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crackly audio in

→19 posts by 6 people

→Started 8 months ago by kp*
→ Latest reply from Dan Nigrin

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kp*
My audio in is often crackly. It used to be once in a while and i could jigger the dsp settings or open another patch or even restart and it would be okay. Now it is crackly most of the time and even if the patch starts out okay, it quickly gets to be crackle city. Even if i just hook an ezadac to an ezdac like so:
```
----------begin_max5_patcher----------
330.3ocoREsaCBBE8Y7qvvyNCnzz18Mr8Erzrf.0xlBFES5VS629DTpZSSro
6E7x8dNm64dkSA.Xl9nnAF9Z3Gg.vo..vkxl.LbG.KoGYEzFGLn3WNkcAF0W
ppVazlepDJZovU+cxawYET12dH586yqobltPWi66DJFskfwah5hv3z0IqbQ1
ftHbLJbmmr5VtcUsfWS1hRrAIoc7RmyJK2w3ezrjIMa1wH3Ii0xnUskRUgv3
1gI9kG0vNHU4eVKXlAIHarTSQo1OjU9yqBI4tsrN6qWRHvQ00sFu7HaxyAA1
inG9uZ2nbAdO2hWzs3MnkcK99l0uK5SYeI0KMrQlqnEvnqQg6lLWtN.Kjpae
75boM+7gsQ2Vy7ROXmvQexEMFohZjZ0DL1E7DPGjbtvUGMjoTxqzRkYvCybX
zSYI7iXI7SZotKmC9C.65ZdP
-----------end_max5_patcher-----------
```
Have no idea why this is so. It isn't the cable b/c the builtin mic and input both crackle and only in Max/MSP

No interface, just the built-in mac stuff

Mac intel 10.5.8
Max/MSP 5.1
CoreAudio Built-in Output
Built-in Input or Built-in mic

Just playing audio from Max or any other program (Peak, cmix, quicktime, iTunes) is fine. It is the audio-in that crackles, Audio in on Peak is just fine only Max/MSP crackles and crackles badly.

Any help or suggestions would be very very very greatly appreciated. I am kind of stuck till i get this fixed. Huge bummer.

cheers,

kevin

Anyone encounter this? Anyone have a fix? Can i delete some preferences?
8 months ago
Christopher Dobrian

I had similar problems that seemed to be linked to having the "vector optimization" option checked in the DSP Status window. That's only meaningful on PowerPC Macs, so it should be off if you're using an Intel machine, I think. It's supposed to be irrelevant on an Intel Mac, but it seemed to affect my audio adversely nevertheless.
--Chris

8 months ago
Florent Ghys

Yes sometimes when I change the soundcard, the vector size goes to 1 (which is to small).
Check your DSP status if everything is ok.

8 months ago
kp*

Thanks all. Turning off the Vector Optimization (not sure how it got turned on in the first place!), as well as tweaking the I/O Vector Size Signal Vector Size seems to help.

8 months ago
kp*

Ugh... The crackly audio in is back. This time no amount of messing with the DSP params seems to help. The Vector Optimization is off and I'v toggled the other 2 as well. The I/O Vector Size Signal Vector Size at either extreme settings or in the middle has no effect on the crackle either.

I am not sure why this is back again but it is annoying. All other audio programs work fine with audio in I just tried peak and the audio sounds great. MSP is super crackly.

Any ideas?

8 months ago
kp*

This is seriously fucking aggravating. Anyone have any ideas why max and ONLY max would crackly on input? This problem has been plaguing me for 6 months. Every time I think i have it figured out it rears its ugly head again. It is making me batty.

built-in mac audio in
Mac intel 10.5.8
Max/MSP 5.1
CoreAudio Built-in Output

8 months ago
kp*

just so youse know i am not crazy there are two short (& wildly out of tune haha) files here:

http://homepage.mac.com/kp8/FileSharing5.html

recorded moments apart, with 0 changes to hardware in MSP & Peak.

8 months ago
nickpic

I'm facing the same problem since last October: My inputs sounds crackly in a way that seems related to the digital conversion. Changing any params in the DSP status doesn't help.

The problem doesn't appear when using an audio Interface such as a MOTU.
Therefore, the problem seems to be related to the Core audio Built-in inputs (outputs are fine).
However, this problem occurs only with MAX, not with my other apps.

MacBook Pro 2.4GHz intel core 2 duo
OS X 10.5.8
MAX 5.1.1

8 months ago
kp*

It does seem related to digital conversion. On my system I notice high notes get sidebands or foldover of some kind. It sounds distorted & crackly but also oddly inharmonic. I check to see that my Audio MIDI Setup was set to the same sampling rate as the MSP dac and it was, so it is not that either.

8 months ago
kp*

Blew away my max 5 install and preferences & did a fresh install. Still crackly. Anyone?

