Audio suddenly fails

Question

I have a problem that keeps recurring and that makes it very difficult trying to make music using this software: It happens from time to time - in fact, it happens disturbingly often - that a track, which up until then has worked beautifully, suddenly stops playing. The regions are all there and everything looks fine, but there simply suddenly is no audio. Whenever this happens, the only workaround I've found is creating a new track, similar to that which has failed, and then moving the recorded regions to the new track.
However, sometimes an entire project behaves like this - i.e. suddenly the audio output just fails - and it is tedious work recreating it by making new identical tracks for each and everyone of the original tracks and moving the regions.
Freezing or muting tracks in different combinations has no impact whatsoever on this. I don't think it has anything to do with a heavy processing load.
Has anyone else had this problem? Do you have any idea what I could be doing to cause this? Is there any way to avoid this behaviour?

Answer 1

impatiensnolitangere wrote:
I have a problem that keeps recurring and that makes it very difficult trying to make music using this software: It happens from time to time - in fact, it happens disturbingly often - that a track, which up until then has worked beautifully, suddenly stops playing. The regions are all there and everything looks fine, but there simply suddenly is no audio. Whenever this happens, the only workaround I've found is creating a new track, similar to that which has failed, and then moving the recorded regions to the new track.
I have had this once or twice. These might work:
1. Disable and re-enable coreaudio in the Audio prefs. Open the Audio prefs, untick coreaudio, click apply. Wait. Now tick coreaudio again, apply and close the prefs window.
Doesn't work? Then:
2. Try quitting and restarting Logic.
Doesn't work either? Then:
3. Try quitting and rebooting the Mac and restarting Logic?
Still no luck?
4. Let us know.
However, sometimes an entire project behaves like this - i.e. suddenly the audio output just fails - and it is tedious work recreating it by making new identical tracks for each and everyone of the original tracks and moving the regions.
It is.
Freezing or muting tracks in different combinations has no impact whatsoever on this. I don't think it has anything to do with a heavy processing load.
No, heavy processing loads don't just take out tracks - it stops playback.
Has anyone else had this problem? Do you have any idea what I could be doing to cause this? Is there any way to avoid this behaviour?
I'ld advise you to install MenuMeters, a very handy little utility that displays RAM use, disk activity, memory swapping activity and processor load in the menu bar. Very useful info for Logic-pilots, not too hard to learn to use/read out.
http://www.pure-mac.com/diag.html#menumeters