Presonus AudioBox Interfaces

Started by Elantric, April 04, 2013, 08:05:20 AM

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Elantric

Just a heads up, earlier in the Fishman TriplePlay  thread I recommended a Presonus AudioBox 1818VSL.
These work well for low latency MIDI Softsynth playback, but bulk of owners have contacted presonus regarding a solution to occasional random "popping" during recording.

Presonus issued a statement, and are seeking a solution - but this interface is a turkey and NOT recommended for serious audio recording.
http://forums.presonus.com/posts/list/32657.page
Here is a statement by the Presonus Management on this issue.

QuoteTo AudioBox VSL Customers,

We have been made aware of several issues regarding noise and pops and clicks when using the AudioBox VSL with Mac and PC systems. We are actively investigating these reports to confirm the reported failures and look for possible solutions. As we are investigating this, we do not have an estimated time for solutions, we ask that you be patient knowing that we have made this a top priority with our development team.

As more information becomes available we will post responses here.

Thanks,

PAE Management

Zymos

That statement was from 4 months ago, worth reading the thread to see how some users have gotten it to work for them.
Still seems like one to avoid, for sure, but if anyone already has one, there may be some hope...

Elantric

#2
Its one of those interfaces that looks great on paper, but really sucks for live real time Guitar Plugins (Guitar Rig, Amplitube), or recording.

I get a "pop", crackling" sound at random - sounds just like a bad guitar cord, or static discharge.

This is with the latest drivers on a iMac 27" I7 3.4GHz, 32GB RAM, OSX 10.7.5 - any DAW app, N.I. GuitarRig 5, or IK Multimedia Amplitube CS

I purchased the 1818VSL assuming Presonus had their act together, but this is a repeat of the old Presonus FirePOD days.

Just google "1818VSL pops" :
http://forums.acoustica.com/bbs/viewtopic.php?p=39292

http://www.gearslutz.com/board/newbie-audio-engineering-production-question-zone-trial-beta-forum/746701-cracks-pops-presonus-1818vsl.html

http://forums.presonus.com/posts/list/32260.page




Last time I had an interface this bad was my Echo Audio Layla24 Firewire that refused to work with an HP ZD7000 laptop ( due to the restriction for use with only Texas Instrument Firewire mobo chips)

Presonus apparently subcontracts the USB driver creation to a third party, and the Presonus  tech support is no help at all.

Just issuing a warning so others do not fall into the same trap I have with this $500 doorstop. 

Zymos

That's too bad, I have an old FireBox, and it performs quite well. As long as the computer being used has a good FireWire port.
I actually used to have a Layla a long time ago, and had no problems with it, but again, the FW port makes all the difference.

polaris20

#4
I'm using a Steinberg UR22 now, and it's very nice so far. Low latency, stable, great sounding pre's, etc.

shawnb

I've had good experiences with Echo products as well.  They actively support their drivers for a long time. 
Address the process rather than the outcome.  Then, the outcome becomes more likely.   - Fripp

polaris20

The problem I've found is that so many of these devices have issues with electric guitars directly plugged in for amp modeling. On both the UR22 and the Scarlett 2i2, I was overdriving the inputs even at the lowest setting on the dial, sometimes even with stock Strat pickups. Forget my Dimarzios.

Elantric

#7
IF I could recapture all the time and money  I have spent in the past 20 years trying to record songs with a computer - I figure I could comfortably retire now.

Makes me admire John Lennons "Two JVC RM-70JW Cassette deck" mobile studio he used to compose double fantasy.

I understand he owned two of these, and placed them facing each other for overdubs during song writing sessions.

 
 

Kevin M

Quote from: Elantric on April 04, 2013, 12:31:28 PM
IF I could recapture all the time and money  I have spent in the past 20 years trying to record songs with a computer - I figure I could comfortably retire now.

Haha!  I'm beginning to feel your pain!   Between software, instruments and recording gear I'm up to $6k so far this year (and I still need a few things)

germanicus

I had the original Layla. Worked great for many years.

I have the presonus firepod/fp10. It sucks. Has issues locking to spdif, and also alot of crackle and pops when recording, even at extremely high latency values.

I have a tascam fw1082. Ok converters. No snap crackles or pops. Have had issues in win 7 64 bit with losing sync. Love the automated control surface and flying faders integrated with sonar.

