Maybe somebody can help me out here- SOLVED

So, I recently purchased a Pulse DX after a software update really started screwing with my previously trusty Antelope Orion 32.

I patched the Pulse DX16 into my patchbay and routed it to my console, and got all 16 outs via Dante just fine. Sounds great! But I would really like 32 outs to utilize all of the channels on my heavily modded Ghost. So I got a Pulse 16 and patched it in via ADAT ports.

Physical patchbay is set up right. I'm relatively certain that I have all in's and outs patched correctly in Dante Controller. I'm somewhat new to Dante, but I'm pretty sure I have it routed correctly. I can't get the second Pulse to show up in the DAW. I can get through-put, if you will. It will go straight to the console.

So, I'm sure I'm just vapor locking on the routing on the Ferrofish units. ADAT ports all connected, so should be 16x16 at 96k.

DAW is Reaper, shows Dante 32x32.

My guess is you don’t ‘see’ the second Ferrofish.
The DAW just sees the 32 I/O
and doesn’t realise they’re from 2 different physical boxes.
ie it just sees the Dante
L

It's not two different boxes from a Dante viewpoint. Dante controller only sees the one that has a Dante link. It can't tell where the audio stream originates behind the Dante port.

The plot thickens- I have full 32 channels coming up correctly of pre-recorded tracks. I have input signal showing in the second Pulse. But not output or showing up on corresponding DAW channel.

Check that the routing in both boxes is correct: Analog In --> ADAT Out, then ADAT In --> Dante. This can be done either from the front panels or using the RemoteFish app. (You've probably done this already but check that you were actually configuring the correct box in each case.) Next, check that your clocking is set up correctly. Your DX should be set as the Preferred Clock Leader for PTP. Connect its word clock output to the word clock input of your second unit and tell the latter to use that input as its clock reference. Turn on BNC termination for the second box.

and set the sample rate manually on each Ferrofish as it didn’t update automatically
(I usually work at 48 and couldn’t work out why a 96 didn’t play nicely until I realised the manual change required on the box)
L

Ok, I'll check routing again. Regarding clocking, are you saying I need to physically connect with BNC? Or just tell Pulse 16 to follow?

I'll check this too.

How would it follow? The only other connection is ADAT. Yes, you can tell the second unit to sync to that, but I wouldn't. Give it a proper BNC word clock connection and you'll lower the jitter.

Sure, ok. Yeah, I had just selected ADAT for clock and it snapped to 96k, which I had the DX set to so I figured it was good. I have tons of BNC at work, I'll bring one home tomorrow and set it to that.

Even though syncing to ADAT is sub-optimal, it should have worked. Something else is going on.

iirc the Pulse has an issue responding to clock sample rate change commands via ADAT above 48K
Using BNC bypasses this issue.

I have a Pulse 16 connected to an RME RayDAT via ADAT and a HEDD 192 via AES.

When I make sample rate changes on my RME applet the Pulse follows these changes perfectly across all it's working sample rates.

Well, I'll get back into it today after work and I'll connect via BNC. I feel like it's something else, but certainly no harm in doing everything as correctly as possible.

The fact that I'm getting playback at 96k tells me that is not likely the problem. But, nothing wrong with being thorough. The fact that it shows input but is not showing output makes me think it's a routing thing.

I appreciate the help guys, I've never used multiple converters before so it's a little confusing.

Well, I'll be damned.

I plugged in BNC out of Pulse DX, into Pulse 16, clocked the second unit to BNC and voila! I have input and out on all 32 channels. I changed nothing else, which means I did in fact have it routed correctly (it did SEEM simple enough. I thought I must be just not comprehending some difference in terminology or something.)

I thank you guys for the assistance, and wanted to thank you as well as leave the solution for the next person who might run into this issue.

I recently got a Pulse 16 …. they’re great aren’t they!

My other converters are a Crane Song HEDD 192 and Crsne Song Avocet and that little Pulse unit is 90% of the conversation quality for about 25% of the price …. I think it’s a genuine bargain.

I’m well chuffed with my unit and use it for tracking guitar and hybrid mixing duties and the HEDD 192 for tracking bass and vocals and the stereo mix bus chain.

I’m now a big fan of Ferrofish!

I'm very early on with Ferrofish, but I can say that compared to my older Antelope Orion 32, the clarity difference was not subtle. Even just playing back tracks I had recorded with the Antelope (so just D/A) the difference was very noticeable and objectively positive. This hiccup linking units was frustrating; it seemed the routing and setting up the units should have been quite simple (and it is, really!) but the clocking via BNC ended up being VERY important, surprisingly so.

Yeah I have a Pulse 16 MX as part of a larger all RME MADI network. The Pulse works great, but I have noticed it is more sensitive to clocking issues than the RME gear. If I mess something up somewhere with clocking it can take me a while to troubleshoot because the Pulse is not behaving in typical ways for user instigaged clock errors (basically clicks). It sometimes drops off the MADI network entirely in such cases.

Is that with clocking over MADI or BNC ?

Pulse is master, sending BC WC to Madiface XT. Some other units are on that MADI loop (clocked by MADI) and if one of them has a wrong clock setting the Pulse gets unpredictable. But, other RME MADI units on that loop are not bothered. Yeah it sounds a bit complicated but it works.

My Pulse 16 is connected via ADAT to my RME RayDAT PCIe card inside a Windows 11 PC pro audio workstation.

Also connected to the RME RayDAT via an AES digital detangler (Z-Systems) is a Crane Song HEDD 192 and Crane Song Avocet.

The whole system is rock solid, never misses a single sample of data and responds to sample rate changes made from the RME RayDAT instantly.

The RME can act as the Master Clock or the HEDD 192 can act as the Master Clock all over a combination of ADAT and AES with no BNC - rock solid sync.

(I don't need BNC because I don't record with the Pulse 16 and HEDD 192 at the same time)

I think the superb stability of my system comes from the RME RayDAT and RME's superior "SteadyClock" technology.