No Supported Sample Rates, Errors 9986 and -9997

I have tried opening Audacity through Terminal (which has been granted Full Disk Access):

sudo open /applications/audacity.app/contents/macos/audacity

This spits out a bunch of error codes:

iMac2019:~ shane$ /Volumes/Macintosh\ HD\ -\ Data/Applications/Audacity.app/Contents/MacOS/Wrapper ; exit;
Attempting to connect to Audacity failed...retrying
||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Failed to open AUHAL component.||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Error on line 1263: err='-50', msg=Unknown Error
||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| OpenStream @ 8000 returned: -9986: Internal PortAudio error
||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Failed to open AUHAL component.||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Error on line 1263: err='-50', msg=Unknown Error
||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| OpenStream @ 9600 returned: -9986: Internal PortAudio error
||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Failed to open AUHAL component.||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Error on line 1263: err='-50', msg=Unknown Error
||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| OpenStream @ 11025 returned: -9986: Internal PortAudio error
||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Failed to open AUHAL component.||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Error on line 1263: err='-50', msg=Unknown Error

(continues for every sample rate)

This is strange because I use other audio apps (Logic/Sibelius) all the time with no issues.


The error appeared to be with PortAudio, so I compiled the latest version and installed it through Terminal. No change.

The big msytery is, what exactly is happening on line 1263? Maybe Audacity is trying to communicate with AUHAL?
Anyone able to shed light on what error -50 might actually entail?

Here is the Audio Device Info output:

==============================
Default recording device number: 3
Default playback device number: 2
==============================
Device ID: 0
Device name: HDMI to VGA
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 0
Playback channels: 2
Low Recording Latency: 0.01
Low Playback Latency: 0.0103855
High Recording Latency: 0.1
High Playback Latency: 0.0205442
Supported Rates:
==============================
Device ID: 1
Device name: Built-in Microphone
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 2
Playback channels: 0
Low Recording Latency: 0.00294785
Low Playback Latency: 0.01
High Recording Latency: 0.0131066
High Playback Latency: 0.1
Supported Rates:
==============================
Device ID: 2
Device name: Built-in Output
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 0
Playback channels: 2
Low Recording Latency: 0.01
Low Playback Latency: 0.0158957
High Recording Latency: 0.1
High Playback Latency: 0.0260544
Supported Rates:
==============================
Device ID: 3
Device name: Scarlett 18i8 USB
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 20
Playback channels: 8
Low Recording Latency: 0.01
Low Playback Latency: 0.00455782
High Recording Latency: 0.1
High Playback Latency: 0.0147166
Supported Rates:
==============================
Device ID: 4
Device name: BlackHole 16ch
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 16
Playback channels: 16
Low Recording Latency: 0.01
Low Playback Latency: 0.00145125
High Recording Latency: 0.1
High Playback Latency: 0.01161
Supported Rates:
==============================
Selected recording device: 3 - Scarlett 18i8 USB
Selected playback device: 4 - BlackHole 16ch
Supported Rates:

No sample rates are supported for any device. This is true even when I remove every external device and attempt to use the internal mic and speakers. Rescanned transport devices. I’ve tried uninstalling Focusrite Control and drivers in case they were creating a conflict (they weren’t). No dice.


Another thing: Audacity will not prompt for mic access. Audacity didn’t appear in the Privacy settings at all. Out of desperation I injected Audacity into the mic permissions, but that didn’t help. Audacity does not show up in the Mic permissions though… I’m guessing, since AUHAL isn’t working at all, Audacity never gets far enough to even prompt for mic access.


Audacity launches, but if I try to play or record, I get a -9997 error (invalid sample rate). I’ve tried every sample rate combination under the sun in Audio MIDI Setup, it’s definitely not that.


Everything used to work on Mojave. After Catalina, Audacity started giving these errors. I have reset tcc.db, I have reinstalled macOS, and I have tried enabling/disabling SIP. I reset NVRAM and even codesigned Audacity myself, but it still doesn’t work!


I have a lot of AU plugins installed, so I went looking for any that might be causing trouble, but auvatool was happy with them all. I’ve removed any unneeded startup daemons or redundant drivers. In Audacity I disabled every effect to eliminate the possibility of a misbehaving plugin. I may even go so far as deleting/moving every plugin in case that makes a difference, but I’m afraid it might affect my work so I’m hesitant to try that.


I tested a fresh install of Catalina on a different drive. Audacity works! But it’s incredibly choppy and sluggish. Plus, it’s no good since I can’t boot it off the drive where I need it, where all my audio work takes place.


Booting Audacity from the other drive (where it works) doesn’t work. I get the same errors.


I’ve seen a couple other users on here report identical problems, but they were never solved. This issue persists on every build, dev and stable, from 2.3.1 onwards (the first 64 bit build). Even with Gatekeeper completely disabled.


Audacity is my primary wave editor, so I’m desperate to get it working again.