I mainly use a delta 1010, which has very good converters, but its a bit old in the tooth and I think some of the connectors are getting spotty. Its PCI. No problems with snaps or pops.

I also have a Tascam us1800 for tracking my whole band live (16 inputs). Its cheap. No weird noises, but the converters are mediocre. This replaced my firepod.

Im seriously considering buying the Focusrite Forte to get something with better quality converters/preamps. Also considering the Focusrite with the Liquid pre's.
My albums done with modeling/guitar synth at http://music.steamtheory.com

JTV69/59P/Godin LGXT/Multiac ACS/Variax 700 AC
Helix/FTP/GP10/VG99/SY1000
Traynor k4

lespauled

I had a Presonus AudioBox 44VSL.  The key word in that sentence is "had". 

As a standalone unit, it is an incredible piece of equipment.  There wasn't a single problem in that capacity and would recommend it to anyone who would use it without connecting to the internet.  But, connecting it to the PC was a nightmare.  I fought with that thing from day one of plugging it into the PC. 

The drivers are horrible and the software is very intrusive.  I couldn't get that thing down to a usable latency without popping all over the place.  The drivers are crap.  The first thing customer service asked was what kind of system I had, which was a complete monster machine.  But they tried to blame it on the machine, even though it beat the minimum specs by 2 or 3 generations of chips and beat the requirements by over 24 gigs of ram.  That was the last straw, I disconnected it and packed it up.  It was going back asap.

It also did some crazy stuff to my regular sound system.  Even after uninstalling everything, it took me a couple of days to get my regular sound back to his previous state.

I wouldn't (or couldn't) recommend this unit to anyone who plans to use it as a means of connecting to the computer.

Elantric

#11
Polaris wrote>
QuoteThe problem I've found is that so many of these devices have issues with electric guitars directly plugged in for amp modeling. On both the UR22 and the Scarlett 2i2, I was overdriving the inputs even at the lowest setting on the dial, sometimes even with stock Strat pickups. Forget my Dimarzios.

EXACTLY!!!

I do own several Audio interfaces and quite a few I would not recommend for Electric guitar use.
I should point out the latest Focusrite Scarlett 2i4 includes variable wide range Instrument input and a handy Attenuator Pad switch, which means zero clipping of the input preamp stage on that wonderful interface.

But back to other Audio Interfaces with Instrument inputs that clip/distort - I own an earlier version of the Alesis I|O 2 , similar to the iO2 Express that  Aliensporebomb recommends

https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=8291.msg59148#msg59148


http://www.alesis.com/io2
It may work well for line level inputs or external Mics, but on my  Alesis I|O 2 when I set the the input sensitivity Switch to "GUITAR" and plug in any normal passive electric guitar, All I get is clipping and distortion, regardless of how low I set the "Input Gain" Pot.

Kevin M

#12
Quote from: Elantric on April 06, 2013, 09:12:52 AM
Elantric wrote>
EXACTLY!!!

I do own several Audio interfaces and quite a few I would not recommend for Electric guitar use.

For example this Alesis I|O 2 , that  Aliensporebomb recommends

https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=8291.msg59148#msg59148

It may work well for line level inputs or external Mics, but on my  Alesis I|O 2 when I set the the input sensitivity Switch to "GUITAR" and plug in any normal passive electric guitar, All I get is clipping and distortion, regardless of how low I set the "Input Gain" Pot.


Makes one long for an all-analog chain!

Now_And_Then


I need to chime in here and complain about a Layla 3G: it would occasionally (and I do not mean "rarely") reset the computer's sample rate, so that the any audio played on the computer - dvds or video files, for example, and not just audio being played by my DAW software -  would play back with the audio sounding as though it was being played at half-speed.

There were complaints about this on the Echo forum but no answers from the company were forthcoming. In fact, they simply got rid of the forum.

It was great piece of hardware, but the drivers were the worst imaginable.

It got to the point where, in order to correct the problem, I had to re-install an image of my boot drive in which the device were working properly.

Having done this one too many times (and really, as defined by A. Beirce, "twice" means "once too often" - and this was much more than "twice") I disconnected the Layla, re-installed the boot drive image, uninstalled the Layla software entirely, hopped on eBay, and found a Steinberg Nuendo Audioset for about $225 or so. And lived happily ever after!

(For anyone who might not know, the Steinberg Nuendo Audioset simply and actually an RME HDSP card and a Multiface with different artwork in the face.)

