[tonmeisterParticipant]

iMac 27″ mid-2010, 2.93GHz i7, 8GB RAM, OS 10.10.4
running presonus’ studio one v3.0.2 build 34331 as DAW
attempting to control the daw with qu-16 via usb b connection to host
using A & H DAW control 1.3.0

does this help?

my guess is that i don’t quite have the correct settings going yet. haven’t had any luck yet getting info from studio one forum. if i get this figured out, i’ll spread the word on details in both forums. i’ve seen others looking for help in both places, but no helpful info discovered as of yet.

thanks for chiming in, stiffen.

[tonmeisterParticipant]

Bueller? Anyone?

[tonmeisterParticipant]

Tested this before I purchased, and the fact that it works was one of the main reasons I made the switch to Qu. Have done dual recording at every gig, and it has been absolutely flawless. One of the greatest benefits of Qu, in my book. 🙂

[tonmeisterParticipant]

1.71 seems to have solved the issue. I say “seems” only because I have not had very many gigs since 1.71 came out (about a half-dozen, or so), but so far, so good (knock wood). If the fix holds and the problem goes away for good, I’ll be very pleased to have a reliable system again.

I do feel I should back-pedal and apologize a little for my earlier post on this topic. I am still frustrated that it cost me so much additional time, cash, and inconvenience to get through some very high profile gigs I was doing at the time. I am also still a bit irked that A & H’s pricing structure changes have devalued the AB168 so significantly and so quickly after its release, but that is not really an issue for someone who is buying one new, at this point.

I should also apologize for my error in saying that there was not documentation/acknowledgement of the problem fix in the firmware released. That was a gross oversight on my part. My vision was perhaps clouded by seeing red at the time, but that doesn’t really excuse my errant and hasty accusation, and I formally apologize to A & H and the forum for letting my frustration get the better of me.

It does appear that A & H did the right thing in responding as quickly as they could to resolve the issue, and I am very grateful for that. I am also very grateful for the other enhancements that have been a part of the ongoing firmware releases for the QU series, which have made the mixer investment feel like a very good one.

When the AB168 works properly, it is a fabulous addition to the QU system. If I had it to do all over again knowing what I know now, I’d’ve held off on getting a digital snake solution and gotten the AR2412 (for $150 less than I paid for the AB168!!!). I know that there is usually some premium attached to being an early adopter, but I didn’t think I’d get stung that badly. Now if I want to sell my AB168 and buy an AR2412 it will probably cost me another $400-600 cash out-of-pocket, depending on what I could squeeze out of the AB168 on the used market. I’ll probably try to pick up a used AR84, if I can.

I do also want to publicly thank Nicola, who has been very active and helpful to a great number of users on the forum, and has taken the time to respond to some of my questions and concerns, in particular. It is really nice to know that there are those at A & H that are paying attention to what goes on here.

[tonmeisterParticipant]

I have the Gator GMIX-1921-8-TSA, too. Big thumbs up from me on that one. I don’t like to have my mixers hard mounted in rails for transport. The gator was the smallest, lightest, and most preotective I could find at the time — don’t know if there are new offerings out there that you’d want to consider, but I really love the Gator. Very easy to lift in and out of the case. If you don’t need or want yours to be rail mounted, I’d highly recommend the Gator GMIX-1921-8-TSA.

PS — yes, there is at least one foam wedgie that helps keep it snug, and it works very, very well. Also, it is different from the G-MIX 20X25 ATA (I used to have one of that series for my Studiolive mixer). I prefer the TSA, FWIW — the shell is tougher and a less brittle material. I think you’d be hard-pressed to find a lift out case that fits the Qu16 better.

[tonmeisterParticipant]

I sure wish this problem had been found and fixed much sooner. Had the same issue. Showed up at a major job, made all connections, fired up the system: no phantom, no preamp control. No problems with board or Cat5e cable, board recognizes snake, snake shows as ready. Only solution was to hold up the proceedings while I ran home, grabbed three smaller analog snakes, swap those in, re-check the system and finish the job. No fun at all.

Arranged for warranty repair. Sadly, I was told it would have to be shipped (at my expense) to distributor in CA. While waiting for return of the unit (which the CA organization handled with quite respectable dispatch, thank you very much), the repair center at the distributor called me to let me know that A-H was aware of the problem, that the unit was reverting to a factory firmware state, and that the fix was to connect it to any GLD series mixer, which would appropriately reset the firmware. Again, a huge thank you to the repair folks for letting me know that. Why didn’t A-H proactively communicate with me about the issue, though, I have to wonder?

When it first happened, I talked to the dealer I’d bought the unit from, and they said since I’d had the unit more than 90 days (barely) there was nothing they could do to help me. Apparently the AR2412 never suffered from this issue, and I thought maybe I could talk them into letting me pay a re-stocking fee and trade up my mint unit for the AR2412. They wouldn’t. They suggested I sell it and get the AR2412. Horrifying discovery #1: big price drop on the AR2412 — now less than what I paid for the less capable, less reliable AB168. Now who in their right mind is ever going to want to buy my AB168 when they can get an AR2412 for a few dollars more? I start looking into that because I just can’t be saddled with gear that isn’t reliable, or sit around waiting for new firmware to arrive (which, based on the track record of many companies, could be a very, very long wait). But wait, what is my next horrifying discovery?? A-H has dropped the price on the AB168 by almost 30%!!! Now the unit I own is so significantly devalued that I probably can’t even recover 50% of what I paid for it, even though it is nearly new, and I’ve kept it in pristine condition. Thanks a million! 🙁

Meantime, I have gigs to do, and have had to fork over a significant amount of cash on renting snakes as a stop-gap. Thanks again! (And, oh, by the way, I was also told that A-H, while promising a future fix, did not have a good handle yet on what was causing the problem, and that, despite the “repair”/reset, it could happen again anytime — and we have no idea what is causing it — so good luck.)

