Audio Midi Setup - Configure to enable line-in "thru"

Hello,
I have an external audio device connected to my iMac via the line-in interface. I would like to be able to listen to this device without having to start an audio editing application.
I noticed in the "Audio MIDI Setup" under the "Audio Devices" tab, there are checkboxes at the bottom for "Volume Slider" for Mute and Thru.
I have read on various forums that you can click "Thru" and the line-in audio will passthru so you can hear it with your speakers. The only problem is those checkboxes are greyed out.
Is there a way to check the "Thru" option? Why is it greyed out for the Channel "Master"? Is there a way to force this by adding an item in the plist file for the coreaudio setup?
If you can open up an application and hear the "line in" audio, then why can't you enable it by default so the line-in is always playing through?
Thanks in advance for any responses.
-Rich
iMac G5 20" Mac OS X (10.4.7)

I think the "Thru" button is for external audio devices that have a hardware play-through option.
To listen to line in, use LineIn from:
<http://rogueamoeba.com/freebies/>

Similar Messages

Command-line access to or counterpart to Audio Midi Setup?

Is there a way to access, or better yet, change, settings in Audio Midi Setup.app, via the command-line?

Sure. Retrieve the file ~/Library/Preferences/ByHost/com.apple.MIDI.*.plist via scp, edit it locally in PlistEditor or some such, and upload the revision. It's a binary plist, so you can't edit it in place.
Message was edited by: Linc Davis

How to configure Audio MIDI Setup?

How does one configure Audio MIDI Setup?
With every reboot of the system, the values revert to 44100.0 Hz, 2ch-24bit integer. I suppose these are the default values, but my most used software (Finale 2012) requires the Built-in Output to be set to 44100.0 Hz, 2ch-16bit integer. It is a real pain having to dig into the Utilities folder, boot the Audio MIDI Setup and reset the values every single day.
Is there a way I can make the required values stick through reboots or modify the default values? Thanks in advance!

Ok, this is pretty simple to fix. First of all, even if there's a breakout cable at the Firebox for both midi and S/PDIF, you're not connected on S/PDIF but on the midi in. This is not related to your problem but important to know.
Now, to the problem: you use two different interfaces: the Firebox and the computer built-in. Since those are two different drivers and Logic can talk to only one driver at once, you have to set-up an Aggregate Device in AMS. Open AMS, select the audio tab and from the audio menu, select Open Aggregate Device Editor. There, create a new device with both the Presonus and the built-in. Now, all you have to do is going back to Logic, open the audio preferences, select the drivers tab and select the aggregate device.

Soft route audio from line in thru to headphones / Audio Midi Setup

howdy,
I am trying route audio from the line-in jack to the headphone jack. It seems that this should be possible using audio midi setup but the "thru" buttons don't respond to mouse clicks. Any ideas? The shareware program "Line-in" works but I only get audio on the left channel.
thnaks, Dan

to answer my own question, the through routing is possible using GarageBand. I'd still be interested to seeif anyone knows how AMS is supposed to work.

Problem with Audio MIDI Setup using multiple accounts

I'm having a problem with Audio MIDI Setup recognizing all of the MIDI devices on a G4 Tower with a non-administrator account. The main administrator account has no problem seeing anything, but the non-admin account won't see anything. Does it all have to be added in manually, or is there a preferences file to copy over that will take care of this. Failing that, is it a problem with file permissions? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Don't know whether this of any help, but there's an identifiable issue with AMS and Digital Performer 5 where DP5 simply won't load with AMS setups configured with previous versions of DP. Which is probably irrelevant to your problem, but ...
What I and other DP users have found we have to do is start with a completely new, blank AMS setup, and reconfigure our devices from scratch, and although this was kind of hit and miss and on the fly (don't really understand what the the issue was, exactly), I think the bottom line was if we used the new AMS setup with DP5 before anything else that might cause its data tables to change, we were ok.
So if you can do it, it might be worth setting AMS to a new blank template, then connecting your interfaces, see how far you get. And always make sure you've got the latest drivers of course, though I'm sure you've done that.
Never used Mbox or 410, but I've an Ozonic which I think uses the same M-Audio firewire drivers as the 410, and don't have any problem with that, FWIW.
G5 Dual 2.7, MacMini, iMac 700; P4/XP Desk & Lap. Mac OS X (10.4.8) mLan:01x/i88x; DP 5.1, Cubase SX3, NI Komplete, Melodyne.

