Does anyone have experience with ASIO4ALL and identical devices? 2006 Martin Walker Forum Follow Up

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Does anyone have experience with ASIO4ALL and identical devices? 2006 Martin Walker Forum Follow Up

Post by sicklemattocks »

Currently I've been tracking drums with my Peavey PV6 USB mixer with my 4 drum mics that i can split into two channels in my DAW. I've tried adding two more channels by connecting my SSL2 and combining the inputs from my USB mixer and SSL into Asio4All. I've encountered a big problem when recording, which was the tracks recording not being in sync especially during long periods of recording (Im on Windows btw, this problem does not happen on IOS). I've done my research on it having something to do with the two devices' internal clock not being in sync, which is usually solved by using an ADAT clock link. Sadly, the SSL2 and my mixer doesn't have connections like that.

Now, i have found online an exact model of my Peavey PV6 USB mixer for cheap so i was wondering if i were to connect two Peavey PV6 USB mixers to my laptop, would there still be any internal clock issues since they are the exact same model? Or is my understanding of this concept wrong? Has anyone ever tried a similar set up like this? I've done my research here in Sound on Sound and i've stumbled across Mr. Martin Walker's article last 2006 (https://www.soundonsound.com/techniques ... fz7mNFq4QE)
Here I quote, "Well, some musicians fall at the first hurdle, by assuming that they can buy a second interface identical to their existing one, to double up on features. This may indeed be possible, but it requires specially written drivers that can recognise and support multiple interfaces. Standard drivers that support a single device would be totally confused when presented with two or more identical interfaces. They wouldn't be able to differentiate between them and the second interface would be ignored, or (more likely) your PC would crash or fail to boot up at all".
Since this post was written 2006, do you think the current version of Asio4All will be able to recognize two identical usb mixers in 2021?

Since im in a very very tight budget... Im deciding whether or not to buy this extra Peavey PV6 USB Mixer OR a Behringer UMC404HD that is the cheapest interface that gives one 4 channels in a DAW. My problem is that im not 100% sure that buying the PV6 Mixer will solve my sync problems but it is half the price of the Behringer UMC404HD. I am also worried that if i upgrade my setup to a two mixer setup, i could be inviting more problems for myself as well. If anyone also has their own opinions about this specific Behringer interface please do let me know how it is! Again pls do not recommend me some other mixer or to save up on another kind of mixer i just want to see if this is possible and what is the best decision out of the two. Thank you in advance!
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Re: Does anyone have experience with ASIO4ALL and identical devices? 2006 Martin Walker Forum Follow Up

Post by Hugh Robjohns »

sicklemattocks wrote:I've tried adding two more channels by connecting my SSL2 and combining the inputs from my USB mixer and SSL into Asio4All. I've encountered a big problem when recording, which was the tracks recording not being in sync especially during long periods of recording

I'm not surprised. the general rule is that all digital equipment has to be synchronised to a common master clock, and that doesn't sound like the case in your description.

i have found online an exact model of my Peavey PV6 USB mixer for cheap so i was wondering if i were to connect two Peavey PV6 USB mixers to my laptop, would there still be any internal clock issues since they are the exact same model?

The sample rate of a an unsynchronised interface is determined by the oscillations of a small crystal inside a chip on the circuit board. The oscillating frequency is 'tuned' during manufacturer, but with tolerances, and it also varies considerably with temperature (which is why the best master clocks use 'ovens' to regulate their temperature.

It is possibly that the clocks in two identical devices might drift over time in more similar ways and extents than two dissimilar devices, but they will definitely still drift and you are likely to suffer the same problems.

You are also likely to get clicks if the drift is significant enough.

The only solutions are either to use one device as a master clock, and make the other device synchronise to it via a wordclock connection (or similar) -- assuming it has that capability -- or just buy a bigger interface that has enough channels!
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Re: Does anyone have experience with ASIO4ALL and identical devices? 2006 Martin Walker Forum Follow Up

Post by James Perrett »

I'd suggest buying the Behringer - you will never be able to sync two independent crystal oscillators exactly. As an alternative, take a look at used interfaces which may give you better value for money.
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Re: Does anyone have experience with ASIO4ALL and identical devices? 2006 Martin Walker Forum Follow Up

Post by sicklemattocks »

Thank you for the replies! I just got into audio engineering more that most of my gigs have become online! thank you everyone for the advice!!
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Re: Does anyone have experience with ASIO4ALL and identical devices? 2006 Martin Walker Forum Follow Up

Post by Martin Walker »

I agree with James that buying the Behringer with four channels is the safest option.

I also stand behind the words I wrote back in 2006 - quite a few interface drivers now support multiple interfaces of the same make and model, but they are specially written to do so. If you're using ASIO4ALL it doesn't have these special features built in, so it is likely to get mighty confused if you plug in two identical interfaces.

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