Presonus Faderport?

[evernaut]

Anyone use one of these with Live? I just bought one and am curious to canvas opinions.

Got it largely for the fader really, but other functions seem to have been integrated well with Live from a quick glance at the .pdf manual.

[WidowTwanky]

I use one, and find it works just fine. Only weird thing is that Live8 insists on sending it 15 separate MIDI messages (mixture of Channel Pressure and Controllers) for every MIDI note on/off event in the set. I don't think it's the Faderport driver, but a bug in Live 8.0.1.

[evernaut]

I just can't seem to get it to work at all. I've just installed the latest firmware, followed all the steps...nothing. All that happens when I select it as Mackie Control in Prefs is that Live arms channel 1 for record and won't let me un-arm it.

Bugger.

[WidowTwanky]

Using a Mac? Do you get the flashing 'Output' button when you hold down the 'Stop' button to put it into Live Mode? I had problems with this, and was told by PreSonus to install the driver update under Tiger, not Leopard. That worked for me.

[evernaut]

Yep, using a Mac on OS X Leopard 10.5.6. No, I don't get the flashing output button. When I press stop - as per the manual instructions - nothing happens at all.

Install firmware under Tiger? I don't really want to re-install Tiger just to get this to work...

[Rogue Scrunt]

interesting.
is this piece wireless?
how is the build quality?


thank you

[evernaut]

No, it's usb cable and a psu to provide power for the motorised fader. Build quality is pretty good - solid metal (although the Pan button is a bit plasticky.)

The only issue is that it won't do anything

Pretty big minus for me...I've mailed tech support, but if I have to re-install an old OS X just to get it going then it'll be sent back pronto.

[evernaut]

So, I contact Presonus tech support and they basically copy and paste in an email the relevant part of the PF manual and say " er..have you tried this?"



I know they must have to deal with idiots from time to time ("have you tried turning it on?" etc.), but I sent them a detailed email stating everything that I'd done, what set-up I was using...everything. Fuckwits.

Anyway, good news is that I've tried it out with Logic and it works a treat...really quite impressed, but all the more disappointed that it won't work in Live.

I have a mate who has Tiger on an old G4 though, so am gonna try that trick tomorrow....

[oblique strategies]

So, I contact Presonus tech support and they basically copy and paste in an email the relevant part of the PF manual and say " er..have you tried this?"



I know they must have to deal with idiots from time to time ("have you tried turning it on?" etc.), but I sent them a detailed email stating everything that I'd done, what set-up I was using...everything. Fuckwits.

Anyway, good news is that I've tried it out with Logic and it works a treat...really quite impressed, but all the more disappointed that it won't work in Live.

I have a mate who has Tiger on an old G4 though, so am gonna try that trick tomorrow....

Keep at them -in a nice way. Often support peeps just go too fast & don't really read your email. I've been down this road a few times & it really took a while before anyone fully comprehended what I was communicating. It's a shame since that is their function after all, & the details you provide are in fact helping them to do their job!

[evernaut]

So, I contact Presonus tech support and they basically copy and paste in an email the relevant part of the PF manual and say " er..have you tried this?"



I know they must have to deal with idiots from time to time ("have you tried turning it on?" etc.), but I sent them a detailed email stating everything that I'd done, what set-up I was using...everything. Fuckwits.

Anyway, good news is that I've tried it out with Logic and it works a treat...really quite impressed, but all the more disappointed that it won't work in Live.

I have a mate who has Tiger on an old G4 though, so am gonna try that trick tomorrow....

Keep at them -in a nice way. Often support peeps just go too fast & don't really read your email. I've been down this road a few times & it really took a while before anyone fully comprehended what I was communicating. It's a shame since that is their function after all, & the details you provide are in fact helping them to do their job!

I know, I know...and I shouldn't get so pissed off since there are bazillions of possible reasons for any hardware/software issues these days...but it just annoys me that you go to the trouble of explaining things in great detail and they just essentially say "oh, sorry to hear it's not working. It should really work. When it works properly it will function as expected. Contact us again if you have any further issues."

[Spamhead]

Potential Solution:
While mixing tonight I seem to have stumbled upon a way of consistently getting my Faderport to cooperate with Live 7 and 8!!!
There is a small reset button in the back of the unit, between power and data cables. Assuming you've got the newest Faderport firmware, Mackie Control enabled in Live's preferences, and do the reset before you start your DAWs, it lights right up and returns to zero db mark when I start Live 8 or Live 7. Worked consistently for me, hope the same goes for all you frustrated 'Port owners just jonesin' to mix in your favorite colorful program...

...who would have thought...

[henrikee]

Potential Solution:
While mixing tonight I seem to have stumbled upon a way of consistently getting my Faderport to cooperate with Live 7 and 8!!!
There is a small reset button in the back of the unit, between power and data cables. Assuming you've got the newest Faderport firmware, Mackie Control enabled in Live's preferences, and do the reset before you start your DAWs, it lights right up and returns to zero db mark when I start Live 8 or Live 7. Worked consistently for me, hope the same goes for all you frustrated 'Port owners just jonesin' to mix in your favorite colorful program...

...who would have thought...

Hi Spamhead,
Are you using the 1.3.5 firmware? I tried reseting it, but nothing happens when I press the reset button.
If not, could you send me the 1.3.3 firmware? My unit came with a broken CD.
Thanks,

[fishmonkey]

you can download it directly from the Presonus site:

http://www.presonus.com/products/Detail ... roductId=2

[Trent]

Here are the instructions to get it working with Live. Its on page 17. Make sure you hold down the stop button and press output. It reverts back to the other mode when you unplug it or shut the computer off. So get used to holding stop and pressing output. But it works very well! I have one and I mainly use it for transport control.

[Pyro Z]

While I don't have anything to add in regards to a solution to the Faderport problem (I don't own one, although I am interested in it).....as far as PreSonus support goes, sadly, I have to say that your experience is not unusual. They can be very unhelpful.

PreSonus is a company that makes excellent products for excellent prices. But they are a much smaller company than their gear would lead you to believe. One of the consequences of that is they don't seem to be able to provide quality support on a consistent enough basis for many of their customers to truly be satisfactory.

If you want my advice, use the forum on their website or call them and try to speak to someone higher up. Otherwise you'll get a lot of generic responses. E-mail is a bad idea. The man you want to speak to is named Brandon Hayes.