Help Apogee Ensemble Kernel Panic when switching it on

[schmollywood1]

Hello, a problem with my Ensemble is bugging me since I updated to Leopard and have installed the Leopard compatible firmware for the Ensemble. If I switch on Ensemble and boot my Mac it works, but if I switch Ensemble on while the Mac is already on I get a kernel panic almost every single time. I have sent crash logs to Apogee support, but they have no clue. The answer I get is "we can't duplicate the issue" and that is that. Fantastic support ! Is there anybody out there who maybe has the same issue or an idea how to fix this ? Thanks !

Update: In case you are experiencing the same : I am in contact with Apogee about this and we figured out what causes the kernel panics. Its a RAM issue. I had 4GB of RAM installed when the problems started happeing. I took out 2 GB and the problem is gone. Now Apogee and Apple are trying to fix this...

[endosine]

I have the same issue, It's driving me nuts, I keep loosing data every time it kernel panics.... Argh! Hopefully they will have an update soon

[kingswood6]

Same deal here. I sent Apogee all my logs a couple weeks ago. They had the same suggestion--remove 2G of my 4G of RAM.

I don't want to do that, so I've been working on my Fireface 800 in the meantime (now I'm glad I didn't sell it).

Funny thing is, today I switched back to the Ensemble for some probably futile troubleshooting. Damn, I couldn't get a kernel panic if I tried--opening and closing Nuendo and other programs, changing the sample rate--things that usually cause the Gray Curtain of Panic to descend. So, I started sketching out some ideas for new piece. Silly me--thought I was home free. Closed Nuendo when I went out for a while.

Restarted Nuendo, and the Gray Curtain descended on my project like a random reminder from Hell telling me who's the boss.

$2,000. I am really, ah, disenchanted, with the whole situation. (I would never say "pissed off" in a public forum. )

Regards,

Bill

[mdme_sadie]

Same issues, I hope it gets fixed soon. It's totally predictable and repeatable here. Just open and close Logic a few times with it on, or load a number of other apps (quicktime, itunes, safari, colloquey, ichat, a few others), then after a while of messing around switch on the Ensemble, this leads to grey screen 99% of the time. Or alternatively if it does work, run a session in logic, quit logic, then relaunch logic will usually do it too.

Given this, to avoid the issue I start the ensemble before launching any programs, launch logic and whatever other music software I need first, and don't shut them down till I'm sure I've finished. Doing that means I get no grey screens of death, but it is a pain, and takes the spontaneity out of things a lot.

I'm assuming that what happens is as soon as the Ensemble's drivers kick in and try to address memory outside of the base 2gb it's causing the crash (maybe a certain piece of code is incorrectly setting data in the lower address range, it may be that their driver isn't using at least a full 32bit address pointer, though it should really be using 64bit pointers now).

[lean]

EXACT same problem here.

iMac 2.8, 4GB RAM. Leopard.

The Ensemble will ALWAYS cause a kernel panic if I turn it on while the computer is on. The only way to get it to work is to turn it on before booting and start up the computer fresh.

[MaestroNYC]

What Macs does everyone have who are experiencing this issue??
Just curious!

[kingswood6]

Originally Posted by MaestroNYC

What Macs does everyone have who are experiencing this issue??
Just curious!

Original quad Mac Pro (2 x dual 3ghz Xeon). 4g RAM. ATI X1900 video card.

Leopard 10.5.2. (Didn't have this on Tiger.)

Regards,

Bill

[MJ Heck]

Same problem here - iMac with 4GB RAM. Running Leopard as well.

[mdme_sadie]

Mac pro octacore 3ghz (first generation).

[manning1]

but macs are perfect with no problems...right ? lol.

[kingswood6]

Originally Posted by manning1

but macs are perfect with no problems...right ? lol.

No, they are far from perfect (as are all platforms).

Regards,

Bill

[technog0d]

Same issue, new 24" imac 2.4ghz with 4 gigs ram... I didn't have a problem until the last couple of Leopard Updates. I think it was 10.5.2 that caused the issues.

Mike

[kingswood6]

Originally Posted by technog0d

Same issue, new 24" imac 2.4ghz with 4 gigs ram... I didn't have a problem until the last couple of Leopard Updates. I think it was 10.5.2 that caused the issues.

Mike

My thoughts, too. Rather than revert to 10.5.1 or Tiger, I'm going to hold out for a fix a while longer.

Regards,

Bill

[mikesanders]

i have the same problem. new mac pro 2,8ghz 8core, 4gb ram. leopard 10.5.2

[kingswood6]

Apogee: what's a couple grand between friends?

I've written you twice.

Please fix it.

Bill

[Dor]

I've avoided any issues by never shutting off my interface while the Mac Pro is on.

D

[kingswood6]

Originally Posted by Dor

I've avoided any issues by never shutting off my interface while the Mac Pro is on.

D

Yes, I can avoid a kernel panic in Logic 8 by doing that, however, on my system, closing Logic and opening another program can cause a panic.

Do you use Cubase 4 or Nuendo 4? Just opening either program can bring on a kernel panic about 50% of the time. (As can changing sample rates, or restarting either program). It is a "known issue" and Apogee recommends having no more than 2G of RAM in your machine until they work it out. That's like a car company asking you to drive only in first gear until they can find the flaw in their transmission design.

At any rate, I edited some of the anger out of my last post. Apogee makes fine products. The Ensemble has been plagued by driver/compatibility issues since the beginning, though.

