Kontakt versions 6 and 7 do not deliver sound to a USB Sound Device

kaspencer · 2024-03-13T16:52:45+00:00

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For quite some time over the last several years, I have used Kontakt (5, I think) to support my Terratec Axon USB MIDI Guitar Controller. I used the Terratec Wavetable library, and it all worked fine under Windows 7 and then later Windows 10.

I recently changed my PC Hardware, but stayed with Windows 10. I installed Kontakt v6 and v7 (I couldn't find v5), and installed the Terratec Wavetable library into both versions of Kontakt and can select instruments as expected. I have not yet begun to install the Terratec MIDI Guitar Controller as I have hit a problem. First, I should say that if I select a WaveTable instrument, and use the GUI Keyboard, I get all the usual indications of proper activity on hitting keys on the GUI Keyboard of a piano or other instruments. However, I encounter a problem which prevents me from starting to configure the Terratec MIDI controller.

The problem is: I get no sound whatsoever from my USB Audio device, which works normally with all my other audio applications, including other interfaces that work with the Terratec controller. As the Wavetable library is obviously loaded into Kontakt, and the instruments can all be loaded, it is not an obvious incompatibility between Wavetable and Kontakt. Also it worked very nicely before the change of PC.

I have selected the correct "USB Audio device" in the Kontakt (6 and 7) configuration dialogues, and increased the volume controls to maximum, but no joy. Only the two WASAPI driver variants are available and neither work. On pressing a key on the GUI Keyboard, all the expected displays of the note are shown, but with no sound.

Strangely, if I select audio output via my (Video) Monitor sound driver, instead of the USB Audio device, that works and produces sound, but of course, that's not good enough for this purpose, as the sound emerges from the miniscule monitor speaker. The fact that audio is emerging from Kontakt+Wavetable, I'm sure that something is preventing Kontakt to fail with the USB Sound device.

Am I missing something? Both Kontakt 6 and 7 behave the same way.

Any help will be appreciated.

Kenneth Spencer

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kaspencer

OK Mikejb, and Jeremy_NI ... good news.

I installed my copy of ASIO4ALL on the new PC and selected it in the Audio Config dialogue of Kontakt 6, and hey presto, success!

I wish I'd thought of that before, but thanks alot for your persistence! I'm sure I won't have any more issues, so we can close this, but thanks again.

Just one other thing: Mykejb: the Terratec Wavetable library is now working with Kontakt 7. Thanks for the support.

KASpencer

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PoorFellow

Sorry there is simply too much going on here for me to make any guess.

Generally speaking when having problems with PC sound then you want to download the newest driver for chip set and sound card from manufacturers site , and then also check you Windows sound settings both superficially and deeper, sometimes if using the RealTek chips set for sound it might be beneficial to have the RealTek audio console for some settings (for some ? chips set audio console comes with the motherboard manufacturers driver, for another chips set maybe on Windows store though it's virtually impossible to find there).

But for easy starters I would try the "VOICEMEETER BANANA Advanced Mixer" (it's free/Donationware) to se if I could possibly route myself out of it all..

Also , prior to messing with drivers , always make a Windows Restore Point !

All the above is just an expression of me personally , others will most likely come along and when they do they will most likely ask for screenshots of all the audio settings...

kaspencer

Thanks, PoorFellow.

Of course, checking drivers etc, would be a good approach for most sound cards, but many USB Sounbd devices (including mine) are "Class Compliant", and do not have drivers in in the same way as a PCIe card would have. So there's no mileage in doing that I'm afraid. Also the card works very well witha very large range of audio software, which makes me think I'm missing something with Kontakt.

However, I'll see whether your suggestion of the mixer and see whether that helps, so thanks for that!

Best wishes,

KASpencer

mykejb

What is the USB audio device you're using? Is it the Axon (assuming it's a 100, not a 50) or a different device?

Is your Windows audio going to the same device? If it is try switching it back to the internal speakers and use the USB device only in Kontakt.

Jeremy_NI

@kaspencer What USB device are we talking about? Some plug & play devices can require an other driver, like an ASIO driver to operate for some DAWs or sound applications. Can you share the audio output preferences in Kontakt?

kaspencer

Thanks for that, Mykejb and Jeremy NI. To help explain the exact situation, I'm happy to give you all the details.

