Mbox Mini 3 Factory Defect?

[CJDeFlippo]

Hey guys, i'm pretty puzzled with this one so I'm beginning to think that I may need to get a hold of Avid for a replacement.

Like a lot of the posts here I too am receiving the "Hardware Not Recognized" prompt when loading Protools LE 8.04. I have read many threads and troubleshooting pages on this exact issue, yet nothing has solved my problem. I figured I'd give you guys a shot before I get on the phone with Avid requesting a replacement.

The blue light powers on and is NOT blinking. The hardware is not recognized by Protools, Reaper, Cubase, Reason or any other program for that matter. ALSO, it does not show on my computer's C: Drive. When I first installed PT8, I had no issues with the hardware. I did notice the problem, though, after I had reset Reason's audio preferences to play through the Mbox and restarted my computer. Nothing would read the drivers so I started troubleshooting

Here is a list of everything I have done so far.

reinstalled the latest drivers.
upgraded to 8.05
reset the devices and preferences.
REINSTALLED PT completely after uninstalling entirely from the system.
Ran the Digi Drivers through their Program Files Logo
Tried Different USB ports, different cords
Uninstalled Internet Explorer
updated Video cards to latest software
loaded Win7 service Pack

I then installed Protools on my buddys Mac... same issues
He booted windows, still nothing...

tried starting comp with hardware hooked up, unplugged
same with installing drivers
saved drivers to both the computers drivers folder and Digi Program folders.


I wouldn't be posting here if I hadn't been completely stumped by this issue, seeing as I am generally good enough with computers to make things WORK. I had my friend (from Lowe-Tech computers) up for 7 hrs trying every solution we could find on the internet.

If anyone knows of any POSSIBLE solutions which I may have missed, please help, for I am entering my finals week for music industry and production at DVC and it is crucial that I have a running system.

Then again, is there is no solution could anyone explain why this happened because I searched for posts on factory issues, but no one seems to have reported any factory problems with the MBox 3 mini. Does it have to do with running the MBox with Reason 4?


Im running
Win 7 64 ultimate
MBox 3 Mini
PT8.04

[Bill Denton]

Look at my post #15 on this thread: http://duc.avid.com/showthread.php?p...=1#post1792191

Even though it was written for PT 9, it would also apply to any PT version running on Win 7...

[CJDeFlippo]

That is a clever thought and I will try it before I throw your idea away, however, I installed the same version of protools which came with the Mbox on a Mac computer and I had the same result. If it is in fact a Windows 7 issue, it wouldnt have issued the same result on a mac (that is unless windows 7 had corrupted the hardware???)

I took it in to my Protools class yesterday, running XP with functioning systems, yet my hardware was still not recognized. The more I do, the less I think this is an issue with my machine.

Has there been any known hardware bugs that would cause the MBox to not be recognized? Its bran new and worked durring the first install. never been dropped, mishandled, mistreated or introduced to any harmful elements.

[Lock Ness]

mbox 3 mini is crappy with win 7 n pt9 also

[CJDeFlippo]

so, I found out that the firmware was lost.
only way to fix this is to send it back to avid

[ECmaj7]

I have the same problem...
Only 2 weeks after I bough it.
Audiomidi.com won't help, they're too busy or something.

I am having trouble finding a number to call Avid to report this issue and get it fixed.
Where can I call?
Thanks Emilio

[Dan.TweekStudios]

I'm having the exact same issue here! I bought the mbox 3 mini for mixing at home and on the go outside of my studio. So I'm no stranger to audio interfaces. I even bought a brand new laptop to run everything on. My biggest problem me, is that I bought the mbox used off of craigslist. Which means its out of warranty, and I can't send it back to avid.. the blue light turns on, but I get "hardware not connected" from pro tools as well as the mbox control panel. And it not listed as a sound card in the win7 control panel. I'm completely at a loss for what to do. I refuse to believe that I got completely ripped off by this guy. There's got to be a fix! I've tried completely uninstalling pt and really installing in compatibility mode for win so service pack 3 with no luck. Tried it on my main recording rig at the studio with no luck, and tries it on a completely different laptop with no luck. This really saddens me...tonight I will try to really install by installing the driver first without the mbox connected, then pt, then restart and connect like the other post suggested. But it really looks like a driver or firmware issue.. if all avid does is reinstall the firmware to fix this, there's got to be a way to do this myself right?

[Pinball Wizard]

I don't have a mini so this is a shot in the dark.

With the mbox (also a USB interface) some people have gotten some relief from either a USB card or a powered hub. It seems that laptop USB ports sometimes cut corners.

Please see this thread & I hope it helps although it really is for a slightly different problem. Good luck!

[Dan.TweekStudios]

Well I tried the same mbox on my dedicated recording rig in every usb port it has, including a hub, still with no luck. The guy on craigslist sold it to me using a fake name, and fake email address, so it was obviously fried before I got it. But he made the mistake of using his real cell phone number. I paid the $1.99 for a reverse look up, found his real name and address, and filed a police report for fraud. After contacting him with this info he decided to give me my $165 back in a few days haha. If only it was that easy with avid! So I guess I'll spend the money on an MBox 2 mini or pro. Those are pretty solid right? Or has anyone tried the new pro tools SE? They're selling it with an m-audio interface for only $99! I wont be recording with this set up, only working on mixes from my main studio rig. Some of those mixes and pretty big though, with very heavy plug ins. Does the interface effect how the software runs at all? I was under the impression that for mixing purposes, all I need is something to allow pro tools to open, and that the computer does all the work. Good luck to everyone with these mbox3 issues. I wish I would have done a bit more research before getting one. It seems like if your out of warranty your pretty much screwed..