It was a shame too because the Layla had pretty nearly all the 1/4" I/O that I needed. But is was unusable because of the recurrent sample-rate-change problem, for which company did not seem to have a fix.



polaris20

Quote from: Elantric on April 06, 2013, 09:12:52 AM
Polaris wrote>
EXACTLY!!!

I do own several Audio interfaces and quite a few I would not recommend for Electric guitar use.

For example this Alesis I|O 2 , that  Aliensporebomb recommends

https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=8291.msg59148#msg59148

It may work well for line level inputs or external Mics, but on my  Alesis I|O 2 when I set the the input sensitivity Switch to "GUITAR" and plug in any normal passive electric guitar, All I get is clipping and distortion, regardless of how low I set the "Input Gain" Pot.

It's a shame, because both the 2i2 and the UR22 I currently have are otherwise nice devices. The UR sounds fantastically quiet with condenser mics, and everything works very well. However I have to add a damn di to the equation just to use GR5. Even the Ghost piezo on my Ibanez RG overloads it, so I have to run that through my POD HD first, then the line outs in order to record that. Frustrating.

germanicus

Ive done the cheap interface thing. In the past I needed a ton of simultaneous inputs, but would now like a better quality ADC set.
Im looking to get something with reliability and excellent sound quality.

Anyone have experience with Focusrites Forte?
My albums done with modeling/guitar synth at http://music.steamtheory.com

JTV69/59P/Godin LGXT/Multiac ACS/Variax 700 AC
Helix/FTP/GP10/VG99/SY1000
Traynor k4

Elantric


rolandvg99

Have a 22 VSL that works great with IOS. OS X had crackles, but it's gotten better with the latest beta driver. Asio is way to slow to be usable with 40 ms + in Ableton LiVE to avoid crackling.
To V or not to V: That is the question.

My little Soundcloud corner

Elantric

#18
Ive just relegated the 1818VSL as only useful as my iPad interface.
https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=8291.msg59106#msg59106



All versions of the 1818VSL USB Drivers for Win/Mac OSX - remain very poor with many clicks and pops - just terrible really.

But as an iPad Audio Interface - it shines with clean audio and works very well  - its merits can be appreciated using Wavemachine Lab''s  Auria IOS DAW, which includes special controls for routing the 1818VSL Inputs.
http://auriaapp.com/Products/auria-videos
https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=6619.0

For those interested in Auria on iPad -Read this excellent article on using the Presonus 1818VSL with iPAD and Auria
http://www.macprovideo.com/hub/review-2/review-presonus-audiobox-1818-vsl-an-interface-for-ipad-and-mac-musicians

The latest version of Auria now have an output matrix, so all eighteen outputs of the 1818 can be accessed. This is not the case with other audio apps such as GarageBand or the Music app, whose stereo output does not get mirrored across all outputs, and can therefore only be monitored via outputs 1 and 2, and not the headphone jack. Note that at the time of writing it is a requirement that the 1818 is plugged into a powered USB hub, which is then plugged into the iPad via the Camera Connection Kit.

You should also be aware that the features offered by the VSL software are of course not available when working with an iPad. On the plus side, you can also use your iPad to run the free Presonus SL Remote app, with which you can remote control VSL software running on your Mac, over Wi-Fi.


supernicd

Great tip on using it in Auria!

I'm using the 1818VSL with Windows 8, and I'm not having any problems with the driver.  I will try to check what version I'm using later on and report back.
Strat w/ GK-3, Godin LGXT
VG-99, GR-55, GP-10
---------------------------------------------------------------

Elantric

#20
QuoteGreat tip on using it in Auria!

Quote50% off Auria In-App Purchases - One Day Only!

Today only, December 5th, WaveMachine Labs will be holding a one-day sale on all in-app purchases for Auria, including plugins from PSP, Fabfilter, FXpansion, and more. Loop packages from Hollywood Loops, as well as IR Files, Gog Files, and Multitrack Loops from MoReVoX will be on sale, too.

The sale also includes the upgrade from Auria LE to the full Auria feature set, which will be available for $12.99.

Happy Holidays!

WaveMachine Labs

http://auriaapp.com/

http://blog.auriaapp.com/

QuoteI'm using the 1818VSL with Windows 8, and I'm not having any problems with the driver.  I will try to check what version I'm using later on and report back.

