14 Troubleshooting

Most problems show a message in the app. This chapter lists those messages, what they mean, and what to do.

14-1 No sound

1. Choose Preferences ▸ Audio Settings…. The Audio tab opens.
2. Look at Playback Status. It shows the device in use, its sample rate, its buffer and its latency.
   • If it reads Nothing: the output couldn't be opened, Dawesome has no output. Choose another device under Output, or System default.
3. Check that Output names the device you are listening on. A saved device that is unplugged is shown as (not connected).
4. Click Refresh devices after plugging a device in, to list it.
5. Check the mixer: a muted track, a soloed other track, or a fader at the bottom gives silence. See Mixer.

Messages you may see at the top of the Audio tab:

Message	Meaning
The saved audio output couldn't be used (…), so the system default is playing instead	The device saved last time is gone, or won't take the saved buffer size. Pick a device again.
The audio output couldn't be opened: there's no audio output device	The computer reports no output at all. Connect or enable one.
…there's no audio output named '…'	The chosen device isn't connected.
The audio settings are in use, but couldn't be saved for next time: …	Playback works, but the settings file couldn't be written. See 14-5.

NOTE

Changing the output or buffer size pauses playback and stops any recording in progress.

14-2 Crackling or dropouts

Crackles mean the computer can't fill the audio buffer in time.

1. Open Preferences ▸ Audio Settings….
2. Under Buffer size, choose a bigger buffer (for example 512 or 1024 frames). Each choice shows its length in milliseconds.

A bigger buffer adds delay between pressing play and hearing sound. A smaller one responds faster but needs more of the computer.

If the tab says Set to N, but device won't go lower than M, the device is using a bigger buffer than you asked for. If it says 'device' can't use a buffer of N frames, that size isn't one the device accepts; choose another, or Device default.

Plugins also add work. Bypassing or removing heavy effects reduces crackling.

14-3 A plugin isn't listed, or won't load

Dawesome hosts VST3 plugins only. It looks for them in the standard VST3 folders (see Specifications).

The plugin isn't in the Effects browser

1. Open the Effects page of the sidebar.
2. If it reads No VST3 effects found (or instruments), the list under Looked in: shows the folders that were searched. Install the plugin's .vst3 into one of them.
3. Click the rescan button beside the search field to look again.

Each plugin is scanned in a separate process, so a plugin that crashes can't take Dawesome down. Plugins that fail are listed at the bottom under Couldn't be read (N), with the reason:

Reason	Meaning
crashed while being scanned	The plugin crashed when opened.
didn't finish scanning in 15 seconds	The plugin hung.
the scanner failed (exit code N)	The scanner reported an error.

Rescanning tries these again.

The plugin is listed but won't load

The message names the plugin and the reason, for example:

• … can't run at N Hz — the plugin doesn't support your output's sample rate. Choose an output running at another rate.
• … can't process 32-bit audio, … has no audio output — the plugin can't be used by Dawesome.

Plugin windows on Windows and Linux

Opening a plugin's own interface shows Plugin windows aren't supported on this system yet. Plugin editors open on macOS only in this version.

A project's plugins are missing

When a project uses a plugin that isn't installed, a banner says These plugins aren't installed, so their effects are passing sound straight through (their settings are kept). Install the plugin and open the project again.

14-4 A project won't open

When a project can't be opened, nothing in the open project changes, and a banner reads Couldn't open the project: … followed by the reason:

Reason	Meaning
could not open '…'	The file is missing, or you don't have permission to read it.
not a valid project file	The file isn't a Dawesome project, or it is damaged.
this project was saved by a newer version of dawesome (format N, this version reads up to M)	Update Dawesome.
the project's tempo (…) is out of range	The tempo saved in the file is outside 1–1000 BPM.
the project's time signature (…) is invalid	The file's time signature has a zero in it.

Clips are missing after opening

If some samples can't be found, the project still opens and a banner lists them: N clips were left out because their samples couldn't be loaded. Each line gives the file's path and the reason. Samples inside the project's folder are saved relative to it, so move the whole project folder together. Samples outside it are saved by their full path.

Clips from an older version were left out

When a project from an earlier version of Dawesome is opened, pattern clips that played nothing (past their pattern's end) are left out, and a banner says so:

Banner	Meaning
1 empty pattern clip from an older version was left out: it played nothing	One such clip was dropped.
N empty pattern clips from an older version were left out: they played nothing	N such clips were dropped.

Nothing you could hear is lost. See 7-8 Patterns from older versions.

I need my project as it was before the update

When an older project is first saved in the new format, Dawesome keeps a copy of the original beside it as <name>.v3.dawesome (v1 or v2 for the oldest formats). Open that copy in an older version, or rename it to get the old file back. See 4-5-3.

Close a banner with ×.

14-5 Where settings and messages are

Dawesome keeps its settings in a dawesome folder in your system's settings folder:

System	Folder
macOS	~/Library/Application Support/dawesome/
Windows	%APPDATA%\dawesome\
Linux	~/.config/dawesome/

File	Holds
preferences.json	Appearance, themes, where plugins open
audio-settings.json	Output and input devices, buffer size, recording offset
plugins.json	The list of plugins found, and those that failed
recent-projects.json	File ▸ Open Recent

A missing or unreadable file is treated as the defaults, so deleting one resets that part of Dawesome. Quit Dawesome first.

NOTE

Deleting plugins.json makes Dawesome scan every plugin again at next launch.

Messages

Dawesome doesn't write a log file. It prints messages (the audio device it opened, plugin scan problems, themes that failed) to standard output. To see them, start Dawesome from a terminal:

/Applications/Dawesome.app/Contents/MacOS/Dawesome