Dropouts on iMac

[joegold]

I'm experiencing frequent dropouts with iReal Pro on my iMac.
I.e. Playback stops (and audio crackles for a moment) and then restarts after a moment or two.
Sometimes it stops completely and I have to restart playback manually.

What are the types of things that might cause this behaviour?
It never used to happen.

My song list is just over 1900 songs at the moment.
Could that be the cause of it?
I add at least 1 new song nearly every day and I've noticed it getting worse and worse day by day.

My iMac has 24 GBs of RAM.
I'm on the latest version of MacOS.
My startup volume is an external 1TB SSD with more than 1/2 of its memory still free.
I'm using an original RME Babyface audio interface via USB.

[I just realized that I can turn off iCloud Sync.
I guess I'll try that and see if it helps.]

Any other tips or advice?

 

[joegold]

Nobody?

FWIW Disabling iCloud sync has not solved the issue.

Is it the large number of Song files I've got now?
That's the only other thing I can think of.
(Unless it's got to do with the Babyface (original) becoming increasingly incompatible with newer versions of MacOS.)
I'd rather not go through the long process of culling my Song list if doing so is unlikely to help.

 

[pdxdjazz]

Hey Joe
I’m not the right person to help as I’m not a Mac user.
That said, it’s unlikely your issue is related to the size of your iRp library.
iRp song code is very data-thrifty. I probably have easily 10 times as many charts on my iPad mini.

Please be patient. Support request volume is waaaaay up during the holiday season.

If there are no other replies here within a few days, you can copy your detailed posts and email:
support@irealpro.com

I suspect that's very busy as well with many new users and their new Christmas devices.

The “usual” 1st fix attempt is to make a backup of your library (there's a utility within the app) save via email or Dropbox etc.

https://technimo.helpshift.com/hc/en/3-ireal-pro/faq/302-backup-songs-playlists/?p=mac

Then delete the iRp app, make sure there are no additional copies of the app hiding somewhere. Then reinstall using the same store account (no additional charge)
and import the backup you created.

https://technimo.helpshift.com/hc/en/3-ireal-pro/faq/57-import-backup-playlist-song/?p=mac

I’d probably wait to hear from a Mac person before pressing forward…

Sorry for your inconvenience, hope it's resolved soon.

)BOB

 

[joegold]

Thanks Bob!

The only other thing I can think of is that with many of my song files, I've had to be 'creative' in order to get the iReal 'rhythm section' to output what I need it to for practice purposes.

E.g. I often have 4/4 bars reduced to a single iReal 'beat' in order to save room on the page.
E.g. I often have 4/4 bars expanded to 4 'beats' so I can have a chord change on beats 2 or 4.
Etc.

If it keeps happening (so far so good today), I'll try backing up, deleting the app and then re-installing it, as you suggested.

Thanks again.

 

[pdxdjazz]

In iRp, spaces do not = beats
One space w/ one chord = one measure (if enclosed w/ bar lines)
Number of “beats” is determined by the time-sig and style.

PLAYER CHARTS vs. READER CHARTS
https://forums.irealpro.com/threads/BEGINNERS-start-here&p=25854.2157/#post-25854

Unless “dropouts” only happen when playing specific charts, it's not likely that chart spacing is the issue.

Confirming that you are not using a Bluetooth device for audio….

)BOB

 

[joegold]

In iRp, spaces do not = beats
One space w/ one chord = one measure (if enclosed w/ bar lines)

PLAYER CHARTS vs. READER CHARTS
https://forums.irealpro.com/threads/BEGINNERS-start-here&p=25854.2157/#post-25854

)BOB

Obviously.

 

[dflat]

I'm experiencing frequent dropouts with iReal Pro on my iMac.
I.e. Playback stops (and audio crackles for a moment) and then restarts after a moment or two.
Sometimes it stops completely and I have to restart playback manually...

Sorry for this problem,
Please contact us directly at our support so we can help you specifically.

1 please try with only your Mac internal speakers to rule out any problems with audio interfaces, their drivers, (or bluetooth etc.)

2 try a reboot

3 You could try turning off wifi/ethernet just to rule out any interference that might be causing this

4 you can try a full clean and reinstall, please backup your songs (iReal Pro Preferences, Utilities, Backup):
https://technimo.helpshift.com/hc/en/3-ireal-pro/faq/302-backup-songs-playlists/?p=mac

then use this information:
https://technimo.helpshift.com/hc/en/3-ireal-pro/faq/393-troubleshooting---mac-clean-install/
You can then drag the backup file on to iReal Pro's icon on the dock to import your songs again.

Sorry for this problem,
Thank you

 

[pdxdjazz]

Thank you dflat!
)BOB

 

[joegold]

Sorry for this problem,
Please contact us directly at our support so we can help you specifically.

1 please try with only your Mac internal speakers to rule out any problems with audio interfaces, their drivers, (or bluetooth etc.)