Things still to try:

  • New user account
  • Delete/move all AU (component) plugins
  • Compile Audacity myself from source code
  • Bite the bullet and do a factory reset, migrate data back afterwards


    You can have a look at the full debug report here:
    https://drive.google.com/file/d/1k7B3R06F6YN8i_hhtC2Gs5lV6S939Bjb/view?usp=sharing


    Computer:
    iMac 27" 2019
    i5 9600
    40GB RAM
    AMD Radeon Pro 580X
    Catalina 10.15.5 Supplemental Update, running off an external SSD
    Focusrite 18i8 USB soundcard. There’s also a UAD-2 DSP accelerator connected if that’s relevant.


    I’ve done multiple malware scans, nothing fishy in Activity Monitor or daemons.


    Let me know if you spot anything that I haven’t!

Cheers
Shane

I have tried opening Audacity through Terminal (which has been granted Full Disk Access):

sudo open /applications/audacity.app/contents/macos/audacity

This spits out a bunch of error codes:

iMac2019:~ shane$ /Volumes/Macintosh\ HD\ -\ Data/Applications/Audacity.app/Contents/MacOS/Wrapper ; exit;
Attempting to connect to Audacity failed…retrying
||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Failed to open AUHAL component.||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Error on line 1263: err=‘-50’, msg=Unknown Error
||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| OpenStream @ 8000 returned: -9986: Internal PortAudio error
||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Failed to open AUHAL component.||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Error on line 1263: err=‘-50’, msg=Unknown Error
||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| OpenStream @ 9600 returned: -9986: Internal PortAudio error
||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Failed to open AUHAL component.||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Error on line 1263: err=‘-50’, msg=Unknown Error
||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| OpenStream @ 11025 returned: -9986: Internal PortAudio error
||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Failed to open AUHAL component.||PaMacCore (AUHAL)|| Error on line 1263: err=‘-50’, msg=Unknown Error

(continues for every sample rate)

This is strange because I use other audio apps (Logic/Sibelius) all the time with no issues.


The error appeared to be with PortAudio, so I compiled the latest version and installed it through Terminal. No change.

The big msytery is, what exactly is happening on line 1263? Maybe Audacity is trying to communicate with AUHAL?
Anyone able to shed light on what error -50 might actually entail?

Here is the Audio Device Info output:

==============================
Default recording device number: 3
Default playback device number: 2

Device ID: 0
Device name: HDMI to VGA
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 0
Playback channels: 2
Low Recording Latency: 0.01
Low Playback Latency: 0.0103855
High Recording Latency: 0.1
High Playback Latency: 0.0205442
Supported Rates:

Device ID: 1
Device name: Built-in Microphone
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 2
Playback channels: 0
Low Recording Latency: 0.00294785
Low Playback Latency: 0.01
High Recording Latency: 0.0131066
High Playback Latency: 0.1
Supported Rates:

Device ID: 2
Device name: Built-in Output
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 0
Playback channels: 2
Low Recording Latency: 0.01
Low Playback Latency: 0.0158957
High Recording Latency: 0.1
High Playback Latency: 0.0260544
Supported Rates:

Device ID: 3
Device name: Scarlett 18i8 USB
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 20
Playback channels: 8
Low Recording Latency: 0.01
Low Playback Latency: 0.00455782
High Recording Latency: 0.1
High Playback Latency: 0.0147166
Supported Rates:

Device ID: 4
Device name: BlackHole 16ch
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 16
Playback channels: 16
Low Recording Latency: 0.01
Low Playback Latency: 0.00145125
High Recording Latency: 0.1
High Playback Latency: 0.01161
Supported Rates:

Selected recording device: 3 - Scarlett 18i8 USB
Selected playback device: 4 - BlackHole 16ch
Supported Rates:


No sample rates are supported for any device. This is true even when I remove every external device and attempt to use the internal mic and speakers. Rescanned transport devices. I’ve tried uninstalling Focusrite Control and drivers in case they were creating a conflict (they weren’t). No dice.


Another thing: Audacity will not prompt for mic access. Out of desperation I injected Audacity into the mic permissions, but that didn’t help. I’m guessing, since AUHAL isn’t working at all, Audacity never gets far enough to even prompt for mic access.


Audacity launches, but if I try to play or record, I get a -9997 error (invalid sample rate). I’ve tried every sample rate combination under the sun in Audio MIDI Setup, it’s definitely not that.


Everything used to work on Mojave. After Catalina, Audacity started giving these errors. I have reset tcc.db, I have reinstalled macOS, and I have tried enabling/disabling SIP. I reset NVRAM and even codesigned Audacity myself, but it still doesn’t work!


I have a lot of AU plugins installed, so I went looking for any that might be causing trouble, but auvatool was happy with them all. I’ve removed any unneeded startup daemons or redundant drivers. In Audacity I disabled every effect to eliminate the possibility of a misbehaving plugin. I may even go so far as deleting/moving every plugin in case that makes a difference, but I’m afraid it might affect my work so I’m hesitant to try that.


