Problems With Pci Cards On My G5 Options

[thegrapeguy]

I have been having random system wide freezeups on my G5 2.7 purchased as a refurb from Apple store.com back in late March. Other crazy symptoms are Logic Pro freezing, ie - application freezes, and various funky glitches while recording and then stopping playback. I have had the computer put through a battery of diagnostics at my local Apple store and all components, RAM (4.5GB), 3 hard drives (the Mac HD, the audio hard drive mounted internally and a Lacie firewire 800 drive for the Ivory samples), the computer itself, optical drive - all come up perfectly sound.
Using my Apple Care technicians instructed me to elliminate one by one my peripherals which include the Mackie Control Universal, Motu Micro Express Midi Interface, Ivory Grand Piano Software, my Korg Triton, and in the beginning my Echo Mia PCI card. Oh yeh and Logic Pro 7.2 was removed to see if that was the problem.
The only thing that caused the problems to stop was the removal of the Echo Mia card. Also tried changing it to a different slot to no avail. So the Echo tech support was contacted and even though they refused to believe that their card was the problem they took it back. So since the Mac 1/8 inch inputs and outputs are anything but professional filled with groundloops, beeping and hums I did a forum search on many differnet forums to find a card that would fit my needs inexpensively until I finally get the Apogee Ensemble that I'm waiting for. The same name came up for bringing audio into a Mac via the PCIX slot for a small sum of money - ESI Juli@. Many people said this was a quality unit with a good track record for being used on a G5. I have the most updated drivers from the ESI company. Darned if I'm not discovering the same freezeups and glitches with this card.
I have come to understand that these cards should work in my computer, hassle free. I have a G5 2.7 with supposedly 3 PCIX slots. What am I doing wrong here? Are there voltage issues here?

This post has been edited by thegrapeguy: Sat 10 Jun 2006, 22:38

[lepetitmartien]

If the issues ceased when a precise peripheral is kept out of the config, there's something wrong with it, either the peripheral itself (buggy or something is out of order at random), or it's the driver that is buggy, or it the cables, or it's a combo of multiple causes…

Before my G5 decided to not boot at all, I've had freezes at random for more than 2 months blaming it on the OS, then Adobe, then the SETI@Home, then the RAM and right now it's certainly the motherboard having a component fishy…

If with the ESI (I don't know it so can't tell about) you have the same freezes… time to look elsewhere. Check my G5 is Out of order thread (in mac and peripherals) for RAM testing. Do an extended test in Single User Mode. You can zap the PRAM, reset the PMU/SMU (depending of your G5 model), reset the nvram, to clear faulty setting around, but your technician must have done that already.

I'm thinking too… are you using the front firewire port, if so, try not to, it is behaving strangely (even dangerously for peripherals).

Have you thoroughly cleaned up caches and prefs files too in case?

If you have a multimeter, test the lithium battery in place, it should be around 3.6V, if it's below 3.2, change it.

Keep us on file if the freezes come back, we'll try to decipher them… And I hope you don't start the same s…t I'm into right now!