2 try a reboot

3 You could try turning off wifi/ethernet just to rule out any interference that might be causing this

4 you can try a full clean and reinstall, please backup your songs (iReal Pro Preferences, Utilities, Backup):
https://technimo.helpshift.com/hc/en/3-ireal-pro/faq/302-backup-songs-playlists/?p=mac

then use this information:
https://technimo.helpshift.com/hc/en/3-ireal-pro/faq/393-troubleshooting---mac-clean-install/
You can then drag the backup file on to iReal Pro's icon on the dock to import your songs again.

Sorry for this problem,
Thank you

Great suggestions.
Thanks.
I'll try all that.
I've already deleted the app and associated files and re-installed it from the App Store.
But I've had no time to check it yet.
IIRC it also happens when using built-in audio but I could be mistaken about that.

It might be a wifi thing.
I'll try that next.

Thanks again.

 

[joegold]

FWIW

I really haven't been playing with iRP as much lately, and when I have, I've been mostly using the internal speakers of my iMac and did not notice the dropouts happening.
I've only had one quick instance when the problem happened again, and I was using my Babyface (original) audio interface at the time.

I suspect that the drivers that RME supplies for this discontinued product might not be up to snuff with the current versions of MacOS, although their download site says they still are.

I'd try running the Babyface in Class Compliant Mode, which bypasses RME's drivers, to see if that helps.
But then the only way I can control the BF's volume is at the interface itself (i.e. no software mixer) which is not practical with my current setup.

I've tried everything else suggested in this thread so far.

Is anybody else out there using an original (i.e. non "Pro") version of the Babyface w/o this issue?
I suspect that this problem is driver oriented.

 

[CameronHood]

...except I'm having thew same issues, and it keeps coming back. I'm reinstalling it twice a month now. Very annoying when you're trying to teach. Mac OS 13.0.1, latest iRZealPro, Apogee Elements 24 with latest drivers. It is also happening on mat iPad, so it's not the interface.

 

[joegold]

...except I'm having thew same issues, and it keeps coming back. I'm reinstalling it twice a month now. Very annoying when you're trying to teach. Mac OS 13.0.1, latest iRZealPro, Apogee Elements 24 with latest drivers. It is also happening on mat iPad, so it's not the interface.

Thanks for letting me know I'm not alone in this.

 

[dflat]

Please contact us directly with the specifications of your devices, or Mac, the version of iReal Pro, audio interfaces, etc. and any information if you have it about when it occurs or what might be triggering this.
Thank you

 

[joegold]

Please contact us directly with the specifications of your devices, or Mac, the version of iReal Pro, audio interfaces, etc. and any information if you have it about when it occurs or what might be triggering this.
Thank you

Thanks.
I'll probably get around to doing that at some point.
For now, I'm still trying to troubleshoot it here myself.

I'm pretty sure it's an issue with my audio interface, an original RME Babyface, not the newer Babyface Pro or Babyface Pro FS.
It doesn't seem to happen when I use my iMac's built-in audio.
[There's probably a BF Pro FS in my future anyway.]

At the moment, the BF is connected via a USB hub.
I'll report back after I try it with the BF connected directly to one of the iMac's USB ports.
My guess is that that will fix it, unless there's a driver issue with the original BFs and the newer OSs.

 

[joegold]

Thanks.
I'll probably get around to doing that at some point.
For now, I'm still trying to troubleshoot it here myself.

I'm pretty sure it's an issue with my audio interface, an original RME Babyface, not the newer Babyface Pro or Babyface Pro FS.
It doesn't seem to happen when I use my iMac's built-in audio.
[There's probably a BF Pro FS in my future anyway.]

At the moment, the BF is connected via a USB hub.
I'll report back after I try it with the BF connected directly to one of the iMac's USB ports.
My guess is that that will fix it, unless there's a driver issue with the original BFs and the newer OSs.

Seems quite a bit better now.
Although I did have 1 dropout/glitch when I first started using IRP in this configuration today, it's been real stable since then.
Definitely much better than before.

I also changed my clock master settings in the BF which actually may have been the deciding factor.
I'll put it back the old way later to see if it affects anything.
Essentially, I usually have my Axe-FX hooked up to the BF via Spdif and the AFX needs to be the clock master in that configuration.
I've not been using the Spdif signal path for my recent practice sessions, so I unplugged it and set the clock master of the BF to Internal.
But I've had that Spdif connection that way for years now and this issue only arose recently.
I don't think it's the culprit.
I think running the BF through the hub is/was the problem.

I'll report back again if the issue resurfaces or if I figure out more about it.

Thanks to all participants here.

 

[joegold]

FWIW

This is STILL happening.

It seems to be related to my Babyface since it doesn't happen when I use Built-in Audio.

It's also not an iReal issue since it also happens with Logic.

I plan on renting another interface to see if the problem persists.

I'm running the latest drivers and firmware on the Babyface, but it's old tech at this point.