Can't connect MIDI devices in Audio Midi Setup

In the help for Audio Midi Setup, step 7 says you can connect devices as follows:
"7. To specify the connection between MIDI devices, drag the output or input connectors above the device icon to the corresponding connector on the other device icon."
I can drag out a line from the device ports ("connectors"), but cannot find a way to make those lines "stick" to a second MIDI device or its ports -- i.e., I cannot connect devices like this at all.
Is this just me? Is this feature not yet implemented perhaps?
Thanks!

Ok, I finally solved this. For whatever reason, I could not set up connections between my auto-detected USB MIDI devices in Audio MIDI Setup -- maybe it is just not designed for this, or maybe I'm still not understanding what to do. i.e., I could not connect my E-MU 0404/USB to any port on my MOTU MIDI Express 128.
However, I was able to configure the individual MIDI interfaces (i.e. the E-MU or the MOTU, separately), using "Add Device" and then connecting between those interface devices and the newly added devices. This was the first time I had seen the "connectors" actually "take" and connect between entities within the Audio MIDI Setup utility, so that was a relief. Presumably doing this informs applications on the Mac how the MIDI system is set up -- I just thought it did more than that, i.e. allow direct routing between MIDI devices using just the utility itself.
I still don't know if I am meant to be able to connect a keyboard to a synth using just Audio MIDI Setup alone (what I had hoped), but I certainly can't seem to get that simple config to work and will have to resort to using some additional software like a sequencer. Not my preference, but c'est la vie.
Thanks for all the suggestions,
Stewart.

Audio Midi Setup, multichannel speakers, Snow Leopard & possible bug

I scoured this forum as well as the usual places across the net and haven't seen any mention of this issue, thought I'd post it here and see if anyone else has had this issue. I'm having a problem with a fresh install of 10.6.2 that I detailed in a bug report to Apple. Here's what I sent them:
"I have a firewire audio interface I use successfully with Logic Pro/Quicktime Pro 7/Finder in a multichannel (5.1) configuration for scoring and post, which works fine in 10.5.8. I can play multichannel (interleaved) 5.1 files bounced out of Logic Pro in Quicktime Pro and from within the Finder using QuickLook, and all channels play out of the speakers (which is of course configured properly in both Audio Midi Setup and Logic Pro).
In the latest version of Snow Leopard however, even though multichannel audio works fine in Logic Pro (probably because it has its own multichannel speaker config in Logic's audio preferences), this same hardware setup does not work outside of Logic. Multichannel audio files only play out of the left & right channels (C/LFE/Ls/Rs are summed). I believe the problem is Audio Midi Setup. Even though I enable the correct stream and choose the correct speakers from with "speaker configuration," and even though the test tone buttons work over the appropriate speakers in that window, after I hit "apply," when playing multichannel audio files in QT7 or via Quicklook in the Finder, the problem persists (summing all channels to L & R speakers).
Furthermore, when I click "Done" in the speaker config window and quit Audio Midi Setup and re-open it, the speaker configuration window reveals that my multichannel setup has reverted to Audio Midi Setup's intial state: a 2 channel (stereo) setup. I've done this at least ten times, as well as having deleted the AMS prefs and launched the utility in 32-bit mode with no success."
Has anyone else with a multi-speaker setup had any problems with AMS initializing their speaker configuration, and just plain not working?