Oh well, I got it back, and it was working, so maybe I should just shut up and be happy, right? On my second gig after getting it home from repair, the same thing happened. I was even at the same venue, and I can tell you it was no picnic having egg on my face twice in a row with them. The “good” news is that I planned ahead “just in case,” and had rented (again) a backup snake. The bad news is I had to spend that money at all, and that I wound up having to take a good chunk of time from the session swapping out the AB168 for the analog.

Brought the unit to a local A-H dealer for reset (one that is also an authorized servicer, which begs the question, why did they have me send the unit to CA when they could have done the reset via GLD right here in town?? Would have been really nice to save that shipping cost the first time). Unit reset without incident.

Today we have the new firmware, which is supposed to solve this issue. I certainly hope it does, because I am not at all satisfied with my AB168 experience, so far. This thing had better be bulletproof, now. $1400 is a hell of a lot of money for a boat anchor. When I spend this kind of money, I expect it to work, period. If this happens again, I’m going to start screaming bloody murder to everyone from the dealer I got it from to A-H until they offer some sort of satisfaction (and it had damned-well better be more significant than some stupid t-shirt or other “swag,” or I will lose all confidence in both the dealer, and A-H).

If this is a real, long-term solution, I guess I’ll get over it at some point, but I would have been much better off financially (and professional reputation-wise) if I had just kept my old analog snake, and, at least right now, I am really regretting I ever talked myself into going the DS route. I feel like I was unknowingly a beta tester who had to pay, and pay very, very, very dearly for the priviledge.

A-H, want to give me back the $400 premium I paid for being an early adopter? Want to reimburse my replacement gear rental fees? (I know, I’m dreaming.) How about an apology? (Maybe even a crazier dream?)

One other question (and probably rhetorical, again, but here goes): If this firmare update is supposed to really fix this problem, then why is there no reference to it in the 1.71 firmware release documents that a) acknowledges the existence of the problem, and b) states that it has been resolved?

Signed,

Disappointed and Discouraged

[tonmeisterParticipant]

+1

[tonmeisterParticipant]

Yes, give them a call. Ask for Brad Bartosz — he should be able to help you. When you tell him what you are after, mention that you were referred by a previous customer. He may remember my transaction because it was a slightly unusual special order for them, and I think he handled most of the particulars on their end. I paid ~ $175 for the cable. The reel/hub adapter was another $75, I think. I don’t think the reel was a stock item for them, and I don’t think they up-charged me at all for that, nor for assembling it on the reel for me — pretty amazing, really. I’m very pleased with the cable and the whole rig.

Enjoy!

Tim

[tonmeisterParticipant]

PS — I wouldn’t resonally recommend the Rapco Duracat unless it is for a fixed installation. That is solid core, and if you are going to be deploying/taking it up regularly for live work, stranded construction will give higher reliability over a longer period, as well as greater flexibility (and, in turn, greater ease of handling). A & H specifically states that the cable used should be stranded when intended for use in live applications. (Shielded, too — double shielded, in fact, if I recall correctly. I think they recommend both an outer braided shield and inner foil shield. The Rapco Duracat is not shielded at all. Due to the potential for high EMI/RFI, etc. in most venues, I would recommend playing it safe and sticking to the published A & H cable specs.)

[tonmeisterParticipant]

I got the Technec Jackreel-F4. It is light, yet plenty sturdy enough to handle the cable weight, and reasonably rugged. It differs from some reels in that it has a larger center hub diameter. (It is marketed primarily as an optimal reel for fiber-optic cable, as that kind of cable should not be wound too tightly, and although ethernet cable may be theoretically more able to withstand much tighter bends, I still like to baby the cable by minimizing stresses on it — after all, a lot is riding on the integrity of that lifeline!)

I got 165′ and there is a little extra room on the spool — I’d guess you might be able to fit 200′ or more on the Jackreel-F4 (although I chose to limit it to 165′ since that was a practical limit on “bullet-proof” reliable length for stranded cable that a few different sources I researched had recommended).

Have only had it a few months, but loving it so far. My old, heavy copper “dinosaur” snake is sold and quickly falling out of sight in my rear view mirror. Loving the AB168 Qu16 combo!

[tonmeisterParticipant]

There are some pretty good reasons to go with the kind of cable they spec. I was not happy with prices I was finding, but after extensive research, I found this company:

https://btpa.com

I got this cable:

https://btpa.com/ETHERCON9-XXX.html

It meets the standards set by A & H, and it didn’t break the bank. The company gave me first rate service, too. They went the extra mile to get a specific cable reel at my request and assemble the cable/reel for me. The cable is really outstanding, and again, I can’t say enough about how well the company treated me, and how reasonable the cost was.

[tonmeisterParticipant]

Been a while since I used PT for tracking, but you may just need to go into your PT i/o settings grid and add channels for 19-24. Should definitely be possible. I use a couple of other programs, and have no difficulty accessing/recording the additional channels.

[tonmeisterParticipant]

Thanks, Nicola!

[tonmeisterParticipant]

My choice is old-school, and not necessarily the highest of fi, but reliable and quite good, isolation wise: Koss Pro4AA. Heavy to wear, but they really get the job done and don’t break the bank.

[tonmeisterParticipant]

I absolutely believe it is just because the gear works as advertised, works really well, and sounds fantastic. I got my Qu-16 last spring and have been absolutely delighted with it!

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