003r Dropping FW Connection

[Maclay]

I am working on a brand new Mac Pro (12-core, 2.93, OS 10.6.7) with a fresh install of PT9. I used the designated protocol of installing the 003r driver before installing the software. However, the driver works selectively. I can go a month and have no trouble and then suddenly the driver quits, the 003r is not recognized and doesn't show up in my devices. At this point there's nothing I can do but repair disk permissions, zap PRAM, reset the PMU, reinstall the driver,... THEN reboot. Sometimes that works, other times... like NOW... it doesn't. I've already wasted money talking to Avid. The technician who "assisted" me was uneducated and not helpful beyond advising me to "try rebooting" -- thanks buddy.

Anyone else experiencing this, or have a suggestion for troubleshooting? I've tried just about everything and I'm at the end of my rope.

HELP!

[danander11]

Try a new fw cable?

[Maclay]

Thanks; Yep, I've changed the cable. Also, it's not the firewire bus because I can mount a FW drive with no issues.

[ripekeai]

This sometimes happens to me as well but maybe not to the same extent. Other than rebooting, I can sometimes get pro tools to recognize the 003 again by holding "N" during launch to load the playback engine window. From there, I change the buffer speed or something to initiate some sort of communication with the hardware. Hope it helps; certainly frustrating.

[Maclay]

Thanks ripekeai! I'll give that a try... can't understand why Avid wouldn't address this. After a bit more research, it seems to be a common problem. Not exactly inspiring me to upgrade to Native HD. Same problems, more money...

Really appreciate your help!

[stevedemena]

Originally Posted by Maclay

Thanks; Yep, I've changed the cable. Also, it's not the firewire bus because I can mount a FW drive with no issues.

I have the original Mac Pro (2006) and I had to install a 3rd party (SiiG) Firewire PCIe card as the built in ones didn't work reliably with my 003R. They mounted drives just fine.

[Maclay]

Thanks Steve. Very interesting... I may have to consider that. This issue is so unpredictable and so disabling that I can't afford to take the risk of being derailed in the middle of another project. If you don't mind, I'd be interested to know how the problem presented itself when you were still experiencing it. Also, did the new card clear it up completely -- or just make it more stable over all?

[Darney]

Originally Posted by Maclay

I am working on a brand new Mac Pro (12-core, 2.93, OS 10.6.7) with a fresh install of PT9. I used the designated protocol of installing the 003r driver before installing the software. However, the driver works selectively. I can go a month and have no trouble and then suddenly the driver quits, the 003r is not recognized and doesn't show up in my devices. At this point there's nothing I can do but repair disk permissions, zap PRAM, reset the PMU, reinstall the driver,... THEN reboot. Sometimes that works, other times... like NOW... it doesn't. I've already wasted money talking to Avid. The technician who "assisted" me was uneducated and not helpful beyond advising me to "try rebooting" -- thanks buddy.

Anyone else experiencing this, or have a suggestion for troubleshooting? I've tried just about everything and I'm at the end of my rope.

HELP!

Sometimes (I don't know why), simply switching the 003 to one of the front FW connections solves the problem.... but you've likely already tried this.

[Maclay]

Thanks Darney. I have tried this and tend to have more luck with the front ports as you indicated. However, it's not always a sure bet.

My rig is still down.

[stevedemena]

Originally Posted by Maclay

Thanks Steve. Very interesting... I may have to consider that. This issue is so unpredictable and so disabling that I can't afford to take the risk of being derailed in the middle of another project. If you don't mind, I'd be interested to know how the problem presented itself when you were still experiencing it. Also, did the new card clear it up completely -- or just make it more stable over all?

After getting the new card (this one: http://amzn.to/kdnnWU ) I never lost connection during a session, just occasional problems if I had been using the 003R with other sudio apps outside of PT and switching to PT. When I initially got the 003 I absolutely could NOT update the firmware. It just kept failing. It was then that I googled around and found somewhere a list of 2-3 cards that were known to work with my Mac Pro. I thnk it's worth trying! Good luck.