VSL - did I buy the wrong product (V Stack)?

[Rob Elliott]

Boy this change over from GS has been painful for me in that I have not even been able to get V stack sorted out with my set up.

VSL team - have you used V Stack on more than one PC slave?


Here's my set up - perhaps you can help or someone here can


HOST PC (running SX) MOTU 2408 w/ expansion (2 outboard modules with a total of 6 sets of ADAT.


Slave 1 - one set of ADAT

Slave 2 - one set of ADAT

Slave 3 - one set of ADAT

Slave 4 - one set of ADAT


With GS and VSL now I run each slave into the 2408 and get 8 channels of digital audio and lock. Works great!



With VStack, under the current arrangement, I can only get lock on the machine I have SX (devices/VST system link/ASIO channel x) set to the cooresponding slave PC.

The other 3 slaves will not lock up. Steinberg tells me to set them up in a 'daisy chain' (out of host to in of slave 1, out of slave 1 in to slave 2, etc.)

I cannot get lock on any beyond the first one as well.


Can you please tell me how you set it up there [:'(]


Rob

[Paul]

Hello Rob,

sorry to see you sad...

We are working with VSTack on at least 5 machines... no problems in our setup, even after hours.

Most MIDI connections are via MIDI over LAN, sometimes it´s a physical MIDI interface.

With "lock up" you mean the VST link that doesn´t lock, right?

I haven´t used VSTLink yet, but I´ve heard only good things about it....

Does anybody else want to chime in here with his/her experience?
Or did the daisy chain method work for you, Rob?

Best, Paul

[Rob Elliott]

Paul,

Thanks for replying. The Daisy chain didn't work. I called back Steinberg tech again and that guy said 'honestly' I don't think System Link will work with 4 slaves (V Stack). Good to hear that AFTER after just bought V Stack [8o|]

Paul, when you say you use on five machines are they set up like mine? One HOST running SX with 4 slaves hooked to that via MOL and V Stack - running VI's.


Here's the bottom line - all I want to do is have your VI loading on a slave(s) and send midi signals to it and have audio routed back to the HOST MOTU soundcard for digital mixing. Just like I did with your product for 3 years using GS 160.


Can you go by step by step how to do this (either with V Stack that I just bought or whatever will give me this.) I essentially need your new VI to be like GS on the slave - just a playback engine ('midi in' via MOL- 'audio out' via ADAT. And of course ADAT's from all the slave to the master HOST locks everything up (Sync).

Can anyone get me going on this so I can start working with the 5 titles I have here - just sitting [:'(]

This is sooo frustrating. I expected to have some downtime - but not this much just to get where I can use the new VI (which I haven't even been able to do yet.)


Rob

[Paul]

Hi Rob,

we don´t VSTLink in our setups.

I´d suggest to try MIDIoverLAN CP, download a free trial version and connect your PC´s via LAN.

That works fine with, I think, 6 slaves in Herbs Studio.
It is strange to me that VSTack can´t handle more than 2 or 3 PC´s....

That may not make you happier for now, but it will work!

Best, Paul

[Christian Marcussen]

Hi Rob...

I dont know anything about ADAT or daisy chains or whatever [:D]

But I can tell you how mine is set up.

Main Daw has Cubase SX and MOL installed.

5 slaves receive midi input from MOL. The audio is then sent back to my main daw using analogue cables.

The only thing that connects the 6 PC's are a router, MOL and audiocables. So i'm not syncing them in any way.

I'm really sorry I cant help you, but your setup is different than mine it seems.

[Rob Elliott]

@Paul said:

Hi Rob,

we don´t VSTLink in our setups.

I´d suggest to try MIDIoverLAN CP, download a free trial version and connect your PC´s via LAN.

That works fine with, I think, 6 slaves in Herbs Studio.
It is strange to me that VSTack can´t handle more than 2 or 3 PC´s....

That may not make you happier for now, but it will work!

Best, Paul

HI Paul,

I am sorry I am not making my issue clear. I am now set up on MOL CP. It works great as I have been using it for 3 years with GS (and your library).


I guess the question I have is with my MOL CP and your VI - how do I make it all work together (like it was with GS 160)?

I just need to have your new VI on 4 slaves - with running SX on the HOST PC.

Can you just tell me how to set this configuration up.

