Thunderbolt will no longer recognize audio interface

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Thunderbolt will no longer recognize audio interface

Hi all,

I recently ran into an issue with my Focusrite Clarett 8Pre X thunderbolt audio interface no longer being recognized by my iMac. The iMac is a 2015 model with no previous issues whatsoever until now.

I had been running on Catalina since it shipped with no issues, but two nights ago my computer automatically updated to Catalina 10.15.6, and ever since that update, my audio interface won't show up whatsoever on my computer; not in the sound preferences, nor in the system report under hardware. Thunderbolt ports show no connections.

I've tried a different cable, I've installed the latest drivers (and Focusrite control) from the Focusrite website, I've even reset SMC and PRAM multiple times. The interface turns on just fine, but the computer simply won't recognize it. I've been in contact with Focusrite Costumer support for two days at the time of this post, and they can't seem to figure out the issue either. It doesn't seem to be a hardware issue since the device is powering on just fine.

I ran a system diagnostics to see if the computer had any issues with the thunderbolt ports, and everything came back clear with no issues. I'm completely lost.

Please, any insight into this unfortunate dilemma would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Posted on Jul 22, 2020 1:53 PM

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Answer 1

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Reflect10n90 Author

Level 1

21 points

Jul 27, 2020 4:00 PM in response to DaSwedeboy

SOLVED!

So it ended up being a thunderbolt port issue on the Mac and not an external device problem. I tried another thunderbolt device to come to this conclusion.

After a chat with an apple support rep, I was instructed to boot the Mac into recovery mode and reinstall Catalina. Should take about a half hour. Then after the Mac restarted I reset PRAM one more time and everything works again! Hopefully that works for you too!

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Answer 2

Jul 27, 2020 2:21 PM in response to Reflect10n90

I have a very similar problem, but with an Apogee Element 88 on a late 2015 iMac. I am 99% certain the problem started after update from 10.15.5 to 10.15.6.

The interface is recognized normally when connected to my 2011 MacBook Pro running Mac OS 10.13, so it's not the interface nor the cable that's the culprit.

The only way to use the interface is by powering it on and then rebooting the iMac. It is then recognized and behaves normally. If it is later powered off and then back on, it will not be recognized until the iMac is rebooted. It's a bit annoying having to reboot so often and is indicative of an underlying problem.

Apogee tech support haven't been able to solve the problem. Apple support suggested I reinstall Mac OS, which I did, but it did not solve anything. I've tried all the usual troubleshooting steps to no avail.

I'm afraid we are stuck until Apple recognizes that they broke something with 10.15.6 and fixes it.

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