Snow / Logic / iMac JUNK !!!!!!!

    I have had it. $1500 on a Virus Snow that is completely unusable. Using I7 iMac / Apogee Duet / Virus snow. Running all the latest versions including Lion. You would think buying all the best gear and latest version you would be ahead of the game. No !!!! This Access Virus, looses sink via USB, Using USB audio or the usb inputs, after 5 mins makes strange noises, after 10 minutes doesn't make sounds at all. I have tried the USB Hub, different cables, and plugging in directly to each of my 4 usb ports on back of iMac.


    I have contacted support several times and nothing seems to help. I use Ableton and logic and have the same problems.


    MAYBE instead of making videos on how you COULD use this product, you can make a FIX for this JUNK !!!!!!!!!!!

    Okay here is what we got cooking.


    IMac I7 2.8 Quad 16gb ram Running Lion 10.7.1
    Apogee Duet (Original Model) Firewire Lastest version ( Apogee Maestro 2 ) 8/2011 release
    Logic Pro 9.1.5 32bit, or 64bit. Right now mostly 32bit. Process Buffer Size to small, I/O Buffer 128
    Access Virus Snow 4.5.1.15


    Virus is hooked up via usb, with a M-audio Keystation 61es plugged into the Midi In port. I have tried to hook up the snow to all the usb ports on the back of the iMac, including the Belkin usb hub as mentioned in other posts.


    I have also unplugged all other usb devices, Ideally I use 3 of the 4 ports on the back of the iMac for Kore 2, Maschine & Snow TI


    I have about the same problems, with my 13" late 2011 Macbook Pro running Lion 10.7.1, Same Apogee & Logic Version.


    Here is my problem


    #1 Red Message, Usb out of sync when changing sounds. Have to hit space bar, stop and start the current song.
    #2 Random Dots on the LED display on the snow, when using a sound I have renamed mostly on the first few letters of the sounds name. When I hit the exit button, and go to other menus it goes away.
    #3 After playing one sound via usb midi from logic in a loop for a couple minutes the sound morphs to junk.
    #4 If Virus is running in logic just at idle for a few minutes it will make random sounds.
    #5 After working on a project for a few minutes the snow BPM/LFO light will blink 300bpm, while project is at 128


    This unit hooked up, with out usb, via midi and headphone, with out TI VST, works awesome.


    I have noticed some small issues with Lion, and the Apogee Duet sound wise on other programs. My frustration is due to the fact that is top of the line gear. If i wanted problems, or to use older software versions, I'd buy a PC. Please Help !!

    Problem #6 In logic if you move a Midi Regiion or copy it another spot, when the virus plays it, the sound is sustained, or the release is all way up, who knows.


    I'm almost to point I'm going make Youtube Vidoes, of these problems. There Comical !

    I mentioned, Kore 2 and Maschine, because I know they are USB powered, and Probably take up some bandwidth. I just recent tried this again, on my laptop. New Logic project, with an audio acapella and a few simple drum loops. Then open up the Snow, 4 part multi on logic pick a few sounds and record a simple 8 bar progression. I notice a lot of these problems occur when I move the midi notes around while cycling the loop over and over again. I build my remixes this way, but as i edit and arrange midi notes in logic this virus gets a mind of its own.


    Early today, the only problem i had was when i changed sounds while playing a midi progression, it would lose sync. I can deal with that, but when I moved the notes in the midi region, it sustained all the notes and mad some horrible noises. I would stop and replay the part from the beginning and it would continue. I left logic open, and restarted the virus, unplugged everything and held down Tap Tempo, and it worked beautiful for a few minutes.


    I can totally understand some issues with the new version of Apogee, Lion, Logic, TI Virus. I hope that my issues are because of these new versions, and in time they will all be corrected. I highly dissapionted to hear people had these problems with older versions before I even bought this product.


    I am a Remixer in the USA, I'm really hoping to do about 2 remixes a week, using the Virus, and only the Virus. I don't mind waiting and sorting this out, but need to know people are working on this.