Brent Daniels [Free] wrote:
... I believe the problem is Audio Midi Setup. Even though I enable the correct stream and choose the correct speakers from with "speaker configuration," and even though the test tone buttons work over the appropriate speakers in that window, after I hit "apply," when playing multichannel audio files in QT7 or via Quicklook in the Finder, the problem persists (summing all channels to L & R speakers).
Furthermore, when I click "Done" in the speaker config window and quit Audio Midi Setup and re-open it, the speaker configuration window reveals that my multichannel setup has reverted to Audio Midi Setup's intial state: a 2 channel (stereo) setup. I've done this at least ten times, as well as having deleted the AMS prefs and launched the utility in 32-bit mode with no success."
Has anyone else with a multi-speaker setup had any problems with AMS initializing their speaker configuration, and just plain not working?
I don't know if this will help you, but I once had a problem with Audio Midi Setup forgetting its settings - I found that the settings were only securely stored if I made the changes while logged on as an administrator.

Kawai CN41 electric piano will not show up in Audio MIDI Setup.

Hello,
I have a Kawai CN41 Piano that I would like to connect to my Macbook via USB to control some midi functions in Logic Express (incredible software by the way...)
The Manual that came with the piano says that it should just work. But for maximum clarification, I'll retype what the manual says.
"The CN41 piano can be connected with a personal computer with a USB cable for excahanging MIDI data. You need a USB Driver installed in your computer.
[For Windows XP/ME users]
A standard USB driver is already installed in your computer. You don't need to install a new driver.
[For Windows 2000/98SE users]
You need to install the desigated driver in your computer. Visit the KAWAI website at http:/www.kawai.co.jp/english/Download1.html and download the program.
[For Macintosh users]
Macintosh OSX automatically recognizes our USB interface. No Special driver is needed. Older Macintosh OS are not supported by us. If you have an older Macintosh OS, please us an appropriate MIDI interface and MIDI cables when connecting the CN41 piano to a macintosh computer.
NOTE:
When both MIDI jacks and USB port are connected, USB has priority.
When connecting USB cable to the CN41 piano, first connect the USB cable and then turn the power of the CN41 piano on.
It may take some time to start communication when the CN41 piano is connected to the computer via USB. When USB communication is unstable with connection via hub, connect the USB cable directly to the USB port of the computer.
Turning the power of CN41 piano on/off or disconnecting the USB cable while the follwing actions may cause unstable communication.
while installing USB driver
while booting up the computer
while MIDI application is working
while communicating with the computer
while the computer is in energy saver mode
* If you have any problem with USB communication, consult the instruction manual of your computer and check your computer setup.
* The USB-MIDI conversion board TID10000934 used in the CN41 piano is approved to show the USB logo. The USB logo can be used only for the product which is approved by USB-IF (USB Implements Fourm Inc.) test.
* Windows is registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation.
* Macintosh is registered trademark of Apple Computer, Inc."
So when i follow the directions just like the manual says the only thing that happens is my mouse stops working for about 30 to 45 seconds. After it starts working, nothing whatsoever in the department of MIDI. It won't even show up in the Audio MIDI Setup application. Also, I'm not 100% positive about this, but I don't think it's showing up in the System Profiler as well.
I've tried pushing the rescan button in Audio MIDI Setup, nothing.
I've repeated everything with a different usb cable with no improvement.
And I even contacted Kawai Technical Support. The guy I talked to via email said that he wasn't a mac guy but he'd ask his friends who were if they had any problems, his friends told him that everything was working fine for them. Then he told me to go and buy a USB-MIDI interface and plug it into the traditional MIDI ports on the CN41 and see if that would work. (I really don't want to do that, one of the reasons I bought this piano is the midi-straight-to-computer-via-usb-cable-connection connection. Buying a little usb interface would defeat the point. Although, I'll probably buy one down the road eventually. I would just like it to work.)
This piano is really nice, It has keys that feel like the real thing and using it to write some tracks in Logic Express would be a delight if it would work. If I could, I would take this issue to the Apple store in Salt Lake City, but I'm thinking that I would also have to take the piano and its kinda big. I'm using a Macbook running OS X Leopard 10.5.4 with a 2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor and 2 Gigs of ram. I also run a Line 6 Toneport UX2, I'm not sure if there could be any Hardware conflicts, but I'm not much of a computer guy so I figured I'd just let you know as much as I can.
Aside from this thing with the piano, OSX has worked beautifully! I will never buy a Windows running machine again. And the few times when I'm forced to use one, (Work and stuff) I get really cranky.
Thank you for your time,
Jon Worms
P.S. I'm more than willing to scan the manual and email it for you upon request, I tried to find a link to it somewhere with no luck. But you know, thats just my luck. :P

