Clicks and popping with recording and USB interface-HELP!!!

Question

I've submitted this twice, got some responses, but has twice been ignored into oblivion. I apologize for the reposts, but this is VERY IMPORTANT, and I've been struggling with this issue for MONTHS now dealing with countless hours of lost time trying to fix it to no avail.
I'll try to include as much detail as possible.
I use:
MacPro 2 x 2.66 Dual-Core Intel Xeon
3 GB memory
Logic Express 8.0.2
245.13 GB empty space on Hard Drive
THE PROBLEM:
When I record, I get computerized clips/pops
http://www.moogiex.com/clickpop.mp3
http://www.moogiex.com/morecackling.mp3
I record via a PreSonus Audiobox USB. This problem did NOT start when I got the AudioBox, but several months after.
When I simply monitor the sound going through the box, the sound is fine.It's something between the Box, and the computer output. My guess is some incompatibility with Logic Express or Core Audio and the AudioBox.
It is NOT the microphone or the cable (the pops occur with anything going in, 1/4", XLR, different inputs).
The clicks START with Logic Express. If there are any recording program open when Logic Express is open, and I record, I get the SAME pops.
It did this both under 10.5.6, 10.5.7, and now 10.5.8.
It is NOT clipping.
When I'm recording with LE:
—There's 1.27 GB of FREE Memory while I'm recording.
—Logic Express is only using 6.7% of CPU while recording (of only one of the four processors), and about 90-95% of CPU space is free on all four processors.
—This happens on ANY audio input, and it doesn't matter how many other tracks, how long it is. I just started a brand new file and it does it.
—This happens when I use ANY input into my computer, but is STARTED by LE.
Here are my Logic Preferences
Core Audio- ENABLED
System Memory Requirement 66.0 MB
Device: AudioBox USB
I/O Buffer Size: 1024
I/O Safety Buffer- UNchecked
Recording Delay: 0 samples
Universal Track Mode- CHECKED
24 Bit Recording- CHECKED
Software Monitoring- CHECKED
Independent Monitoring Level- Checked
Process Buffer Range: Large
ReWire Behavior: Live Mode (Higher CPU Load)
Maximum Scrub Speed: Normal
Scrub Response: Normal
There is *no* driver with PreSonus' AudioBox. It is simply "compatible." Here's what System Profiler says:
AudioBox USB (plugged into my Mac Pro's front bottom port):
Product ID: 0x0301
Vendor ID: 0x194f
Version: 1.08
Speed: Up to 12 Mb/sec
Manufacturer: PreSonus Audio
Location ID: 0x00200000
Current Available (mA): 500
Current Required (mA): 500
Here's what I've tried:
—Disabling CoreAudio, shutting LE 8 off, restarting LE 8, enabling CoreAudio again. This worked ONCE. It hasn't worked since.
—Disabling CoreAudio, shutting LE 8 off, SHUTTING DOWN, RESTARTING, opening LE 8, enabling CoreAudio again. This also worked ONCE. It hasn't worked since.
—"CPU Saving Mode"
—I/O Buffer to 256, 512, and 1024 (default) (IMPORTANT?—speed of popping actually INCREASES with larger buffer?)
—I/O Safety Buffer checked and unchecked
—Changing Recording Delay samples
—Pretty much fiddling with any of the controls
—Disabling Airport does nothing (was previously working fine with Airport running)
—Quit all applications, open up QuickTime (pro) or Audacity, and record something. It records perfectly. I go back to LE and the clicks and pops are gone, but only until I use anything with effects, then the clicks and pops return. This works SOMETIMES.
—Reset the preferences, and that has worked ONCE, and then the clicks and pops came back (albeit not as prominent, but they were still there).
—I trashed all files related to Logic and reinstalled. Worked ONCE.
—Restarting does help, but only temporarily, as soon as any pull is put on Logic, the problems return.
—Using a different USB port. I thought this was the solution because the problem shortly went away with regular use of Logic, but problem came back.
—Uninstalling Logic, Reinstalling Logic Express, same deal.
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE HELP. I have a lot of money sunk into all this equipment that's practically useless with this recording issue.

Answer 1

Man, I feel for you on this.
I would love to see what your pops and clicks look like in your waveform. If you can take a snapshot of it and post the pic here that might help the diagnosis.
Your audio files certainly SOUNDS like you have a clocking problem. It really sounds like your CoreAudio driver/MacPro and your USB interface are not locked up in sync - as in: which is master and which is slave? I know some interfaces include a software control panel that allows you to set the status of the interface clock to slave to the computer or to be the master. It sounds like yours doesn't come with drivers but is there any control panel for this Presonus device?
Another place to check is in Applications>Utilities>Audio Midi Setup
On the left under "Properties for <your interface>" what does it say for the clock source?
Also in this panel, to the right it should have a button for "configure device". What happens when you click it? For example in my case it automatically launches my Apogee Duet Maestro control panel. In your case it might launch something similar, although I think you mention that you never installed anything, which I find strange to begin with - that this thing should just work out of the box with no driver at all.
I've struggle with w similar problem with my Apogee Duet, although nothing of this magnitude, maybe 4 or 5 clicks per 3 minutes of audio and these turn out to always be sample drops where 5-10 samples in a row are all the same in the waveform, as if my interface and computer stopped talking for a milli second. I did find that if my Apogee Duet was chosen as the default or system output in the Audio Midi Control Panel I mentioned above then the clicking was more frequent, as if choosing the audio interface for any system output caused a conflict with choosing it for Logic. I thought this was strange but you might want to investigate that further too.
At any rate, it does sound like a digital clock syncing issue to me by the sound of your audio. What effect does changing the sample rate of the recording have on the problem?
Let me know if any of this leads to anything.