Cubase LE AI 13 running on Mac mini, 24GB RAM, Apple M4 Pro chip, OS 15.3.2.
Audio interface is a Scarlett 4i4 with buffer set at 1024.
This machine is much more powerful than my old Mac.
However, I’m constantly getting audio drop outs, which makes Cubase unusable.
I didn’t have this problem on my older, less powerful machine.
This project is not demanding:
4 midi tracks
2 virtual instrument tracks
13 audio tracks
I get audio dropout on a new project with two audio tracks!
I turn off every other app on the machine.
What else can I do to stop audio drop-out?
But if you get audio dropouts on a new M4 Mac at 1024 samples, there is something wrong elsewhere. It should work fine with a much lower buffer, shouldn’t it?
@dcben , what exactly is the nature of the dropouts? Do you get them while recording, that is did you get a message from Cubase that a dropout has been detected? Are they audible on playback, does the audio performance meter hit red?
Have you tried Cubase LE 14? As far as I know, a Cubase 13 LE/AI license is also valid for 14 LE/AI.
Is the Audio Device’s driver up to date? Is the driver compatible with the Apple M processors? Do you get the same dropouts when using the Built-in Audio?
The dropouts happen when recording and I get the message an audio dropout was detected. I also get them on playback with no message.
Audio Performance meter is divided into fourths and ASIO-Guard stays in the first quadrant all the time. Real Time, Peak, & Disk Cache barely move off zero. But the red rectangle to the right stays red all the time. Maybe the interface should let me know what the red rectangle means.
It appears Cubase Elements 13 is not compatible with Mac mini running Sequoia 15.5 on M4 Pro chip. I can use it as a midi sequencer and play VST instruments, but no audio capability no matter what the buffer size is.
One person having problems does not equate to it being incompatible.
If you could answer the troubleshooting questions being asked maybe someone could help.
What actual version do you use…LE, AI or Elements. These are three different licenses and the first two can be freely updated to C14 which may or may not help with your issue.
As Martin asked before, do you get playback dropouts if you switch to mac built in audio??..this confirms if the interface is part of the problem (or the USB bus or something)
If you click on the “Help” menu item in Cubase, you can then go to Cubase Help, and you’ll be directed to the full online manual where you can read things like:
To reset the overload indicator, click its display. In the Audio Performance category of the Key Commands dialog, you can also assign a key command for this.
The documentation updates lad behind the product updates a bit, but you may find the help reference a valuable tool in identifying various use-case requirements.
I appreciate the help I received. Sadly, none of it has solved the issue of audio dropout.
A number of the troubleshooting questions were addressed. I welcome further suggestions.
Elements 13 is the software.
The Mac mini M4 doesn’t have an audio input. It has internal speakers.
Upgrading to Elements 14 might fix it, but 13 is supposed to be compatible.
I know that, but as you said you get dropouts on playback too, testing playback with built in audio (via the headphone jack probably best bet to hear it clearly) will still tell us something.
As you have Elements, I wouldn’t be paying to upgrade in case it didn’t fix it. I suppose you could try a trial of 14 but as you say 13 should work and I’m sure many people are using it on M4s with the same o/s. I suspect 14 would be the same for you.
See how it runs with built in and let’s take it from there.
Playback with built-in is fine.
So there’s something amiss with my Saffire 4i4 interface?
I used this same interface on my old Mac & a Windows machine with no problems.
Majority of USB C cables are charge only (unless supplied with interface or drives etc)…you need to pay a bit more for a decent data cable and keep it as short as you possibly can…under 2m ideally but quality cable can work over longer lengths.
Open Cubase and run the project. Let me know what Terminal logs when the dropouts occur. I suspect you won’t even need to be running Cubase, as it’s a core audio issue.
Most likely culprit: you are not using a USB2-compliant cable (even though it’s a USBC connection, it must support USB2 properly). Let me know if you need advice on the correct cable.
True, but a Mac mini shouldn’t require a buffer size greater than 1024 to run the simple project described. It’s a deeper core audio issue and most likely to do with the USB cable.
