# Dante Virtual Soundcard Help



## kunst91 (Sep 30, 2016)

Hey all,

Is there anyone out there with experience setting up Dante Virtual Soundcard? I'm trying to get it working on my system and am running into some roadblocks. Anything network-related is all a bit esoteric to me, so I'm sure it's a simple fix. If anyone could provide some assistance it would be much appreciated!


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## Gerhard Westphalen (Sep 30, 2016)

What issues are you having? I've dealt with it but could never get it working in some systems regardless of what I did. Seems really finicky to me.


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## kunst91 (Sep 30, 2016)

Gerhard Westphalen said:


> What issues are you having? I've dealt with it but could never get it working in some systems regardless of what I did. Seems really finicky to me.



Seems to be a clock issue--both computers show up and I'm able to route everything accordingly, but I'm getting a clock sync error, and I'm unable to select a master clock. As a result all of the channels are muted

Could be a network issue as well I guess, but whatever the case it's affecting the clocking


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## Gerhard Westphalen (Sep 30, 2016)

I believe there are some obscure settings which it sometimes lets you modify for clocking (but they're often greyed out not letting you change them). Are you using any hardware? In my case I was always only using software with Dante Via.


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## kunst91 (Sep 30, 2016)

Gerhard Westphalen said:


> I believe there are some obscure settings which it sometimes lets you modify for clocking (but they're often greyed out not letting you change them). Are you using any hardware? In my case I was always only using software with Dante Via.



Nope only software--trying to record from cubase on one Mac to PT on another. Right now I'm only using Dante Virtual Soundcard and Dante Controller. Is there something I'm missing that needs to send clock? At first I thought it was because I was using an aggregate device, but the problem persisted even when using the regular DVS


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## Gerhard Westphalen (Oct 1, 2016)

I remember hearing something about needing a device to be the clock master and maybe DVS can't do it but I can't find where I read that. I believe there are people on here who have it working using 2 DVS only so I think it should work. Maybe try the Dante Via demo on 1 computer and see if you can get that to work with the DVS.


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## IFM (Oct 1, 2016)

Yes DVS requires some piece of hardware to be the clock which is pure shenanigans on their part...obviously designed to keep the Dante licensing price high to the manufacturers.


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## wst3 (Oct 1, 2016)

confirming that a hardware Dante device is required. It was a legit requirement when DVS was released, it was intended as a way to add a computer to a Dante network, not replace Dante hardware. One reason, and it might still be the case, was clocking. Clocking needs to be really stable, and they could not guarantee that level of stability in general purpose computers. Since they have released Via, which does not require a Dante hardware device, I guess they have resolved the clocking issue. DVS and Via make a pretty cool combination!


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## Garlu (Oct 1, 2016)

I have just assisted the Yamaha 2016 System Designers Conference (in Valencia, Spain), with different workshops. One of them included talking about DVS/Dante Via. So, for what I understood: 
- Clocking is now managed by the Dante controller, so no need to rely on the clocking of a physical device. 
- Now DVS has 64 in/out and Dante Via 16 in/outs per audio application (in the past, I understood you could only have a stereo output per application). 
- With Dante Via you can make your USB/FW audio card become a device in your network (to send from/to). 

I am wanting to test this in 2 computers, having a main DAW system (with DP/Cubase/Logic) and a second "Stem" machine running Protools with the Video. But I need to figure out how to use/route both systems. Has anyone tried it already? 

Thanks!


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## kunst91 (Oct 1, 2016)

Garlu said:


> I have just assisted the Yamaha 2016 System Designers Conference (in Valencia, Spain), with different workshops. One of them included talking about DVS/Dante Via. So, for what I understood:
> - Clocking is now managed by the Dante controller, so no need to rely on the clocking of a physical device.
> - Now DVS has 64 in/out and Dante Via 16 in/outs per audio application (in the past, I understood you could only have a stereo output per application).
> - With Dante Via you can make your USB/FW audio card become a device in your network (to send from/to).
> ...



This is pretty much exactly what I'm trying. I was under the impression that the Dante Controller can handle clocking, but so far I can't quite figure that out.



Gerhard Westphalen said:


> I remember hearing something about needing a device to be the clock master and maybe DVS can't do it but I can't find where I read that. I believe there are people on here who have it working using 2 DVS only so I think it should work. Maybe try the Dante Via demo on 1 computer and see if you can get that to work with the DVS.



