was able to make the same drivers work on my gf’s new 2013 macbook air also running 10.9.1. I had previous M audio interface, as well as steinburg all crap out on the iMac 27" 3TB fuision drive. Still very dissappointed.


When is Apple gonna step up and admit its a problem with the computer. Does anyone know it the 3TB hardrive version or the SSD work with apogee Duet? I think the fusion drive has to go. POC....piece of crap.


What to do?

Jan 15, 2014 9:22 PM in response to right2thetop

For a week I've been on the phone with Tier 2 supervisors who are now in communication with engineering.

I have made sure that this thread and others like it have received attention and acknowledgement.

The problem is not dependent on whether or not you have a Fusion drive.

The main issue seems to be new Haswell/Crystalwell machines, and/or Mavericks, and/or Core Audio.

I highly recommend that you file a bug report with apple.com/feedback.

Pile on the bug reports there, as AppleCare reps and Geniuses generally are not aware of what goes on in the forums.

I think Apogee, Focusrite, Tascam and every other manufacturer is doing all they can to fix Apple's problem, with varied results.

Jan 15, 2014 9:27 PM in response to right2thetop

I've gone through 2 2013 27" i7 iMacs with the 3TB FD and two different interfaces with the same problem! The first one Apple swapped out back in October when they first came out without question. It took 20 days to get the replacement but I got it and quickly realized I had the same problem.


I finally gave up and on 12/19 ordered a MacPro, thinking I might get stuck with the iMac but hoped that 10.9 or 10.9.1 would fix this - Well we all know what happened so on 12/27 I returned #2 to Apple and asked for a refund. Well after working with Apple and my reseller for 2 weeks they agreed to allow me to return the iMac.


The MacPro showed up today, and guess what? Works perfect right out of the box, no audio issues etc!


So I tell you this because they told me it was a FD issue, no simple fix for them. I would unload that iMac as quickly as possible and either downgrade to a 7200 HDD or go to a different model computer. I certainly would not settle for something that does not work as advertised.


Good Luck!

Jan 15, 2014 9:53 PM in response to BiggusDikkus

Hey BiggusDikkus,


The 2013 MacPro came with just 10.9 which was a little surprising, had to upload to 10.9.1, and there was a EFI firmeware update needed. When I first plugged in a 30" Cinema display there was a h-sync issue but once the updates were done it works perfectly with the display.


I spent about 2 hours playing iTunes with now issue, and just finished a simple video project for a client with voice overs and files play flawlessly connect through a Focusrite 6i6 AI.


Hope this helps! - PS - This new Mac is just incredibly fast!

Massive problem with audio interface

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