Avantis Virtual Soundcheck Sync Issue with 64x64 Dante Card + Fix

Avantis Avantis Troubleshooting
1

Recently, I noticed that when multitrack recording audio for Virtual Soundcheck from our Avantis via a Dante I/O card and DVS into a DAW, some of audio tracks had very subtle, but noticeable, clicking present that to me sounded like a sync issue. After trying a few things, I eventually switched the clock source on the Avantis from the Internal clock to the I/O Port 2 (where we have the Dante card), and the clicking sounds were all gone.

Here’s the thing — if it is a sync issue, I would expect the clicks to be present at all times, even when there’s very little or no signal. However, the clicks are only present when there a solid amount of signal… So I am pretty confused as to why this is the case, and am curious to hear what others think, since changing the clock source to the I/O port the Dante card is in does resolve the issue. I am using an aggregate device on the mac so that I can monitor what I’m recording separately from the Avantis, which I know could cause issues, but again switching the clock source on the Avantis fixes the issue, which leads me to believe it isn’t a problem with using the aggregate device.

Otherwise I mostly wanted to make this post to inform people of this issue, because the clicks are not audible on all tracks, and are high frequency and quite subtle to the point where they are almost impossible to hear unless you solo a track. I’ve attached a short example, it’s a raw file from a recorded guitar amp, and before anyone asks, yes the clicking is the same and is present on every other recorded track, and is not once the clock source is switched.

Clicking Example From Raw Track

Specific Gear Used:

Allen and Heath Avantis with dPack

64x64 Dante Card for Avantis (connected directly from the card’s primary output into computer’s built in network port, with a Cat6 cable.

2023 Mac mini with M2 Chip

Dante Virtual Soundcard

Ableton Live 12

I am happy to provide more specifics if people are curious, including show the Avantis show file from the specific date of the example, as well as the Abelton project with all of the recorded tracks, setup for Virtual Soundcheck.

For now, using the I/O Port 2 as the clock source is fine as a fix, but if I can find the time I’d like to try some other things, like messing with DVS or Dante Controller settings, using a different DAW, or forgoing the Aggregate device.

2

Aggregated devices tend to have problems from time to time.

A reboot can change a lot. But it’s still no guarantee that it works.

3

When using Avantis internal synch, have you set the Dante card to “synch to external” in Dante Controller?

4

You need one system clock. That can either be 1) the Dante clock - in which you allow the Dante system to set a master clock and you set the Avantis’s clock to the Dante card slot, or 2) The console’s internal clock - in which you set the console’s clock to internal and the Dante card to “sync to external” (so that it get’s it’s clock from the console) and also set the Dante card as the Preferred Dante Master Clock (so that it passes this clock from the console to the rest of the Dante devices).

Either way should work when set up correctly. A&H recommends using the console as the master clock (scenario 2), but many people disagree with this advice and like to use the Dante system for the master clock (scenario 1). Each method has its own Pros and Cons.

5

Thanks for the response! I realized that in Dante Controller I hadn’t checked sync to external, which is why switching the Avantis master clock source to the card solved it. In the brief tests I’ve done, I haven’t had issues with the Avantis internal clock as the master, or with the Dante card as the master.