I tested a fresh install of Catalina on a different drive. Audacity works! But it’s incredibly choppy and sluggish. Plus, it’s no good since I can’t boot it off the drive where I need it, where all my audio work takes place.


Booting Audacity from the other drive (where it works) doesn’t work. I get the same errors.


I’ve seen a couple other users on here report identical problems, but they were never solved. This issue persists on every build, dev and stable, from 2.3.1 onwards (the first 64 bit build). Even with Gatekeeper completely disabled.


Audacity is my primary wave editor, so I’m desperate to get it working again.


Things still to try:

Computer:
iMac 27" 2019
i5 9600
40GB RAM
AMD Radeon Pro 580X
Catalina 10.15.5 Supplemental Update, running off an external SSD
Focusrite 18i8 USB soundcard. There’s also a UAD-2 DSP accelerator connected if that’s relevant.


I’ve done multiple malware scans, nothing fishy in Activity Monitor or daemons.


Let me know if you spot anything that I haven’t!

Cheers
Shane

The current version of Audacity should be launched normally, not through the terminal. The current version is Audacity 2.4.1 and it is available via the Audacity website: Audacity ® | Download for Mac OS

Updating Audacity does not guarantee a solution to all problems, but it rules out a lot of problems caused by Apple’s new “notarization” requirements.

I’ve tried opening Audacity several ways:

  • Double clicking Audacity.app
  • via Terminal
  • Via Automator

I have tried most builds, dev and final from 2.3.1 through to 2.4.1.

Audacity is now notarized, which macOS.

spctl -a -v Audacity.app returns:

Audacity.app: accepted
override=security disabled

The issue isn’t with Gatekeeper, it’s more likely to be Portaudio related.

Today I created a new user account and Audacity does indeed work inside it.


When I logged back into my usual user account, Audacity was working (sort of). I get a flat line when recording, but Portaudio is now able to open successfully.


I also trashed a bunch of unnecessary .plists, removed some unused apps and .kexts. Not sure which of these actions caused Portaudio to come back to life, but something did.


My next mission is to fix the flatline when recording.

New Audio device log:

==============================
Default recording device number: 3
Default playback device number: 2
==============================
Device ID: 0
Device name: HDMI to VGA
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 0
Playback channels: 2
Low Recording Latency: 0.01
Low Playback Latency: 0.0103855
High Recording Latency: 0.1
High Playback Latency: 0.0205442
Supported Rates:
    8000
    9600
    11025
    12000
    15000
    16000
    22050
    24000
    32000
    44100
    48000
    88200
    96000
    176400
    192000
    352800
    384000
==============================
Device ID: 1
Device name: Built-in Microphone
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 2
Playback channels: 0
Low Recording Latency: 0.00294785
Low Playback Latency: 0.01
High Recording Latency: 0.0943764
High Playback Latency: 0.1
Supported Rates:
==============================
Device ID: 2
Device name: Built-in Output
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 0
Playback channels: 2
Low Recording Latency: 0.01
Low Playback Latency: 0.0158957
High Recording Latency: 0.1
High Playback Latency: 0.107324
Supported Rates:
    8000
    9600
    11025
    12000
    15000
    16000
    22050
    24000
    32000
    44100
    48000
    88200
    96000
    176400
    192000
    352800
    384000
==============================
Device ID: 3
Device name: Scarlett 18i8 USB
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 20
Playback channels: 8
Low Recording Latency: 0.01
Low Playback Latency: 0.00455782
High Recording Latency: 0.1
High Playback Latency: 0.0959864
Supported Rates:
    8000
    9600
    11025
    12000
    15000
    16000
    22050
    24000
    32000
    44100
    48000
    88200
    96000
    176400
    192000
    352800
    384000
==============================
Device ID: 4
Device name: BlackHole 16ch
Host name: Core Audio
Recording channels: 16
Playback channels: 16
Low Recording Latency: 0.01
Low Playback Latency: 0.00145125
High Recording Latency: 0.1
High Playback Latency: 0.01
Supported Rates:
    8000
    9600
    11025
    12000
    15000
    16000
    22050
    24000
    32000
    44100
    48000
    88200
    96000
    176400
    192000
    352800
    384000
==============================
Selected recording device: 1 - Built-in Microphone
Selected playback device: 2 - Built-in Output
Supported Rates:
    8000
    9600
    11025
    12000
    15000
    16000
    22050
    24000
    32000
    44100
    48000
    88200
    96000
    176400
    192000
    352800
    384000
==============================
Available mixers:
==============================
Available recording sources:
0 - Internal Microphone
==============================
Available playback volumes:
0 - PCM
==============================
Recording volume is native
Playback volume is native

You could simplify your audio setup by removing that BlackHole virtual device if you’re not using it. “Simplifying” can be a useful diagnostic technique when troubleshooting a problem.

I have exactly the same problem. Did you solve it?

As you can see, the original poster has a very complex audio system. Unless you setup is identical, it would be better to start a new topic and provide comprehensive details about your setup.