Please let me know if that is not clear [:O]ops:


Rob

[Rob Elliott]

@Christian Marcussen said:

Hi Rob...

I dont no anything about ADAT or daisy chains or whatever [:D]

But I can tell you how mine is set up.

Main Daw has Cubase SX and MOL installed.

5 slaves receive midi input from MOL. The audio is then sent back to my main daw using analogue cables.

The only thing that connects the 6 PC's are a router, MOL and audiocables. So i'm not syncing them in any way.

I'm really sorry I cant help you, but your setup is different than mine it seems.

Hey Christian,

Thanks buddy.

Wait a minute. I am running 4 slaves to this one HOST now with MOL and GS 160!!! Midi is handled via MOL - audio is coming back via ADAT into the HOST soundcard (MOTU 240[H].

I haven't even tried this but can I just open the new VI on one of the PC's that is hooked up like this now and the VI can route audio back via ADAT???


Rob

[Paul]

Hi Rob,

you are being asked when you setup MoL how many ports you want and need and then you distribute these channels to your computers... You can also change that in the settings...

How many ports does your main DAW give you? Are all slaves connected via MOL?

As each slave computer just cares for the 1 VSTack it has installed, there shouldn´t be a problem at all...

Hm, Paul

[Rob Elliott]

@Paul said:

Hi Rob,

you are being asked when you setup MoL how many ports you want and need and then you distribute these channels to your computers... You can also change that in the settings...

How many ports does your main DAW give you? Are all slaves connected via MOL?

As each slave computer just cares for the 1 VSTack it has installed, there shouldn´t be a problem at all...

Hm, Paul

I have MOL set properly for all slaves as i have been using it as such for 2 years with GS.

Specifically how do you set up VStack and VI for each slave (all sync'd up) and playing your VI patches back through each slaves audio card / ADAT (back to the host)

When I launch your VI on the one slave I have the first title on now, it crashes. Tells me that the ASIO driver has not been tested or doesn't work. When I test it or don't and open the VI - I get a VI dialog box that said it crashed (encountered and error....)

Please assume that all ports are in working order on MOL - from Host to 4 slaves - how do I set up V Stack and your VI from there?

Thanks Paul.


(edit: Paul - I went to the one PC slave that has the 'standalone' VI installed. Without opening Vstack I tried to open the VI and get the following message.

Dialog box

ASIO Multimedia

The soundcard has not been tested...etc


--this is the same ASIO soundcard I have used before (RME 96/52)- not sure what is going on here.


Rob

[Drumgaard]

Hi Rob

I have put some time into trying to sync one host and two slaves,SX and V-stack.

I never could get a direct answer from Steinberg regarding linking more than two computers with system-link.
I tried and tried to link an RME9652 to a SteinbergVSL2020, it did work but not very stable.
Then I got another RME9636 to replace the 2020, and systemlink worked.
Then another RME9652 for the third computer, thinking it(three cards of the same type) would work with the three machines, I put so many hours into it and never could get three in sync, nor could I get any answers from steiny, I even went as far as replacing v-stack with SX3, so I had;
Host Nuendo2, slave one SX3, slave 2 SX2, still no luck syncing three, but the host and first slave seemed to sync much better(Systemlink) with SX instead of V-Stack.
I put so much time into it without results that I've just had to move on, and maybe come back to it some day.

So I narrowed the possibility of problems by using three soundcards from the same manufacturer and three copies of Steiny's top end sequencers.

I couldn't help but think that maybe because of things like FX teleport, Steinberg may have put systemlink development on the back burnner.

I hope I'm not missunberstanding you, but it sounds to me like all you need the sync for is to get your slave audio back to the host via adat.

You have a fairly complicated setup. I hope I have not complicated it any more.

Mike

[Rob Elliott]

Many thanks. Yea - I just want to do what I am doing now with GS. I know that I need something like V stack so I can get more than one VI opened on one slave.


Here's a problem that might be an issue the one slave I have the VI installed on - the VI crashes each time I just open that WITHOUT V Stack!

Says the ASIO card did not test right (I have used that RME card now for 3 years successfully with GS).

This is getting so frustrating I am starting to wish I just kept the old PE and GS - that at least worked!!


VSL - please make solid recommendations on how someone can run a HOST (SX) and 4 slaves using VI!

Rob

Rob