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Motu ultralite hybrid mk3 issues

Connecting Hauptwerk to MIDI organs, sequencers, ...
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montyjnc

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Motu ultralite hybrid mk3 issues

PostTue Aug 06, 2019 12:50 pm

Hello all-

Does anyone have issues with having to regularly delete/reinstall the MOTU drivers? Half the time when I go to turn on my system, the interface is receiving signal to depress keys on hauptwerk console screen; but, I get no audio. This is without changing any settings on hauptwerk or computer, just some days it doesn’t work at all...

Could this be an issue with the interface itself? Maybe I should replace the usb controller cable?

Thanks,

Jake
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Andrew Grahame

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Re: Motu ultralite hybrid mk3 issues

PostTue Aug 06, 2019 1:15 pm

Interesting that you should be having this problem right now. My MK3 is doing the same thing to me at the moment!

The problem is intermittent - sometimes it works when it's turned on and sometimes it doesn't. So far I've not tried to uninstall and reinstall the drivers. Later today I'll have a go and see if that helps and let you know what I find.

Andrew
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engrssc

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Re: Motu ultralite hybrid mk3 issues

PostTue Aug 06, 2019 2:07 pm

Have you added a time delay which may be needed for HW to recognize the USB interface? - page 138 HW User Guide.

Rgds,
Ed
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magnaton

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Re: Motu ultralite hybrid mk3 issues

PostTue Aug 06, 2019 2:57 pm

Make sure you have the latest firmware installed. Check on the MOTU website.

I had sync issues with my unit when booting up my HW system. I had to first turn on the computer, listen for the DVD to make its calibration noise, then press the power switch on the MOTU. Sounds strange but this worked 99% of the time. Any variation of computer already running or MOTU ready first would cause issues or just not work as you are experiencing. I had the latest firmware but blamed this problem on age since mine was purchased in early 2009. Later production units seemed be void of this anomaly. I didn't want spend the $99 (plus round trip shipping) for MOTU to repair or replace. I have since upgraded to their 24AO product.

Danny B.
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Andrew Grahame

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Re: Motu ultralite hybrid mk3 issues

PostWed Aug 07, 2019 6:21 am

Hi Danny,

Mine does similar things, but I've not yet established exactly when the best time is to turn it on in the startup sequence.

Back in early February I updated the computer's OS plus all drivers in a major tidy-up of my system - and for a while the problem went away. Perhaps I need to update the drivers again and keep doing do on a more regular basis.

Thanks Danny and Jake for sharing your experiences. Intermittent faults are incredibly frustrating, and it's a relief to hear of similar issues to those in my system being seen by others.

Andrew
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deekay

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Re: Motu ultralite hybrid mk3 issues

PostSat Aug 10, 2019 3:16 am

I don't often post to the forum (but read it regularly). However with this topic I feel I might be able to add something useful. My setup is a self-built (stand-alone) computer running Windows 7 with a Motu Mk3 Hybrid - and it works well. I've had it in place about 5 years. But I can quite often get a situation where the Hauptwerk system tells me that the Motu is not connected - even though it's sitting there humming away quite happily.

I think from analysing over the years when it happens I know what is going on. If I switch on the computer and the Motu at the same time, so that the Windows OS is loading at the same time as the Motu is going through it's warm-up routine, then that is when I get the message from Hauptwerk which tells me that the OS has not loaded the Motu driver. I've assumed that when Windows loads it first of all looks around all of its ports to see what external devices are connected and switched on. So it finds the mouse, the keyboard, the twin screens, my Midi Keyboards stack and hopefully the Motu. It then loads the appropriate Drivers for these. However if the Motu is still going through its own set-up routine then it misses loading the drivers for the Motu.

With Windows I have two user profiles set up. One is the Administrator (which I only rarely use, if needed, for computer maintenance) and the other is named (self explanatory) 'Play the Organ'. The second of these is configured to auomatically load up Hauptwerk.

So my start-up routine requires a bit more patience but works faultlessly. After I have switched everything on with mains power (but without firing up the computer). I either
(1) wait about 20-30sec until the Motu system completes its start-up which is indicated by a green light whcich switches from 'flashing' to 'steady' and then start up the computer, or
(2) Start the computer and let the Windows OS load until I have the user profiles screen showing - then turn on the Motu and wait 20 sec until its green light goes steady AND the blue light showing activity on the computer settles down (that tells me it has finished load the drivers). I then select the 'Playing the Organ' user profile.

as an aside....
The only other issue I sometimes get (say 5%) after the Hauptwerk system loads is crackling/pops which I solve by selecting the 'Restart Audio/Midi' from the 'Engine' Menu. That solves it but I haven't been able to work out why this sometimes happens.

I hope this may be helpful to some with this setup.
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Andrew Grahame

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Re: Motu ultralite hybrid mk3 issues

PostSat Aug 10, 2019 5:11 am

Thanks very much! I have long suspected that there must be a factor relating to the sequence for loading drivers, but I've never been able to pin it down. I'll try your methods and see what happens with my system. I also use Windows 7.

Andrew
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engrssc

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Re: Motu ultralite hybrid mk3 issues

PostTue Aug 13, 2019 9:25 pm

Page 138 HW User Guide has the user definable delay (information) before HW looks for any connected USB interfaces including MOTU UltraLite MK 3 Hybrids. You can set the delay for 20 - 30 seconds which is enough for the UltraLite to do it's startup routine. Using that built-in delay, you can start (power up) both the computer and the UltraLite together at the same time with no issues.

Rgds,
Ed
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Andrew Grahame

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Re: Motu ultralite hybrid mk3 issues

PostWed Aug 14, 2019 5:31 am

I've actually tried using the delay method in the past, but as far as I can determine there's another factor influencing the overall startup process. My system has a large number of MIDI devices connected, and sometimes these take a while to load also. It's not unknown for Hauptwerk to start up only to tell me that it can't find one or more of the launchpads. The audio interface may well have loaded OK, but I still have to shut the system down and try again in order to get all of the launchpads in. Then there were times that the launchpads were all detected but the audio interface came up as "missing", and there appeared to be no rhyme or reason to it.

In the last few days I've tried Method 1 - turning on the MOTU first, then waiting until the green light to stop flashing before hitting the start button on the computer. In all but one instance it's worked OK. The one time it didn't was when I left the computer running for about 10 minutes before starting Hauptwerk. I am speculating that this delay resulted in the computer somehow losing contact with the MOTU. Since then I've started Hauptwerk as soon as the Windows finder screen settles down, and so far this has been successful.

I've not tried Method 2 above, so I can't comment on how effective it is for me. However for now Method 1 appears to be working.
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montyjnc

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Re: Motu ultralite hybrid mk3 issues

PostThu Mar 26, 2020 2:19 pm

just in case anyone stumbles across this thread.... my solution is to start the computer, wait for system to boot. THEN turn on the MOTU... wait for it to boot.. then launch Hauptwerk. The problem seems to stem from if I boot the MOTU before my computer.
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MikeDC

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Re: Motu ultralite hybrid mk3 issues

PostFri Apr 10, 2020 7:56 pm

montyjnc wrote:just in case anyone stumbles across this thread.... my solution is to start the computer, wait for system to boot. THEN turn on the MOTU... wait for it to boot.. then launch Hauptwerk. The problem seems to stem from if I boot the MOTU before my computer.


I discovered that there is a "fast boot" mode in my BIOS that allows the PC to boot faster but does not power the USB ports until the PC is booted. Supposedly, there is a similar option in Windows. I've disabled the option. Might be worth checking out.

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