Hey Rob, Thanks for responding!
As far as I can see there is not. The piano does have 3 usb ports on it though. 2 A size ports to go to Kawai approved devices, such as a hard drive for recording directly to portable memory. These plugs are labeled USB to Device. Then it has one B size plug that is Labeled USB to Host. The manual says that this is the one to connect to the computer.
USB Controls do exist though. But manual states that they are for when you plug in a small hard drive/flash drive. The controls allow you to create new folders and move recordings around on a flash drive. And without a hard drive plugged into one of the A size ports I don't get anything but an error message.
Tomorrow I'm going to try and get it to work on a windows box. Maybe i'll have a little luck.
Thanks for your help.

I can't check mute or thru in audio midi setup!

Hi all!
I'm new so thanks for checking out my post. My issue is in regards to a problem with my audio preferences. I can't check "mute" or "thru" on my audio preferences (in audio/midi setup) for the line in and internal mic. I think they are leading to problems in logic with audio being recorded as bleed.
Core Audio will not allow line in to be turned down past -4.00 db. This leading to all kinds of problems. Thanks for any thought!

Many audio audio input devices do not support Mute or Thru. Any recording applications should have ways of selecting the audio inputs to use, other than just reducing the levels of unwanted inputs.

Premiere Pro CS6 does not recognize USB PnP Sound device connected to iMac OSX even when activated in Audio MIDI setup. The iMac(i-7 processor,16 GB) is working with this USB device without any problem

Premiere Pro CS6 does not recognize the USB PnP Sound device in order to produce a commentary sound track. The USB device has been activated on the iMac OSX by using the Audio-MIDI-setup and is working correctly with the iMac. When opening > presets >audio hardware I can only select between >standard >out integrated > digital input integrated >microphone integrated. USB PnP is not indicated at this place.
With the built-in microphone of the iMac I can produce the commentary sound track, but I would prefer a stand alone version for better quality.
Your help is highly appreciated. Thanks in advance, Annemarie!

I'm using a Logitech Webcam Pro 9000 (which has a microphone on the side). I have several other devices plugged into separate USB slots: a keyboard, a mouse, my iPhone, and a Roland keyboard midi controller.
I've considered that maybe the webcam/mic combo is the culprit. If USB doesn't work at a constant speed, that could very well be causing the issue! The sound begins to lag badly sometimes when it's working properly, so that there's a multisecond delay between speaking and hearing my voice repeated back over the mic which is another sign that something is wrong. I've also caught it making a strange electronic sound during its "hang" time once it stops taking sound input correctly.
Maybe I should try to use line-in and forgo USB altogether then. I think I'd need a preamp and some sort of converter for that since the Mac Mini lacks a powered mic jack. I'm only a newbie musician so I've never set up such a system but it might be a better solution in the long run.
I'll check to see if it hangs before or after my computer enters suspend mode, that's a good suggestion too. Thank you for your help!

