MBox 2 Mini not working with T41p

[t41p]

Hi, I just bought a MBox 2 Mini with Pro Tools 8, and installed it on my IBM ThinkPad T41p. Looking at the compatibility info I can see no reason why this wouldn't work, however the USB light on the MBox 2 Mini never comes on. I have tried disconnecting and reconnecting and rebooting as suggested in the setup guide but that still doesn't work. Whenever I reboot, the New Hardward wizard appears, which I would assume shouldn't happen after the install is complete.

Any ideas what might be wrong?

Thanks!

[t41p]

Here's the Sandra report for my laptop:

SiSoftware Sandra

Computer
Model : IBM 2373GHG
Workgroup : WORKGROUP
Host Name : myhost
User : seb

Processor
Model : Intel(R) Pentium(R) M processor 1700MHz
Speed : 1.7GHz
Cores per Processor : 1 Unit(s)
Threads per Core : 1 Unit(s)
Type : Mobile
Integrated Data Cache : 32kB, Synchronous, Write-Back, 8-way, 64 byte line size
L2 On-board Cache : 1MB, ECC, Synchronous, ATC, 8-way, 64 byte line size

Computer
Mainboard : IBM 2373GHG
BIOS : IBM 1RETC2WW (3.03 ) 04/07/2004
Bus(es) : X-Bus AGP PCI PCMCIA CardBus USB i2c/SMBus
Multi-Processor (MP) Support : No
Multi-Processor Advanced PIC (APIC) : No
Total Memory : 2GB DDR

Chipset
Model : IBM Thinkpad T40 series
Front Side Bus Speed : 4x 100MHz (400MHz)
Total Memory : 2GB DDR
Memory Bus Speed : 2x 167MHz (334MHz)

Memory Module(s)
Memory Module : Elpida EBD11UD8ADDA-6B 1GB DDR PC2700U DDR-166 (2.5-3-3-7 2-10-0-0)
Memory Module : Elpida EBD11UD8ADDA-6B 1GB DDR PC2700U DDR-166 (2.5-3-3-7 2-10-0-0)
Memory Module

Video System
Video Adapter : ATI MOBILITY FIRE GL T2 (PS2.0, VS2.0, 128MB, AGP 2.00)

Storage Devices
HTS726060M9AT00 (56.4GB, ATA100, 2.5", 7200rpm, 8MB Cache) : 53GB (C:)
MAT[bleep][bleep][bleep][bleep]A UJDA755zDVD/CDRW (ATAPI, DVD-R, CD-RW, 2MB Cache) : 8GB (E:)

Logical Storage Devices
IBM_PRELOAD (C:) : 53GB (NTFS) @ HTS726060M9AT00 (56.4GB, ATA100, 2.5", 7200rpm, 8MB Cache)
Pro Tools LE (E:) : 8GB (CDFS) @ MAT[bleep][bleep][bleep][bleep]A UJDA755zDVD/CDRW (ATAPI, DVD-R, CD-RW, 2MB Cache)

Peripherals
LPC Hub Controller 1 : Intel 82801DBM (ICH4-M) LPC Interface Bridge
LPC Legacy Controller 1 : T0 EA-11h
Audio Device : IBM SoundMAX Integrated Digital Audio
Audio Codec : Analog Devices 0074h
Audio Codec : 18764 0027h
Serial Port(s) : 2
Parallel Port(s) : 1
Disk Controller : IBM ThinkPad
USB Controller 1 : IBM ThinkPad
USB Controller 2 : IBM ThinkPad
USB Controller 3 : IBM ThinkPad
USB Controller 4 : IBM ThinkPad
CardBus/PCMCIA Controller 1 : 65024 PCI4520 PC Card CardBus Controller
CardBus/PCMCIA Controller 2 : 64512 PCI4520 PC Card CardBus Controller
SMBus/i2c Controller 1 : Intel 801xx/63xx SMBus

Printers and Faxes
Printer : PDF995 Printer Driver (30709x17576, Colour)
Printer : Microsoft Office Document Image Writer Driver (200x200)
Printer : IBM Infoprint 1372 PS3 (1200x1200, Full Duplex)
Printer : IBM Infoprint Color 1220 PS3 (600x600, Colour)
Printer : IBM Infoprint 1130 PS3 (1200x1200)
Printer : IBM Infoprint 1130 PS3 (1200x1200)
Printer : IBM Infoprint 1372 PS3 (1200x1200)

Network Services
Network Adapter : 11a/b/g Wireless LAN Mini PCI Adapter - Packet Scheduler Miniport (Ethernet, 54Mbps)
Network Adapter : Intel(R) PRO/1000 MT Mobile Connection - Packet Scheduler Miniport

Power Management
Mains (AC) Line Status : On-Line

Operating System
Windows System : Microsoft Windows XP Professional 5.01.2600 (Service Pack 2)
Platform Compliance : x86

Performance Tips
Tip 2546 : Large memory modules should be ECC/Parity.
Tip 2 : Double-click tip or press Enter while a tip is selected for more information about the tip.

[BScout]

This should work. I've had a mini hooked to a T41p with no problems. Your install seems to have failed which is why the light isn't coming on. Do this... unplug your mbox mini, go to

C:\Program Files\Digidesign\Drivers

Find this program:

DigiDriver.exe

Double-click on it, select "Install" not "install present." (This will make sure the drivers are on your system) Then restart your computer. Then plug in your Mbox mini and let the wizard do the install letting it find the recommended driver. After that's done, go to:

the "sound & audio devices" control panel, "Audio" tab and see if you see Mbox as an option for "default device" drop down list

or

the "System" control panel, "Hardware" tab, "Device Manager", "Sound, video and game controllers" and click on the "+" and make sure you see the mbox (without a little yellow question mark)

If so, the device is installed right. Now try starting up ProTools. Two other things: make sure use use a short USB cable (not one of the really long ones!) and when trying this for the first time, don't have anything else hooked to the other usb ports (just to make sure another device isn't screwing things up, though I think you're fine since the Hardware wizard keeps popping up.)

[t41p]

Thanks BScout! My MBox now has power (the USB light is on). The MBox is also listed as the default device for Sound playback and recording but is not available in the dropdown for MIDI music playback (not sure if that is a problem).

However, now when I try to launch Pro Tools 8, it says it can't find the hardware.

Any idea what might be wrong? Thanks so much for your help.

[t41p]

Ok, got it working now...

After doing the steps that BScout suggested, the MBox had power but Pro Tools didn't recognise it, so I reinstalled Pro Tools (using repair option from DVD), and it worked after that

Thanks again BScout!

BTW I am using the USB cable that came with the MBox.

[BScout]

Good to hear it's working. There's no MIDI because, well, there's no midi on the unit...

Good to use that usb cable. I tend to keep that cable always with my mbox so I don't have to search for a short one. If you ever try any of the longer cables made up to the 3m (9ft 10") limit on USB, the mbox tends to disappear from time to time bringing protools down with it and/or, the audio doesn't work for recording. Best to use the shortest cable possible.

[BScout]

Oh yeah, switch you default sounds to internal sounds (Sound Max for most thinkpads) Don't let it stay on the mbox. It slows down protools reponse time when hitting play and when starting up.