I have the Terratec Axon 50 USB MIDI Guitar Adapter, and have used it for many years, including with the Terratec Axon 50 USB Editor, and the Terratec Wave Table IV library hosted in NI Kontakt (possibly v5) on an older PC. I recently acquired a new PC, and I am trying to get the Axon 50 USB MIDI Guitar system going on the machine. However, thus far, I haven't made sufficient progress in getting Kontakt to produce any sound to start configuring the Terratec components in Kontakt.

The common arrangement is: Guitar Strings -> 6 magnetic pickups -> 13-way MIDI cable -> Axon USB 50 Host Hardware Box -> USB cable -> PC -> Axon 50 USB Editor -> Terratec WaveTable IV library hosted in NI Kontakt (was ?V5, is now V6 or V7) -> PC Audio Device -> Speakers.

Strictly the Axon 50 USB isn't a USB Audio device - as it has no Audio output (whereas the 100 has). So its output is MIDI-over-USB, but via the Terratec Axon 50 USB Editor, which allows you to control the way the Axon MIDI Pickups work. (E.g. should each guitar string have its own separate channel, or should all strings speak via one channel - doing the former allows each string to be a different MIDI instrument).

However, most of the above is irrelevant, because the issue is nothing to do with the Axon 50. in fact I haven't yet connected the Axon 50 USB MIDI Guitar adapter hardware into the chain, because I have not yet been able get sound out of Kontakt V6 or V7 when hosting the Terratec WaveTable IV Library. I am haiving to use Kontakt 6 because Kontak 7 appears unable to host the WaveTable IV library - but that doesn't worry me. So thus far the Axon side of things is not strictly relevant to my issues.

Currently, output from the Axon 50 USB Editor goes into Kontakt, which is configured to host the Terratec WaveTable IV instrument library. I have used other libraries, and other MIDI intrument hosting software, including Mixcraft and Ableton Live 8 (shortly to be upgraded to 11). Both of these work correctly straight away, correctly picking up whichever Audio Device is the current default audio device on the new PC, including the USB Sound Device which Kontakt seems not to like.

In answer to Jeremy's question, the current driver is WASAPI, and the other software mentioned both work whether it is set eo Exclusive or Shared mode. I am familiar with the ASIO4ALL Audio driver, having used it on a different system. I will install that on this PC and letyou know what happens.

The USB Sound Device is the Xear Surround USB Audio from Cmedia. Configured as the Default Audio Output in Kontakt. It is not configured in any other part of the chain as Kontakt is the only stage which requires an Audio Output Device to be configured.

And so, finally, to the point! At the moment, as far as NI Kontakt is concerned, I have not yet connected the Terratec Axon to the PC with Kontakt because, although it worked with Mixcraft, I have not yet got it to work with the USB Sound device at all. I am only using the Kontakt GUI keyboard (with the Wave Table IV library) to test the Audio Output, and cannot get a tweet out of it. So the issue seems to be with Kontakt, or the WaveTable Library, or the USB Sound device which works with every other Audio component that I have (and I have quite a lot!

Sorry that was so long, but I hope that you understand the problem.

mykejb

OK, so if we ignore everything else, when you load Kontakt and play one of the included sounds from the Kontakt library does that play on either or both of your audio devices?

If that works it's likely to be a problem with the Terratec library. I'll have a dive around in my "stuff" shed later and see if I can find my old Terratec disc. I did like the Axon50 but ended up with a GR-20 and a VG-99 rig as they gave me all the sounds I needed to play live without adding a sound module in there.

kaspencer

OK Mikejb, and Jeremy_NI ... good news.

I installed my copy of ASIO4ALL on the new PC and selected it in the Audio Config dialogue of Kontakt 6, and hey presto, success!

I wish I'd thought of that before, but thanks alot for your persistence! I'm sure I won't have any more issues, so we can close this, but thanks again.

Just one other thing: Mykejb: the Terratec Wavetable library is now working with Kontakt 7. Thanks for the support.

KASpencer

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