KVR Audio

jacqueslacouth · Post by **jacqueslacouth** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 1:40 am

Now don't get me wrong, I am an Apple user of many years but this thread prompted me to go look at the current MBPs and one thing just leapt out and screamed at me....AU$5120 for a 4TB SSD

I mean seriously...What the ACTUAL F*CK???

2 minutes later I find a 4TB SSD for AU$790...How in Fark does anyone get sucked into this absolute BS?

jancivil · Post by **jancivil** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 8:13 am

It adds $3200 USD here, which reminds me of why I have 1TB. Apple gouges the shit out of you, and did when I had them put RAM in the 2009 machine.
I had money burning a hole in my pocket I guess.

aMUSEd · Post by **aMUSEd** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 8:16 am

I'm wanting to update to a new MacBook Pro or MacMini - not quite decided yet, but holding back because of the problems with RME USB interfaces that still seem unresolved.

sqigls · Post by **sqigls** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 8:26 am

what problems are they?

aMUSEd · Post by **aMUSEd** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 8:39 am

Serious glitches and higher cpu/fan use over USB

lnikj · Post by **lnikj** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 8:41 am

aMUSEd wrote: Tue Feb 05, 2019 8:39 am Serious glitches and higher cpu/fan use over USB

The glitches are on the internal audio too, not just over USB.

lnikj · Post by **lnikj** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 9:02 am

jancivil wrote: Mon Feb 04, 2019 4:14 pm
It's not hotter than before, it isn't. I don't know what a 'live set' even is, but it doesn't concern me. I rather doubt it's something which requires more machine than my projects. EDIT: it apparently is for the one user who is overloading a single core with that modular standalone but he bought the gamer sort of video card as well. All of them have got hot after a while for me. This one seems cooler on average.

The "gamer" sort of video card, the Vega 20, was bought because every report I have encountered was that the machine runs cooler than with the 560X, even though it looks on paper like it may run hotter.
But it turns out that it was a dud anyway.

I don't see that heavy usage of a single core is "overloading" the machine; the machine ought to be up to it and have adequate thermals to not become unbearably hot.

jancivil · Post by **jancivil** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 9:25 am

"overloading a single core"/"VCVRack has no problems maxing out the first core" = same difference afaic. I didn't intend to misrepresent.

I got one of a bad batch, where the video card was not connected properly. 2010 model, I couldn't do anything about it as a used computer in 2017. It was so new-looking, I guess so. Rendering video meant kernel panic every time. That's called a lemon, it isn't representative.

jancivil · Post by **jancivil** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 9:33 am

"The glitches are on the internal audio too, not just over USB."
For me, this isn't the case. I haven't heard the fan rev at all, once. I use the internal audio with no external interface at all.
There is no 'glitching'.
However the internal audio does not like sharing the speakers with the speakers in the monitor as an aggregate device, it freaks out and becomes garbage. Fortunately that sounds like shit anyway and is not a good thing to do. It will do the aggregate device with external headphones + its speakers with no problem. I have no issues normally, I would have returned it.
I'm on this computer all the time, most of it with audio.

You can't assume your case is universal, you may have gotten a lemon, and since you didn't replace it you can't know otherwise. I'm not defending Apple with that, I don't know what is actually wrong it's just overstating the case.

lnikj · Post by **lnikj** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 9:42 am

jancivil wrote: Tue Feb 05, 2019 9:33 am "The glitches are on the internal audio too, not just over USB."
For me, this isn't the case. I haven't heard the fan rev at all, once. I use the internal audio with no external interface at all.
There is no 'glitching'.
However the internal audio does not like sharing the speakers with the speakers in the monitor as an aggregate device, it freaks out and becomes garbage. Fortunately that sounds like shit anyway and is not a good thing to do. It will do the aggregate device with external headphones + its speakers with no problem. I have no issues, I would have returned it.
I'm on this computer all the time, most of it with audio.

You can't assume your case is universal, you may have gotten a lemon, and since you didn't replace it you can't know otherwise. I'm not defending Apple with that, I don't know what is actually wrong it's just overstating the case.

Are you able to run the test in the first post here and not see dropouts in the console log or hear them:

https://www.gearslutz.com/board/music-c ... d-bug.html

There are a mishmash of issues in this 53 page thread but it is clear that my audio problems are not isolated:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/ma ... g.2128234/

jancivil · Post by **jancivil** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 9:55 am

No, because I don't have Logic. I personally do not adopt new OSes like that in the first place.

The video card botch was not 'isolated' to one user either, it was a batch of them which they replaced at that time upon asking.

I'm seeing users report Apple assumes a hardware issue. I did the opposite of stating Apple never has hardware issues.

They've made bad batches before, evidently. 'I don't have the issue at all so it isn't universal' would seem a reasonable statement to me.

lnikj · Post by **lnikj** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 10:02 am

I'm sure you will have no difficulty in replicating the AppleSmartBatteryManager bug in whatever you use. The requirement to trigger it is merely to have an audio thread of over 50% on the first core.

That said, if a search of your console log never contains coreaudiod dropouts then your usage clearly never triggers them and you will be happy with your MBP.

We aren't ever likely to agree here. You are happy with your purchase; I was unhappy with mine and returned it.

jancivil · Post by **jancivil** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 10:26 am

well it looks like this with a heavier project:

CPU.png

at the time of the screenshot the audio is performing perfectly and I can land notes on time while recording.

"Open Console and search Battery". I looked, I see nothing labeled "Battery". If that means use Search with the term Battery, there is nothing. It appears, although I may be too dense to grasp this, I'm using over 50% using audio.

I would never disagree with your actual experience. I don't have any issue with the internal audio itself, so I disagree with stating as though as simple fact there is a universal problem.

I don't use the software 'Logic', that instrument in it, the modular standalone you use, nor do I try to run multiple streams of audio in different apps simultaneously. And, I use it as basically a desktop, I'm not doing this trying to run if off the battery. I'm paranoid about battery life, this is it for me.

There, I have two monster instances of Absynth loaded and running. If I keep hitting playback before their envelopes are finished, occasionally the audio breaks up as underruns do. Not often, not like the same sort of experience with the MacPro 5.1 for instance.
I believe in multicore distribution of load as a pragmatic sort, so I use instruments in VE Pro which you see using more than one core there.

So all in all, I feel as free to report a happy experience as you do with the unhappy one I guess.

fmr · Post by **fmr** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 10:37 am

jancivil wrote: Tue Feb 05, 2019 10:26 am I believe in multicore distribution of load as a pragmatic sort, so I use instruments in VE Pro which you see using more than one core there.

You mean you NEVER load any VI directly in Nuendo, but always use VE Pro for that?

lnikj · Post by **lnikj** » Tue Feb 05, 2019 10:39 am

I am glad it is working for you. Seriously

I am surprised that the AppleSmartBatteryManager daemon is not running on your machine though every minute. The only way I found to disable it when I was investigating the problems was to turn off SIP, unload the .kext and rename it.

When it was running, my console log showed it start up, then there would be a coreaudiod skip message (cause: unknown), then it would shut down. This happened every minute without fail if the first core was loaded.

I was on Mojave as that was what the machine shipped with, but the problem first appeared on High Sierra according to that GS thread.

any future for MacBooks in music production ?