So you think Dante Via might be able to act as a clock?


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## leggylangdon (Oct 1, 2016)

You shouldn't need any hardware for this to work. Check the sample rates match on both DVS. I use Rednet all day with no probs (2x Rednet 5's, Rednet PCI, Rednet 2) with 2 computers from a Logic machine to a Pro Tools machine running an HDX system.

In Dante Controller if you go into each device there is a tab called config. You can adjust sample rate settings here.

Once its clocked it is very stable and super awesome! 

Cheers!


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## kunst91 (Oct 1, 2016)

leggylangdon said:


> You shouldn't need any hardware for this to work. Check the sample rates match on both DVS. I use Rednet all day with no probs (2x Rednet 5's, Rednet PCI, Rednet 2) with 2 computers from a Logic machine to a Pro Tools machine running an HDX system.
> 
> In Dante Controller if you go into each device there is a tab called config. You can adjust sample rate settings here.
> 
> ...



Yeah I have everything set identically--48k on both devices and both DAWs.

You said I shouldn't need hardware to work, but you use rednet correct? Is there a way to do this without any Dante devices?


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## samphony (Oct 1, 2016)

kunst91 said:


> Yeah I have everything set identically--48k on both devices and both DAWs.
> 
> You said I shouldn't need hardware to work, but you use rednet correct? Is there a way to do this without any Dante devices?



The way I tested it last time was with 2 MacBook Pros with Logic Pro X. 
I connected both via a thunderbolt cable. On both machines I've installed DVS. On one logic MAC I set the output to DVS and on the second logic MAC I've set the input to DVS. 

That way I was able to record and playback through DVS without issues. Both macs had macOS 10.10.5 installed.


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## kunst91 (Oct 1, 2016)

samphony said:


> The way I tested it last time was with 2 MacBook Pros with Logic Pro X.
> I connected both via a thunderbolt cable. On both machines I've installed DVS. On one logic MAC I set the output to DVS and on the second logic MAC I've set the input to DVS.
> 
> That way I was able to record and playback through DVS without issues. Both macs had macOS 10.10.5 installed.



Yeah this is very similar to the way I have it set up. 
Mac 1: trashcan, 10.10.5, cubase
Mac 2: MacBook Pro, 10.9.5, pro tools

Connected from Ethernet port on trashcan to thunderbolt port on MacBook Pro.

Whole lotta nothin


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## leggylangdon (Oct 1, 2016)

You should be able to make the connection having a copy of DVS on each computer. Enabling you to transfer audio over Ethernet.

You will however need some hardware in order monitor the audio like the am2 for example


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## kunst91 (Oct 1, 2016)

leggylangdon said:


> You should be able to make the connection having a copy of DVS on each computer. Enabling you to transfer audio over Ethernet.
> 
> You will however need some hardware in order monitor the audio like the am2 for example



I have a duet that I'm going to use to monitor. But right now I'm just trying to get the audio from one place to the other.

One weird thing is that in the DVS interface, when I select the Ethernet port on my Mac Pro that is connected to my MacBook Pro thunderbolt port, I can't connect, but when I select the Ethernet port that goes direct to my modem, I can. Don't quite understand why that's the case


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## kunst91 (Oct 1, 2016)

Found this from Dante:

"Dante Virtual Soundcard cannot clock itself, and thus requires that at least one other Dante-enabled hardware device, or a third computer running Dante Via, is present on the network for clocking."

So I guess this leaves me wondering how some are getting it to work with just two computers?


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## Gerhard Westphalen (Oct 1, 2016)

kunst91 said:


> Found this from Dante:
> 
> "Dante Virtual Soundcard cannot clock itself, and thus requires that at least one other Dante-enabled hardware device, or a third computer running Dante Via, is present on the network for clocking."
> 
> So I guess this leaves me wondering how some are getting it to work with just two computers?



I remember someone mentioning that and so with PC's you'd need 3 computers with 2 using DVS and a Via connected to the interface. With Macs I remember hearing that you can then only use 2 DVS and then use the aggregate driver to have the interface connected on one of the computers as well. Is it possible that maybe it clocks to something in the aggregate driver?