A company of their caliber should do better, IMO.

Regards,

Bill

[blondfish]

Hello from Berlin!

Have major problems, too, with both Ensemble and Fireface 800 under Leopard 10.5.2. on a brandnew aluminium iMac 2,8 GHz/4 GB RAM - kernel panics, ugly sounds, drop outs, digital terror, incompatibilities with all kind of software instruments and audio hardware connected to Firewire 400 EXCEPT for Apogee's DUET, which works fine with Firewire 400 connector.

RME Fireface Support says Apple uses different Firewire chipsets for new computers and they are obviousely incompatible with most of major audio hardware.

Anyone ever heard about that before?

A workaround for the Fireface 800 troubles on my iMac is connecting it via the Firewire 800 port instead of the 400. Now it seems to work better.

Couldnt check out the same with Ensemble since it doesn't have FW 800 connectors...

I don't wanna say it sucks, thou it does.

Incompatible FireWire chip sets used by apple: "Apple for the first time uses a "PCIe to FW" controller in the new iMacs, made by a company named Agere. Obviously this one needs some driver optimizations to operate as good as the formerly used PCI TI chips"

Strange enough, lots of forum users blame Apple to force them into Apogee products by making other stuff not work flawlessly anymore... All right, I tried Apogee's Ensemble and still failed.

Any clue, folks?

[Royale]

I have a Mac Pro 2 x 2.66 GHz Dual Core Intel Xeon. Running OSX 10.5.2, and have 7GB of RAM. My enesemble causes a kernel panic EVERY TIME I change from a logic song with 44.1 khz sample rate to a song with 48khz sample rate. This is most annoying, thanks apogee :)
~r

[kingswood6]

Four months without an update to fix this.

It's only a guess--but a reasonable one--that the fix is dependent on the next update to Leopard, which is supposedly in beta testing with the software vendors. And, of course, with Apple's iron clad curtain of secrecy, Apogee probably isn't free to say much.

Apogee has always been a company with a sterling reputation in the audio industry. I sincerely hope that hitching their wagon to Apple's star won't end up tarnishing it.

Regards,

Bill

[elektroglide]

imac 2.8 intel, 4gb ram, duet, leopard - regular crashes when waking from sleep mode with duet plugged in, none when it's not.

i think apple and apogee should talk. and recode. and get back to us.

[Max]

Hi Folks,

I appreciate your frustration. As I said in another thread on this subject, this issue is not Apogee-specific. Since Apogee does not make a FireWire driver for the Mac (Ensemble and Duet both use Apple's Core Audio FireWire driver), all we can do on our end is offer suggestions to work around the problem until it is addressed. That being said, we are doing all we can to push for a fix as soon as possible.

[liquidorange]

Originally Posted by Max

Hi Folks,

I appreciate your frustration. all we can do on our end is offer suggestions to work around the problem until it is addressed. That being said, we are doing all we can to push for a fix as soon as possible.

thats nice and all but i just purchased an ensemble and got it yesterday . i called last week to discuss my set up with apogee and was assured there were no issues to worry about. these issues
should have gotten mentioned at least. i guess consider returning it. looks cool anyway

[kingswood6]

Regardless of where the problem lies, the bottom line is, are these words true?

"Apogee quality. Apple integration. Absolute simplicity."

Regards,

Bill

[Virtuoso]

It would be useful if the glossy Apogee advert said something along the lines of "Compatible with any Core Audio-compliant audio application unless used in a pro environment with >2Gb of RAM in which case it crashes all the time."

It helps just to know rather than waste several weeks troubleshooting...

[eternally]

same problem here... hope there's a fix soon! since I'm waiting already a few weeks.:(

[lean]

Max,

Perhaps Apogee should follow the example of other hardware vendors and write their own FireWire driver, rather than relying on Apple's.

Not being able to use > 2GB of RAM in an audio system is a ridiculous problem to have in 2008.

Also to my knowledge Apple has never fixed the random offset recording latency problems in their FireWire audio driver.

Originally Posted by Max

Hi Folks,

I appreciate your frustration. As I said in another thread on this subject, this issue is not Apogee-specific. Since Apogee does not make a FireWire driver for the Mac (Ensemble and Duet both use Apple's Core Audio FireWire driver), all we can do on our end is offer suggestions to work around the problem until it is addressed. That being said, we are doing all we can to push for a fix as soon as possible.

[lockdown]

Originally Posted by lean

Perhaps in the future it would be wise for Apogee to write their own driver, since Apple cannot be counted on?

that pretty much hits the nail on the head however, apogee is a small company and a hardware one foremost, so they might not have the expertise and/or resources to code drivers.

i've been keeping my eye on this thread as a potential duet buyer (assuming they use the same driver), but since i'm running more than 2gb on my mac, this is a show stopper for me. too bad because no other sound card in it's price range offers the same quality of preamps.

[Max]

Originally Posted by lockdown

that pretty much hits the nail on the head however, apogee is a small company and a hardware one foremost, so they might not have the expertise and/or resources to code drivers.

On the contrary. The Symphony driver for Apogee's Symphony PCIe and Symphony Mobile is the most advanced audio driver on the market, made right here at Apogee.

[MaestroNYC]

Originally Posted by Max

On the contrary. The Symphony driver for Apogee's Symphony PCIe and Symphony Mobile is the most advanced audio driver on the market, made right here at Apogee.

So if that's the case, when will Apogee be doing drivers for the Ensemble??