8 months ago
kp*

I removed Jack (which was already uninstalled as it was).
I remembered that i installed digidesign shit at one point. I purged my system of all that

I cleaned all digi diarrhea from

Mac HD/Library/Application Support/
Digidesign folder

Mac HD/Library/Audio/MIDI Drivers/
DigidesignFireWireMIDI.plugin
DigidesignMbox2MIDI.plugin
DigidesignMIDIIODriver.plugin
DigiDioMidiDriver.plugin

Mac HD/Library/Frameworks/
DAE.framework
DHS.framework
DigidesignFWDriver.framework
DigidesignUSBDriver.framework
DigiMachOServices.framework
DigiPlatformSupport.framework
DigiPlugInHelper.framework
DigiStreamManager.framework
DirectIO.framework
DSI.framework
DSPManager.framework
DUI.framework

and

all that i found in:

/Library/StartupItems

then cleaned out:
/Library/LaunchDaemons
/Library/LaunchAgents
~/Library/LaunchAgents

all 4 or 5 kext files (evil evil evil) (click getinfo to be sure you are only deleting digicrap and not apple stuff)

whew... I am not even sure I got it all. Holy cow.

SO Jack is gone, I cleaned out all other 3rd party drivers, really everything that is not Apple/core audio.

I did a reinstall of the 10.5.8 combo updater, did an fsck by hand and repaired permissions.

Still crackly audio in MSP. Still crystal clear in all other apps through core audio. In otherwords, no change.

hmm... i am baffled.

-kp

ps. Any evil software devs who patch your kernel with .kext files and dump this much crap in your system should provide an uninstaller. Digidesign is satan.

7 months ago
kp*

If i go to the DSP status and toggle the input device from CoreAudio Built-In Output to None and then toggle it back, for a split second I get clear audio again. Then crackles mcgee.

7 months ago
Dan Nigrin

When you went to Audio MIDI Setup, did you ensure that both input *and* output devices were set to the same sample rate as Max, and also that they are both set to same bit depth? Shouldn't matter, but you never know...

BTW, presence of Jack on your system shouldn't have been a concern, it's a user space device, no .kext's or anything like that... :-)

Dan

7 months ago
kp*

I tried that. Setting the Audio MIDI set up first. Then launching max. No difference. Of course when you then jigger those settings in the DSP Status window the system stuff changes anyway.

7 months ago
Dan Nigrin

You never mentioned what sort of values you have been using for signal vector size - try using something like 512 or 1024.

Are you absolutely sure this is only on audio input and not audio output? So for example, if you set up an sfplay~ object in Max and connect to an ezdac, do you get crackly output?

Another thing you can try - create an Aggregate Audio Device (in Audio MIDI Setup), and put your Built-In Output and Input into. Then tell Max to use that Aggregate Audio Device for both input and output. Still crackles?

Dan

7 months ago
mister_variable

I wish I was posting a response that helped..

I'm having the same problem.. It's something with Max+core audio for sure. No crackling on my Firepod..

It seems to have something to do with time - ha, how's that for a theory?

Regardless, it's clearly a synchronization problem.. but where it is, I haven't the faintest clue.

The output never crackles, it's always just the input. I've tested this a bunch.

It'll crackle on the built-in mic, it'll crackle on a line-in.

What I usually do is open the DSP status window, click the vector optimization.. it'll be good for at least a minute, but after some sort of processing, the crackling comes back - and it usually starts off almost undetectable and gets worse over time (sometimes only takes a few seconds if you're doing something "intensive").. I was watching the CPU utilization and it was never going above 2 or 3%.. Just like everyone else, no other programs are affected.

Switching the input off/on (in the DSP status window) also removes the crackling for a bit. I haven't tried making a standalone app yet (I am very, very new to Max), so I don't know if it will continue outside of the Max environment (does that make sense?)..

In any case - it is intensely annoying, as I use my built-in mic w/ headphones to test recording bits of sound into buffer objects..

I've switched the vector i/o and the signal vector size to match, not match, etc.. a bunch of things. no luck. just annoying.

so a quick list:

only crackles on input
goes away temporarily after a "reset" or "update" of the input device
problem does not occur when using external audio hardware
problem does not occur in any other applications
problem frustrates to the extreme.

I really hope it's not just some sort of "obvious" audio setting somewhere..

Good luck to any and all..
-A

7 months ago
mister_variable

Tinkered with it some more - got these settings that seem to work, although I don't like them:

I'm running on a MacBook Pro 2.4 ghz core 2 duo
mac os 10.6.1
2 gb ram

I/O Vector Size: 32
Signal Vector Size: 16
Sampling Rate: 44100
Scheduler in Overdrive: Yes
in Audio Interrupt: Yes
CPU Limit: 99%
Vector Optimization: No

in my audio/midi settings for internal microphone
2ch-24bit

Haven't had any crackling for about 15 minutes.. ??

Changing the CPU limit seems to have no effect..

keep in mind, I have no idea what I'm doing..
-A

UPDATE:

Nevermind all of that - Closed the patch, restarted MaxMSP and the problem was just as bad as before.

I give up. I'll quit posting nonsense now.

7 months ago
nickpic

Thank you mister_variable
I tried your settings and the crackly audio disappeared, although I don't like having vector sizes of 32 and 16...

7 months ago
Dan Nigrin

Have you guys tried creating an Aggregate Audio Device as I described above? I don't have this problem myself, but I'm curious if it fixes your problems...

7 months ago

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