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## kunst91 (Oct 1, 2016)

Gerhard Westphalen said:


> I remember someone mentioning that and so with PC's you'd need 3 computers with 2 using DVS and a Via connected to the interface. With Macs I remember hearing that you can then only use 2 DVS and then use the aggregate driver to have the interface connected on one of the computers as well. Is it possible that maybe it clocks to something in the aggregate driver?



I haven't been able to select the aggregate driver as the clock source. And I'm unable to run dante via while DVS is running. It seems like the two are incompatible on the same machine 

Part of me imagines that there is some chink in the chain that I'm missing or something in doing wrong


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## Gerhard Westphalen (Oct 1, 2016)

Ya, you can't be running both at the same time. 

Even when I was trying to get 2 Via computers connected directly to each other I couldn't get them to work because of clocking issues and other issues once the clocking randomly started working. I'm gonna give Via another shot in the next couple of days now that it's able to do 16x16 so I can actually use it for what I originally intended.


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## kunst91 (Oct 1, 2016)

Gerhard Westphalen said:


> Ya, you can't be running both at the same time.
> 
> Even when I was trying to get 2 Via computers connected directly to each other I couldn't get them to work because of clocking issues and other issues once the clocking randomly started working. I'm gonna give Via another shot in the next couple of days now that it's able to do 16x16 so I can actually use it for what I originally intended.



Yeah I cant for the life of me figure this out. I would do all Via, but I need at least 20 outs from cubase for ten stereo outs


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## AudinateTech (Oct 4, 2016)

Hi all, Lisa here from Audinate Support.

Just wanted to put some clarification into the use of both Dante Virtual Soundcard and Dante Via.

So, first of all, Dante Virtual Soundcard DOES require at least one Dante-enabled hardware device, or Dante Via to be present on the network to act as the master clock, as DVS cannot act as the master clock independently, and can only be a slave device to the master clock on the network. The master clock must be present on the network at ALL times. The master clock (Dante-enabled hardware or Dante Via) will be automatically selected as the master when it is connected, and you shouldn’t need to make any configurations to this.

To answer the original post, having no Dante-enabled hardware device or Dante Via between two computers running Dante Virtual Soundcard will cause clock misconfiguration errors, as you can see. We do not support the use of DVS without a hardware device or Dante Via present on the network to act as the master clock. This is why you are unable to make it function correctly in this way.

The Dante Controller is there to enable the user to make routes and configure devices only, and does not act as the clock master at all. Dante Controller DOES NOT handle clocking!! Once routes and devices are configured, Dante Controller can actually be removed from the network, i.e. the computer/s it’s installed on.

Dante Via now supports multiple channels (16x16) between DAW applications, and can send audio between two computers without a Dante hardware device. However, if you wanted to run more than 16x16 channels between two computers, you might want to consider using two instances of Dante Virtual Soundcard on two separate computers, and Dante Via on a third computer to act as the clock master. Then you will be able to pass audio between the multiple channels available from DVS.

Dante Virtual Soundcard and Dante Via are two different software applications, and cannot run simultaneously on the same computer at the same time. One needs to be stopped before the other application can be started. Hence the requirement for Dante Via on a third computer.

I hope this clears everything up. If you have any further questions feel free to post back to this forum, or contact our support channel on our website….

You may find that many questions can also be answered in the FAQs available on the Audinate website.

Thanks,

Lisa


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## MarcusMaximus (Jan 7, 2018)

I am re-visiting this thread because I have a question related to using Dante Via to route audio between Reaper on a PC and Logic on a Mac. As someone advised me, I want to set up an aggregate device (created in Audio Midi Setup) in Logic so that I can use the inputs of my Metric Halo interface as well as the Dante Via inputs within the same Logic session. Which device should I use as the Clock source within the aggregate, Dante Via or my interface? Also, do I need to tick Drift Correction in the device which is not designated as Clock Source?


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## leggylangdon (Jan 8, 2018)

MarcusMaximus said:


> I am re-visiting this thread because I have a question related to using Dante Via to route audio between Reaper on a PC and Logic on a Mac. As someone advised me, I want to set up an aggregate device (created in Audio Midi Setup) in Logic so that I can use the inputs of my Metric Halo interface as well as the Dante Via inputs within the same Logic session. Which device should I use as the Clock source within the aggregate, Dante Via or my interface? Also, do I need to tick Drift Correction in the device which is not designated as Clock Source?



