Audacity won't launch

[shinypouch]

Hi,

When I launch Audacity I receive the following error message.

"Pro-53 Native Instruments cannot find the default file def.p5a. Please locate the file in order to use the default presets"

I am unable to get past this error message, the message remains even when clicking ok. Audacity never launches.

Further investigation reveals that this error message is common for users of Pro-53. However, Pro-53 had been working perfectly for years. This error message only appeared the first time I tried to launch Audacity 1.3.14.

I uninstalled Pro-53 but I still get the error message. I've uninstalled and re-installed Audacity several times and I still get the error message. And Audacity will not launch, and the only way to close is to force quit.

Any suggestions welcome, even if there is a workaround.

Many thanks, Simon

[billw58]

Try this:
Go to <your home>/Library/Application Support/audacity.
In that folder, trash the file plugins.cfg.

Also, make sure there are no copies of Pro-53 anywhere.

-- Bill

[shinypouch]

Hi Bill,

Thanks for getting back. I don't seem to have a folder "Audacity" in the "Application Support" folder!

Is this the file directory for a PC? I should have said I'm running Mac OS X 10.5.8. Where would the equivalent file be on my mac?

Cheers, Simon

[Gale Andrews]

I don't seem to have a folder "Audacity" in the "Application Support" folder!

Mac OS X 10.5.8. Where would the equivalent file be on my mac?

@Simon, the directory is as Bill stated:
<your home>/Library/Application Support/audacity

Please recheck. It is unusual for Audacity not to have created the "audacity" folder. If it really does not exist, force quit Audacity, create an "audacity" folder inside "<your home>/Library/Application Support", then paste the attached "audacity.txt" file into that "audacity" folder. Rename the file to "audacity.cfg" (without quotes) then launch 1.3.14. That .cfg file disables VST and Audio Unit plug-ins which may or may not help.

Is Pro-53 Native Instruments an Audio Unit or VST plug-in? Presumably you want to keep using that?


Gale

[shinypouch]

@Gale

Apologies, you were quite right, there is an "Audacity" folder at "<your home>/Library/Application Support/audacity".

I trashed the "plugins.cfg" and re-installed. The install got stuck on finding Pro-53 VST files. See attached image.

I'm assumed that even though I uninstalled pro-53 these remaining remnants blocked the Audacity install. So I trashed these pro-53 files, reinstalled Audacity and it works.

However, I'd like to re-install Pro-53. Can you advise how I might get Pro-53 and Audacity to work together?

Thanks for your help so far.

Cheers, Simon

[steve]

You probably can't use Pro-53 in Audacity as it looks pretty clear that Audacity was choking on it.

The most simple workaround is to disable VST support in Audacity and then re-install Pro-53.
To check that VST is disabled in Audacity, open Audacity and go into Preferences (from the Audacity menu), then go to the "Effects" section and disable the VST options.
Close and restart Audacity to ensue that the settings are saved. You should then be able to re-install Pro-53 without it affecting Audacity.

[Gale Andrews]

You probably can't use Pro-53 in Audacity as it looks pretty clear that Audacity was choking on it.

The most simple workaround is to disable VST support in Audacity and then re-install Pro-53.
To check that VST is disabled in Audacity, open Audacity and go into Preferences (from the Audacity menu), then go to the "Effects" section and disable the VST options.
Close and restart Audacity to ensue that the settings are saved. You should then be able to re-install Pro-53 without it affecting Audacity.

Pro-53 is a VST instrument so I am not clear if Audacity would work with its separate FX component or not. According to Native Instruments "the FX.vst allows external audio to be processed through the filter and effects of Pro-53":
http://www.native-instruments.com/forum ... hp?t=11860 .

Did you use the audacity.cfg I attached? If not, then now you have run Audacity and it completed its VST scan, it will not find Pro-53 after you reinstall it unless you explicitly go to the Effects Preferences in Audacity, check "Rescan VST Effects..." and restart. So if you want other VST effects in Audacity than Pro-53 you can have them, until you rescan.

If Audacity recognises Pro-53 FX as a VST effect, then due to a fix we made since 1.3.14 was released there is a chance that the next Audacity version, 2.0.0:
http://audacity.googlecode.com/files/au ... 0.0rc2.dmg

will not choke on Pro-53. Please let us know if you try 2.0.0 and Audacity chokes on Pro-53 so we can look into it. If this happens, you could force quit Audacity and use the modified "audacity.cfg" as already advised to make Audacity launch without VST and Audio Unit support. If you wanted VST support or Audio Unit support having got Audacity going again then please ask.

Thanks,



Gale