Apollo X6 Win 11 Thunderbolt never a stable System ...plz help

TBURNA888

TBURNA888

New Member
Hello dear forum members,
I'm new here in the forum, and I hope that at least my problems will be heard here... Because I've tried everything so far and haven't made any progress... I've been making music for 20 years, but something like this has never happened to me before. I've always been working with a Windows system, and lately always with RME. The drivers are great, and I've never had any problems. Then there was a great offer at our Musicstore in Cologne, Germany... Universal Apollo X6 + The Sphere microphone... I had to grab it, but at what cost... I know it's always said, "Never change a running system," but I wanted that piece, and now I'm in trouble... You can see my specifications in my signature... my computer isn't the worst, and playing music via Windows 11, etc., is no problem, but when I try to record and mix something in Studio One... clicks, pops, there are only problems?!?! Sometimes the CPU shoots up for no reason... I've never experienced anything like this... Is it the driver?!?! Is it the Thunderbolt interface?!?! I absolutely don't know what to do... Without a stable system, I'm forced to return the Apollo X6, but I don't want to... I've tried changing some settings in the BIOS, but to be honest, I'm not entirely sure if I'm doing the right thing... I'm afraid nothing will work anymore afterwards... Do you have any ideas what else I can do?!?! I'm grateful for any tips... all drivers, etc., are up to date... Regards, Tobi
 
easyrider

easyrider

Venerated Member
Please post your Studio One audio interface settings.
 
TBURNA888

TBURNA888

New Member
here , its nothing drastic
 

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TBURNA888

TBURNA888

New Member
this cant be really the Problem :D with RME 64 no Problem ...
i think Bios its the Problem ...
 
JamesNorth

JamesNorth

Hall of Fame Member
It's the Dropout protection that would be causing playback issues - make that maximum.

That's the one in Studio One that determines the playback buffer.

However, you should also be recording through the Console interface, not inside Studio One - is that clear?

And yes - Thunderbolt on Windows does require some serious tweaking ... BIOIS etc. I'm a Mac guy so can't really help.
 
easyrider

easyrider

Venerated Member
JamesNorth said:
It's the Dropout protection that would be causing playback issues - make that maximum.

That's the one in Studio One that determines the playback buffer.

However, you should also be recording through the Console interface, not inside Studio One - is that clear?

And yes - Thunderbolt on Windows does require some serious tweaking ... BIOIS etc. I'm a Mac guy so can't really help.
Click to expand...
his issue is also when recording…
 
easyrider

easyrider

Venerated Member
Watch this video explains the audio engine in studio one very clearly.

 
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TBURNA888

TBURNA888

New Member
First of all, thank you for the responses. I'll check out the video right away, but I can't imagine for the life of me that it has anything to do with Studio One... With the RME, there were no issues in this regard... But I'll also try this. Many thanks.
 
TBURNA888

TBURNA888

New Member
Okay, folks, I'm back again... I watched the YouTube videos, but unfortunately, there was nothing new for me that I didn't already know... I've tried a bit more in Studio One now, using really simple settings and the maximum dropout protection... but as soon as I load in the God Particle, it starts clicking and the CPU meter spikes, even though it's only at around 16%... and I'm just using 2 tracks... how is that going to be when I use more? Absolutely crazy... I assume there's something that needs to be disabled in the BIOS section, etc... I've never experienced anything like this before... or maybe Thunderbolt and Windows aren't a good idea!!!
 

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Neotrope

Neotrope

Venerated Member
there is pinned thread in forum on optimizing windows. .... yes, you need to optimize bios, install intel chipset utilities app, disable any onboard audio on mobo, disable usb audio on video card, set power on windows to performance vs balanced, etc.
 
B

Barry Reynolds

Member
Under the category of lame ideas that miraculously work, search for thunderbolt in BIOS and enable the ability to BOOT from thunderbolt device. This solved some problems for me, for reasons I don’t understand. So now I mention it to anyone having issues with thunderbolt on Windows.
 
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TBURNA888

TBURNA888

New Member
Thank you once again for all the tips... but let's be honest, do I really need to go through an extra exam on BIOS and Windows settings just to use the Apollo? I'll tell you honestly, Universal's drivers are just terrible... I now know more about BIOS than I do about music, hahaha. Intel SpeedStep, Turbo Boost, and C-State disabled, power options adjusted, Studio One adjusted even though I could easily use 100 tracks before, full of plugins from any brand... it's laughable... I just assume everything would be no problem with Apple, but I don't like Apple, and I'll never support their policies and prices... Unfortunately, it seems I have no choice but to rethink and switch back to RME... Sad, really...
 
