HW Device stuck at 96kHz

[ToddoD]

Hi,

I have searched for this issue and nothing seems to work, and all threads are from c.2012. so I'm hoping for fresh recommendations from the brains here.

I've been working at 96kHz in Protools for many years in the studio, then editing and mixing some projects on my 2012 MacBook Pro (OSX 10.15.7). Never needed 48kHz or 44.1kHz so the issue is a new one for me. I do use 48kHz for broadcast at work.

Now I'm trying to get into mixing Dolby Atmos. As the standard sample rate seems to be 48kHz I'm trying to do sessions at that rate.

Unfortunately, any 48kHz session I open in ProTools Studio 2023.3 constantly brings up an alert stating that "The HW device is at a different sample rate from the open session"

Any time I go to Audio MIDI setup, and try to change the rate to anything but 96kHz it lets me, but then keeps flicking back to 96kHz and interrupting my session. It won't stay on 48kHz.

I've tried resetting core audio, editing the com.digidesign.CoreAudioManager.plist file, resetting PRAM etc to no avail.

Does anyone have experience with this? Any suggestions I can try?

Thanks in anticipation.

[Ben Jenssen]

Anything plugged into your device feeding it 96kHz digital clock?

[originalscottyg]

You don't mention what your audio interface is. More details please.

[ToddoD]

Thanks Ben & Scott.

I have no audio interface, nothing feeding it sync. Just using headphones from the mini jack output currently. Even without headphones, using the laptop speakers it’s the same.

[Darryl Ramm]

Some other app is setting the sample rate. If you set the sample rate to 48kHz in Audio MIDI setup when Pro Tools is not running does it change? Find what is running that is changing it.

[sw rec]

Justification for GETTING an audio interface!

[ToddoD]

Thank you Darryl,

When I have nothing running except AudioMIDISetup. No external devices, no headphones plugged in.

Anytime I change the built-in Output to 48kHz ( or 44.1kHz), it lets me then after approx 5 seconds changes back to 96kHz.

Everything else as a device in AudiMidiSetup, states that they are set to 48kHz.

When I open ProTools at 48kHz it has the original error message. "The HW device is at a different sample rate from the open session"

The internal microphone happily sits at 44.1kHz

[Darryl Ramm]

Again, you have a program running that has set the sample rate to what it wants, and is setting it back to that after you change it. This is classic behavior of apps fighting sample rate settings. Pro Tools tries not to fight and gives up.

We cannot guess what you have installed, or what starts up in the background when you log in etc. You need to look through the system and find this app/utility/program. Unfortunately there is no way for mere mortals to tell what software has any core audio device(s) open. You just need to look through everything running (Activity Monitor and ps command) and exit/kill suspects.

[ToddoD]

So I've managed to fix the problem. The culprit was Waves preferences.

After many hours of initialising the HD, and clean installing the macOS Catalina via option+command+R for recovery to the latest macOS compatible with my computer, the problem was gone.

When I cloned my profile from the backup to get all of my applications, preferences, passwords etc back on the computer, the problem returned.

Performing a fresh install of the macOS Catalina without re-formatting the HD and leaving my profile there, didn't work.

Trashing preferences for my profile, (via user/ Library/ Preferences), the Waves Preferences would quickly, magically reappear. I found that if I trashed the Waves preferences, and then changed the Built-in output sample rate before the Waves preferences reappeared, the sample rate would remain as selected. If I changed it after the Waves preferences reappeared, it would switch back to whatever it was when the Waves preferences were present.

Ultimately, uninstalling and then re-installing Waves fixed the issue. All other preferences are copied back into the preferences folder.

Now I can finally get to work. :)

[Ben Jenssen]

Thanks for getting back here with your fix.
Might help someone down the line.