"Audio MIDI Setup" not reliable

So I have a lot of midi instruments.. I want to start using them along with the computer.
I have 3 emagic unitor8 chained up, so 24 inputs, 24 outputs.
I defined every single device, added device icons, made all the connections, etc..
Saved the configuration. Everything fine up until the next time, when I checked the application when the midi interfaces were off. I lost 2/3 of the connections made (devices remained) and the thing auto saved it!
Must be some bug :'(
Anyone else had this?
I'm not such an advanced Logic midi user, should I be doing this in the environment instead of in Audio Midi Setup?

poqasonic wrote:
So I have a lot of midi instruments.. I want to start using them along with the computer.
I have 3 emagic unitor8 chained up, so 24 inputs, 24 outputs.
I defined every single device, added device icons, made all the connections, etc..
Saved the configuration. Everything fine up until the next time, when I checked the application when the midi interfaces were off. I lost 2/3 of the connections made (devices remained) and the thing auto saved it!
Must be some bug :'(
Anyone else had this?
I'm not such an advanced Logic midi user, should I be doing this in the environment instead of in Audio Midi Setup?
I never use Audio MIDI Setup to configure my external synths, as long as my MIDI interfaces show up there I just go ahead and use the Environment.
However... and it's a big one....
Similar to Audio MIDI Setup, if you boot Logic with not all of your interfaces powered up, the port order can change... at least that's the way it used to be, currently I'm using an interface that's USB bus powered so I haven't seen the "port order shuffle" for a couple of years.
pancenter-

Audio MIDI Setup not remembering settings on startup

On a Macbook 1,1 Intel Core Duo 2 GHz, SMC Version 1.4f12, OS X 10.4.8, Aggregate Device @ 2ch-24bit/96000.0 Hz:
The Audio MIDI Setup does not remember the 'Default Output' as 'Aggregate Device' and although 'Aggregate Device' is shown in the Properties For: field, only the 'Audio Input' area is shown.
Changing or re-selecting the Sample Rate under 'Format:' results in 'Aggregate Device' appearing in the 'Default Output:' field and the 'Audio Output' area showing the configuration.
I have to perform these steps every time I startup. I had the same behavior on my previous MacBook with identical specs but a different build week.
Also, correct me if I'm wrong, but Apple has absolutely no way to e-mail technical support queries unless you purchase that 'feature'? You have to call them with each 'bug' or technical difficulty?
Thanks!
Matt

Ah, Ok. Turns out the issue I described only occurs when there's an optical digital cable plugged into the output at startup.
Unplugging it and restarting does not return Audio MIDI Setup to it's previous behavior. Deleting the second of those two files you mentioned then performing the steps I first reported and then restarting without the optical digital cable inserted returns things to 'normal' and after numerous reboots continues to work as normal.
So, if I ever start up the MacBook with the digital optical cable inserted I will have to delete the .plist file if I want the proper behavior to return. Seems like a bug to me...
Thanks!

Audio MIDI setup not allowing aggregate device

I recently upgraded to a mac pro, and transferred everything from my old mac via firewire..
On my previous computer, using my aggregate device (Roland Fantom + Built-in output + built-in input) was no problem. I would simply choose in Logic my aggregate device under the core Audio preferences, and I could play logic software instruments with the roland keys, record audio through the roland, and play it back through the built-in line output no problem..
Now, on my mac pro, I can't do this because the aggregate device I created on my previous computer is not showing up under the devices pull-down menu in the core audio preferences in logic, and I cannot create a new aggregate device on this computer, as a matter of fact I cannot even seem to delete the old one... when i click the plus or minus (+/-), the blue shade highlighting the selected audio device just goes straight to the device at the top of the list (which happens to be built-in mic). it does not even allow me to deselect or select any checkboxes within the existing "9/25 aggregate".. when I try it just makes the devices listed in that window wiggle...
I have attached a screen shot of the Audio Midi setup screen (where one should be able to create aggregate devices)
Please let me know if you know what could be causing this..

