Traveller (mk1) with M1 Macs (Big Sur)

[mikehalloran]

Hello Yann Le Bihan
thanks for your post, I just wanted to ask if your traveller is being powered ok via the adapters? or are you using the power adapter.
I have a Traveller Mk3 and an M1 macbook pro with 10.17 on the way. so I'm preparing myself.

The TB2–TB3 adapter cannot pass bus power. You must use an external power supply.

[Yann Le Bihan]

Sorry I'm late, didn't see your message. As you probably found out when you Mac arrived, it works well - at least is does on my setup. I have yet to test it for very long sessions, but have been able to record several multitrack songs at 48kHz and smallest latency settings in Logic (32 sample) with just the thunderbolt/firewire adapters connected and the "Firewire bus power enable" switch turned on.

Hello Yann Le Bihan
thanks for your post, I just wanted to ask if your traveller is being powered ok via the adapters? or are you using the power adapter.
I have a Traveller Mk3 and an M1 macbook pro with 10.17 on the way. so I'm preparing myself!

[cake101]

Hello,
Using a MBP intel Big Sur. MOTU Interfaces are powered by adapter.
I managed to get two Traveler Mk 1s running with the 828 mk3 Hybrid driver.
I also have a Focusrite Saffire Pro 14 which ran on Focusrite driver and adapter.

I did not use the interfaces bar testing after installing the drivers as I usually use another computer with the interfaces.
I went back about a month after to check, as I managed to pick up a cheap Ultralite Mk 3 (the hybrid version - uses the same driver).
Nothing worked, including the Pro 14.
Installing and uninstalling didn't change a thing.

I thought it could have been due to a recent update of Big Sur. So, I installed Big Sur onto an external SSD and installed the drivers.
The interfaces showed up bar the Ultralite.
The Pro 14 worked too.

Later that day, I decided to check again. I ran into the same issue. None of the MOTU interfaces show up.
The Pro 14 does though.

Returning back to the internal drive, I checked the Pro 14 after reinstalling the driver and it did not work. One thing I did notice was the LED light came on showing FireWire was connected just as the computer shut down. That light does not show up otherwise (on the external drive it shows up as that drive sees it).
The interfaces do connect for bus power even though they do not show up on the computer.

Has anyone got any ideas what is going on and how to fix it?
Could it be a permissions issue?

Thanks.

[mikehalloran]

Hello,
Using a MBP intel Big Sur. MOTU Interfaces are powered by adapter.
I managed to get two Traveler Mk 1s running with the 828 mk3 Hybrid driver.
I also have a Focusrite Saffire Pro 14 which ran on Focusrite driver and adapter.

I did not use the interfaces bar testing after installing the drivers as I usually use another computer with the interfaces.
I went back about a month after to check, as I managed to pick up a cheap Ultralite Mk 3 (the hybrid version - uses the same driver).
Nothing worked, including the Pro 14.
Installing and uninstalling didn't change a thing.

I thought it could have been due to a recent update of Big Sur. So, I installed Big Sur onto an external SSD and installed the drivers.
The interfaces showed up bar the Ultralite.
The Pro 14 worked too.

Later that day, I decided to check again. I ran into the same issue. None of the MOTU interfaces show up.
The Pro 14 does though.

Returning back to the internal drive, I checked the Pro 14 after reinstalling the driver and it did not work. One thing I did notice was the LED light came on showing FireWire was connected just as the computer shut down. That light does not show up otherwise (on the external drive it shows up as that drive sees it).
The interfaces do connect for bus power even though they do not show up on the computer.

Has anyone got any ideas what is going on and how to fix it?
Could it be a permissions issue?

Thanks.

This has to be done within 20 minutes of installing the drivers. If you miss the window, reinstall the drivers and do it again.

https://motu.com/techsupport/technotes/ ... igh-sierra

[cake101]

Hello,
I did it straight away on all occasions as I remembered your post on that before.
I also checked Security and Privacy after installing again.
One thing I noticed was there was no option to allow the drivers again, the other times I did it.
Is there a way to reset this, I wonder?
Perhaps delete everything on the computer that is a MOTU file. I also noticed deleting the drivers even using something like Clean My Mac, does not delete everything MOTU related, off the computer.
Thanks.

[cake101]

I managed to get it working.
I deleted everything MOTU related bar kext files which would needed a deeper dive into the system (could have tried deleting those files in Target mode from another mac apparently).
Whether that was the reason it worked, of course, I don't know.
I looked at the drivers and noticed there was version 828 mk3 hybrid 88494 for Mac OS 11.
I installed that, which gave me the option in Security and Privacy.
I got the interfaces - two Traveler Mk 1s and and Ultralite Mk3 showing up together and working.
Regarding the Focusrite Saffire Pro 14 I have, I deleted all files apart from Kext and installed an earlier version of what I had installed.
When I started the computer (it has no on/off power switch) the FW light showed up thankfully. But the driver would not work, as it informed me to update to the latest driver. Which I did and got to the Security and Privacy option again, and it installed. I ran it and the interface works.
Tried it all the day after a couple of times.
Hopefully, it will continue to work.
I am on an Intel mac using Big Sur if that helps anyone.
Cheers.

