Topic by LetoII

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Topic: Pianoteq with CLP-775 shuts down

Hello all,

I've got a strange issue and since I'm new with Ptq I have no idea where to begin. Iuse Ptq with a Clavinova CLP-775, under Linux, using the USB to host port and it looks like working fairly well. I configured the file /etc/security/limits.conf as said in the Readme and I'm in the audio group on my laptop.
The problem is : after a while, the sound shuts off and I have to go in the MIDI configuration section to change it, and after some changes the sound comes back. Coming after a short time, like some 2 or 3 minutes playing. Got no message about CPU issue as far as I know. Would anybody have an idea about this ?

Reply by groovy

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Re: Pianoteq with CLP-775 shuts down

Hi,
you are using a PC with Pianoteq and your Digital Piano for MIDI and Audio via a single USB-cable?

Try using a shorter and/or better USB-cable! I had a similar issue with another Digital Piano, that USB? usb-audio? crashed occasionally and Pianoteq lost its known devices temporarily. A warning in Pianoteq popped up then. With another USB-cable it disappeared.

Reply by LetoII

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Re: Pianoteq with CLP-775 shuts down

Thanks for your answer, I'll try this.

groovy wrote:

Hi,
you are using a PC with Pianoteq and your Digital Piano for MIDI and Audio via a single USB-cable?

Try using a shorter and/or better USB-cable! I had a similar issue with another Digital Piano, that USB? usb-audio? crashed occasionally and Pianoteq lost its known devices temporarily. A warning in Pianoteq popped up then. With another USB-cable it disappeared.

Reply by LetoII

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Re: Pianoteq with CLP-775 shuts down

Except that I used to play on another piano (PXS1000) with the exact same configuration (software and cables) without any problem. So could it come from the piano itself ?

groovy wrote:

Hi,
you are using a PC with Pianoteq and your Digital Piano for MIDI and Audio via a single USB-cable?

Try using a shorter and/or better USB-cable! I had a similar issue with another Digital Piano, that USB? usb-audio? crashed occasionally and Pianoteq lost its known devices temporarily. A warning in Pianoteq popped up then. With another USB-cable it disappeared.

Reply by groovy

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Re: Pianoteq with CLP-775 shuts down

Possible. I never had the problem that I described with a USB connected Kawai, but with the Korg. Same cable. - But using a shorter USB cable with the Korg stopped it.

Reply by LetoII

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Re: Pianoteq with CLP-775 shuts down

I see. Thanks again.

groovy wrote:

Possible. I never had the problem that I described with a USB connected Kawai, but with the Korg. Same cable. - But using a shorter USB cable with the Korg stopped it.

Reply by Sanderxpander

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Re: Pianoteq with CLP-775 shuts down

LetoII wrote:

I see. Thanks again.

groovy wrote:

Possible. I never had the problem that I described with a USB connected Kawai, but with the Korg. Same cable. - But using a shorter USB cable with the Korg stopped it.

USB cable are frustratingly finicky, especially for something that requires an uninterrupted fast connection (sometimes with power, like midi keyboards). There is no definitive prediction for which cables will do well and which won't, but as a few guidelines I
1. Try to avoid the extremely low priced Alibaba style crap and buy bigger brands
2. Test every cable for a few hours (just plug in my stuff, come back later and see if it still works) before taking it to a "live" or otherwise high impact situation
3. Look for cables with a thicker conductor. I know almost nothing about the American "gauge" system, but it means how thick the conductor is and they make USB cables with gauges "28AWG" down to "22AWG" (that I've seen). Where, counterintuitively, the lower number means a thicker conductor. So I try to buy 22AWG cables, or 24AWG if I can't find those. It's not always easy to find out the gauge of the cable but it has been a good predictor of reliability so far.

Reply by sigasa

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Re: Pianoteq with CLP-775 shuts down

Sanderxpander wrote:
LetoII wrote:

I see. Thanks again.

groovy wrote:

Possible. I never had the problem that I described with a USB connected Kawai, but with the Korg. Same cable. - But using a shorter USB cable with the Korg stopped it.

USB cable are frustratingly finicky, especially for something that requires an uninterrupted fast connection (sometimes with power, like midi keyboards). There is no definitive prediction for which cables will do well and which won't, but as a few guidelines I
1. Try to avoid the extremely low priced Alibaba style crap and buy bigger brands
2. Test every cable for a few hours (just plug in my stuff, come back later and see if it still works) before taking it to a "live" or otherwise high impact situation
3. Look for cables with a thicker conductor. I know almost nothing about the American "gauge" system, but it means how thick the conductor is and they make USB cables with gauges "28AWG" down to "22AWG" (that I've seen). Where, counterintuitively, the lower number means a thicker conductor. So I try to buy 22AWG cables, or 24AWG if I can't find those. It's not always easy to find out the gauge of the cable but it has been a good predictor of reliability so far.

https://www.esi-audio.com/products/midimateex/

I bought this a few weeks ago. It works really well with my P515

Just a suggestion.

Warmest regards,

Chris

Reply by LetoII

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Re: Pianoteq with CLP-775 shuts down

Thanks Sanderxpander and Chris for your explanations and suggestions.

I ordered a high quality USB cable and should receive it soon. If it doesn't work as expected, I'll turn towards the MIDIMATE eX cable.

Last edited by LetoII (23-12-2022 22:02)

Reply by levinite

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Re: Pianoteq with CLP-775 shuts down

LetoII wrote:

I ordered a high quality USB cable and should receive it soon. If it doesn't work as expected, I'll turn towards the MIDIMATE eX cable.

If your new cable does not work, before buying another, there are other things you can try. I use Linux also, and while simply playing back midi, the sound would suddenly stop. The cause was the computer would time out and sleep, so check this. Since noise could be an issue, try running the computer on battery alone and disconnect other devices. If that works, then make sure the devices are connected to the same outlet. Whichever cable you use, make sure there it doesn't get smashed or bent too tightly.
Good luck and Merry Christmas.

Reply by LetoII

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Re: Pianoteq with CLP-775 shuts down

Some news on this topic :
I got the new USB cable, which did not solve the problem.
The problem does not appear under Windows on the same laptop, same cables, same version of Ptq. So it look likes it's a Linux issue, which appears with the CLP 775 but not the PXS 1000. THe signal coming from both pianos is not the same, and does not require the same processing by the sound system, maybe ? I use ALSA on Linux, maybe not a good idea. I did not take the time to study the use of JACK, would it be worth it ?