JamesNorth

JamesNorth

Hall of Fame Member
easyrider said:
his issue is also when recording…
Click to expand...
Yeah that's why I mentioned the tracking through console thing rather than trying to live track inside the DAW (which might be possible with the RME device). I guess it'd be a similar concept to Totalmix if that's what's been used previously.

TBURNA888 said:
Thank you once again for all the tips... but let's be honest, do I really need to go through an extra exam on BIOS and Windows settings just to use the Apollo? I'll tell you honestly, Universal's drivers are just terrible... I now know more about BIOS than I do about music, hahaha. Intel SpeedStep, Turbo Boost, and C-State disabled, power options adjusted, Studio One adjusted even though I could easily use 100 tracks before, full of plugins from any brand... it's laughable... I just assume everything would be no problem with Apple, but I don't like Apple, and I'll never support their policies and prices... Unfortunately, it seems I have no choice but to rethink and switch back to RME... Sad, really...
Click to expand...
Unfortunately Thunderbolt on Windows is a little bit more niche than anything like USB... it originated as a Mac thing and has been implemented later on PCs to varying degrees of success.

It's a much faster / better protocol than USB (until very recently when they merged), but there are so many different motherboards and OS settings than can influence how it works that it can seem like a bit of a nightmare initially.

I ran Hackintosh machines at my studio for well over a decade with great success but once or twice had to install Windows to get something flashed or whatever .... and I couldn't really get it working well inside Windows the short times I tried. The operation in MacOS was then totally fine.
 
TBURNA888

TBURNA888

New Member
JamesNorth said:
Yeah that's why I mentioned the tracking through console thing rather than trying to live track inside the DAW (which might be possible with the RME device). I guess it'd be a similar concept to Totalmix if that's what's been used previously.



Unfortunately Thunderbolt on Windows is a little bit more niche than anything like USB... it originated as a Mac thing and has been implemented later on PCs to varying degrees of success.

It's a much faster / better protocol than USB (until very recently when they merged), but there are so many different motherboards and OS settings than can influence how it works that it can seem like a bit of a nightmare initially.

I ran Hackintosh machines at my studio for well over a decade with great success but once or twice had to install Windows to get something flashed or whatever .... and I couldn't really get it working well inside Windows the short times I tried. The operation in MacOS was then totally fine.
Click to expand...

Yes, you're absolutely right. I'm currently browsing a few German forums where people are also having issues on Windows... I have to admit that the crackles and pops are gone after I disabled Intel SpeedStep, Turbo Boost, and C-State in the BIOS... But even so, when I compare how the CPU behaves now, it's quite disillusioning... Universal had such a great deal with the Sphere microphone, and now I'm stuck in a real dilemma between keeping and sticking with it, or returning it after the 30-day period, or keeping it and selling it for a higher price... I like this Apollo X6, but what good is it if it's just not stable... or should I get an Apollo USB instead?!?! I'm just really disappointed right now... God's blessings, Tobi
 
Neotrope

Neotrope

Venerated Member
TBURNA888 said:
Yes, you're absolutely right. I'm currently browsing a few German forums where people are also having issues on Windows... I have to admit that the crackles and pops are gone after I disabled Intel SpeedStep, Turbo Boost, and C-State in the BIOS... But even so, when I compare how the CPU behaves now, it's quite disillusioning... Universal had such a great deal with the Sphere microphone, and now I'm stuck in a real dilemma between keeping and sticking with it, or returning it after the 30-day period, or keeping it and selling it for a higher price... I like this Apollo X6, but what good is it if it's just not stable... or should I get an Apollo USB instead?!?! I'm just really disappointed right now... God's blessings, Tobi
Click to expand...
windows is pain, but partially due to microsoft randomly mucking things up, like. oh, hey lets wreck ssd performance, or latest thing where folder windows do not update files unless you f5 tefresh. one windows box wr had to some funky stuff like turn off multithreading. another box we could never get tb working right and did in fact get usb twin which has been bulletproof.
 
TBURNA888

TBURNA888

New Member
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