    Thanks Marc.
    8)

    Zitat von MMatthews

    I mentioned, Kore 2 and Maschine, because I know they are USB powered, and Probably take up some bandwidth. I just recent tried this again, on my laptop. New Logic project, with an audio acapella and a few simple drum loops. Then open up the Snow, 4 part multi on logic pick a few sounds and record a simple 8 bar progression. I notice a lot of these problems occur when I move the midi notes around while cycling the loop over and over again. I build my remixes this way, but as i edit and arrange midi notes in logic this virus gets a mind of its own.


    can you send that arrangement into support please? i guess it still happens when you strip out the drums and vocals? i need to pass this on to QA and let them try to replicate your findings. as i said, i'm using logic in a similar configuration myself and i don't know those effects - maybe we just work differently (i for instance try to avoid looping things for unrelated reasons).


    as for USB bandwidth as a cause for all that. i know that there are people on this forum who like to repeat that this all is USB bandwidth based but i doubt that. especially when you use a hub, the bandwidth does not get restricted at all. at the same time you do seem to have somehow USB related problems, i wouldn't know what else could cause disconnects. you probably did try another cable, just to be sure.


    one last thing: those random dots on the LC display. do you have those when you connect the snow only using conventional midi?


    thanks, marc

    I've got pretty much the same problems here with the current beta and have probably had most of them for years now with both PC / MAC / Logic / Cubase etc, whatever version of TI OS (beta or release) I was using at whatever point. Some better than others for sure.


    I find TI very much unusable at the moment for the majority of reasons you state in the original post, particularly lost sync and more with my biggest bug bear being latency and when I say latency, I mean variable latency. Wether using Direct / Live mode, it is totally unstable for me.


    Been through all the rigmarole a million times but it's for sure worse than it ever was for me in Logic 9.1.5 32Bit on a Mac Pro.


    Hope we can get to the bottom of this or it's good old midi for me.


    I'm totally out of touch with this by the way, but is it possible to just use the VC to patch change / edit sounds and have the audio coming through the analog outs but trigger the synth via the traditional 5 pin DIN from my MIDI interface? I think this would work much better for me.


    Thanks.

    And unfortunatley this is the case / problem...i to like you get peed off with out of sync..but now and again it really dose rock but then...ha ha ....Tight as a drum!!??...surely they can sort this out if it can do it sometimes??

    So again, tried this peace of junk with my Macbook Pro 2011 13 I5, today with ableton live and apogee duet. ALL the latest versions, including Lion.


    Incredible latency, the fonts overlap each other on the sound presets, lost sync over and over again, and about 10 minutes into working the virus just made noises till i had to delete the track with the plug in.



    When is the newest version of this crap coming out ???? BTW I'm really loving my new Dave Smith Tetra and Mopho !!

    It's a very sad state of affairs.


    It was working great, same project, nothing changed. Just loaded up and having pressed stop in Logic, about a minute after that the tempo light above the display started freaking out and the arp patch in use came belting out through my speakers sounding like it was trying to catch up with the tempo light, whilst my project was not even playing. There are most definitely ghosts in this machine.


    I've owned this rather expensive synth for a number of years now and nothing has changed. Fancy new features which are great, but buggy as hell.


    Surely someone at access must have the magic formula?


    As a comparison, perhaps not a fair / relevant one, I purchased NI Maschine last week and I've already made some solid music without any hiccups / sync problems / latency issues whatsoever.


    Come on Access, please make this stable and useable. Enough is enough.


    What with a faulty display with lines missing etc, I'm beginning to wonder if my hardware is at fault, but I doubt it. I've never been able to rely on this synth from the minute UPS dropped it off.


    It has pretty much become an expensive controller for me X(

    And i just went back through my post history, it's most certainly a love hate relationship :)


    SO! Can I use the VC to patch browse / edit sounds and trigger via trad 5 pin din and use the analog outs?


    ?(

    I'm back to say how really bad things are.


    No point sending you a Logic project with one instrument track. This thing cannot track tempo / stay in sync at all with Logic.


    All I can say is, your tutorials must be edited to f and back.


    Another pointless, fallen on deaf ears post I guess.

    Exactly, Access team please look at how many of us are having the same problems. I think the previous threads have established it is not people making basic installation errors etc, and not something that is going to resolved by looking at individuals setups and spotting some simple mistake.. We are all getting random glitches, sounds, and sync problems. There is obviously some logic / virus problem. Please help us out here guys!!!

    Are you being serious Marc ? You really want me to make a project with one small 4 bar miidi clip with a few notes on it. Wouldn't it be better for access to get an the latest iMac with all the latest drivers and RELIZE there is a problem ???


    Doesn't It mean anything to ACCESS that people are selling there crap and writing bad reviews everywhere.


    I'm still waiting for some other companies to fix there logic / Lion issues also. But really for a money paid for this synth, you think support could fix this. :cursing::thumbdown::thumbdown::thumbdown:

    Are you serious? Your post would suggest not.


    Rather, it appears that you would much prefer to rant at Access than do a simple arrangement to help them reproduce your specific problem.