Topic: FireFace 800 - Can't play back music files w/ Cubase open

New RME customer and Fireface owner here...

When running Traktor or Cubase 5, I am unable to open any music files on my hard drive using any media player. If Traktor or Cubase is closed, the files open and play fine. Within Traktor and Cubase, I use the Fireface ASIO driver.

It seems as though Cubase and Traktor are not sharing access to the driver. Thoughts?

Re: FireFace 800 - Can't play back music files w/ Cubase open

Anyone?

Re: FireFace 800 - Can't play back music files w/ Cubase open

Only one ASIO application can use the same channels. Disable some channels in the ASIO setup to free them for other applications. Please search for ASIO multiclient. This was discussed several times in the past. Like here:
http://www.rme-audio.de/forum/viewtopic.php?id=7993

best regards
Knut

Re: FireFace 800 - Can't play back music files w/ Cubase open

Thank you for galvanizing my search, Knut.
I acquired a multi-client ASIO driver and this now allows me to operate several programs simultaneously, each of them using the ASIO driver.
However, this does not seem to solve my issue of being unable to play ordinary media files while an ASIO-using application is running. Still, I get error messages in both WMP and Winamp, each saying that I am unable to play the file back (please check drivers, etc). Within "Sounds and Audio Devices" in my XP control panel, I can not choose an ASIO driver for my Fireface 800; it allows me to choose only analog outputs. Any ideas?

Re: FireFace 800 - Can't play back music files w/ Cubase open

Within "Sounds and Audio Devices" in my XP control panel, I can not choose an ASIO driver for my Fireface 800; it allows me to choose only analog outputs. Any ideas?

This is correct behaviour. Usual Windows programs like Media Player or VLC don?t use ASIO drivers but standard output devices from the plain Windows driver (WDM) of the Fireface. You can use the Fireface ASIO (Cubase) and WDM driver (WMP) at the same time - but with the same sample rate. It?s not possible to use one software with 44.1 kHz and the other with 48 kHz.

But the basic rule is the same: different programs can not use the same playback channels at the same time! So you can?t use Output 1/2 in Cubase (ASIO driver) and Analog Output 1/2" in the Windows Sound and Devices Setup for WMP (WDM driver).

You have to choose unique free outputs - disabled in ALL ASIO drivers - in the Windows setup for the playback of Windows programs. If you choose the same outputs (i. e. Output 1/2),  WMP or Winamp will not play when Cubase and/or Traktor is running.

Setup example:

Cubase:
- ASIO playback setup: Outputs 1/2, Outputs 3/4 (disable all other outputs)

Traktor
- ASIO playback setup: Outputs 5/6

Windows Sound and Devices Setup
- Analog Output 7/8 as default output

best regards
Knut

Re: FireFace 800 - Can't play back music files w/ Cubase open

---Cubase SX3,  winXP and early FF800 myself-

I've had similar problems on and off, and gave up running Windows media player on my system, and I'm glad I did.
If I want to have a song to A/B with my current project, I just import the wav file into Cubase, and I find I can EQ/master the project to sound like I want MUCH more accurately than pulling the song up in Media Player. The Cubase/Fireface  sounds much clearer and punchier than Media Player.

Re: FireFace 800 - Can't play back music files w/ Cubase open

Hello

new FF800 installed yesterday on win 7 64bits (Alesis mastecontrol, AkaiMKP25, Maschine, several disks, printer)
FIW, I tried to figure out the best solution as I found it annoying to "sacrifice" 2 chanels just to be able to hear MP3s  while using Live, I found that if I select in Windows SPDIF as output (and I deselect them into Live), after redirecting in TotalMix  the software outs 11+12 (SPDIF) to Analog 1+2, it works perfectly for me as Im able to  play Windows waves in the same time as ASIO soft - it even works in 48 KHz  SR - and I keep all the 8 Analog outs in Live8...
And loopback works perfectly... ex: I run VLC to play a track or a movie (on SPDIF) then activate loopback in the choosen hardware outs (SPDIF  for ex) ... I then record from external source in maschine (configured with inputs from SPDIF)

Powerfull and very pleasant  versatility ....

hope this will help