Ojan36 wrote:
Could uninstalling and reinstalling Logic completely possibly fix it? I guess that would be unlikely because the audio MIDI Setup window is OS X, unrelated to Logic..
Correct.
when i click the plus or minus (+/-), the blue shade highlighting the selected audio device just goes straight to the device at the top of the list
This is one of the reasons why I am still suspecting some kind of permissions problem, even though you said this user has Admin privileges. I suspect a permissions problem because the symptom you described ("the blue shade highlighting the selected audio device just goes straight to the device at the top of the list") is exactly what happens if you do not have Admin privileges and you press the + button.
I think this issue has to do with the fact that there was not a clean install of snow leopard
I agree. My theory is that something about the way you moved items to this machine led to a permissions problem, and this permissions problem is causing AMS (Audi MIDI Setup) to behave the way you see.
I recently upgraded to a mac pro, and transferred everything from my old mac via firewire..
I know you connected via FireWire, but how did you control what was being transferred? Did you use Migration Assistant, or some other method?
In my comment here, I advised 55plus to check something. What happens when you check the thing I advised him to check?
You have not mentioned Disk Utility. I would use it to Repair Permissions. Then launch AMS. Does the + button work now?
Next I would try this: create a new OS X user account, with administrator privileges, and log in as that user. Then launch AMS. Does the + button work now?
55plus, I intend to respond to you too, but this is all I have time for right now.

Settings for Audio MIDI Setup

I have a G4 laptop that I use with a VX pocket at home, and with inbuilt audio at work. I configure audio midi the way I want for each location. Can this be automated? How do I go about getting automator into to list of actions with workflows?

Audio MIDI Setup has no Automator actions written for it (that I'm aware of) and is unlikely to get them soon as it lacks an AppleScript API. An automated solution is going to be reduced to mimicking user input (pushing buttons and sliding controls) with System Events. For an explanation and example see this recent thread.
I can help you work out the specific syntax for the script, but first I'll need to see the two configurations you're switching between. Open Audi MIDI Setup, hit Command-Shift-4 on your keyboard, then hit the space bar, then click the shaded setup window with the camera-icon cursor. Locate "Picture 1" on your desktop and rename it "MIDI Setup 1." Reconfigure your settings and repeat these steps, renaming the file "MIDI Setup 2." If you have a hosted website or storage space where you can upload the files, go ahead and link to them in your reply. If not, you may e-mail them to me and I'll post them.

Audio MIDI Setup Issue -- "Thru" checkbox greyed out

I received my new PowerBook (DL Superdrive) last week and transferred my files from my old PB (the final 1GHz Titanium model) over the weekend. On my TiBook, I used to plug an analogue radio into the Line In port and Apple Pro speakers (via an iFire) into the Headphones port. I then ticked the "Thru" checkbox alongside the M(aster) Volume Slider in the Audio Input section of Audio MIDI Setup (even in Tiger, once I worked out where the checkbox was -- see <http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=740942>) to listen to the radio through the external speakers and control output volume using the keyboard's volume & mute keys.
Audio MIDI Setup on the new Powerbook has some differences, however, including:
1. In the Audio Input section, the M(aster) Volume Slider IS NOT greyed out, but the "Thru" checkbox on this line IS greyed out., and the 1 & 2 Volume Sliders ARE also greyed out.
2. Clock Source is "Internal Clock" rather than [greyed out] "Default".
The first of these differences has left me unable to set up my audio as I used to. Instead, I've had to run a non-Apple audio application, LineIn, in order to achieve the same result. The trouble with this is that I've also experienced the audio stuttering loop described in <http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=302978>, possibly as a result of this app running.
Two questions: First, does anyone have any idea how to get Audio MIDI Setup running on the new Powerbook as it did (does) on the TiBook, so that I can dispense with LineIn?
Second, do any of the other Powerbook owners with the audio stuttering problem have similar issues with Audio MIDI Setup -- is it a common factor/symptom/cause?
PB G4 15" 1.67GHz DL SuperDrive Mac OS X (10.4.4)

The audio stuttering issue was resolved by an OS X update shortly after I posted this message, but I never did resolve the other issue, and continue to use LineIn to this day (now on a MacBook Pro C2D.

Audio Midi Setup - Configure to enable line-in "thru"

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for