Please report which driver version and make / model laptop

the 1818VSL has been nothing but a pop / click generator - i would sell it if it were not the fact it works great on my iPad with Auria.

supernicd

#21
Using the Presonus driver (from their website) version 1.57.0.0 dated 5/22/12 on Windows 8 Pro.

I'm running it on a desktop - a Powerspec with an Intel Core i5-3570k @ 3.40Ghz, 8Gb RAM.

No issues with pops and crackles though I do remember using a different Presonus driver where I did have lots of problems.  IIRC this one was labeled as a beta.  Works fine with StudioOne and Reaper.

This reaching pretty far back into my memory but I also seem to recall something about it having trouble on a USB 3.0 port.  Could be the issue?

I'd give their tech support a call.  It's too expensive an interface to have not work as advertised!
Strat w/ GK-3, Godin LGXT
VG-99, GR-55, GP-10
---------------------------------------------------------------

Elantric

#22
I assume you are also using a USB 2.0 port (not USB 3.0) on your Desktop PC ?

I tried using the Audiobox VSL "Beta" driver  USB 2.0 port and USB 3.0 on my Lenovo W520 with Win7 64 pro - no luck

http://www.presonus.com/support/downloads/AudioBox-1818VSL

Same with the latest AudioBox 1818VSL v1.2.1 - PC USB driver =  random pops and clicks every few seconds

Same with my 2011 iMac 27" OSX 10.8.5  with a USB 2.0 port
AudioBox 1818VSL v1.2.2 - Mac USB driver  = random pops and clicks every few seconds

When I contact Presonus support they say  "Sorry we do not develop the USB drivers for our products - review the forums for latest updates"

More stories of pain here:
http://forums.presonus.com/forums/show/46.page

One problem may be all my computers use Sandy Bridge or Ivy Bridge Intel CPU's
http://forums.presonus.com/posts/list/39513.page


I do like StudioOne DAW app  -  but their hardware support is sub par.
http://www.presonus.com/products/studio-one


supernicd

Quote from: Elantric on December 05, 2013, 10:39:00 AM
I do like StudioOne DAW app  -  but their hardware support is sub par.
http://www.presonus.com/products/studio-one

I have to give you credit, Elantric.  If I had called tech support and they told me that they didn't write the drivers for their product and couldn't make it work, I would not have been able to word the above so politely. :)

Maybe they don't develop their drivers but they are surely responsible for hiring (or sacking) the company that does...

Glad it's at least salvagable for iPad.  With all the great plugins I just picked up on Auria's one day sale, it might well become my DAW of choice anyway!

Strat w/ GK-3, Godin LGXT
VG-99, GR-55, GP-10
---------------------------------------------------------------

Elantric

http://www.sweetwater.com/sweetcare/articles/important-presonus-audiobox-vsl-compatibility-issues-with-2013-apple-imac-and-macbook-air/
IMPORTANT: PreSonus AudioBox VSL Compatibility issues with 2013 Apple iMac and MacBook Air! (UPDATED 11/27/13)
Article #1721306
The following message is from PreSonus:

We have discovered that the Apple has made a fundamental design change in their latest release of computers including the iMac series 14,1 (late model 2013), Apple MacBook Air 6,2 (late model 2013) and MacBook Pro (11,1 – 13?::11,2 – 15? :: 11, 3 – 15 ") (released October 22, 2013) are incompatible with PreSonus AudioBox VSL-series products.

The AudioBox 22VSL and 44VSL can be used as class-compliant devices by not installing the VSL software, using the settings in your DAW to control your I/O, and using Audio MIDI Setup for advanced configurations.

The aforementioned MacBook Pro, iMac and MacBook Air models will not work with the AudioBox 1818VSL in either mode with VSL software installed or in class-compliant mode with no VSL software installed due to a problem with Apple's hardware design that we cannot address. We suggest using a different computer with the AudioBox 1818VSL. Apple has been notified of the incompatibility.

We have tested and qualified that all of our other products including software products such as Studio One and Capture along with Hardware products including AudioBox USB, StudioLive 2442, 1642, 1602, StudioLive 32AI, 24AI, 16AI, FireStudio Mobile, FireStudio Project, FaderPort all work with these computers as expected.

If you need to uninstall your AudioBox VSL drivers

http://support.presonus.com/entries/20353062-How-do-I-uninstall-AudioBox-VSL-on-my-Mac-