I would stay away from aggregate devices altogether. They are not reliable at all and will give you more hassle than its worth. 

Are you looking to transfer audio between 2 computers or just 2 DAWs on one computer? Either way unless you invest in gear specific for that purpose like the Rednet system I foresee your gonna have problems. 

Ive posted a bunch about syncing between 2 DAWs on the site if you need any info on it!

Cheers

Leggy


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## MarcusMaximus (Jan 8, 2018)

Hi Leggy. Many thanks for that. Wasn't aware aggregate devices were so problematic though I did come across a post by Peter Schwartz somewhere that suggested there might be some problems with them in terms of timing etc. I do need some way of being able to use my interface's inputs as well as the Dante ones within the same Logic session so an aggregate d. seemed the best way to do that. 

I'm setting up a slave system between a Mac and a PC. The Mac is the master running Logic with Reaper on the slave. So I'm looking to route the audio from the PC back into Logic for further processing. For midi I'm using CopperLan and/or rtpMIDI and for audio I'm setting up Dante. The main problem I've come across with the latter is latency. I've been talking to Audinate about that.

Anyway, I'll check out your other posts or perhaps you could point me to some highlights?!

Thanks again,
Mark


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## leggylangdon (Jan 8, 2018)

MarcusMaximus said:


> Hi Leggy. Many thanks for that. Wasn't aware aggregate devices were so problematic though I did come across a post by Peter Schwartz somewhere that suggested there might be some problems with them in terms of timing etc. I do need some way of being able to use my interface's inputs as well as the Dante ones within the same Logic session so an aggregate d. seemed the best way to do that.
> 
> I'm setting up a slave system between a Mac and a PC. The Mac is the master running Logic with Reaper on the slave. So I'm looking to route the audio from the PC back into Logic for further processing. For midi I'm using CopperLan and/or rtpMIDI and for audio I'm setting up Dante. The main problem I've come across with the latter is latency. I've been talking to Audinate about that.
> 
> ...



Glad to help. Check this out for starters...

https://vi-control.net/community/threads/for-those-who-use-a-separate-protools-print-rig.60849/

Im sure you know this but if you are just looking to 'host' sounds in the separate rig, why wouldn't you just use VEP? Its seamless, auto delay compensates and you can bounce offline with it. 

For what you're wanting to achieve, for it to be reliable and streamlined, your gonna have to invest in more gear Id say. Your current rig wont cut the mustard. The latency on the DVS is that of the like of an old USB 1 interface so your not going to get decent playability.

For example. The way I work is...

2 x Mac Pro. One has Cubase connected to Rednet Pcie Card (low latency), the other is Pro Tools HDX system (no latency). All connected through various Rednet interfaces over the Date network. Its super solid, works great. But its a lot more in cost. 

What the guys at VEP have done is insane because they've essentially removed the need for buying into a bunch of extra interfaces and some kind of digital connection between 2 DAWs. Its all done on one ethernet cable. Sorted.

Ok, good luck

Cheers

Leggy


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## MarcusMaximus (Jan 9, 2018)

Thanks again Leggy. Yes, I know VEPro can do all this and no I'm not prepared to spend a fortune on extra hardware. It's a bit of a story as to why I've taken the Logic - Reaper route this far but suffice it to say that I ended up investing a load of time into configuring it (due to a related issue that was resolved that way) and getting quite fond of Reaper in the process. So I started to think I could set it all up as an alternative to VEPro and really justify my time investment. I had it running very smoothly with a 2nd interface I already owned to route the audio from the PC slave but the sound quality just wasn't there. That's when I started looking into ways to route audio over LAN and came across Dante.

What you say of course makes sense. Being a bit of a stubborn old dog I'm going to give Dante one more try by installing DVS on both machines with Via on my laptop for clocking and see if I can get the latency down from Via's in-built 10 ms to DVS's minimum 4 ms. That may still be too high or Via might still set everything at 10 in which case I'll re-think my approach.


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## samtrino (Apr 19, 2020)

Hello Marcus,

How did it go with Dante Via? Were you ever able to make it work reliably at a low latency?

I’m considering using Dante Via to run Luna/UA-Apollo on a Mac Mini (with TB) connected to a Mac Pro 5.1 over GE (since the cMP doesn’t support Luna).

Thanks.


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