PT12 thinks my hardware is being used by something else?

[Scottieboy44]

Hey guys,

Bit of a newbie when it comes to forums, but i cannot find any answers that work for me anywhere when it comes to my problem...

I work with a scarlett 18i20, windows 10 64-bit. I haven't had much trouble using it for the past 6 months (In PT10). Then i updated the drivers as i upgraded to PT12 and it would not start up without me updating the drivers to the latest ones from beta.focusrite.com. Not sure what has happened in the mean time as it was working fine, but now whenever i start up PT12, it comes up with the message "Pro Tools hardware is either not installed or used by another program."

I have checked that it is not set to the default audio device in windows, and as far as i can tell, there is nothing that should be using the hardware.

I also tried using it with my Macbook Pro, but i get a completely different issue, where it just keeps connecting and disconnecting every 2-3 seconds.

Any help would be appreciated!

[deanrichard]

Try using ASIO4ALL as a front end to your interface, if you haven't already. Back in PT9 I used to see that error a lot, and that cured it for me. It would happen a lot when I opened a project with a different sample rate. Also, if you have a mixer app for your interface (I'm not familiar with that one) close it, and also close any setup app that comes with it. PT can be very particular about any application using the interface when it wants it.

I hope that helps.

Originally Posted by Scottieboy44

Hey guys,

Bit of a newbie when it comes to forums, but i cannot find any answers that work for me anywhere when it comes to my problem...

I work with a scarlett 18i20, windows 10 64-bit. I haven't had much trouble using it for the past 6 months (In PT10). Then i updated the drivers as i upgraded to PT12 and it would not start up without me updating the drivers to the latest ones from beta.focusrite.com. Not sure what has happened in the mean time as it was working fine, but now whenever i start up PT12, it comes up with the message "Pro Tools hardware is either not installed or used by another program."

I have checked that it is not set to the default audio device in windows, and as far as i can tell, there is nothing that should be using the hardware.

I also tried using it with my Macbook Pro, but i get a completely different issue, where it just keeps connecting and disconnecting every 2-3 seconds.

Any help would be appreciated!

[Scottieboy44]

Originally Posted by deanrichard

Try using ASIO4ALL as a front end to your interface, if you haven't already. Back in PT9 I used to see that error a lot, and that cured it for me. It would happen a lot when I opened a project with a different sample rate. Also, if you have a mixer app for your interface (I'm not familiar with that one) close it, and also close any setup app that comes with it. PT can be very particular about any application using the interface when it wants it.

I hope that helps.

That did help, to some degree... I was able to get PT12 running with the ASIO4ALL and the 18i20. However, it brung another weird problem about... about 1 minute after pressing play to run through a mix, the interface decided to disconnect itself -_-.

I have submitted a ticket to focusrite to see what solutions they can come up with.

Cheerz for your help :)

[digi98]

I'd try the non beta drivers again, also see the thread on changing sample rates. I have to create new dummy session every time want to switch sample rates.


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[deanrichard]

??? Sorry, I have no ideas for that one.

Originally Posted by Scottieboy44

That did help, to some degree... I was able to get PT12 running with the ASIO4ALL and the 18i20. However, it brung another weird problem about... about 1 minute after pressing play to run through a mix, the interface decided to disconnect itself -_-.

I have submitted a ticket to focusrite to see what solutions they can come up with.

Cheerz for your help :)

[PatriotsBiker]

Would this be one of those situations where swapping out a USB cable would be a good, harmless thing to try?

Speaking of cables, any idea if you switched USB ports that you were using? That can confuse or clutter up the works at times. Especially if it's a wondows' OS.

[sw rec]

Make sure Windows is NOT designating your PT interface as the "default sound device." Although not documented in the optimizations, it should be, because it's a major show-stopper.

[Scottieboy44]

Originally Posted by PatriotsBiker

Would this be one of those situations where swapping out a USB cable would be a good, harmless thing to try?

Speaking of cables, any idea if you switched USB ports that you were using? That can confuse or clutter up the works at times. Especially if it's a wondows' OS.

I did try multiple USB ports, but it is back in its original port now as there was no change. I will try change the cable later today when I get back home

[PatriotsBiker]

Originally Posted by Scottieboy44

I did try multiple USB ports, but it is back in its original port now as there was no change. I will try change the cable later today when I get back home

Windows systems often have "ghosts" in their Device Manager that do not show up under normal viewing. A service, application or utility can look in the wrong spot and count these "ghosts". This is where you unplug a device, but Windows keeps track of it and has in it waiting should you plug the device back in. It's caused me to actually have a duplicate signal going with PT open before. Strange stuff, indeed.

I have no idea if this is an issue for you or not, but this has helped me a few times with my system. It's an old SOS magazine article, but lots of it still applies. 2/3rds down is a paragraph on "Hidden Device Manager Entries". Don't get rid of every ghost. there should be a link in that area that offers advice on what to clean up and what to leave alone.
http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/mar0...pcmusician.htm