USB Recording Dropouts on SQ-5 with Qu-Drive – Any Fixes?

SQ SQ General Discussions
1

Hi A&H community,

I’m getting random dropouts when recording multitrack to USB on my SQ-5, and I’m stumped. Hoping for some tips!

Details:

  • Mixer: SQ-5, firmware V1.5.2, purchased 2024.
  • Setup: Recording 16 channels to a 64GB SanDisk Ultra USB 3.0 stick (formatted FAT32 via SQ).
  • OS: Windows 11 (for playback checks), SQ Drive connected via USB-B.
  • Issue: Audio drops for 1-2 seconds every 5-10 minutes during 1-hour sessions. No errors on SQ, but WAV files show gaps in DAW (Reaper).
  • Usage: Live gigs, moderate channel load (12 inputs, 4 FX), no external clock.

Tried:

  • Used a USB stick from the Qu-Drive Compatible Database (SanDisk Ultra).
  • Reformatted USB on SQ-5, tested with shorter recordings (10 min, no issues).
  • Updated firmware and checked USB cable—no change.
  • Disabled Wi-Fi on SQ-5 to reduce interference—still drops.
  • Searched 2024 SQ threads; saw similar USB issues but no clear solution.

Has anyone fixed USB recording dropouts on SQ-5? Any specific USB settings, sticks, or workarounds to try? Thanks for any insights!

2

I have found it is the write speed of thumb drives that is the issue. they do only write between 5-10mb a second or up to 50mb for USB3. (not sure exactly what the USB speed is on the SQ series).

this should stop your dropouts when recording

I bought a Solid state hard drive. 1000mb write speed (ish) . never had any issues since

3

Thanks for the advice! I’m using a USB 3.0 thumb drive. Would a 500MB/s SSD work for SQ-5’s Qu-Drive, or do I need 1000MB/s?.

4

For what it’s worth, the SQ’s USB interface is USB 2.0 so anything over and above that isn’t guaranteed speed. You will see differences where the device’s read/write abilities are vastly different, but the interface itself can’t go any quicker than USB 2.0 speeds (480Mbps)

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5

So this problem shows up in the forum all the time. Sometimes with the same answers so I will repeat what I have learned by my experience with my SQ6 recording multi-track files, up to, maybe, 24 tracks in a session.

I think that the USB port on the SQ is underpowered. That is not a fact, just and experienced guess. I find that the solution to the entire problem is using USB drives that are externally powered. I use large drives (2-4TB) all the time with no failures. Both spinning drives and SSDs. The drives I use are sold by Macsales.com and can be supplied (small additional cost) with wall-wart power supplies. Since I started using externally powered drive enclosures, I have had zero issues recording multi-track from my SQ.

D.

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6

now this is the information needed… transfer and write speed being different beasts… if only manufactures would make it easy to find the write speed..

7

It’s also worth noting that the USB 2 spec allows for a delivery of 500mA at 5v, which is what the USB port on SQ will deliver. If your drive requires more than that, then it won’t work properly or at all - hence why @tourtelot has experienced that using larger drives with power supplies improves reliability.
USB 3 and beyond increases the power delivery capabilities - so any device spec that offers USB 3 speeds may require USB 3 power, which SQ can’t deliver.

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8

Ah, thank you Mark! This is the first time I have seen this thorough an explanation of why so many USB sticks fail to work correctly recording on the SQ. I did not pay any attention to the sticks (and small SSDs) I tried, USB 2 or USB 3, but I suspect that they were all USB 3.

Since this topic seems to reappear often on these forums, might there be a way to disseminate this very valuable information to the SQ World? It might help folks bring home important recordings that would otherwise be lost, the owner not knowing why.

Nice job!

D.

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