tiBook, Live, RME Multiface=good?

SUB · Post by **SUB** » Fri Apr 04, 2003 10:06 am

Hi all,

I'm currently using live 2.03 on a G4 tiBook 867, OS 10.2.4 and feel like adding an external audio card to my setup. Due to my focus on very low latency (at least under 10ms) I wonder wheter an RME Hammerfall DSP PC-Card w/ Multiface would suit my needs or not. I usually use up to 10 Tracks packed with a few Plugins including performance robbing reverbs.

Do you think the RME would help me to get like eight channels out without latency?

Greets,
Fabian

Pitch Black · Post by **Pitch Black** » Fri Apr 04, 2003 11:42 am

I'm currently using 2.03 on a Tibook 500mHz and Cardbus/Multiface. In short - it ROCKS I really couldn't recommend it any higher. Been playing live gigs with it for the last 8 months with it and its all incredibly stable.

I'm using OS 9.2.2 because the OSX drivers for the Hammerfall DSP system don't have MIDI yet due to no OMS support. Not sure when this will happen but I've no doubt it eventually will.

The latency is awesome - I usually run at 12ms for live gigs and 6 or 3ms in the studio.

For gigs, another nice thing is that (under OS9 at least) I can put the Powerbook into sleep by closing the lid with LIVE booted and the Hammerfall connected and it goes to sleep with no thumps or clicks from the outpus and wakes up again ready to run no problem - May not seem like much but in the heat of nerves before a gig its really nice to know.

You should have no problems getting the performance you are talking about - on my Tibook 500 I can get 10-12 tracks 6-8 plugins (LIVE and VST) and a verb on economy setting. I would think you'd have no real problem getting more out of your machine.

So

tibook + LIVE + RME = OOOHHHHHH YEAH!!!!!

cheers
paddy

SUB · Post by **SUB** » Fri Apr 04, 2003 11:47 am

thanks a lot! Exatctly what I needed to know! I think I'll give it a try...

quandry · Post by **quandry** » Fri Apr 04, 2003 2:06 pm

for a laptop you simply cannot beat the RME multiface + cardbus in terms of latency, sound quality, etc. PMCCIA is still faster than firewire, etc. and the RME is the ultimate for laptops, period, go for it, you will not be sorry, and the extra money really is worth every penny.

Porpy · Post by **Porpy** » Tue Apr 08, 2003 12:32 am

I can vouch for the RME combo as well. The soundquality is wonderful and the latency exceptional.

just note, that the midi IO doesn't seem to work on any powerbooks over the 500 Mhz point. I have a Ti800 and I have never got it working properly.

the latency is even better when you go to OSX....

regards

P

quandry · Post by **quandry** » Tue Apr 08, 2003 1:23 am

MIDI works great on XP PRO P4

rpsx · Post by **rpsx** » Thu Apr 10, 2003 1:28 am

Porpy wrote:
the latency is even better when you go to OSX....

P

this is for real? i can't stand my rme hdsp in osx. when i'm using live, with latency at 3ms (no better then what i was using in os9, and any less and i get pops and clicks all over the place), live moves like molassas. to the point where it just isn't worth it playing with anymore. however, the same composition flys when i use internal audio, and NOT the rme.

more and more i'm coming to believe osx audio is a bad joke. thinking that the rme was to blame, i splurged for a mlan card for my ksp8 fx processor. again, poor performance. i'm getting tired of being a beta lab rat for apple. i'm even considering keeping my rme and buying a ibm laptop. live is my main bag, and i'm heavily considering jumping into the world of reaktor. i'm sick of being in last place with my tibook. sure, i look good with it, but i just ain't having no fun no more.

oh... another comment on the hammerfall... i have a multiface, and half the time i boot up with it, the rme drivers recognize it as a digiface (different ins and outs). i will boot again over and over, or plug and unplug the card, and it usually takes numerous trys to make it work.

why can't anyone just make a product that works without problems? again, rme blames apple for all it's shortcomings.

i loved it in os9. never had to think about it. but that was with logic audio, too. fast as could be. now, with live and osx, life blows.

quandry · Post by **quandry** » Thu Apr 10, 2003 2:19 am

I definitely wouldn't blame the RME, at least on a PC. From every account out there, RME is a rock solid, super-fast sc solution. From my own experience and that of friends, all running XP Pro on various laptops and desktops, RME and its software are totally stable, without any discrepencies like you describe in OSX. Yeah, being a paying beta tester must be really frustrating, but it sounds like someday it might be top dog, for now the PC's seem to rule the Live realm.

digitalia · Post by **digitalia** » Thu Apr 10, 2003 4:26 am

im using a Multiface and Cardbus on a TiBook 867 - trust me, it's very sweet...

cheers,
d

benjamin · Post by **benjamin** » Thu Apr 10, 2003 7:52 pm

Just to add my own experience :

i have an ibm laptop with an rme digiface and it's performing very well,
except if you try to access 2 asio outputs at the same time from two
different applications (where you get a blue kernel panic screen) (even different asio outputs)

that's sad because i was planning to run live and reaktor at the same time (the two only audio applications i own) and trigger midi midi patterns in reaktor and clips in live with my midi keyboard (using midiyoke to share midi inputs)

so my only solution is to use the MME drivers with much higher latency, or run both reaktor and live as vst and rewire slave in some host, but this add risks of instability (especially because i don't have the money anymore to buy a big and stable host such as cubase after all the $$$ i spent in hardware

except for this problem which might be important for some people, i am really happy with my ibm thinkpad a31 1.6ghz/ rme digiface setup.

felixboyd · Post by **felixboyd** » Sun Jun 08, 2003 8:12 pm

My configuration.

Mac g4 Powerbook/867
1 gig ram
OS X.2.3
Steinberg Audiolink Multiset w/Audiolionk 96 cardbus
Live 2.0
Red Sound Voyager 1 generates midi clock

I've benn having audio dropouts, which have made it impossible for me to gig with this settup. Based on my research, RME was supposed to be the best thing out there.

Any suggestions?

thank you.

tiBook, Live, RME Multiface=good?

tiBook, Live, RME Multiface=good?

RME multiset w/pwerbook g4 = Audio drop outs!?