[James Steele]

Glad to hear you got it working!

[Woundstring]

Has anybody got the traveler mk1 working with M1 Mac Studio or m2 pro mini?

Sorry to ask this as it seems to have been kind of confirmed but not totally clear.

(For anyone it’s useful for, I got travelor mk1 working in Big Sur on an intel i7 iMac early 2015 using the latest MOTU audio installer just recently).

[mikehalloran]

Ignore the admonition that this “only works on the listed drivers”

https://motu.com/techsupport/technotes ... audio-inst

[Woundstring]

Ignore the admonition that this “only works on the listed drivers”

https://motu.com/techsupport/technotes ... audio-inst

I don’t own an M1 Mac or m2 yet, but asking as I’m considering buying one and wondering if I’ll still be able to use traveler mk1?

[mikehalloran]

Ignore the admonition that this “only works on the listed drivers”

https://motu.com/techsupport/technotes ... audio-inst

I don’t own an M1 Mac or m2 yet, but asking as I’m considering buying one and wondering if I’ll still be able to use traveler mk1?

Did you read the rest of this thread?

If the unit is functioning correctly

If you use the correct cables and adapters

If you download and install the correct drivers

If you follow MOTU's instructions for allowing Apple Security to let the drivers work (different for Big Sur, Monterey and Ventura)

If you use external, not bus power

It should work just fine.

[Woundstring]

Ignore the admonition that this “only works on the listed drivers”

https://motu.com/techsupport/technotes ... audio-inst

I don’t own an M1 Mac or m2 yet, but asking as I’m considering buying one and wondering if I’ll still be able to use traveler mk1?

Did you read the rest of this thread?

If the unit is functioning correctly

If you use the correct cables and adapters

If you download and install the correct drivers

If you follow MOTU's instructions for allowing Apple Security to let the drivers work (different for Big Sur, Monterey and Ventura)

If you use external, not bus power

It should work just fine.

I did read it, about 4 times I think, and I found, I think, only one person saying they got it working using a traveler mk1 with m1 Mac, and another person responding and I got confused as I thought they said they’d done it on an intel at the end of their response rather than m1…plus a few muddled ‘drivers’ instead of hardware wordings.

The rest saying they had an intel Mac or those with a traveler mk3 saying they couldn’t get that working earlier in the thread.
I assume they missed the driver security and/or wrong driver?

So, it’s good to read a clear ‘it works’ for traveler mk1 on m1 studio mac response before buying it. Thank you.

[mikehalloran]

The rest saying they had an intel Mac or those with a traveler mk3 saying they couldn’t get that working earlier in the thread.
I assume they missed the driver security and/or wrong driver?

So, it’s good to read a clear ‘it works’ for traveler mk1 on m1 studio mac response before buying it. Thank you.

Not many people own a Traveller 1. MOTU's company policy is to not provide support for devices no longer in production—some employees bend that but it can't be counted on.

That said, there are many supported devices that use the same drivers. Get any one working and they all work. We aren't MOTU so we can post this info.

Driver Supports
MOTU Audio Installer
Mac v89555 | Oct. 13, 2021
macOS 13, macOS 12, macOS 11

MOTU Audio Installer
PC v92178 | Sept. 28, 2022
Windows 11, Windows 10 64-bit

There has been thread after thread after thread after… where people either didn't read or didn't understand how to enable the drivers after installing on a Mac. That the procedure is not the same for Intel and AS Macs doesn't help nor does the fact that Ventura changed things again. MOTU has not released a comprehensive support doc that addresses every scenario.

Windows has its own issues. Quite often, drivers that make some things work get in the way of others.

[artfarm1]

Great thread, thanks to all! These are all questions I've been pondering.

I'm still using my original TrvlerMK1 as well, and will be upgrading computers/OSX in the near future.

Has been rock solid on High Sierra for years, but I the time has come to move on for sure.

(....am still envious of others being able to use the dedicated Reverb chip that MOTU implemented in their interfaces only a year or two later than the introduction of the good old TrvlMK1 ! I'll probably get a newer/used MOTU interface while I'm at it!)

[HCMarkus]

About that built in reverb...

It is nothing to get excited about. More explicitly: IMO, the built in reverb stinks. Much better results using an external box. If your interface has an unused pair of SPDIF jacks, they work great for reverb send/return. I have an old Lexicon box connected that way, clocked to my 828ES, just like I did with my 828mkII.